Backyard Road Trips

Please welcome Fran Kefalas and Regan Miner to the show! Fran is the executive director of The Last Green Valley, and Regan is the Development Director. TLGV is a national heritage corridor located in northeastern Connecticut and south-central Massachusetts. The duo speaks to us about the latest goings-on, including the opening of their new headquarters. Fran and Regan explain what The Last Green...

For  National Stroke Awareness Month , we shine a spotlight on Lana Wilhelm—a nurse, author, caregiver, and advocate. After her husband suffered a sudden, major stroke, Lana's life shifted from medical professional to full-time caregiver, a role she found arduous and lonely. Lana, founder of the  Stroke Caregiver Connection , runs support groups and has met with over 2,000 caregivers, offering...

Jim and Zack chat with photographer Cade Martin . From photographing Mother Theresa and Johnny Cash to assignments all over the world, Cade's story is an interesting one for sure. Cade delves into one project that has been especially important to him. The Wheelchair Mafia , a group of 44 dogs that are fitted with wheelchairs and are part of the larger The Man Who Rescues Dogs , a sanctuary for...

Jim and Zack sit down with Jim's sister, Kiki, about her career as a corrections officer. From the day to day to the extreme, we take a peek into life behind bars. Also joining the conversation is Kiki's daughter, Kitta.

Avid travelers, Zack and Jim, didn't go very far for this Backyard Road Trip. They only traveled to the fridge. What they imbibed, though, was something magical, the 2025 Samuel Adams Utopias. Listen as the two crack open this mythical beer.

For our first episode of the New Year, we are airing our Festivus grievances, just a little late. Jim and Zack welcome back Jim's sister, Kiki, and niece, Kitta, to the show. All while noshing on Jim's homemade spicy chocolates, the crew narrows down their biggest pet peeves, bracket style. Slow left lane drivers? Texters with bad etiquette? Shoppers who block the grocery aisle? Find out which pet...

Jim's sister Kiki has a problem. She's a long time Michelob Ultra drinker but after years of listening to the Backyard Road Trips podcast, she's ready to dip her toe into the world of craft beer. Jim and Zack have been tasked with finding the perfect gateway beer. Jim has devised a plan- a blind taste test of lighter beers. These are a mix between macro and micro brews, with Mich Ultra being one o...

Zack and Jim are excited to welcome Melissa Rodway to the show. Melissa is an adventurer, writer, podcaster and owner of FLY Travel Media. Melissa shares with us some of her favorite (and least favorite) travels around the world, how she fits travel into her schedule, and her favorite backyard road trips. For more information about Melissa, check out www.flyrodway.com , as well as her memoir, The...

After a year of growing a variety of hot peppers, it's harvest time! Jim shares his peppers with Zack and guests including his wife, Katie Wheeler and good friend Tim Lawless. The four share nibbles of hot peppers that become increasingly hotter on the Scoville scale, all while broaching hot topics, including dogs in stores and reclinging airplane seats. Listen up! 

Zack and Jim are back with guest, Tim Lawless. Initially the conversation begins with their favorite fall beers, with references to past pumpkin beer taste tests (see earlier seasons). Eventually, it descends into the world of non-alcoholic beer. Why would it be appealing? Do any of the NA beers make the cut? Listen to find out!

Jim, Zack, and special guest, Tim Lawless join us for a session of Brews and Boos. Jim, homebrewer extraordinaire, let's sample four of his newest beers: a spicy pumpkin ale, a holiday ale, a black IPA, and a smoked stout. In addition, the trio shares with us their favorite scary stories, especially ones that have happened close to home. 

Jim and Zack welcome photographer, Angela Andrieux, to the show! Angela shares with us her passion for photography, how she initially got into taking pictures and her favorite backyard road trips. She also tells us all about Mylio, the photo archival company where she works.

Jim, Zack and special guest Ian Cheney welcome you to a very special episode. In this episode, they preview their new podcast, which launches in September, called "Red & White @ Silver".  The trio are graduates of the Norwich (CT) Free Academy, Class of 2001. After Ian was a guest on Backyard Road Trips, he conceived of the idea for this podcast. Ian, Zack and Jim would spend the next two years in...

Jim and Zack welcome Ian Cheney back onto Backyard Road Trips. Ian has been on here to tell us about his book, as a guest for a historical discussion, and to share information about our other podcast project, Red and White at Silver. This time, though, he's sharing his own travel tidbits and more. Jim also talks travel as he clues us in on his recent trips, including a multi-day hike of the Nipmuc...

Jim and Zack welcome Laura Giles onto the show. Laura is a guide who leads groups in a variety of tours; spiritual retreats, sacred travel and nature-based excursions, among others. She chats with the duo all about what she does and her inspiration. For more information, check out Laura's website at www.lauragiles.me

Jim and Zack welcome travel writer, actress, and photographer Joanna Kalafatis to the show! In addition to acting in shows, Maestro in Blue and Love Rat, Joanna runs the website, www.losethemap.com . Not only does she write on her own blog, but she has also authored the Moon Travel Guide: Best of Greece as well a two guides to abandoned northern and southern California . Joanna grew up in Greece a...

Jim and Zack welcome Alexandra Lauren, also known as the Bucket List Mermaid to Backyard Road Trips! Alexandra lives in an RV and is constantly traveling. A native-Coloradoan, she has traveled to over 45 countries! She shares with us her adventures as a mermaid, yes a literal mermaid. She also talks about what's been on her bucket list, hiking with a mermaid tail and travel mishaps, including esca...

Jim and Zack welcome the curator of the Mattapoisett Museum, Connor Gaudet, onto the show. Connor walks us through the museum's fine collection, including a model of the ship, the Wanderer . He shares with us this backstory of his career in museum work, from Manhattan to Mattapoisett as well as his personal favorite backyard road trips. Located on the South Coast of Massachusetts, the Mattapoisett...

Jim and Zack have two special guests on air today: Dave Lehan and Dan Carlon. Each year, Dave and Dan join Zack and two others for a  guys weekend in Portland, Maine . They discuss their favorite Portland activities- which mainly consist of breweries. They detail the route they take, from Maine Beer Company, to the hotel to a night on the town. The group analyzes the perks of each stop and what th...

Now that spring is here once again, it's time to talk about rebirth, renewal, and re-energizing our travel plans. A few special guests join Jim and Zack- Jackie, Zack's wife and Danny, Zack's oldest son, as well as our buddy, Dave Lehan. Danny shares about his recent trip to Philadelphia including his visit to the Philadelphia Museum of Art and to a 76ers basketball game. Dave relates his recent t...

Zack and Jim welcome a very special guest, Jaclyn Lamothe, who is also Zack's wife. We're getting back to our roots here on Backyard Road Trips as we grill Jackie about her all-time favorite travel destinations. The places discussed include Quebec City, the Jungfrau mountain peak, Innsbruck and the Pacific Northwest. She shares how to navigate the Brenner Pass, how to deal with the sulfuric hot wa...

Do remember back to the first season of the BYRT podcast? Way back in 2020 when Jim and Zack discussed their quirky holiday traditions? Of course you remember since you're a BYRT podcast completist. Just to jog your memory, the duo rapped about all the quirky weird stuff that they do to celebrate the holidays from Thanksgiving through New Year's. Five years later, they see how life changes traditi...

Zack, Jim and Drew chat with a very special guest, Valentinos Filippou. Valentinos is from the island country of Cypress and shares with us how to get to the heart of the country. He works to promote Cypress tourism. More than that Valentinos is also the founder of The Online Greek Tutor, an online approach to learning the Greek language. Additionally, he speaks to us about his family beekeeping b...

You actually made it onto the airplane—and then one of the kids threw up! This show is all about travel mishaps—those times when something goes awry. It's not serious stuff, just mishaps, like when Zack's son fell down a few stairs in the Seattle airport, not the whole way. Jim and Zack are joined by Tim Lawless and Jim's wife, Katie Wheeler. Tim shares why he and Jim are officially banned from Ca...

Special guest, Tim Lawless and BYRT co-host, Jim share all about their recent trip hiking Mount Katahdin, Maine's highest point. They detail their journey, from the drive to camping to packing. Zack interviews these two about their life-changing hike. For a photo journey of the Katahdin trip, check out this  article on Backyard Road Trips .