After weeks of planning, packing, reserving campsites, and obsessively tracking wildfire activity, we finally got on the road this morning.

And somehow, the past few days have actually been pretty calm. There was minimal last-minute chaos, which feels like an accomplishment in itself.

This morning I took the dogs out for one last little stroll before we left. Odie got to have an adventure chasing ibis and turkeys, while Daisy opted to sun herself in the driveway. I put their collars on for safety, which immediately got them both excited because they thought they were coming with us. Then came the realization that they were not. Poor Daisy was howling as we drove away.

They joined us on last year's trip, but this year we're joined by Sam's dad and his girlfriend, Randy and Marcie. There simply isn't enough room in the camper for four adults plus 150 pounds of dogs, so Daisy and Odie are staying home, where they'll be thoroughly spoiled while we're gone.

There are a lot of differences between this trip and last year's.

Last year, we were completely flying by the seat of our pants. We made campground reservations while we were already driving toward the next destination. We made split-second decisions about how long to stay somewhere. We had very little structure around what we were actually going to do once we arrived.

And it was amazing.

We're incredibly grateful that we got to have what most people would probably consider a once-in-a-lifetime experience. But somewhere along the way, we decided we'd rather have a twice-in-a-lifetime experience.

Last year's trip lasted six weeks. When the government shutdown happened, we decided we didn't want to keep traveling farther from home with that uncertainty hanging over us. And honestly, we also learned that six weeks is a long time to be on the road.

So this time, we're doing 30 days.

And unlike last year, this trip is planned. I have a calendar with dates, destinations, drive times, and distances. Every multi-day stop has its own itinerary. Campgrounds have been researched and reserved. I've watched wildfire maps and smoke forecasts like it's my job. At this point, I'm starting to think that if the whole product management thing doesn't work out, I may have a future as a travel agent.

Of course, fitting everything we want to see into 30 days creates one small problem: we have to get there.

Our first real destination is the Black Hills in South Dakota, which sounds simple until you consider how many miles of America are currently between us and South Dakota. The first few days of this trip are going to involve a lot of driving.

But after weeks of looking at calendars, maps, campground websites, weather forecasts, wildfire reports, packing lists, and itineraries, none of it is theoretical anymore.

We're on the road.