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GLACIERS TO GEYSERS - A TALE OF FIRE AND ICE

Behind the Scenes of Off-Road Travel TV


Two years ago my son Wyatt and I took a 12-day road trip to the Bend Overland Expo in

Oregon that changed our lives. I had just sold a chain of indoor kart tracks called Pole Position

Raceway that I co-founded and was looking for adventure.


People standing in front of a helicopter on a glacier
The gang poses in front of the helicopter that flew them deep into the backcountry and onto a remote glacier

During the road trip with Wyatt, we sketched out the plans for the ultimate father-son

adventure. We both love off-road and he spends as much time as possible in his Sprinter van

chasing adventure. So, we started plotting a trip to Alaska and jotted down everything we

wanted to accomplish. First, we wanted to see as many cool locations as possible along the way.

We also wanted to see as as many State and National Parks that were realistic. We decided to setup a Toyota Tundra and 4Runner for overlanding, and then realized that it would be really cool to tow trailers and bring some friends along.

The project quickly grew to epic proportions and that’s when we decided to start Off-Road

Travel TV. For the first 20 years of my career, I was an international journalist covering

motorsports for Petersen Publishing and CN Publishing. I was the editor-in-chief of Dirt Rider, the world’s largest off-road motorcycle magazine. Petersen owned such iconic magazines as Motor Trend, Hot Rod, Petersen’s 4-Wheel & Off-Road, and at one time about 30 percent of the magazines on most newsstands.



During that time, I was fortunate enough to do off-road adventures in Australia, New Zealand,

France, Costa Rica, Peru, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Canada, Mexico and most of the United States.

When I oversaw Dirt Rider, I had two cable/satellite television shows for three years, and it was some of the best times of my life. Not because I cared about being on TV, but because of all the opportunities it created. So, my partner Mark MItchell and I worked a deal with the motorsports network MAVTV which is on over 350 million connected devices, and then things really evolved.

We spent the next year planning with Matt and Sarah Girgis along with Robert and Kathy

Parks. Matt and Sarah have been content creators for several years and have a well-built Ford Bronco Raptor. The Parks are both high school teachers and were Wyatt’s mountain bike coaches in high school.


A off-road truck driving past a remote waterfall
The scenery on this trip was amazing, around every corner there was always something to see

Along the way, we also met up with a variety of friends including Travis Arket (who made

some appearances on The Deadliest Catch), Catherina Bertolino (business owner & CEO),

Adrienne Alves (Wyatt’s girlfriend), Lynn, Sara and Sheldon Hodges (owners of Pro Moto

Billet) and RJ Zanon (Cali Raised Off-Road content creator and National Guard Blackhawk

helicopter pilot)

Wyatt and I were the only ones to do all 48 days and 8672 miles, kinda. On our way to Utah, we

blew the pinion seal in the 4Runner’s front differential and had to limp it back to California.

We started the trip in the southern California town of Corona and went to Skagway Alaska via

Oregon, Washington and Canada. Then returned home through a different region of Canada and

into Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Utah, Arizona and Nevada.

Once we got the 4Runner fixed, I went back with to Utah with Brandon Dore and twins Erin

and Danielle Gornik, to finish what we started, In all, during the summer of 2024, I travelled

11,124 miles in 61 days.


A person posing in front of a modified SUV
Modern professional camera equipment make a huge difference in the quality of video you can produce

I know it’s a cliché, but it not about the destination, it’s all about the journey and who you take along on the adventure. My focus was on my 20-year-old son and my quest to make as many memories as possible with him. I also wanted to experience things through his eyes and learn what matters to him. In a world of video games, social media, and staring at iPhones and Androids, I wanted to share my passion of travel with him so that he could really learn a lot.

To my surprise, one of the best things to happen to him were the relationships he formed while

building the vehicles. The first was Bernhard Leitner of Leitner Designs. The two became

friends and routinely would discuss random engineering opportunities and challenges at odd

times, like 11pm on a Sunday night. Wyatt also became friends with Adam and Royce Sullivan

from Otzi Gear who make a lot of innovative adventure products and excellent Sprinter Vans.

This summer I also got to watch Wyatt mature in front of my own eyes. He learned how to

handle the pressure of vehicles breaking down, bad weather, difficult terrain, changing plans,

priorities and how to make choices when new opportunities arise. He logged about 4800 miles

driving, learned how to back up a trailer in tight terrain, and lots about survival. He learned to

deal with pressure and how to appreciate small things more than ever before.



Although our focus is on off-road travel, we took a very real approach. You see, overlanding is

typically regulated by how much food, water and fuel you can carry. Our goal was to be able to go dispersed camping for 4 or 5 days, which is very realistic, and then hit a grocery store and a normal campground so we can charge batteries, dump septic, add water and use their showers.

This logical plan worked out, especially with our quest to visit as many State and National Parks as possible.

We also used mostly solar power on our trucks and trailers, but did carry along some generators for backup. After all, we had to charge a lot of camera and computer equipment (which increases the battery draw). We also did a lot of camping in forests which can block a lot of sunlight. For the record, forests also make using Starlink a challenge since it can be difficult to get a clear view of the sky. When we did have good service, Starlink loved to eat away at our battery power in exchange for excellent internet.

We were also very fortunate to have the element of timing to plan appropriately. A lot of the tourist areas can sell out quickly, and dispersed camping isn’t always available. We did use apps like iOverlander.com and thedyrt.com for planning and a combination of OnX, Google apps and Garmin for navigation.


Beautiful aerial shot of vehicles on a forest trail
We were able to go far off the beaten path and discover some incredible trails and campsites

Since we were in bear territory for over three weeks, we also had to use IGBC-approved storage containers, and we chose Pelican for our cold storage and Zarges for our dry foods. If you have to kill a bear in the United States or Canada, the penalties can be incredibly severe, so we were prepared. We also carried bear spray, a shotgun and rifle for protection, and yes, we did have several encounters with wildlife. Nothing that put us in harm’s way, but close enough that it reminded us to be smart.

One of the best moves we made was carrying along two-way radios, both permanently mounted in the vehicles and hand-held. There was about 2500 miles of our trip where it was difficult to make calls even with high-tech devices like WeBoost. Simply put, there are a lot of parts of Western Canada and Alaska that don’t have many if any cell towers.

Fuel was a little challenging at times for the same reason: not many gas stations in the northern part of the continent, and what few gas stations there are, mostly carry low-grade fuels. So, if you need high octane, you might consider carrying along an additive. We also carried a lot of extra fuel! For example, on my Tundra with an Opus OP15 trailer, we carried an extra 16 gallons in Wavian metal cans and plastic Rotopax, and we did have to use it occasionally.



During our trip, there were over 600 wildfires in Canada, and some on our way to Yellowstone,

so we had to take detours often.

We also used the internet for most of our planning and reached out to a lot of new and old

friends on social media for suggestions. We can’t emphasize enough the power of local

knowledge when it comes to activities, places to camp, grocery stores and good places to eat.

This saved us a lot of time and really helped out with the trip.

What really made this an adventure is the fact that we drove purpose-built off-road vehicles that allowed us to hit some really unique camping spots. We went to places that vans and

motorhomes simply couldn’t fit into because of their size, and many places that required four-

wheel drives with higher ground clearance. We specifically wanted to camp in remote places

where we could be all alone, and we accomplished that goal several times. It’s an incredible feeling to have absolute silence and experience pitch black nights, especially with family and friends.


An off-road vehicle splashing through water
We were always looking for an excuse to unhook the trailers and do some serious off-roading!

We also chased weather, meaning we made modifications to our plans based on rain and hot

temperatures. Our trip started in June and went into August, and we encountered more

thunderstorms than expected. This made the adventures a lot more fun, and it really didn’t have any negative impact because we were prepared.

Taking the trailers allowed us to carry a lot more gear than normal. One of the biggest

challenges with overland vehicles is gross vehicle weight. When you add things like heavy duty bumpers, cargo boxes, winches, skid plates, batteries and power management system, larger tires, recovery gear, etc., its real easy to exceed the maximum capabilities of your vehicle.

Realistically, the trailers were the best option for our unique challenges of producing eight half hour television episodes.

We also subscribe to the theory that there is no perfect vehicle. We also start each project by

looking at the goals of the adventure, and then look at our choices. In Zimbabwe and Botswana,

I rode about 600 miles of off-road on a motorcycle with only food, water and some tools, because we had support vehicles. The same has held true for me in Baja and Peru. But along this trip, we had no support vehicles and had to carry everything. Because we wanted to ride UTVs and dirt bikes, we met up with friends and/or rented things like a boat in Montana. In the end, we couldn’t have been happier with our choice of vehicles.



It is also important to note that Off-Road Travel TV takes an editorial approach to its content.

We didn’t receive any paid sponsors for our trip and used a variety of competitor products. For

OP15, Hiker Extreme Off-Road trailers. Four trailers from four different manufacturers.

And if we did choose to use one brand of products on most or all our vehicles, it’s because we believe it’s the best. This allows us to tell our audience about what works and what does not.

If there was anything that we would change about our trip, it would be to give ourselves more time at each location. Although we had monthly planning meetings, we thought the average of 200 miles a day would be sufficient, but it proved to be too much considering all the off-road driving and the activities that we did. Realistically, it would have been nice to extend the trip another two weeks, but lesson learned.


THINGS WE WOULD DO DIFFERENTLY


-Take more time: We had an aggressive schedule that made for long days. We missed

opportunities

-More vehicle maintenance: Our vehicles took a beating on this trip. And even though we

changed engine oil, rotated the tires, and fixed a variety of small items, we always felt we could

do more. Having additional time on the trip would have helped us in this area.

-Pack less. We overpacked, because we felt like we had a lot of room by pulling purpose-built

off-road trailers. We could have easily reduced the amount of personal items we carried by

about 30% without any negative effects.


-TOP 23 ADVENTURES OF THE TRIP


1. Helicopter Dogsledding. We arranged to rent a helicopter from Temsco Helicopters in

Skagway, Alaska instead of taking one of their hugely popular tours. This gave us the freedom

and flexibility to go wherever we wanted, and it was a bucket list item. We flew to a glacier and

got to go dogsledding in an incredibly remote area.


People posing in front of a dogsled team in Alaska
Flying in by helicopter to go dogsledding on a glacier was a true once-in-a-lifetime experience

2. Private Plane Flight to Glacier National Park. I’m a private pilot and arranged to rent a

small Cessena 206 from Red Eagle Aviation in Kalispell, Montana. One of my best friends,

Catherina Bertolino, and I flew around Glacier National Park and even landed in the back

country on a remote grass landing strip. It was incredible and only a private flight in Bora Bora

was more epic in my mind.

3. Dispersed Camping in Utah. One of our friends tipped us off to an amazing spot on a

remote lake to go dispersed camping but made us promise to keep it a secret. The place was

surreal, and the weather during summer was idea.

4. Drive UTVs in Idaho. Friends Lynn and Sara Hodges own Pro Moto Billet and its brands

Fastway and Sector Seven, which specialize in Made in America billet aluminum off-road

products. We went with them to their private property in central Idaho and rode UTVs and did a lot of incredible dispersed camping.

5. Whistler Mountain Bike Park. This was on Wyatt’s bucket list ever since he started racing

mountain bikes. We spent several days in this part of southwestern Canada and made tons of

memories. We carried his Trek Slash enduro mountain bike on the top of our Toyota Tundra

primarily for this experience.


Toyota Tundra off-road truck negotiates a rocky trail
Our custom built Toyota Tundra performed flawlessly throughout the entire 10,000+ mile journey

6. Off-Roading at night. We went off-roading over a half-dozen times at night without our

trailers, and loved every second. Both our primary builds, the Toyota Tundra and Toyota

4Runner had a wide variety of KC Hilites, and off-roading at night just adds to the intensity.

7. Sightseeing in Yellowstone. Our crew hike about three miles around the famed Old Faithful, the prismatic pools and the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. Although the National Park was packed, and we had to stay in traditional camping spots, the views were stunning.

8. Sightseeing at Crater Lake. This is Wyatt Faught’s favorite National Park in the world.

9. Electric Dirt Bikes: Technology continues to change, and nowhere in off-road is that more

noticeable that in the two-wheel world. Our crew went out with Lynn and Sheldon Hodges for several days, including an epic three-hour night ride. Electric bikes are easy to learn how to ride because their direct to sprocket chain drive transmission, removing the clutch.

10. Off-Roading in Utah. Although we went off-roading in a lot of favorite places, our favorite

trails were in Utah. Utah is famous for its amazing mountains and also iconic off-road places like Moab, Cathedral Valley, Monument Valley, and Swingarm City.


Man ziplining over a rushing creek in Alaska
Ziplining in Skagway, Alaska was one of the cool things we managed to fit in to our 48 day adventure

11. Ziplining in Skagway, Alaska. We can easily say that ziplining with Alaska X Tours was

the most-beautiful canopy tour we have ever done. It has a variety of streams, suspension

bridges and awe inspiring hiking trails.

12. Wyatt’s cooking. One of my son’s favorite passions is cooking, and he loved the outdoor

kitchen on our Opus OP15 trailer. He cooked for as many as eight people at a time and

challenged his own skills several times on the trip.

13. Travis Arket’s stories. The famous @doctortravioli has appeared on The Deadliest Catch TV show and has a way of attracting attention.

14. Boating. We got to break out the water toys in Montana and Idaho, and it was a refreshing

break, and one of the most-spontaneous things that we did.

15. Campfires. Fire Bans caused by forest fires prevented us from doing a lot of campfires, but

we made them as much as we could. Simply put, some of the most-relaxing time we had was around a campfire.


Campers enjoying an evening around the campfire
There is nothing quite like the feeling of relaxing with friends around a campfire after a long day on the trail

16. Sightseeing at Lake Louise. I have wanted to visit Lake Louise, Lake Moraine and Banff

National Park in Canada ever since my parents showed me pictures of a trip they did in the

1980s. Lake Louise is one of the most-famous lakes in North America, and the water color is

surreal.

17. White Pass & Yukon Route train in Alaska. Spent three hours sightseeing on this popular

tourist ride, and it was worth every penny. We went from Skagway to the Canadian border and

back, and the views were incredible.

18. Bend Overland Expo. This was our third year to the Bend Overland Expo, and it’s our

second behind the Overland Expo West in Flagstaff, Arizona only because it’s a little smaller.

19. Nelson Ghost Town. This is a must-see for anyone passing through Las Vegas who wants

to experience something unique.

We brought along a few inflatable Kokopeli kayaks and used them a half-dozen times. They are great because they save space and allow you to be spontaneous. We hit several lakes that weren’t on our original agenda.


Solo kayaker on a secluded lake
Kokopelli kayaks provided a nice, calm and much needed break from the frantic pace we we keeping most days

21. Hot Springs in Canada. Our favorite was Liard River Hot Springs. This Provincial Park

campground is surrounded by an electrified fence to keep the bears out. You have to leave the protected area to walk about a ¼-mile to the hot springs, but the experience is exhilarating.

22. Enjoy Country Music in a Small-Town Bar. One of the more random things we did was

stop in a small town in Montana and enjoy dinner and some country music.

23. Ride a stagecoach in Wyoming. This is a big tourist draw in Jackson, Wyoming and something we did as we waited for a table to open up at a local restaurant.

24. Pan for gold. On the same property that Alaska X owns where we went ziplining, we also

learned how to pan for gold. Something simple, yet cool.

Our Alaska trip will consist of eight of our 13 half-hour episodes and we hope you will watch

all of them on MAVTV beginning January 12, 2025.


A classic train ride out of Skagway, Alaska
We took a break for a beautiful and relaxing ride on the Yukon and White Pass Railroad

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