Well, lets change the pace a little.

          "Focus on the research," when I first see a syllabus for the first time I mark it up with any and everything important and meaningful that comes out of my instructors mouth. Those were the words that I missed when I started this blog. Because of that I had an amazing idea but a boring start. I was going to take a slow and boring path from Prudhoe Bay, through Alaska and Canada, and then possibly make it into Mexico by the time my English class ended. I've traveled that route before numerous times and I can name off the top places I would suggest you visit. But past experiences are only exiting if you did something amazing. After traveling these roads numerous times my stories are told in an increasingly boring manner.

          Another thing that I have been doing is so-so mapping out a trip through South America. That was a mistake and I only realized this recently. What I need to do is plan this trip for myself and hereby make it even more exiting when I do go on it. So I would like to say that I'm planning to go on this trip and my new focus is on the research of South America so I can make the trip and survive with as much comfort as possible. Also, forget the English class, I'll still hit all the deadlines that I need to but I plan on continuing my research until my theoretical self makes it back to the United States from Argentina.

          Now I only heard of a resource called kick-starter and I'm very optimistic about it. It's a community driven funding project that works towards funding artists and anyone can enter into it as long as their project is art focused. Now if I'm going to travel south I'm already going to document my trip. So if I can map out in detail my route and every funding need then I can ask for people to sponsor my trip and make a full video documenting it. I really want to go on this trip and if I can get fully funded to go on it then I will certainly go on it. Honestly, who can't resist a trip to the bottom of the world, especially after living on top of it for so long.

Works Cited

Chase, Mary. "Writing 121." First Day of Class. Portland Community College, Portland. 25 June 2013. Lecture. First day of class lecture for writing 121

"Kickstarter." Kickstarter. Kickstarter, n.d. Web. 28 July 2013. Fundraising for art projects

Surveying the Land

         During the past week I was able to make a short survey. I decided to ask 10 general questions that related to road trips and travel. I really wanted to know what people have done in the past and if they desired to travel in the future. My first question was how long of a road trip people have been on and out of the 30 people that responded, 17 had been on a road trip that was over 3000 miles long. The second question was what was their preferred mode of transport; third was how comfortable are you when you travel and don't speak the language; and fourth was what would be the worst condition you could camp in and most people said they could sleep under the stars without a tent. Fifth question was if you could survive without a Starbucks and 28 people said yes. I'm not sure if they understood that the 5th question was a joke.

         I also asked which continent people would like to see next and which wonder of the world they could see themselves going to. Then I also asked who would you take if you took someone with you on your vacation. I then asked two written questions that I got some really great responses to. One of them was the best trip you've ever been on. I got quite a few responses about trips to Europe as well as one that I just knew that my wife wrote; our honeymoon road trip through Canada. Lastly I really wanted to know exactly what hinders people from traveling. I know that for me money always stands in the way, otherwise I would be somewhere in Africa right now. As it turns out 23 people said that money stops them from traveling as well as having time to travel as well.

         Money is the big issue and I think it will always be that way unless I win the lottery (which may be difficult because I never buy tickets anyways.) So my plan for the next year is to actually look into signing up for credit cards that have mileage rewards as a beginning bonus and then cancel them after I get the miles. I've looked into it extensively and some people have approximately 12 cards at a time. So maybe soon I won't have to worry about money and my wife and I can travel for free. Wish me luck!

Works Cited

Henry, Wesley R. "Create Surveys. Get Answers." SurveyMonkey: Free Online Survey Software & Questionnaire Tool. Survey Monkey, n.d. Web. 20 July 2013. My personal Traveling survey

"The Credit Card Fly." The Credit Card Fly. The Credit Card Fly, n.d. Web. 20 July 2013. Credit card deals

The Dalton Highway

         The first part of the journey includes the Dalton Highway. This road goes from Prudhoe Bay Alaska, and goes to Fairbanks, Alaska. It is one of two roads in North America that cross the Arctic Circle with the other one being in Canada. It is 414 miles long and can be dreadfully cold in the winter. If you want to see where the Alaska Pipeline Started then this is the only road in that you can see it from. Also watch out for television cameras as you might just accidentally wind up on an episode of Ice Road Truckers. I myself have appeared in the background of one episode (my only claim to fame.)

        One of the interesting places is Coldfoot which boasts the worlds northernmost truck stop. You can stop by and get an interesting T-shirt with the picture of a foot on it. Then there's a wonderful little place called Prospect Creek. It boasts the coldest temperature ever recorded in the United States so I would suggest going during the summer months. When you reach Prudhoe Bay you actually can't go to see the beach without a tour guide because oil companies own most of the land. You can find food and shelter in Deadhorse which is the city right next to Prudhoe bay. That also boasts an interesting T-shirt as well (can you guess what's on it?) So that's the beginning of the long journey that is the Pan-American Highway. Next time we'll start down the path that is the ALCAN Highway which might take a while to complete as I've done it recently and have some good memories of it.

Works Cited

"Coldfoot." Travel Alaska. Travel Alaska, n.d. Web. 20 July 2013. Coldfoot information

The Dalton Highway. Digital image. Bureau of Land Management. Bureau of Land Management, n.d. Web. 20 July 2013. Dalton Highway map

"Danger at 55 Below." Ice Road Truckers. History. H, New York City, New York, 18 July 2010. Television. My television appearance

Molvar, Erik. Scenic Driving Alaska and the Yukon. Guilford, CT: Insiders' Guide, 2005. Print. Driving guide of Alaska

Hmm, Where Do I Begin?

          I saw a video on YouTube back in April of this year that had something I've always wanted to do. The maker of the video is named Alex Chacon and he went on a 500 day trip with the purpose to travel from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska down to the southern tip of Argentina. In the video the video clips skip around to different parts of the story with most of the video being from his point-of-view. He drives through the rain, snow and the sun as he drives over numerous types of terrain and meets different locals on his trip.

          I was born and raised in Fairbanks, Alaska and have driven between there and Portland, Oregon 4 times in the last 5 years. Now being Alaskan you live in an environment where most things that are good are over 100 miles away. When I was in high school my friends and I would get in a car and drive 300 miles south just to get an Arby's roast beef sandwich from Anchorage, Alaska. I grew up driving to where and what I wanted. As a child I also was privileged to have a father who worked on roads in Alaska and even was able to make a trip up to Prudhoe Bay, Alaska.

          My total mileage so far on the Pan-American Highway is approximately 4000 miles. I've made it all the way from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska down to Tijuana, Mexico. From looking at the map it seems that I've made it about 1/3 of the way for my journey to Argentina. My wife says that finishing this trip would be too dangerous with the people that I might encounter. But, I hope to find enough information that she might just let me go on it. Also, I would love to share my personal experience of the first 1/3 of the trip with the internet.

Works Cited

Chacon, Alex. "The Modern Motorcycle Diaries." YouTube. YouTube, 12 Apr. 2013. Web. 9 July 2013. Collage of one man’s Pan-American journey

"Google Maps." Google Maps. Google, 04 Aug. 2013. Web. 11 Aug. 2013. Google's mapping tool