Man Walks Across Montana on 3,100-Mile Charity Journey

I like taking a good old-fashioned road trip. Load the truck, bring the snacks and music, and start complaining when Google Maps tells me there are still another 4 hours to go.

Now imagine doing that on foot.

Camilo Ruiz is doing just that. He is part of an End the Rat Race cross-country journey. Ruiz left Orlando, Florida on March 9th. His "ridiculous" goal was to walk approximately 3,100 miles across the United States to eventually end in Seattle.

As of today, this journey is taking Ruiz across Montana.

Walking Across Montana is a Different Kind of Crazy.

I have been watching some of Ruiz' videos as he traveled through big sky country, and they give you a real feel for the magnitude of Montana.

Lowlifewreck/Facebook

We always talk about how big Montana is. How long it takes to drive anywhere. Four hours will only qualify as a "road trip". Ruiz has averaged roughly 20-30 miles per day while pushing a cart filled with all of his gear for the journey. He walked through Three Forks in late August and continues westward. Now, every couple days or so, Ruiz posts video updates to social media where we see a "walking tour" of Montana. Most people would never even think to do something like this themselves.

There is a Purpose Behind the Walk.

This is not just to test whether Ruiz can actually walk from Florida to Washington. Ruiz is also raising money for The Singletons (a Non-profit) who help single-parent families that are dealing with cancer. Half of the money donated to Ruiz' Journey Across America fundraiser goes towards helping The Singletons, and the other half goes towards keeping Ruiz going with food, gear, shelters, etc.

Lowlifewreck/Facebook

Montana is Just One Giant Leg of the Overall Journey.

What I find most entertaining are the videos. Instead of driving by at 80 mph, you get to see someone experience Montana at 3mph. Every hill, stretch of highway, small town, and mountain pass takes on a whole new significance because you are using your own two feet.

Ruiz is getting near to finishing off the Montana portion of his journey, but he still has Seattle ahead of him.

In the meantime, I'll just keep complaining anytime I need to drive from Missoula to Billings.

Sounds fair.