TUALATIN, Ore. -- For once, curiosity didn't kill the cat.

A 3-month-old kitten rode beneath a SUV for more than 120 miles Wednesday.

Marc Lichty left Olympia, Wash., in his SUV after finishing up a day of work. Along the way to Tualatin, he stopped at a rest stop and heard meowing.

Lichty, however, couldn't find any trace of a cat.

When he returned home to Tualatin, he stepped out of the car and heard the meowing again, leading him to grab a flashlight.

"Sure enough, the cat was up underneath in the spare tire spot up there," Lichty said.

"He shined the light and I just saw this little guy's face there so we tried to get him out and coaxed him with a little piece of salmon," said Jenna Lichty, Marc's daughter. "I pulled him right out."

Sub-freezing temperatures reached the teens in the Pacific Northwest this week, which likely made for a chilly ride down Interstate 5 on Wednesday.

"It was pretty cold. I can't imagine traveling 75 miles down the freeway and it being 20 degrees out," Lichty said.

The cat does not have a micro chip and was not wearing a collar. The Lichtys called Olympia businesses in the area where Lichty was working Wednesday, but they were unsuccessful in finding the owner.

The family has decided to keep the kitten. Now, all they need is a good name.

"Well, we've got a few floating around," Lichty said. "Chevy. And there's Tahoe, Pitch and Lucky. Nothing quite yet."

Kitten Survives 120-Mile Trip Beneath SUV