Lee the Horselogger espouses no particular religion but he provides a living testimony to the power of faith, traveling more than 7,000 miles across the country in a covered wagon.

"If you have enough faith, things have a way of working out," he said. "I just drive the horses and visit with people."

Lee, who pulled into Kalispell Sunday night, made a major leap of faith when he began his epic journey.

In August of 2006, his family sold their Montana ranch, where he had spent 27 years horse logging. Lee was left broke and homeless with just his rare Suffolk Punch draft horses, but he had a dream.

"I had a childhood sweetheart on the East Coast and I wanted to visit her," he said.

Lee built a hand-hewn covered wagon, equipped it with blinking lights and an American flag, then hitched up his draft horses in East Glacier to head for Boston at about 3 miles per hour. Just about a year later, he had a reunion with his sweetheart and gained a country-wide network of new friends.

He came to Kalispell to resupply for his trip West to see the redwoods in California. The trip to California is an interim stop on his way to Canada or Alaska where he hopes to lead a homestead lifestyle on a ranch or farm.

"That's if I don't find someone to put the horses in Asia and Europe," he said. "I'd like to drive them across Europe and Asia."

According to Lee, he can travel about 12 to 25 miles a day driving from six to nine hours at a time. His team has expanded to include four Suffolk Punch horses-a stallion, a gelding and two mares.

He plans to breed the mares to perpetuate the rare breed and provide more horsepower to pull the hefty wagons loaded with supplies and tools for repairs.

"You can never have too many horses," Lee said.

Keeping his horses fed and watered makes for more than a full-time job. He makes his horses - Tom, Max, Babe and Fey - his top priority, admitting his own diet consists of too much junk food.

"They've never missed a meal," he said.

Katie, an 11-year-old Great Pyrenees dog, rounds out his traveling entourage. Lee spends every night in the covered wagon that he calls "a barn on wheels" with quite a few comforts such as a good bed and a shower in progress.

He describes his lifestyle as enjoyable but cautions that it's not for the lazy.

"I love driving horses - that's fun," he said. "But I'm not having fun. It's a hell of a lot of work."

Lee continues his journey of a lifetime Wednesday with the faith that God will protect him and provide what he needs - donations or a logging opportunity - when he needs it.

"I'm visiting my way across America," he said.

Lee surprises people when he tell them he isn't traveling to raise money or awareness about any cause. He wanted to experience America at "a human pace," letting a higher power pull him in the right direction.

All the same, people do donate to help him follow his dream. Lee said he had to learn to accept generosity.

"They give a part of themselves," Lee said. "They become part of the path I chose to take. It's what they can do now."

He said he often wakes up and finds a couple of bales of hay for his horses or people hand him cash. Lee said he doesn't give talks to raise money for the trip because that doesn't give him the satisfaction of visiting face to face.

"I speak mainly one on one," he said. "That's what people need - I make them look inside a bit. It's a different connection."

He said he has just begun to learn the life lessons he believes the trip was meant to teach him. But Lee has some impressions he enjoys sharing with people who stop to chat.

"This country is huge and there are a lot of good people in the world," he said. "It's not all doom and gloom out there."

Lee invites people to see him driving out U.S. 2 West between noon and about 3 p.m. on Wednesday. His route will take him south down Whitefish Stage Road, going west on West Reserve, south on U.S. 93 and west on U.S. 2 West.

"I don't mind stopping if I can do so safely," he said.

Lee, 48, doesn't use his full name because he doesn't consider it important. Instead of a name and address, he leaves the people he meets with a new perspective and a bit of wisdom before he rolls out of town to the clop of 16 broad hooves.

"You're responsible for your own life," he said. "You only have a limited amount of time."

People may read more about Lee at www.leehorselogger.com

Reporter Candace Chase may be reached at 758-4436 or by e-mail at cchase@dailyinterlake.com