Don’t let that empty nest syndrome get you down.

That was the philosophy adopted by Eric and Karen Whitehead. Fortunately, for this travel loving pre-senior couple, their eldest son Gavin was a world traveler himself and was currently living and teaching in Ecuador with his wife Jordi. Therefore, it did not take any significant thought to decide to follow the nestling to his home in South America.

They all spent a phenomenal week together in Quito and some nearby towns then Eric and Karen were off on an odyssey of their own. They spent three weeks journeying to some of the most remote areas on earth; the Galapagos Islands, Lake Titicaca in Peru, Patagonia in the near Antarctica region of Chile and finally, Easter Island.

The adventure was so astounding that Eric questioned more than once, “Am I still on earth?” The amazing creatures of the Galapagos made them think they were living in a land that time had forgotten. The people and culture of Lake Titicaca enriched both their minds and their souls. Patagonia was so breathtaking that they often felt that time stood still. Finally the mystery of Easter Island and the beauty of its sunsets put a crown of glory on this truly magnificent journey

The words of American essayist Susan Sontag sum up Eric’s feelings, “I haven’t been everywhere but it’s on my list.”

Read excerpts from the book "South American Odyssey".

Read the interview with Eric Whitehead in the Bradford Times

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A holiday experience unlike any they had ever had, Eric and Karen decide they will actually have to train for this one.

Their journey takes them high into the Andes Mountains along the Inca Trail to the citadel of Machu Picchu. Amidst fears of altitude sickness and just what chewing those coca leaves might do to them, the four day mountain trek seems an impossibility at the beginning and a dream at the end.

A stay in the wilderness of the Amazon jungle and the depths of Colca Canyon leave the couple realizing that Peru truly is simply remarkable. The incredibly varied geography and a rich culture marked by tradition makes Peru a spiritual destination. A visit will surely change your life in some way.

Read excerpts from the book "Journey To The Lost City".

If you would like to buy the book at this time, please contact Eric Whitehead and we can arrange a payment method, and delivery of the book. The price is $25.00 (CDN), plus shipping/handling.

A road trip book like no other…Eric and Karen travelled for 20 years with their two sons Gavin and Adam. When it stopped the boys were 23 and 21 respectively so their adventures spanned every age and phase from infancy to young adulthood. How did they do it? How did they keep the kids interested enough to want to continue the family vacation year after year?

This book contains some hopefully valuable advice and some family secrets aimed at making your travels a joy not a trial of all your resources and mental capacities; it also contains travel adventure as they visit all 48 mainland states – by car! One thing is for certain, travelling gives children an education that cannot be equaled in any book, movie or classroom. It opens a world of history, geography, religion and culture, a world that can best be experienced by being there.

“We do not regret the decision to travel widely with our children; the sacrifice we made in material possessions was far outweighed by the realization that the children got an education and satisfaction from life that they would not have gotten had we not done this. We only hope they enjoyed it as much as we did – long live the holiday road.”

Read excerpts from the book "The Holiday Road".

If you would like to buy the book at this time, please contact Eric Whitehead and we can arrange a payment method, and delivery of the book. The price is $25.00 (CDN), plus shipping/handling.

Eric and Karen’s first trip to Asia set the bar high for any future travels. Vietnam is a dichotomy of everything; it’s beautiful, it’s dirty, it’s happy, it’s tragic, it’s historic and cultural and in part it is lost in time. They saw the cities and the rural areas and every place was different and special in its own way.

While in Saigon they thought the temperature approached unbearable levels at 40 degrees C – but Cambodia was even hotter! Fortunately the utter fascination of the temples soon made them forget about the heat.

Travel continues to open their eyes as they immerse themselves in the culture of faraway lands. As with every trip, a new adventure always leaves them wanting more, all part of a very satisfying journey along the holiday road.

Read excerpts from the book "Emerging From The Shadows".

If you would like to buy the book at this time, please contact Eric Whitehead and we can arrange a payment method, and delivery of the book. The price is $25.00 (CDN), plus shipping/handling.

Travel continues to open their eyes as they immerse themselves in the culture of faraway lands. As with every trip, a new adventure always leaves them wanting more, all part of a very satisfying journey along the holiday road.

Read excerpts from the book "Exploring The Rock".

If you would like to buy the book at this time, please contact Eric Whitehead and we can arrange a payment method, and delivery of the book. The price is $25.00 (CDN), plus shipping/handling.

Eric and Karen travelled with their sons Gavin and Adam for 20 years. Eric always believed, “Travel opens our eyes to how other cultures live by inviting us into their world and making sure we understand and appreciate it before letting us go.” That was a gift they gave their children. Now Eric and Karen move on without them.

At first they thought it would be difficult but they decided to focus on what they could gain not what they had lost. It wasn’t long before the same crazy things happened to them; they still got lost at the drop of a hat, they still found some really questionable places to stay and they still enjoyed it all.

Read excerpts from the book "On Our Own".

If you would like to buy the book at this time, please contact Eric Whitehead and we can arrange a payment method, and delivery of the book. The price is $25.00 (CDN), plus shipping/handling.

When we left on our expedition everyone asked, "Why do you want to go to the Antarctic?" We couldn't give them an answer - now we can. In the past the term pristine wilderness always conjured ideas of forests, mountains and rivers to me but Antarctica gave a whole new meaning to the phrase.

There are no roads, no towns and no people in most locations in Antarctica. If not for the people in our immediate group, the hundred passengers and crew of the Ushuaia, in many places there truly would be no one there.

We learned to understand and appreciate so many things about whales, seals, penguins, glaciers and icebergs. We also learned, without a shadow of a doubt, that global warming is real - SAVE the ICE!!!

Read excerpts from the book "ANTARCTICA an expedition cruise".

If you would like to buy the book at this time, please contact Eric Whitehead and we can arrange a payment method, and delivery of the book. The price is $25.00 (CDN), plus shipping/handling.

Our goal was to make our way through northern Quebec, drive across Labrador anywhere there was a road then return home through Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Quebec. Labrador was the focal point of the journey. The Trans-Labrador Highway is a little over 1,200 kilometres in length and is part of a network of remote roads, about half of them unpaved, cutting through unparalleled wilderness. There's off the beaten path; then there's this place.

Everyone asked, "Why Labrador?" For the adventure and the sheer joy of driving across one of the last frontiers in North America; it's the ultimate road trip. A journey through Labrador will put you in touch with the natural beauty of the landscape. It is one of the few places left where you can enjoy true wilderness - surrounded by echoes of the past.

Read excerpts from the book "LABRADOR A Great Canadian Road Trip".

If you would like to buy the book at this time, please contact Eric Whitehead and we can arrange a payment method, and delivery of the book. The price is $25.00 (CDN), plus shipping/handling.

I love driving, the more isolated the conditions the better. There is nothing more relaxing and satisfying to me than driving for hours upon hours on an empty road and never seeing another vehicle. Somehow the enjoyment derived from that eliminates any concerns of breakdowns or requirements for assistance from my mind.

The freedom of the road, a journey of discovery, isolation and leaving it all behind – traffic, noise, rushing, heat, telephones, your peace of mind depends on it. So it was only natural that the 747 kilometre Dempster Highway from near Dawson City to Inuvik plus a new 148 kilometre extension Tuktoyaktuk Highway to the Arctic Ocean would attract me – unquestionably one of the best road trips in Canada if not the world.

Read excerpts from the book "Destination Dempster".

If you would like to buy the book at this time, please contact Eric Whitehead and we can arrange a payment method, and delivery of the book. The price is $25.00 (CDN), plus shipping/handling.

Haida Gwaii is a place of contrasts; made up of ancient, temperate rainforests, quaint villages, secluded inlets and beaches that stretch as far as the eye can see. It is a place where travellers can encounter a world unlike any other. British Columbia encompasses the spirit of Haida Gwaii.

They say when you leave you will have the sense of having touched and experienced something sacred - you have.

Read excerpts from the book "British Columbia: Experience Something Sacred".

If you would like to buy the book at this time, please contact Eric Whitehead and we can arrange a payment method, and delivery of the book. The price is $25.00 (CDN), plus shipping/handling.

Through the years travel has been a constant presence in my life. Writing and photography have supplemented my travel experiences and it all started when I was a child. My parents provided a model and template that I would use in later life. I suppose that is how I became That Road Trip Guy.

Read excerpts from the book "That Road Trip Guy: How It All Began".

If you would like to buy the book at this time, please contact Eric Whitehead and we can arrange a payment method, and delivery of the book. The price is $25.00 (CDN), plus shipping/handling.

As a Canadian I had pre-conceived visions of Saskatchewan. Like most, I expected to see endless vistas of flat, open prairie with wheat blowing gently in the breeze.  I could not have been further from the truth. Yes there are flat lands and wheat fields, lots of them, but Saskatchewan has so much more scenery to offer – some of it absolutely unbelievable.

The Qu’Appelle Valley, the Crooked Trees near Alticane and the resort town of Cochin. Their claim to fame is a lighthouse. Excuse me? Talk about out of place. The view is nothing short of bizarre.

The more I looked at the Badlands the more I thought I might just see dinosaurs roaming in the distance. Believe me, Saskatchewan is more than just wheat fields.

Read excerpts from the book "Saskatchewan more than just wheat fields".

If you would like to buy the book at this time, please contact Eric Whitehead and we can arrange a payment method, and delivery of the book. The price is $25.00 (CDN), plus shipping/handling.

In 1973 United Press International announcer Ed Karrens noted, “Whatever your social status, your political persuasion or economic rank, in some way large or small the year 1973 had to have a profound effect on your life.”

Truer words were never spoken. This book chronicles the major events of the York University Kenya Study Tour, as seen through my eyes.

I did not return to Toronto with the rest of the York contingent. Ed Karrens prophesized, “For some 1973 was a new beginning.” That certainly reigned true for the York Kenya Study Group.

Read excerpts from the book "Beneath The African Sky".

If you would like to buy the book at this time, please contact Eric Whitehead and we can arrange a payment method, and delivery of the book. The price is $25.00 (CDN), plus shipping/handling.

Through the years travel has been a constant presence in my life. Writing and photography have supplemented my travel experiences, however, occasionally I stray from that path in my writing and present a biography. The Whiteheads is such a book.

Understanding our past leads us to our future; sometimes a bumpy road and not always clear but hopefully the journey will help us appreciate ourselves. Viewing the photos throughout the book will add to that appreciation. As you make your way through the pages you will meet our ancestral family. There are a few mysteries along the way and some extraordinary people. Enjoy and be proud of your heritage.

Read excerpts from the book "The Whiteheads".

If you would like to buy the book at this time, please contact Eric Whitehead and we can arrange a payment method, and delivery of the book. The price is $35.00 (CDN), plus shipping/handling.

Not all trips have to be the epic adventures in which we have been fortunate enough to be involved. This book is a continuation of On Our Own and covers shorter trips not mentioned in previous writings, some barely achieving the status of trips at all. To me a standard adventure is two to three weeks minimum ranging to five or six weeks, so some of these definitely do not qualify in terms of time.

None of that matters; it’s the destination, the experience and the learning process you undergo while travelling that yields the reward.

Read excerpts from the book "Still On Our Own".

Those of us who are of a certain vintage will have no trouble relating to the logistics nightmares in the chronicles addressed here. However, many younger people will view us as dinosaurs, not even being able to imagine travelling without a phone or internet.

I contend and will leave you with this thought; things are not necessarily better now, they are just different. We had plenty of enjoyment and success without the technology available in today’s world.

Read excerpts from the book "No Phone, No Internet and Film in My Camera".

If you would like to buy the book at this time, please contact Eric Whitehead and we can arrange a payment method, and delivery of the book. The price is $25.00 (CDN), plus shipping/handling.

As a writer, I am unquestionably one who deals in travel, so this book is a major departure for me.

The Kindertransport was a rescue mission that took place during the 9 months prior to the outbreak of World War II on September 3, 1939.

That made Helga one of the last to take safe haven in the United Kingdom. But that was just the beginning. What followed was a lifetime of heartache and loneliness endlessly thinking of the loving family she left behind, never to see them again.

Helga is my mother-in-law, and, in a word, is a fascinating lady.

Sadly, we lost Helga in December 2019.

"HELGA escape into the arms of strangers" is now available and contains an additional final chapter, Helga's Legacy.

If you would like more information, or to purchase the book, please contact Eric Whitehead directly.

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