In 1961, an adventurous law student gets a passport and picks up where Jack Kerouac left off, undertaking an unparalleled trip, pre-drug cartel, hitchhiking solo from Wisconsin through middle America to Texas, then thousands of miles down the Pan-American Highway through Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama to the Panama Canal – likely the first time, and maybe the only time, such a journey has been done, particularly alone. The book begins with a rare, in-depth, first-hand account of what it was like to hitchhike through America during hitchhiking‘s exciting, brief golden years – the mid-50s to the mid-60s – the people, the places, the adventure. Then the stage for the trip to Panama is set with a train trip in the US and a 1961 attempt to visit Cuba. The trip from Wisconsin to Texas with several surprising events gives the reader a window into life at that time in America on the road. The author then traverses seven borders, including through banana republics ruled by dictators. His experiences on the road range from terrifying to hilarious. This remarkable and informative true account of a world now gone is illustrated with maps and photos and is enhanced with flashbacks, flashforwards, and historical references.