This episode of the outside podcast is brought to you by Toyota, a company that wants to help you find joy by exploring America's scenic byways.

It's really important to me to show the kids different parts of the country and different parts of the world.

So I'm trying to get out on as many road trips as I can with the family and build confidence through adventuring.

This is professional mountain biker, Eric Porter. Recently, Eric and his wife Megan took their sons Owen and Milo on a road trip along Michigan celebrated M-22 highway in a Toyota Highlander XSC.

We spent a lot of time traveling around the west coast of the US and I really wanted to show the kids a different part of the country.

The cool part about being here is we're on the 45th parallel which means we're halfway in between the equator and the North Pole.

The route hugs the eastern shore of Lake Michigan and it also skirts a number of smaller waterways giving road trippers access to numerous sandy beaches.

They used to come here when I was a kid.

Really?

Yeah, there's so much fun stuff.

Oh, there's the dunes sleeping bear sand dunes right up here.

It's not too far.

Should have put the sport mode.

Yes.

With a sport tune suspension, the Toyota Highlander XSC offers confident, fun handling on pavement.

And when you're rolling on gravel, it's available dynamic torque vectoring all-wheel drive improves responsiveness and stability.

The road's going to take us along the water right there so we should have some awesome views.

I'm excited to go paddle boarding because we haven't done that this summer.

Whether you cruise in along the shores of Lake Michigan on a family road trip or heading out on a very different kind of adventure,

there's a Toyota designed to get you there.

When we're at home, it's easy to fall into the routine of school and work, but when we get out on the road,

we can leave all that stuff behind and reconnect with each other and with the outdoors.

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