May 11

Monk Mode

Jacob Lake, Arizona

Fuzzy onesie, coffee at 7, didn't open the van door until 3. New song out. The wheel with spokes: each stop, pour work in, turn again. Route 67 and the North Rim open Friday. We'll probably go in Saturday.

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May 10

Jacob Lake

Jacob Lake, Arizona

Shannon's 4x4 exit: drone, GoPro, walkie talkies, the works. Drove 4,000 feet up to Jacob Lake. Climbed the lookout tower. Ordered a game camera. The mysterious 2:55am footsteps finally made the case.

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May 9

The Heat

Arizona Strip

Last morning at the canyon. 100 degrees in the van, UV 9, nowhere to hide. Found the adapter under the mattress after a week of searching. At some point I rode five miles around the canyon rim completely naked on the OneWheel and got drone footage of it. That felt like an awful lot of freedom in one act.

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May 8

The Shower

Arizona Strip

Greg's last night. Shannon walked back to his site in the dark with a headlamp and rode the bike home. A teaspoon of pink Himalayan salt in each liter and the leg cramps cleared up. Four months in and still learning. The drone footage here is some of the best I've ever gotten.

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May 7

The Rope

Arizona Strip

950 feet down to the water. A blue rope anchored by a stranger, a two-foot ledge, a boulder that bowed out from the wall. The moment I realized there was only one way out. Two reckonings with mortality in 24 hours.

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May 6

The Wind

Arizona Strip

Wind howling, van shaking, eight feet from the edge of a 950-foot cliff. Making peace with it. The energy cost of moving camp. The view you never get used to. Walkie talkies.

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May 5

The Spot

Arizona Strip

Days of coveting the truck camper's spot. Hard drive saga finally done, DJ gear running. Then the guy moved. Ninety minutes later, the most memorable campsite I've been in.

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May 4

The Condors

Arizona Strip

Three California Condors circled for five minutes, close enough to hear the air. Wind packs up camp. The talking head video you haven't made yet and the vulnerability hangover that comes after. 54 cents a gallon.

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May 3

The Footsteps

Arizona Strip

950 feet down to the Colorado. Watching a truck camper for the chance to steal the ultimate spot. 40mph winds incoming. And those 2:55am footsteps definitely weren't Greg.

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May 2

The Podcast

Arizona Strip

$803 and worth it. New canyon that looks like the Grand Canyon's lesser-known cousin. Greg, who has cracked the North Rim. Full moon rising perfectly across the canyon. Spent an hour listening to what I thought was Shannon's podcast. It was my own phone.

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May 1

The Gum

Southern Utah

Last morning at the epic campsite. Shannon gave me a pack of gum, which felt like the greatest luxury. Then: seven miles of rough dirt, Costco, forty gallons of diesel, and a 50-point turn on the edge of a cliff.

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Apr 30

The Eagle

Southern Utah

Last night at the most epic campsite. Bald eagle maybe overhead. Jackrabbits, rattlesnakes, elk prints down the trail. The prickly pear smells like perfumey cucumber.

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Apr 29

The Butter

Southern Utah

23 days out, 9 past plan. Moved 75 yards to the most epic campsite of the trip. Found hidden Bubbly Waters. Solved the van-parking Rubik's cube.

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Apr 28

The Vista

Southern Utah

Panoramic new camp above Zion. Bittersweet goodbye to 22 days. The vape goes the way of Instagram. Colorado plan locked.

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Apr 27

Move Day

Southern Utah

Move day. Shannon and the ledge. Dance mix landed at the fire. North Rim didn't happen again. Bugsy in the field. Colorado on the horizon.

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Apr 26

The Rain Day

Southern Utah

Rain day in the van. Bike scouting with Jed and Shannon. Drone tracks like a dog. 86 views and the long game.

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Apr 25

Solar Rich

Southern Utah

Package lost to General Delivery. Day 20, personal record, 17 days without the ignition. Solar rich. I fucking love my life.

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Apr 24

Seven Shots

Southern Utah

Video breakthrough: vignettes are everywhere, just turn on the camera. Hard drives full, 5TB incoming. Melanie and her 7-shot Starbucks order.

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Apr 23

The Splinter

Southern Utah

Shakespeare's birthday, Ladybug's sendoff. North Rim hesitations. A splinter video that communicates more than a splinter.

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Apr 22

The Inventory

Southern Utah

Nine shooting stars at 2am. Last fires, camp winding down. End-of-stay inventory. The road opens up again.

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Apr 21

The Bramble

Southern Utah

Czech disco ends in Rammstein. Lost in desert scrub at sunset, compass rescue. Drone in a fanny pack.

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Apr 20

The Practice

Southern Utah

Drum circle on a 5-gallon jug. Bike scouting, drone footage, General Delivery. On practice versus living.

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Apr 19

The Embers

Southern Utah

Twelve at the campfire, six for Codenames. Three new burn holes, one ignited crotch. Nicotine history. High of 78.

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Apr 18

The Kite

Southern Utah

Wind day. Kite trouble. Managing the balance. OneWheel after dark.

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Apr 17

The Loop

Southern Utah

Bad dreams, ghost town, rig tour, OneWheel hooks. High of 56.

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Apr 16

The OneWheel

Southern Utah

Rig tour day. Mesa bike ride. The freezer revelation. Eating like a king.

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Apr 15

Outside Zion

Southern Utah

Day 10 of 19. The campfire is going across the way. The canyon is doing what it does.

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