A widowed dad waited decades to take his dream road trip. Now thousands are following his adventure.

For as long as she could remember, Conner Babcock had listened to her father talk about his dream road trip. Someday, he said, he would leave everything behind and head out to see all the spots across the United States that he'd never had a chance to visit.

"Every time we would pass like an airstream trailer on the side of the road, he would make us stop and look at the price and go inside," she tells Yahoo. "It's been something I can't remember not hearing about."

For decades, though, the realities of life prevented Frank Babcock's travel fantasies from becoming a reality. He was widowed when Conner was 10 years old, which meant there was little time to do anything but support her and her younger brother.

"I did the cooking. I did the cleaning. I ran them everywhere," Frank tells Yahoo. "Summers were always booked."

At 69, Frank finally got his wish last month. As he set out from his Northern Illinois home, heading west toward the scenic National Parks of the northern U.S., he sent Conner a text message to let her know that "Big Frank's Excellent Adventure" had begun at last.

She was so moved by the moment that she shared her father's story with her more than 150,000 TikTok followers.

From there, the post took on a life of its own. Thousands of strangers commented, many of them offering to host Frank if he found his way to their towns. To date, the post has been viewed more than 1.7 million times and collected more than 370,000 likes. Conner also started a separate account for Frank, where she edits and curates posts of the updates he sends her from the road.

"He has been so resilient and gone through so many things, it's so cool to watch so many people be invested and want to support him as someone that I just think is really deserving of support," she says.

After retiring earlier this year, Frank had a lot to get done before he could hit the road. He had multiple back surgeries, including one to fuse the joint connecting his lower spine to his pelvis. He also had to put in the work to convert his aging 2008 Chevy Suburban into makeshift mobile lodging.

"My thought was, well, I'm gonna do it the 'poor boy' way first … and really see if I do like it," he says.

He installed a camping cot, blackout curtains, storage containers, portable heating and a fan. He also built a custom wooden platform to make the back of the SUV more livable.

After decades of waiting and months of patient preparation, he headed out on his big adventure in late September. The trip didn't get off to an auspicious start.

"I started out that first night and… I stayed in just the rest stop," he says. "I thought, 'Oh, I don't know if I like this.'"

But things all came together once he traded rest stops full of big rigs for campgrounds full of fellow travelers.

Over the course of the last few weeks, he's visited some of the country's most beautiful natural sites: Glacier National Park, Rocky Mountain National Park, Yellowstone, the Wind River Valley, the Grand Tetons and more.

"Look, I'm not in a hurry. I can take my time and look at the country," he says. "Oh man, I am so glad that I'm doing this."

Along the way, Frank has sent back videos to Conner from his various stops, which she cuts together to share on the TikTok account dedicated to chronicling his trip, which has nearly 30,000 followers.

"He's watched us for all these years do things," she says., right?"

The first leg of Big Frank's Excellent Adventure will last a few weeks, but he has several trips in his future itinerary, including a long drive south to visit the Grand Canyon.

Frank says he doesn't fully grasp why so many strangers have become interested in his travels, but appreciates their support.

"It's a cool deal," he says. "It's very nice."

Conner believes her dad's story has resonated because a lot of people who encountered her post see pieces of their own lives in it.

"The older you get, the more you understand the sacrifice of your parents," she says. "A lot of my followers know about our mom passing away and will follow me because they have widowed parents … so I knew it would be relatable for them."

Both of them were particularly inspired by the many comments from people all over the country inviting Frank to visit them where they live.

"Tell dad if he wants to do some camping in Arizona I'm down!!"

"If surfing is on his bucket list, I'll give him a free lesson if he comes thru LA."

Frank hasn't had the opportunity to connect with anyone who made those offers, but says he plans to.

"I'm gonna take some people up on that," he says. "There was somebody in New Mexico or something with a hot air balloon. Absolutely, I'm gonna call you. That's something I always wanted to do."

Of course, Frank's ideal travel companions would be his children. Though there are no concrete plans for Conner and her brother to join him on the road at the moment, it's something all of them are looking forward to.

"We have to find a spot where we can all connect … but we would love to [join him] at some point," she says.