Minerva
Sam
Toby
Lily
We are Minerva and Sam, a couple of wanderers, adventurers, hikers and dog parents who love road trips, National Parks and exploring the country. We both work full time, but make sure to set aside a couple of weeks each year for a 5,000+ mile road trip, plus a few weekend getaways here & there.
We started this blog in 2024 thinking it would mostly be a place to share guide-like posts to help others explore. But there are already a lot of great travel guides out there, and we wanted ours to be something more personal.
We want to share the stories behind our photos (how many times have you looked back at trip photos and forgotten the details?), add a little positivity to the world and hopefully inspire others to travel, too.
Before we met in Alabama in 2018, we were both living in very different places. Minerva grew up in Oaxaca, Mexico, while I (Sam) am from southeast Wisconsin. We both loved to travel, but neither of us had ever road tripped thousands of miles before. It didn’t take long after we met to pack up the car, grab our furry co-pilots and drive across the country.
Our first cross-country road trip was in 2021, when we drove from Alabama to Glacier National Park in Montana.
Since then, we’ve driven across the US 8 times, covering over 37,000 miles, visiting 14 National Parks and exploring 38 U.S. states. Check out our map below for all the places we’ve been!
A Little Bit About Us
- Minerva is a traveling registered dental hygienist (RDH) who’s passionate about writing, books (especially Harry Potter!), music and painting. She brings that creativity into everything we do, including our travels.
- Sam moved from Wisconsin to Alabama for grad school and earned his PhD in biology. When not traveling, he works as a senior research biologist in the pharmaceutical industry. Technology is a big part of his life too, which is how our blog came to be. We built and run the whole thing ourselves at home, powered by a little Raspberry Pi sitting on his desk.
- Toby, our 14-year-old yorkie-poo, runs the house. He loves tug-of-war, chewing on cow ears, naps & snuggles, and though he’s our little senior citizen, he’s incredibly playful (we do carry him on some of our longer hikes, though!)
- Lily is our 6-year-old resident ball expert. We joke that she’s getting her PhD in ball-ogy! She constantly thinks about the Frisbee, playtime and knows she always deserves treats.
Why We Started With Each Mile
As much as we love to adventure, we also both work full time. Minerva is a registered dental hygienist, and I’m a senior research biologist developing pharmaceuticals. We know firsthand how hard it can be to balance work, life, and the desire to travel.
That’s exactly why we started With Each Mile. We wanted to show that you do not have to travel full time, quit your job, have the van life or spend months on the road to explore the country and experience incredible places.
We are big on road trips, and we’ve learned how to make the most of every opportunity we get. Some of our trips are 2 to 3 weeks long, while others are short weekend getaways. And we make sure Toby and Lily join us on as many adventures as possible!
We’re glad you’re here! If you’re someone who loves to explore but finds it tough to balance with daily life, you’re in good company. We’d love for you to follow along, share your own stories in comments and connect with us through our newsletter or on social media as we continue our adventures!
Capturing What We Saw
We’ve all seen those super-edited photos and AI-generated images that make places look way too perfect. It can leave you thinking, “That’s not what I saw when I got there!” We edit our photos, videos & stories to show you what we actually experienced (crowds included) without heavy edits or filters to inspire your own adventures.
Work With Us
If you’re a brand or destination looking to team up with creators who love road trips, National Parks and dog-friendly travel, we’re open to collaborations.
How We Can Collaborate
We are open to partnerships that fit with our travel style:
- Product Reviews & Gear Testing: We provide honest, in-depth reviews of travel gear, tech, and road trip essentials which will be tested by us (and often by Toby and Lily) on our adventures.
- Sponsored Content: Creating original blog posts and / or social campaigns that authentically integrate your product or service into our travel stories.
- Dog-Friendly Adventures: Showcasing products and destinations that genuinely welcome our furry co-pilots.
- National Park & Destination Features: Authentic coverage that highlights the real experience of visiting a location, aligning with our “Travel, As We Saw It” promise of showing the beauty and what our visit was like.
If we sound like an adventurous couple that fits what your brand is looking for, send us an email at [email protected] with details about your project and we’ll get back to you!