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Tom Hornyak’s three-month vacation of a lifetime stretched from Naples to San Francisco at a cost of $700.

The 3,700-mile no-frills bike trip included one tent, four flats, two wipe-outs, eight states, 14 couches and hundreds of close encounters with nearly every aspect of human and wildlife along the way.

“I just needed a break from the rigors of studying to be a mechanical engineer,” the Palm River Estates resident says of the semester he took off from Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind.

On Jan. 23 — his 21st birthday — Hornyak left Naples for San Francisco.

“I did a little research on which route to take. Basically, I just had a go-with-the-flow mentality. I bought all my gear, including a $5 tent and sleeping bag, through local thrift shops. I probably spent $50 total, and obtained two maps through adventurecycle.com,” he says.

The day before he left, Big Mamas, a local bike shop, offered him a Surly Long Haul Trucker Bike instead of the one he was planning to use.

Hornyak rode more than 3,700 miles to the west coast of the United States, traveling through the central part of Florida to the panhandle, hugging the coasts of Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. He then went through Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California.

His goal — to visit interesting places.

“I stealthily camped. I didn’t want to draw attention to myself while out alone,” he says.

He pitched his tent in woods, parks, under bridges, in a citrus orchard, and in backyards. He also slept in a grain silo, a dilapidated trailer house, an abandoned gas station and a homeless shelter during a vicious snowstorm.

“The whole trip went quite smoothly,” he says. “I was fortunate.”

Hornyak hit rain on and off throughout his travels. He said the first 30 minutes is okay, “but after that it is just freezing and lame.”

He persevered bad weather, being bashed by headwinds, and stayed on U.S. highways and side roads, avoiding the interstates. He says the most dangerous road he traversed was Truckers Highway heading to Gainesville, where large trucks traveled at high speeds.

“It took all my concentration to keep the bike under control when getting caught in their slipstreams,” he says.

Hornyak found out he liked traveling off the beaten path, hanging out with the locals, and getting a feel for their customs.

“It made the trip so much more enjoyable,” he said.

Hornyak preferred to visit the local chamber of commerce and visitor centers to get maps for each leg of his journey. In bigger cities, he would visit libraries and colleges to update his online journal and link to couchsurfing.com where he made contact with a host offering a place (usually a couch) for him to stay when he was in their town.

“It is safe and totally free,” Hornyak says of the Internet site. “You can read the reviews of the couch host to determine who is safe and reliable. The best part of couch surfing is you are able to stay with a local resident who can tell you the history of the town, show you around, and get a real sense of their way of life.”

His favorite stops were New Orleans, Austin, Flagstaff and San Francisco. The scariest was near Panama City, during a tornado watch.

“The wind was blowing in all directions, it was raining, and I felt like I was on a roller coaster!” he recalls.

While camping in New Mexico and Texas, it got so cold, that the water he’d saved for breakfast the next morning was frozen solid.

“I woke inside my tent with my sleeping bag covered in frost,” he says. “On the bike I rode at five miles per hour in the snow. It was windy and the snow pecking my face felt like nails.”

In Coyote, New Mexico he had to use water purification tablets because the water was black.

“The locals told me not to drink it,” he admits.

In Florida he went to Rendezvous, an 1840 frontier festival, and rode along the Withlacoochee Trail. He took several ferries during his journey, strolled the French Quarter, saw a bluegrass concert and ate “boudin” and “cracklins” in New Orleans. He saw an IMAX documentary on Texas and visited a carnival in San Angelo and Billy the Kid’s tombstone.

From Flagstaff, Arizona, it took Hornyak two days to get to the Grand Canyon, where he hiked to the canyon bottom and back in one day.

“Not recommended,” he advises.

Hornyak was able to experience Cajun, cowboy and Navajo Indian cultures to name a few.

“While I was in the Navajo Nation, an American Indian offered to let me sleep in a sacred Hogan, which is a cone structure, modern day teepee, the tribe uses for ceremonies and to keep themselves in balance,” he said. “It was a great honor.”

Hornyak met a retired Swiss doctor, Martin Vosseler, who was walking from the west coast to Boston to promote solar energy.

Luckenbach, Texas was the smallest town he passed through.

“The police station and courthouse were located in the local tavern,” he says.

Hornyak took a break from his bike to hitch a ride across the Mojave Desert, which took 10 hours by car.

“Life is too short to be suffering the desert,” he said.

From Bakersfield, Calif., he traveled to Sequoia National Park and Yosemite. He got to San Francisco on April 23, and bought his return airplane ticket to Purdue University. He stayed another week in California, checking out the sights from the Golden Gate Bridge to Alcatraz.

“My next bike tour, I would like to go to Europe or Africa,” he says. “If I do the United States again, I would like to ride a more northern route.”

To vacation the Hornyak way, pack up a bike with gear weighing approximately 200 pounds, and you will be able to enjoy the country like a modern day trailblazer. Details and photos of Hornyak’s journey are online at crazyguyonabike.com/doc/tomontour.

“Ninety-five percent of the people I met across the country were nice and curious about my travels,” he says. “It was good to meet folks and talk to them, as sometimes it got lonely out there. I learned in every part of the country, there are friendly people.”

This week, Hornyak left for Purdue University with new adventure stories to tell his classmates and professors.

His advice to anyone taking a bike tour is to plan a route, avoid the desert, take a cell phone, make yourself presentable.

“Don’t look too scruffy, have a positive attitude and be friendly to everyone,” he says. “Realize a day on a bike equals about one hour in a car. You can bike about 60-70 miles per day. Just relax and take it easy. Get off the beaten path and enjoy the diverse cultures. It is more exciting to ask the locals where to go instead of planning out the whole trip. Don’t set time limits on yourself or expect to do a certain number of miles per day. Be a free spirit and appreciate the vastness of the nation.”