For those that enjoy trip reports, I have to refer you to (IMO) one of the masters of the genre, "Seat 2A," a frequent poster on Flyertalk.com. A resident of Fairbanks, I believe he works in Denali Park during the season, and in off-seasons is a dedicated frequent flyer, racking up many thousands of frequent-flyer miles through the practice (known by some here) of taking "mileage runs," the point of which is to accumulate miles for later use on awards, upgrades, or achieving/maintaining elite status with airline programs.

The posting of trip reports on Flyertalk obviously focuses on the flying more than the traveling, but 2A's messages are so good (and warning, very long) that I felt they should be shared with those at Fodors who aspire to good travel writing on their own. Anyway, enough praise. If you want to read Seat 2A's reports, start here: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=369869

I appreciate your post but quite frankly, I prefer to read "trip reports" that are as unlike professional travel writing as possible since, for me, they seem a lot more spontaneous and a lot less contrived. Just my own opinion, however.

Intrepid1, bravo! That's what this board is about. I too enjoy reading trip reports here because they are subjective and spontaneous.
Gardyloo, I respect your opinion and a great help you're providing on this board but I must disagree this time. I read this report but I do not understand why you think it is so above average. It is nice report. Nothing more. IMO

Thanks for the link, Gardyloo. I'd never heard of doing this before.

Lee Ann

What, mine aren't long and detailed enough for you?

love
roxy

Thanks for the link Gardyloo..I enjoyed it!

Lucy

I appreciate your points of view, intrepid and z. It's definitely not for everyone; 2A's appeal to me has to do with my own love of flying and my own experience in Alaska and many of the places he describes.

What I especially enjoy though is his weaving of geography and context into his story, plus (to me at least) how the very length and detail of the reports sort of conveys the existential nature of mileage running and his manic quest for miles. His stories - to me, not to everyone - are revealing (partial, sure) portraits of America, Americans, and our times.

His trip reports on the journeys he leverages with all these miles are also special, and help transmit a sense of why he does it, and how people who have an unmitigated love of travel go about feeding their addictions, sometimes not without costs.

This is a travel board, after all, so any glimpses into the varied experiences of people who travel just for the love of it are all fair game in my book.

I'm w/intreid and z on this one. While I agree the linked report was well-written, I found it incredibly boring. I prefer trip reports that are quirky and somewhat entertaining - this report read like an article. To each his own.

If we're voting for best writers of trip reports, I cast mine for you, Gardyloo. But, thanks for the link.

Gardyloo : Looks like your pal is a "writer's writer". Thanks for the link.