A couple and their dog walk across 48 states with a goal to be proof that there is good everywhere, not just people's home states. Torin, 31, and Paige Rouse, 24, with their dog Jak, have walked through 21 states out of the 48 they want to complete. The trip has taken over 4,500 walking miles and 565 days so far.
Torin, right and Paige Rouse pose with their belongings before moving toward Helena on July 5. The journey started on May 16, 2022, and the couple has taken two breaks for 261 days total. The Rouses call themselves the "Walking America Couple.
" Both are from Missouri, which is where the journey began. Paige was 20 when she met Torin as his waitress. Three days went by during their talking phase when he asked her to "run away with me and a backpack.
" She said she did not immediately say "No," because she was curious about adventuring. "I was just taking odd jobs, trying to figure out what to do with myself, so I wasn't too tied down to anything," Paige said Friday during a stop at the Big Bull Bar and Grill in Winston. The couple has been together about three years.
After dating for about a year-and-a-half, they got married a year-and-a-half ago. Torin worked in commercial roofing before he decided to live an alternative lifestyle. He saw multiple states during his time working corporate jobs, but he did not enjoy it.
"I swore it off because I was cynical, too introverted and not happy with the world," Torin said. The Walking America Couple packs their camping gear be.