I have been planning on taking a trip across the country. Eventually I think we will be driving back to New York from Phoenix once the house is lifted. I stumbled across this fun graphic I thought I would share. It explains the roads a little and what you should have in your car when driving a long trip. Is there anything missing? What else would you bring with you?
Via: Car Insurance Blog
Vinnie,
I hope you are in your new home soon. It’s been too long.
My friends and I want to do a route 66 road trip too. I hope you get to do it. It will be an experience of a lifetime.
Vinny, I have been taking round-trip road trips every February since 2012. I covered 5500 miles in 2012, just shy of 3K in 2013 and 8500 miles in 2014. I agree with everything on your “Don’t forget” list and would add a few items and some pointers. I am a records fanatic. I keep detailed records of all my trips, it gives me a way to stay grounded during the trip and a way to remember the fun I had in the future. I track daily mileage, fuel economy, fuel prices around the country, the places I stay and I don’t hesitate to make notes and comments on anything along the way. I have also learned that “Jill” – my GPS – doesn’t always agree with my routing. I have mastered the trick of setting a destination that will force the GPS to take the roads I want. I just dummy up an address – xx Main St works well – then change the destination when the first location is close. Sometimes 2 or 3 fake destinations are needed, but I get to take the route I want. Be sure you leave room somewhere for those items you find on the road that you “can’t live without”. There is always something that catches your eye and they will remind you of your trip long after your arrival. I usually plan to stay in hotels along the way, but I never make advance reservations. That would create a deadline and I hate deadlines. I use the Hotel Discount booklets available at most rest-stops – some cover an area of the country, some only cover one State, I often stop at each State’s Welcome Center to collect the official State map and the discount books; be sure to get both the green & red books. The discounted rooms – sometimes as much as 50% – are for drop ins and I have found that if I stop by 7pm I have a 99% chance of scoring an inexpensive room. Normally I plan a 12 hour day and shoot to cover 600 miles. Of course that is easily altered to fit whatever your trip goals are. If you want to stop and see the “World’s largest ball of twine” and take a more leisurely trek, then by all means – do so, its your road trip, make it what you want. Oh, about that radar scrambler – once you are away from the east coast, most States have 70 or higher speed limits, I have never found it necessary to exceed the posted speed limit by more than 2 or 3 mph. At this speed I don’t worry about the local officers that like to target my out of State plates. Enjoy the trip and take lots of pictures to share with us.