Wagon, ho! Horse's pace suits traveler just fine

PRIEST RIVER, Idaho — There is a man headed for Seattle right now who will tell you that you are moving too fast.

He's traveled 7,000 miles in a covered wagon with a horse team for the past three years, relying on the kindnesses of strangers and a few friends. His speed: 3 mph.

He and his animals have endured torturous heat and biting cold and were nearly knocked to pieces in Nebraska by a commercial truck carrying a steel tower.

Lee Crafton keeps going, he said, because the journey has become his life. He'll say he's headed to Alaska via Seattle and San Francisco, but there's no real destination.

"I'm just going across America to visit with people," he said Wednesday.

He plans to continue moving west crossing the Cascades at Stevens Pass.

"I'm not here to raise money," he said. "I'm not here to raise your social consciousness."

The journey began in 2006 when Crafton left horse logging and ranching in Montana with almost nothing to show for 27 years' work. He had been diagnosed with lymphoma, he said, but didn't want conventional medical treatment. He wanted to see America.

He hitched his Suffolk Punch draft horses to a homemade wagon and headed east. His initial goal was to visit a childhood sweetheart in New England.

Since then, he's gained friends, a lot of publicity and a steady stream of donations.

Crafton stays in touch by cellphone, laptop and Web site. He can be found online at www.leehorselogger.com.

Life at a horse's pace has its own satisfaction, he said.

"In this age of communication, we do not know how to communicate, and that's what this trip is about. ... This country is huge, and we move way too fast," he said. "You have no idea what you are missing."