"Nothing, to my way of thinking, is better proof of a well ordered mind than a man's ability to stop just where he is and pass some time in his own company." ~ Seneca, Letters from a Stoic

Since the traveling solo concept is addressed indirectly in many other topics, I narrowed this section down to two main sub-strategies: Communication and Campsite Selection.

General Solo Travel Communication Strategy

One of the things to be considered when riding this type of distance in remote areas solo is letting someone know where you are on a consistent basis. As a regular soloist in the backcountry, I have learned from the Aron Ralsons (Between a Rock and a Hard Place) of the world and others that it’s no fun to have to saw your arm off to keep yourself alive.  I figured out well before the trip commenced that I needed to establish some rules to serve as a contingency in case I ran into trouble along the way.  These rules flush out generally as follows:

1.  Establish a written On Route Communication “Policy” on my blogsite.

2.  Apply ‘Deliberate Ambiguity’ to my on route blog postings.

3.  Stay on the established ACA route and/or let someone know if I planned to go off-route.

4.  Provide folks (pre Launch) on my “Call List” information and instructions regarding what to do if I didn’t check in within 4-5 days.

Establish a written On Route Communication “Policy” on my blogsite.

I posted this little number on my blog and menu-linked it in the sidebar (it was also linked in the header while I was on the route):

15 July 2007

On Route Communication

• While on the route, I will be posting to this site as I find free Wi-Fi or an internet capable PC and checking email. I plan to GPS waypoint all free Wi-Fi hotspots that I find along the route for other GDMBR riders to reference in the future.
• There could be 4-5 days or more between postings in remote areas but I will be calling in land line to either Sandy or my folks on a regular basis. Sandy may post some of my call in info on the site. When direct contact is not made, I will leave a voicemail with my current location, short term travel plans and an estimate of when I will call in or communicate next.
• See the map data pages for more specific location info relative to posts.
• Cell messages will be checked rarely as the majority of the route is very remote and does not have cell service.
• Please communicate with me direct via email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

There were a few occasions where I was unable to call anyone for three days, but was always able to call in by at least sometime on the fourth day.   Regardless, this was misinterpreted by some blog readers as “I will post to my blog every 4-5 days” although the verbiage indicates that call-ins will occur regardless of blog postings.  I built this into the communication in case my PDA failed…which would have forced me to blog post from borrowed computers (yuck.)  I also had to make it clear that a blog posting could took the place of a call, but I usually tried to call someone (at least a voicemail) anyway, here’s why:

Deliberate Ambiguity 

As much as I’d like to live in world that doesn’t require sleeping with one eye open, reality dictates otherwise.  The advantage of communicating on the internet is that about anybody can access your site.  You never know ‘who’ that anybody is though.  For those that followed my blog as I traveled, you probably noticed how vague I was regarding exactly where I was, and more specifically when and where I was going next.

I did this on purpose.  Traveling solo in remote, yet mostly vehicle accessible areas comes with its own buffet of risks.  Other than the obvious animals, weather, injury, etc, there is still a human ‘kook’ factor to contend with.  To put this into scope, I passed through an area near Lincoln, Montana that was once the backyard of The Unabomber.  However, I was more concerned with somebody, obviously not with my best interests in mind, getting hold of my blog and trying to find me out there, taking advantage of the fact that I was alone and relatively unarmed.  So I made my blog postings deliberately ambiguous (a passive security measure) so at least an ill-intentioned individual would have to put some effort into it first.  If you have any questions about this, please email me.
 

Stay on the established ACA route and/or let someone know if I planned to go off-route.

This seems like common sense, but I had to assure the folks I trusted to look for me if I disappeared that I wouldn’t go off-route without communicating my specific plans.  Taking into account that I committed to calling in within a four day period, and that my range per day could be 65 miles or more; by the fifth day the search area could encompass up to 400 linear miles in remote, rugged, high alpine territory.  When you do the survival math, going off route is sexy and free and all but not worth the consequences.  Into the Wild was a good book and movie but a real life homage seemed to be somewhat unnecessary. 

So I stayed on route, not wanting to betray the trust of those watching my back from afar…especially if it was the last thing I did.

Provide folks (pre Launch) on my “Call List” information and instructions regarding what to do if I didn’t check in within 4-5 days. 

Kind of leading in from the previous topic, I had to let folks know what to do if I didn’t return.  Ideally, each of my contact folks would have had the ACA maps and known exactly the route I was taking…but although I tried to mobilize it; this never happened.  So, I gave them Adventure Cycling and some other route experts’ contact info to get them started.  I had maps on my blog that I plotted using publicly available GPS tracklogs….but they were still a bit vague for above reasons of deliberate ambiguity. 

The instructions were to bracket using my last contact point and estimate of range; approximating where I disappeared; and mobilizing local law enforcement, USFS, or BLM appropriately.  Fortunately, this system was never tested.