Traveling on a motorcycle is something most people could only dream of doing.
So when Jess Stone and her husband decided they wanted to make the years-long journey across the world, they knew it would require leaving some things behind.
But, it just wouldn’t be their beloved dog, Moxie.
Moxie, a 75-pound German Shepherd, was the one item that was the most necessary to make their time on the road complete.
So, when Jess and Greg began their trip, right beside them was Moxie, in a custom-made carrier and wearing her protective goggles.
Jess Stone and her dog, Moxie. Photo courtesy of Stone
“It’s like you get to experience the adventure twice,” Jess said about having Moxie travel with the couple. “You experience it for yourself. And then you experience it from her perspective, because she’s right behind me.
The uniqueness of having a dog on the back of a motorcycle isn’t lost on the people they pass on the road.
People have one hand on the steering wheel and one hand out the window with their phone,” Jess said.
Moxie rides behind Jess in a custom-made carrier, which she can jump into with help from Jess. “She’s an extremely adventurous dog,” she said.
“She just puts a big smile on everybody’s face,” Stone said. “And that’s the part that really matters.”
So far, the trio has traveled from their home in Guatemala, through Canada and to the Arctic Ocean. Now, in Mexico, the trip will see them make their way to Antarctica.
Jess said the next part of the plan will lead them to Africa, Europe and then Asia. But no matter where they go, the reaction to Moxie seems to be the same.
Jess Stone and her dog, Moxie. Photo courtesy of Stone
“If you’re a dog person in one country, you’re a dog person somewhere else too,” she says. “People smile and laugh when they see her with her goggles on. It’s the best icebreaker you could have.”
Finding Moxie, Jess said, was always meant to be.
“She picked me 100 percent,” she said. The couple found Moxie in a litter of puppies in a town near their home.
She was there at my heels just waiting for me to love her.”
And Moxie took to the road like a champ.
“Everybody always asks how long it takes to teach your dog how to ride,” Jess said. “Honestly, it took Moxie the weekend.
Laughing, she said that “it took me a lot longer to feel comfortable having that much weight on the back, because I’d never rode with a passenger.”
And now, the dog is such a part of the trip that they can’t imagine it any other way.
“I see her [Moxie] in my mirror all the time. Her head is right up against my side. Sometimes she even rests her big snout on my shoulder with her chin up there.
And knowing that Moxie is able to have adventures with them, makes everything worth it.
“It makes me feel so happy that she’s really experiencing everything. It’s always new sights, sounds and smells that she’s looking at and experiencing.”
Watch below for a glimpse of Moxie and her family!
