Questing

This section includes posts on travel quests, both tutorials as well as updates on my own progress. You might also be interested in my tutorial on adopting a quest, or a listing of my own quests, or about my #GoQuesting directory.

• Writing a book about “all the [blank]?”May 30, 2024
  I’m a big fan of travel quests—a goal of visiting a particular set of places, usually one that involves “visiting all the ________________.” ➡️ Here are some of my own … Read more
• The story of my epic quest to visit all 419 National Park unitsMay 1, 2024
  This is a twitter thread I posted back in April 2022 outlining the story of my national parks quest. I haven’t changed much of the formatting, so this will resemble … Read more
• How to make driving across Texas more funDecember 30, 2021
  Our latest road trip required a long drive across Texas, a state I repeatedly wish I didn’t have to drive across. But if you live in Phoenix and your intended … Read more
• The only possible way to drive directly from Missouri to KentuckyMarch 18, 2021
  My questing buddy Tom Thrash and I both have a quest to cross all 107 state borders—the boundaries where two US states meet via a land or river crossing. → Check out #GoQuesting1006 for more … Read more
• How many countries are there?March 14, 2021
  You’d imagine that this would be a simple question to answer. But for many people with a quest to visit them all, it’s a much more complicated answer. The most … Read more
• Visiting America’s most obscure National MonumentAugust 22, 2019
  A “daytrip” flight to San Antonio to visit the Military Working Dog Teams National Monument.
• A Campfire Chat with Tom Thrash about QuestsFebruary 12, 2019
  A short videochat conversation about questing with Tom Thrash. This is the first in a series I’m calling “Campfire Chats.”
• Some 2019 travel goals for #NatureWritingChallengeJanuary 9, 2019
  A short post outlining two personal goals for 2019 for #NatureWritingChallenge, a weekly exercise to spend one hour writing about a specific outdoors topic.
• What I wish I knew before starting my national parks questMarch 18, 2018
  Travel quests are among the most powerful ways to get yourself out more. My personal national parks quest—visiting all 417 national park units in the country—has been the driving force … Read more
• Why you should adopt a personal travel questAugust 8, 2017
  I believe that travel quests are one of the best ways to inspire more travel. In fact, the original name of this blog was originally going to be VisitEveryPark.com—an ode … Read more
• #MyNationalParksMonth is my centennial celebration of the National ParksApril 28, 2016
  UPDATE: jump to a listing of what I’ve seen thus far.BIG NEWS: hear about the epic encore I’m currently!EVEN BIGGER NEWS: I’m now visiting 100 Parks in 100 Days Sorry—much of … Read more
• 2012 was among my best trip years yetDecember 31, 2012
  While I’ve had some amazing travel years, 2012 surprisingly ranks near the top. I made it to 39 national park units I had not yet visited, took my first big … Read more
• Pleasant surprises in the national parksDecember 29, 2009
  One of the things I’ve enjoyed most about my national park quest is that it pushes me to visit places I wouldn’t otherwise visit. It encourages me to step outside … Read more
• My new wilderness questJanuary 28, 2007
  Virtually everyone who knows me knows about my ongoing quest to visit every National Park Service site.  Well, I’ve decided to add a similar quest: visiting every designated wilderness area in Arizona.  … Read more