2.5 Months Across America in a Tundra

brycercampbell

Active member
Hey!

My names Bryce, and I am a 20yo photographer who is living fulltime in my Tundra. Though for this post, I'm going to chronicle the first 2.5 months (Charleston - Washington - Charleston). In the coming weeks, I am going to leave to Vermont/Maine and capture the colors this fall, but that's for another thread!

My original thread is on the dedicated Tundra forums, and ultimately I'm going to rewrite it on my own website (brycercampbell.com). But for now, I'll post the main highlights here. And there were a lot!

My instagrams are brycecampbellphoto and bryces.tundra. Aforementioned website is brycercampbell.com. Prints are available at brycercampbell.darkroom.tech.

The basics are as follows:
2010 Tundra (important stuff: Wildpeaks 275/70, Bilstein 6112/5160s)
Roofnest Sparrow Eye RTT
Cooler for my fridge
Coleman camp stove for cooking
Water is in 5gal jugs and aquatainers
Toilet....take a guess.

I have a video where I walk through the entire setup that I posted recently.

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Big Sky, Montana

I'm going to basically be writing everything from scratch, so it'll be quite a few posts to cover the entire 2.5mo, but I hope its worth it for yall! The adventure started on April 15, 2021.
 

brycercampbell

Active member
So, like I said, this will be the main highlights. On the Tundra forums I have documented my trip day-by-day (lots of writing), and at some point I'd like to put that on my website so it's more easily available to everyone.
The goal was mainly Glacier NP and the Tetons in WY. Originally I planned for one month, budgeted for one month, but as you know, it took 2.5.
Here was my final route.
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I spent a LOT of time meandering in the Southwest, I never planned on going to Oregon/Washington, and by the time I got to Montana, I was running low on funds. But I would not have changed anything. Now I know where I want to go again and where I don't (the northwest has flying ants...)
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brycercampbell

Active member
The first week was the toughest, by far. The first few nights, I camped in familiar places. I've explored most of the southeast, so I camped in places I know in GA and KY, but from there, I headed to the Ozarks where things went south.
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I went down one of the main FS roads trying to find a pulloff to camp and got to the end near a river. I was backing up to turn around, hit a tree, and the tent went right through my back window. As you can see in the pics, I have the tent mounted over the bed, under the roof. It hangs off the back of my tailgate by a foot or two.

Ultimately, I bent the bars it mounts to, the bolts, and cracked the fiberglass. Long story short, a few hours at an autozone, a night at a sketchy motel, and some fiberglass putty. Back up in running. I got the glass replaced on the way through OK City. 37B87B88-5C91-4F18-9FED-D48F3B75A438.jpg5B9739D5-26AC-46A0-975F-920259F696ED.jpg
Speaking of OK, it was absolutely gorgeous. 23CB0F60-D99A-4C62-9514-B80D68FA713F.jpg
It took me five days to get to New Mexico, where I was rewarded for my struggles. 87DCC55D-8BA1-4381-BC21-0284D47073A8.jpg07DAC398-F543-4DAD-81CB-099186A0971D.jpg5972B738-AEFF-4B7B-9EC0-6025C157F025.jpg
My first night at White Sands, the sunset was incredible. I went and saw the Bandelier Cliff Dwellings as well as Valles Caldera. The Caldera was stunning.
 

brycercampbell

Active member
From there, I cruised through NM/Arizona. I met up with a friend at the Grand Canyon and we camped outside Page AZ for a few days. 0984AAF8-6357-46A9-9189-10D0C141591E.jpgE49841D7-59E3-49DD-97F9-8C8613E4CE3A.jpg\
I hit Monument Valley as well. 4F6ED4F3-DA10-4A52-8CED-1913888769D6.jpgB5E70146-1E42-403B-90CD-FAD4245F51F7.jpg
From there, I drove into Durango to get my glass replaced again - the first gentleman did a terrible job, glass was warped, water and dust got in the cab. Two voicemails and one negative google review later he gave me a full refund and Durango Toyota took care of me. After that, I drove the Million Dollar Highway into Ouray, and hit Telluride as well.

And everything you hear about Colorado is true. Absolutely stunning. I could write about how I spent 4 days in one spot, up a jeep trail, because of the scenery. I could write about $5 gas prices. I could write about the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. I could do all that. But instead, I'll just show you. 178EC57B-93E7-4DE9-B42D-D518AC6127E6.jpg59928785-0912-41FE-AA34-2F6A344DAD07.jpgF5F8F151-C9EA-484F-82E1-E5218B384A04.jpgD509F66A-360C-4D37-B319-C8B767E0A71A.jpg
And I said that spot was insane, this was the next place I stayed up in the mountains surrounding Telluride. Holy smokes. If the forecast didn't call for snow, I would've stayed. 08686AC3-BABA-4DAC-800C-945C935946B3.jpg
From there, I headed to Montrose and Black Canyon. Genuinely more impressive (and way less busy) than the Grand Canyon.
 

brycercampbell

Active member
From Montrose, I headed to Grand Junction and Moab. I hit Colorado Monument in GJ, which was a gorgeous drive.
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After that, Moab. Everything you hear about Moab is probably true as well - though maybe a tiny bit overhyped. Still one of the most incredible places I've ever been. E8DC31B7-7AE4-4BC3-A24C-4831DB3E609A.jpgC106C4C6-BA90-48A0-8ECC-B80749FCFB2B.jpgEB5CC504-E30D-4FB9-8F7C-07AD592DA541.jpg
Above is Canyonlands
And OF COURSE, I did a little bit of crawling! Though it's quite a challenge in a fullsize truck. 8C4FE696-924E-4F3C-A86B-255663F1C171.jpgA90CBCEC-517A-4FA7-9E61-1472B0378D93.jpg6A9BA950-ADCD-418E-A7F0-3E94B3919ECC.jpg
Above is Delicate Arch
 

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brycercampbell

Active member
Up next, Capital Reef and then Escalante and Boulder.
Most of Capital Reef is actually quite luscious. Streams, grass, apple trees, homesteads, etc. Well worth your time. But to get to the famous parts, you'll have to drive quite a few miles on washboard and rocks and deep sand.
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Frankly, Capital Reef is underestimated as well. Plan a trip there (Not in the middle of summer). Plan on camping outside the park in the desert area pictured above which can be found on google maps/onX/gaia. Take your time, there's a lot to take in.

Up next, Escalante and Boulder. I hit an insane hike, and the next day did a hike into a slot canyon. E06A95CB-0AA7-4423-BF80-6ABCB2BE4FF5.jpg1F762E85-27DF-4A7A-9586-2FC2D8E0B90C.jpg4E7E508A-EE6F-4930-9E70-E73A9F5107FB.jpgE1189FD3-2AE2-4181-B61B-6137A4A483F7.jpg
After that, I headed further into Utah - Bryce Canyon, no Zion (too busy), and some more insane places to make camp. 343DA876-7345-4921-8BE8-680F2703DBCD.jpg0EC710CB-3B69-4FA1-8DE6-63874B37761D.jpgE173BE34-941D-48E6-BE36-FFEF7036DD1A.jpg
Yeah, breaktaking. And I had cell service. Up next, I headed north!
 

brycercampbell

Active member
The next step was Idaho! And man, it was insane. Very underrated. I spent a good amount of time in the Sawtooths and around Stanley. I did one hike to an alpine lake, but most of the time it was raining, so I just chilled for a few nights.

But on my first night in southern Idaho, I got snow! 75AA37F3-7AF8-4118-924C-05BDE5A40F55.jpg
The Roofnest held up great, as usual. Now leaks or anything of the sort. I stayed toasty in my sleeping bags.
Up next was Shoshone Falls, which was incredible. "The Niagra of The West". Guess I won't know if that's true until I hit the real Niagra this fall.
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After that, I headed into the Sawtooths for a few days. How incredible. I stayed outside Stanley, ID (Pop. 62)
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Because it was raining most of the time, I spent nearly all day every day in a different hotspring. There are so many of them around there, literally 20ft from the side of the road. It's unbelievable.
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And on my second to last day, I had clear weather, so I took advantage and went for a hike to an alpine lake. Unbelievable views. Quite a bit of snow hiking, waist deep in some areas. Well worth it. If I did it over again, I'd jump in...
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After that, I made a last minute decision to head into Oregon/Washington. Originally, I wasn't sure if I'd have enough money to do that and Montana/Wyoming/South Dakota. I still didn't know when I chose. It ended up being the right choice, even if a bit risky! I was driving along the highway, and saw these insane mountains. I found a road up, checked onX to see if it was private or public, and camped. The sunset was incredible.
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Welcome to Oregon!
 

brycercampbell

Active member
After that night, I drove towards Bend and made camp halfway near a trailhead to another alpine lake. I hiked there the next morning - I had it all to myself.
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That day, I made it to Bend and set up camp near a canal. It was probably 90-96. Toasty.
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Next I did Sahalie Falls/Tamolitch Pool.
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I made camp in the NF near there, and the next morning I hiked to Blue Pool for sunrise.
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Yeah, not exactly a disappointing view. I did dive in and swim for a bit.
After that hike, it was still early, maybe 8 or so, so I drove to Mt Rainier to make camp. I got lucky with an insane spot.
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brycercampbell

Active member
The next morning, I drove into the park and found everything under a good 20-30ft of snow. Yeah, no thanks. Not for this South Carolinian.
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So I headed towards the Cascades and set up camp near there. Pulled a tree out of the trail, but a few feet further there was an avalanche, so I camped further downhill.
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The following morning, I was not disappointed...
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Of course I went for a swim. It was in the low 40s, around 42. Genuinely took my breath away.

After that, I headed to Winthrop WA for a few days...
 

brycercampbell

Active member
Unfortunately, someone else had a similar plan. I had a mouse in my truck. Piss and droppings everywhere, toilet paper/paper towels gone. Unlike some, I did not try to humanely remove it. They carry diseases and I was not in a position to get sick.
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Ultimately I got him with some peanut butter two nights later. Buried him with the trap far away from camp. I didn't take any pictures of camp, unfortunately. But I was near a stream, and it was 95f during the days, so I spent most of my time soaking and sun bathing, and then repeat until my truck was cleansed. After that, there was a family emergency and I flew back home for 2 weeks. The next posts will after that.
 

brycercampbell

Active member
Alright, been back at work so I've been super busy but I'm gonna wrap this up for yall!

I stayed around Winthrop for a few days, then when I had to fly back I drove to Spokane. When I flew back to WA, I headed east through ID and spent a few days sorting everything out. Temps reached 104f, but it was worth it. (all of these are available as prints at brycercampbell.com)
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In total, I spent 4 days in Idaho I believe. The next step was Glacer NP!
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My first night in Montana I slept in the Whitefish/Kalispell walmart. It was literally an RV park. People playing lacrosse. People with astroturf playing cards around a table. Unbelievable stuff. I slept across the bench seat in my cab though.
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