4200 mile trek from Florida to northern Michigan and back...

Had fun, learned a lot, and I’m really happy with the Tundra.

Back Story – We had a wedding to attend in Cleveland, OH and wanted to see family in Northern Michigan while we were up north. We planned to fly and rent a car but it was unusually expensive and I really wanted to take my dog along as well so I started thinking about a road trip. Our destination in Michigan is a remote island with lots of overlanding opportunities so having my truck and gear was a huge bonus to see more of it than we’ve done before.

Planning – I was blessed with the ability to take a long vacation so I didn’t have to be rushed. My wife expressed her desire to skip the outdoor experience and since one-way tickets were cheap, I booked her and the kids a flight and found myself with 4 days to get from Florida to Ohio. I picked numerous off-road and/or forestry service routes through national forests and public lands and picked a few touristy things to see along the way. I gave myself a few options each day for something cool to do so it wasn’t all a drive. Armed with only the essentials (a few fly rods, hiking boots, camping gear, a cooler full of great food and some great sipping bourbon) the dog and I headed north.

Rig/Build – 2016 Tundra, Bilstein 6112 / 5160s with 34.8” tires underneath. I’ve had this for a year and this trip was a great reason to add a few thigs to it. Prior to this trip I added some CBI overland bars, a Smittybilt overlander tent and a few other tweaks and off we went.

Stops
· Day 1 – Spent 500 or so miles on the freeway to get to the north-Georgia mountains. This was a “drive day” and I didn’t plan any stops but booked a great campsite on hipcamp at a horse farm in the foothills of the Georgia mountains about 20 miles outside of Ellijay, Ga. This place was exactly what I wanted and I had plenty of space all to myself. It was a welcomed change from the boring drive up I75. This was my first night in the tent and I slept great. I was glad I added an extra 2” of memory foam and that I packed a small USB fan to keep cool.


· Day 2 – My goal was to completely avoid a freeway and try to spend as much time in the dirt/gravel as possible. There is a great system of forestry service roads and trails in north Georgia and southern Tennessee and I really enjoyed the views along the way. It was neat crossing the state line with only my GPS showing it. I had been in this area a few times in the past and covered some parts of the Georgia Traverse and there is still a lot I want to see. The Tellico and Citico rivers in Tennessee were great and some of the best fly fishing I’ve seen in a while. I could have spent a few days there without seeing the same stretch of river twice. This was the best day of the trip and since it was Saturday, I skipped the dispersed camping opportunities of the national forest and booked another great campsite on hipcamp at a local chicken farm. This was almost glamping as they had a fire pit/gas grill/shower/outhouse set up but it was fantastic. I got a dozen eggs that were as fresh as possible and made a great breakfast the next morning.

· Day 3 – after a scenic drive we found ourselves in I75 for 100 miles or so through Knoxville and into southern Kentucky. Once there, we touched parts of the KAT (Kentucky Adventure Tour) as well as the DBBB (Daniel Boone Backcountry Byway) and could have spent a week doing more of it. I will be back! I planned to stay somewhere in Kentucky but I was only 1.5 hours away from where I planned to stay Monday night so I hit the pavement with plenty of daylight and was a day ahead. I did detour to the Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort and sadly, they were out of Bourbon in the gift shop by the time I got there. I didn’t have a “tour” booked but they were slow and let me walk the grounds and it was an impressive operation for sure.

· Day 4 – After a quick visit to the horseshoe (Go Buckeyes!) I took the scenic route through Ohio and drove through some pretty pasture land and a few small towns. I lived in Ohio for 27 years and was surprised at the vast swaths of open land in the middle of the state. I arrived in Cleveland for lunch with an old friend and ended the solo portion of my trip.

· The rest of the trip was great. I acquired my family at the airport and we got to explore a few remote places Up North. We spent a full week in Michigan, then back to Ohio for the wedding, then spent 2 days in Charlotte before making our way back to Florida.

Lessons Learned
· You don’t need much stuff/gear to make a great trip. I overpacked for sure and will slim down my camping load out next time.

· My truck is way more capable than I am confident. I found a few sections of trail in Kentucky that made me think about turning around but a slow and steady accent/decent and the truck went with ease.

· I should do this more often.

 

Nice trip and pics!

 

Awesome!

 

Blaaaaack !

 

So jealous. In December I left Seattle, took the furthest north route (I-94 through Fargo and other places), met the fan who flew into Chicago, and on to Boston. Then south to DC eventually, and back to Seattle, totally different route. Same deal, beautiful black Tunny and thousands of miles (almost 9k). Returned un January. Hit 28 states, every major city I could, and touched dozens of beautiful American rivers. Knowing what’s out there makes me so jealous. I think I’ve convinced the fam a trip to Florida is in the cards this next Xmas, so Seattle to the Keys it is! Of all I’m looking forward to it’s the Ga/Tenn forests and mountains I wanna see most maybe.

 

Did you go to Beaver Island in Michigan?

 

Great pics. Thanks for sharing your adventure.

 

Let me know if you make it out this way! Most of the scenic places we’ve found have been in Georgia/Tennessee/North Carolina but there are a few gems in Florida worth a stop.

 

we weren’t too far but we were on Drummond Island. On the Lake Huron side of the UP.

 

Wow I’m jealous this looks awesome.

 

I forgot about Drummond! I grew up near Petoskey so I immediately thought of Beaver Island. Great pics of your trip.

 

That looks like the Bald River Falls in Cherokee National Forest. CNF is one of our favorite areas in Tennessee.

 

Well done, something else to add to the bucket list

 

Wow, had lived in MI 20 years of my life and never knew about that area. Looks like an awesome trip.

 

Was in Jacksonville to South Beach recently, and I know the fam will be down with a Florida trip. Do the entire wraparound, include the Keys, both coasts, Everglades, Panhandle, all the amusement parks. And what do I get? To drive through the middle of the country and cover parts of the Carolinas and southeast, may get to swing through New Orleans on the way back. At some point I’ll have driven through 49 states.

 

Thanks for the info and I wish i could do that too. I agree with you so many of us overthink overlanding or offroading and take too much or modify the vehicle too much, my next purchase will be a 200 series landcruiser or LX 570/GX460 mostly stock except for AT tires. Add a fridge and sleep in the vehicle or add a simple ground tent and go from there. Im new to owning a travel trailer and I wish i kept my tundra stock because every mod added takes away from payload, I am sure most overlanders are over payload capacity.

 

It was! It wasn't a destination but I happened to be driving by and thought it was a great stop. I'm really glad I found it.

 

If you ever go back, there is a path with steps up to the falls. Once you're up there, there are a couple of overlooks and a hiking trail that goes upstream for maybe a 1/4 mile and quickly gets overgrown. Pretty soon, you're just trudging through thick forest, right alongside the river. There are a few decent wading pools along the bank where there is almost zero current. My kids love it. Great place to hike and cool off.