Originally Posted by
endurance
I think my word for it was "my early 20's". When I read the Chris McLandess story I shuddered at some of my close calls because I'd made some similar choices at one point. I dropped out of college, packed up my CRX, and went on a road trip. I had camping gear with me and a rough idea of the places I wanted to go, but I also left a broad margin in my meanderings. I nearly froze in the mountains above Los Alamos, hiked the Grand Canyon with a girl I met on the rim, slept in hotel lobbies in Las Vegas while regaining the weight I'd lost in the buffets, and on the drive home, applied for my first job with the Forest Service as a wilderness crew member. From there, I lived in the bunk house or on the trail for my first season, then lived in a run down travel trailer I picked up (after totalling my CRX and buying a pick up).
Anyway, enjoy your adventure. Personally, I'd ditch the blog and journal instead. You want to be able to record thoughts that aren't for public viewing. Blogs distort reality for both the author and the reader.
Bring some Thoreau (Walden) and Abbey (Desert Solitare and the Monkey Wrench Gang) and try to learn more than you try to teach. Talk with at least one person once a week for more than 20 minutes. Campground hosts are the best, as they enjoy listening and are a little out there themselves. Blogging and e-mail is not talking. You need semi-normal strangers, as they will shape your reality in ways you never imagined.
Buy a SPOT and activate it with your mother/sister/high school best friend as your contact and check in with an OK every 24 hours. You'll be a lot safer with that as your comm device than a cell phone or e-mail.