national Parks are becoming an obsession of mine – but I cant hardly get enough time off from work to go and really be able to travel to and enjoy camping or hiking for more than a day or two!! I hate that I can’t find the time off from work to get out and see more of them and am desperate for a way to make it work!! Ive only been to a few in my life and aim almost 40! like Rocky mountian National Park, and The Grand Canyon, but I never strayed more than a few miles away from a car down a trail. Although I grew up deer hunting in the southern US piney woods, and have spent some time outdoors; Im a relative novice when it comes to serious camping and hiking… Ive never camped in a tent more than 1-2 nights outdoors, and never far from a car, never hiked more than 7-10 miles max roundtrip, and thats from the car/paved road. Ive never had to worry about whether I had the right hiking boots, or right socks, or whether I brought enough water or too much weight in my pack.

I need to get out and experience nature! This life of office drone work is slowly killing my soul! My job the past 11-12 years has made it so that I hardly ever get even 3-4 days off in a row, and never more than twice a year! its f****** terrible. The pay is ok, but the lack of meaningful time off has been suffocating. The place where I live, where my family is, has few good job prospects so Ive been stuck in this Grind because it pays the bills and provides for my family. I can gripe about the lack of time off all I want but I dont expect any sympathy beause I dont wxpect it tocha ge. Sure, I could take a job makin half what I get paid and maybe lets me have summers off – would be great – even if I sold myhouse, I dont think that would pay all the bills – not just credit cards and student loans and car note, and sky high health insurance – but especially my family’s medical bills… for my wife and daughter… I just dont see any way out. I feel stuck in my job because it pays the bills and os situated near my wife’s family in town who she is so dependent upon for support. I cant change that, so I just work to accept it. I try eating health and going to the gym to get more fit and take my mind off it, but that only goes so far.

medical bills through the roof with absurdly high health insurance costs alone consume almost half my after tax income right now – so even though Ive been paying down credit cards, and hilariously still paying off student loans some 11+ years after college graduation, and drive a 9 year old beat up car that runs well, etc – doesnt matter how much i save – if half my current income is consumed by health insurance and medical bills …. then I cannot live on 1/2 of what i make now if i expect to get health care for my family

The health care cost crisis in america is crippling middle class families like mine. even if I downsized to a tiny house, cut every cost I could, (some which Ive already done and am still working on), rhere are still basic costs, like groceries, utilities, water, power, phones, gasoline, etc and either rent or mortgage that HAVE to be paid just to live… 1/2 my money goes to those basic costs of living and 1/2 mymoney goes to pay for health insurance and medical bills… There is no REAL option for me to change jobs to a job that gives more time off or pays more money but maybe requires me to move away from my wife’s family… so im stuck here

Im stuck in a place where Ill almost always only ever get 3 days off max… plus maybe a weekend to make for 5 day mini trips

so: accepting that its better to keep my job and tough it out… and try to fine places of solace in nature where I can

thing is, I still live in the southeastern u ited states, 3+ hours away from a major airport and other than maybe 1 small national park about 4 hours away; I live a solid 15 to 30+ hours drive away from most of the truly great National Parks ive never seen, like Yosemite, Yellowstone, Zion, Redwood, Arches, Glacier, or any of the other Natrual treasures of the National Park system

what can I do? How should I fix this? should i try to fly out to the parks on discount airline tickets? should I plan to drive through the night for 20+ hours to get to stay 1 day in a park with my family before having to drive back to work!?

please help me!