Since 2009, Lee Crafton, or Lee Horselogger as he prefers to be called, has been traveling across the country in a horse-drawn carriage, and now he’s on his fifth trip.
His journey started in 2006 when he lost his ranch in East Glacier, Montana after 27 years and dropped out of his Ph.D. program. Lee took his life savings of $75 and a couple of horses and decided to explore the nation, traveling at just three miles an hour.
Needless to say, Lee is not your typical 63-year-old.
But one year prior to his career change, Lee was diagnosed with Lymphoma at age 48 and had a tumor growing in his neck. Weary of chemotherapy, he opted for more naturopathic herbal treatments. Believe it or not, his tumor started to shrink and his cancer was gone.
His cancer diagnosis ultimately served as a wake up call, reminding him of his humanity and what he wanted to do with his remaining time.
Since 2009, Lee Crafton, or Lee Horselogger (pictured) as he prefers to be called, has been traveling across the country in a horse-drawn carriage, and now he’s on his fifth trip
His journey started in 2006 when he lost his ranch in East Glacier, Montana after 27 years and dropped out of his Ph.D. program
Lee took his life savings of $75 and a couple of horses and decided to explore the nation.
‘If you’re unhappy and you’re under stress, you’re not going to get well,’ he told the Seattle Times in 2009. ‘What the cancer did is it kicked me in the ass,’ he says. ‘About all I can say is it woke me up. It got me doing things I should have done years ago.’
In 2009, Lee had a 50-foot-long horse team and wagon. Today, he has one horse left named Jessie, who travels at 3mph.
But what motivates this horseman? As he told local ABC affiliate WPBF – why not?
’63 years old, I don’t have any family, so I figured why the hell not? See what goes on in the world,’ he said.
Despite being alone on the road (besides his horse, Jessie), he seeks out human connection from all walks of life.
But one year prior to his career change, Lee was diagnosed with Lymphoma at age 48 and had a tumor growing in his neck. His cancer diagnosis ultimately served as a wake up call, reminding him of his humanity and what he wanted to do with his remaining time
In 2009, Lee had a 50-foot-long horse team and wagon. Today, he has one horse left named Jessie, who travels at 3mph
Despite being alone on the road (besides his horse, Jessie), he seeks out human connection from all walks of life
‘I travel to see nursing homes to meet people, go to schools, I do my show and tell, this is a horse. You know, a lot of people have never seen a horse,’ Lee told WPBF.
Lee hit a bump in the road, literally and figuratively, last year when a car driving recklessly above the speed limit with a state troopers on its tail hit his carriage and sent Lee and his traveling partner, Baron, 10 feet in the air and 25 feet down in a ditch.
Despite not having any money and only enough food for his horse, Lee did not get discouraged and instead raised money for the materials to make a new carriage with the help of a GoFundMe and selling his own merchandise.
He’s also picked up some side hustles over the years, such as pulling logs with his horses and transporting other goods (which is exactly what a horse logger’s job is).
Lee has lived without electricity, running water, or a motor-run vehicle for the last 18 years, and has no intention of slowing down now that he’s on his fifth cross-country road trip.
‘This experience is one I will never forgo,’ Lee said, cherishing his time on the road.
He appreciates the little things in life, especially when other vehicles give him space on the road.
‘That’s the biggest issue, just give me enough room, I’m driving but I’m like anybody who’s driving,’ Lee said.
Lee hit a bump in the road, literally and figuratively, last year when a car driving recklessly above the speed limit with a state troopers on its tail hit his carriage and sent Lee and his traveling partner, Baron, 10 feet in the air and 25 feet down in a ditch (Pictured: Lee’s carriage after the accident)
Despite not having any money and only enough food for his horse, Lee did not get discouraged and instead raised money for the materials to make a new carriage with the help of a GoFundMe and selling his own merchandise
He’s also picked up some side hustles over the years, such as pulling logs with his horses and transporting other goods
Lee, who is currently in Cheyenne, Wyoming, is en route to Boston, Massachusetts – and has no plans on slowing down
But he’s also a deep thinker, documenting his revelations and posting them to his YouTube channel or Facebook page.
‘The secret to the meaning of life is become so immersed in something that theres no ‘you’ separating from what’s going on, so that you aren’t even aware of it.
‘That’s what traveling is for me…that’s what this whole thing is,’ Lee said in a recent Facebook video.
Lee, who is currently in Cheyenne, Wyoming, is en route to Boston, Massachusetts.
