Road trips have been the subject of escapist dreams, both realized and merely conceived, seemingly ever since highways were created. The idea of open roads, the boundless freedom of the American west, going wherever you please. For some these ideas are too tempting to not pursue. When the opportunity presented itself to my wife Kim and I, we felt that temptation.
After three glorious years living in Hawaii, the time came for us to move again. Back to the mainland. It was February 2016 when we left, and we were fortunate to have a healthy savings and nowhere pressing to be for a while. The decision was made, we would fly to the mainland, rent a car and begin our pursuit for a van. What became the next several months of travelling the continental US is a journey neither Kim or I will ever forget, and one we aim to get back to as soon as we can.
We learned several important things about extended traveling, what I’d like to do is pass some of those on to you.
Tip One - Figure out what to do with all your sh*t.
As a musician and a genetic carrier of some unnamed hoarding syndrome, we had acquired a lot of stuff over our brief time settled on the island. Now perhaps you’re in a situation where the home you leave behind to travel will be the same one you return to, in that case you’ll be fine. Perhaps you can’t imagine paying rent for a place you’re not going to be near. For us, it was a bit more complicated. As with any move we got rid of a ton of stuff, still we had more than we could pack in any vehicle smaller than a tour bus and certainly more than I was about to pay an airline to haphazardly toss into the bottom of the plane. We had a notion then that Colorado would be our next landing spot, so we had everything shipped to Denver and prayed it would arrive safely. Storage at the other end was inexpensive and allowed us to travel with the material comforts of home easily regained when we arrived. Either way, even a large passenger vehicle gets crowded really fast, so sell it, store it, give it away or even light it on fire if that’s the escape you need. Just don’t bring too much with you, or you might quickly find yourself ditching that suddenly less important item in favor of a little more leg room or maybe just to stop looking at it. As Kim would tell me, “Put it on the curb!”
Tip Two – Be considerate of your animal compatriots.
We undertook this journey as a bit more than a duo. Of course, with your human counterparts, communication is ideally pretty easy. “I’m tired,” or “I need a break from this f*cking van,” are both clear indicators that it’s time to pull over for a bit. Pets can be a bit more difficult to read. Along with us on this long drive we brought our dog, Kanoa, and our cat, Satan. Kanoa, a fan of car rides and master seat-surfer was generally very hapy, and he had his ways of letting us know it was time for a break. Satan was a little more difficult to handle. After the flight to LA and a mere half day of driving to reach family in the high desert, I was certain she would never make it. So, we took our time. Anywhere we were lucky enough to have a room available for a brief stay, we wouldn’t leave until the cat had recovered. As the trip pressed on it took less and less time for her to adjust to each new location and by the end, she was a regular road warrior and hanging out with us for parts of the drive just as if we were sitting on the couch at home.
Tip Three – Have a (flexible) plan.
We had one, catch Route 66 in California and follow it east. We made some detours on the way, but the idea was to follow that highway primarily, all the way to its end in Chicago. We were fortunate to not have a strict timeline especially as the van we purchased in Phoenix constantly reminded us that there’s good reason you don’t see many Chevy Astro’s on the road anymore. Even if our vehicle had been more reliable, in any large undertaking things will go wrong, its important to breathe in these instances and remember, you’re on vacation. This goes hand in hand with making sure you enjoy the unplanned stops that you find along your way. Maybe its some off the beaten path hot springs in Wyoming, or maybe you want to stop in Winslow to pose goofily next to a statue memorializing a great song. Keep the plan loose, follow those signs luring you off the highway and enjoy the ride.
Tip Four – Budget!
This might go back somewhat to the planning thing but save for this. More than you think you need. You can romanticize thumbing your way across the country or just taking off into the sunset, but not having a plan and confidence that I will eat in the next 4 hours stresses me out. We left with more than what we thought was necessary, and that running out was what eventually brought our trip to an end. Money isn’t everything and I’m all too aware that saving on the average minimum wage is not easy, but without it you may find yourself stranded in a difficult situation. Better chasing away the stresses you left than stranded on the endless stretches of barren highway in West Texas.
Tip Five- Take your time.
With so much adventure in front of you and the endless list of things to go see, it's easy for a trip to devolve into a list of destinations you should check off. I know we had moments that felt just like that. With places to be and dear friends and family to see along the way, the miles between can sometimes feel like an obstacle that must be conquered so you can get to “the good stuff.” The real secret is, that drive is often some of the best stuff. The throngs of people also wishing to see the sights, the rushed feeling of a schedule or a need to be somewhere by whatever arbitrary time. These are the very things we set out to escape for as long as we could. So, drive slowly, don’t let those sneaky things ruin your adventure.
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