Misc Questions - Cross Country Road Trip

[ESF]

In a month, H and I are moving from Berkeley to DC. 99% of our stuff is being transported via moving van, and we are driving cross country with the two 13 pound dogs and the good booze.

We are taking 7 nights to do it, and will do a little sightseeing, but most days will be long driving days, and we'll have to be plugged into our offices. 

I've never done a cross country drive, or really any multi-day road trip that's anything like this.  What are your best tips for  staying comfortable and organized and on schedule while on the road?  

Any brilliant suggestions on how to keep a cooler cool along the way? Our plan now is just to refill ziplock bags with hotel ice machines.

Also, our itinerary is below with a few questions embedded in there. Where it's not mentioned, we've booked Motel 6 type places. Any suggested restaurants or pit stops along the way??


Day 1 - 9-10 hour drive to Kingman, AZ

Day 2 - 4 hour drive to south rim of Grand Canyon, do some walks/light hiking on the dog friendly parts of the rim. Stay in the park.

Day 3 - drive through Monument Valley to Moab. Time permitting quick drive through Arches (this is apparently not dog friendly at all, so I think we can only do a loop with the car and get out at look out points)

- thinking of doing glamping with Under Canvas so we can maximize our time in the desert. Has anyone done this? Thoughts?

Day 4 - do a 2-3 hour hike of some sort in the Moab area, then 4-5 hour drive to Denver
- Has anyone done the hike to the Morning Glory natural bridge?? thoughts? I've read there are streams. We can carry our dogs through them if they are deep, but what kind of footwear would you recommend? 
- other good hikes that you'd recommend?

Day 5 - Denver to Kansas City, where we'll stay with friends

Day 6 - KC to Indianapolis
- is the St Elmo steakhouse worth it?

Day 7 - drive to Pittsburg, stay with friends

Day 8 - drive to DC


Thanks!!!

[bullygirl979]

No real suggestions but I would make sure you have necessities with you for when you get there. A friend recently moved cross country. Her stuff was supposed to arrive 14-21 days later. It really showed up 52 days later...

[ESF]

Aug 26, 2019 10:29:43 GMT -5 bullygirl979 said:

No real suggestions but I would make sure you have necessities with you for when you get there. A friend recently moved cross country. Her stuff was supposed to arrive 14-21 days later. It really showed up 52 days later...

Thanks. We moved cross country 11 years ago, when we had neither dogs nor a car, so we flew, and ran into something similar.  This time, the movers told us it would be 7-14 days, but I think last time it took like 18 days. So we're also planning out that piece.

It's stressful because I really don't want to drive across country with a packed-to-the-brim car. We'll have laptops and important papers with us. So the only thing I want in the back is the dogs' beds and the cooler, and the trunk at 75% capacity. I don't want to worry about valuables being exposed when the car is parked, nor do I want to be stressed out every morning trying to rearrange everything into the trunk to make it all fit.

So our working plan is to pack only the minimal essentials and to also send an advance packages to our new address. We'll pack one up with clean clothes and towels so we don't have to do laundry the day we arrive, as well as a set of sheets and maybe a couple other essentials.  There's a few things we need to replace, like nonstick skillets and the air mattress, so we'll order those on Prime to be at our place when we get there. Then we'll have a small bag of picnic-ing supplies in the car - cheap plastic dishes, a cutting board, a few utensils - that we can use on the road and when we arrive.  Probably need to make room for the coffee pot in the trunk...

[dutchgirl678]

Whenever we go camping, we always buy a big bag of ice at Walmart or other supermarket and throw it in the cooler. It helps keep beverages/food cool for several days.

I don't have many other tips unfortunately. I did a grand circle trip with my parents years ago, but we were taking our time and making sure not to drive more than 3 hours per day. It really depends on how well you do driving for long stretches of time and whether you can switch off driving. Also, is the other person supposed to be working on a laptop during the drive? That sounds like it might be challenging.

[lacey]

We haven't done a cross country trip, but we spent the past two weeks out west visiting national parks and a couple cities with some long drives in between. We usually got a bigger bag of ice from Walmart/gas station for the cooler and that worked well, but smaller bags from the hotel ice machine would work fine too. I wore my Keens for all the hiking. I have the Whisper style right now but I've had the Newport in the past. Not the most stylish, but useful for hiking. I got them wet several times and they didn't rub uncomfortably while wet and dried out relatively quickly.

Have snacks easily reachable. Pick out a podcast or something to listen to and include something you can download in case you go through areas with no service. Have fun!

[wildrice]

Honestly, I probably wouldn't bother with a cooler. What do you plan to keep in it? I find we stop frequently enough for gas/bathroom breaks that we would pick up drinks or food along the way without any issue. IMO a cooler is just one more thing to have to deal with, but depending on your dietary needs or preferences I know it could make sense.

I think the biggest thing I've learned from road trips is to plan on way too much time. It seems like an 8 hour drive always takes us at least 10. There is always unexpected traffic or more bathroom breaks than planned or rain or something to slow us down. So pad your days as much as you can so you aren't stressed when it takes longer to get to these locations than you had planned.

How long before you move is your stuff being picked up? When we moved halfway across the country last year, our stuff was picked up a full week before we left. So I kept a lot of stuff behind, like a couple of pans to cook with, our small TV, cleaning supplies, laundry soap, a couple of camping chairs, etc so that we weren't stuck doing takeout or with absolutely nothing to do after our stuff was gone. This would make it more complicated not to have stuff in the car, I guess. Ours was pretty packed, but we only took 2 nights to drive and just brought the valuables inside when we stopped. This isn't an awesome solution but we WERE glad to have the stuff available to us.

One other random thing - you might want to get an EZ pass if you don't already have one. I am pretty sure they are not a thing on the west coast, but starting in Illinois and all the way out to DC you'll hit a bunch of tolls. It gives you a discount and the ability to just drive through without paying cash constantly. You can order them online, I think. Otherwise there are a ton of places to stop along the way and buy one.

[ESF]

Aug 26, 2019 11:53:40 GMT -5 dutchgirl678 said:

Whenever we go camping, we always buy a big bag of ice at Walmart or other supermarket and throw it in the cooler. It helps keep beverages/food cool for several days.

I don't have many other tips unfortunately. I did a grand circle trip with my parents years ago, but we were taking our time and making sure not to drive more than 3 hours per day. It really depends on how well you do driving for long stretches of time and whether you can switch off driving. Also, is the other person supposed to be working on a laptop during the drive? That sounds like it might be challenging.

No laptops in the car. We will switch off driving, and the non-driving person will probably be checking emails on smart phones and having the occasional call, and each of us will probably need to be on our laptop for a couple times over the course of the week for an hour or so.  

[ESF]

Aug 26, 2019 12:55:29 GMT -5 wildrice said:

Honestly, I probably wouldn't bother with a cooler. What do you plan to keep in it? I find we stop frequently enough for gas/bathroom breaks that we would pick up drinks or food along the way without any issue. IMO a cooler is just one more thing to have to deal with, but depending on your dietary needs or preferences I know it could make sense.

I think the biggest thing I've learned from road trips is to plan on way too much time. It seems like an 8 hour drive always takes us at least 10. There is always unexpected traffic or more bathroom breaks than planned or rain or something to slow us down. So pad your days as much as you can so you aren't stressed when it takes longer to get to these locations than you had planned.

How long before you move is your stuff being picked up? When we moved halfway across the country last year, our stuff was picked up a full week before we left. So I kept a lot of stuff behind, like a couple of pans to cook with, our small TV, cleaning supplies, laundry soap, a couple of camping chairs, etc so that we weren't stuck doing takeout or with absolutely nothing to do after our stuff was gone. This would make it more complicated not to have stuff in the car, I guess. Ours was pretty packed, but we only took 2 nights to drive and just brought the valuables inside when we stopped. This isn't an awesome solution but we WERE glad to have the stuff available to us.

One other random thing - you might want to get an EZ pass if you don't already have one. I am pretty sure they are not a thing on the west coast, but starting in Illinois and all the way out to DC you'll hit a bunch of tolls. It gives you a discount and the ability to just drive through without paying cash constantly. You can order them online, I think. Otherwise there are a ton of places to stop along the way and buy one.

Cooler - we have a few expensive bottles of port from our honeymoon in Portugal that we don't want exposed to super hot desert temperatures for long periods of time. Plus we'll stick in a few backup drinks just in case we hit a really long stretch, maybe stop at a store to grab some fruit, cheese, etc.  I'm not packing meals. But since our restaurant options on the road will be limited since we will have the dogs in the car, I wouldn't mind having a few fresh items on hand in the car so we aren't just eating at gas stations and Wendys all week.

Our movers come the day before we leave. Definitely taking the valuables in the hotel every night. I'm worried about stuff being visable in the car when we stop to go for a hike and don't have a hotel to leave it in.

We've got a Fastrak, which I think is the west coast equivalent of an EZ pass. But I haven't checked yet to see if it's compatible, so thanks for the tip!

[orangello]

We've moved cross country 3 times with our pets (2 cats and 2 60+lb mutts). My best recommendations for you -

- if you don't already have accommodations booked, the La Quinta allows pets & can be pretty nice
- plan for an extra 1-2 hours each day beyond what your map app is telling you. Between people stops and pet stops, the time just slips away when you're on the road, and drives we expected to take 10 hours ended up closer to 12. The ideal length of a planned drive-only day for us was 7-8 hours
- for dinner, try to get takeout from Chili's or Red Robin - they have some decent healthy options, and road food gets old FAST. We'd have 1 person stay at the room with the pets, the other runs out for food
- Yelp the places you'll be driving through! That was how we found killer Thai food in a small town in Kansas for lunch one day
- If you don't have one and can swing it, I highly recommend getting a Thule or some sort of luggage box for the top of the car. Ours has been an absolute lifesaver

[ESF]

Aug 26, 2019 14:06:45 GMT -5 orangello said:

We've moved cross country 3 times with our pets (2 cats and 2 60+lb mutts). My best recommendations for you -

- if you don't already have accommodations booked, the La Quinta allows pets & can be pretty nice
- plan for an extra 1-2 hours each day beyond what your map app is telling you. Between people stops and pet stops, the time just slips away when you're on the road, and drives we expected to take 10 hours ended up closer to 12. The ideal length of a planned drive-only day for us was 7-8 hours
- for dinner, try to get takeout from Chili's or Red Robin - they have some decent healthy options, and road food gets old FAST. We'd have 1 person stay at the room with the pets, the other runs out for food
- Yelp the places you'll be driving through! That was how we found killer Thai food in a small town in Kansas for lunch one day
- If you don't have one and can swing it, I highly recommend getting a Thule or some sort of luggage box for the top of the car. Ours has been an absolute lifesaver

Oh I'm so glad you responded, because it reminds me of something completely unrelated.  I've been meaning to tell you this -- back in May, H and I stayed at Vahine Island while in French Polynesia. Ages ago, you had sung its praises, and it's what put us over the edge in deciding to book it. It was the best experience ever, without a doubt!!! So thank you! 

After we came back, someone H knew reached out because she was planning her honeymoon and wanted tips, and she's now on her way there later this year.

[orangello]

Aug 26, 2019 15:20:47 GMT -5 ESF said:

Aug 26, 2019 14:06:45 GMT -5 orangello said:

We've moved cross country 3 times with our pets (2 cats and 2 60+lb mutts). My best recommendations for you -

- if you don't already have accommodations booked, the La Quinta allows pets & can be pretty nice
- plan for an extra 1-2 hours each day beyond what your map app is telling you. Between people stops and pet stops, the time just slips away when you're on the road, and drives we expected to take 10 hours ended up closer to 12. The ideal length of a planned drive-only day for us was 7-8 hours
- for dinner, try to get takeout from Chili's or Red Robin - they have some decent healthy options, and road food gets old FAST. We'd have 1 person stay at the room with the pets, the other runs out for food
- Yelp the places you'll be driving through! That was how we found killer Thai food in a small town in Kansas for lunch one day
- If you don't have one and can swing it, I highly recommend getting a Thule or some sort of luggage box for the top of the car. Ours has been an absolute lifesaver

Oh I'm so glad you responded, because it reminds me of something completely unrelated.  I've been meaning to tell you this -- back in May, H and I stayed at Vahine Island while in French Polynesia. Ages ago, you had sung its praises, and it's what put us over the edge in deciding to book it. It was the best experience ever, without a doubt!!! So thank you! 

After we came back, someone H knew reached out because she was planning her honeymoon and wanted tips, and she's now on her way there later this year.

I love this update SO much! Glad you enjoyed it 😁

[frlcb]

My parents are from Kingman and my dad grew up in a motel that my grandparents owned on Route 66. I wouldn't expect much from Kingman lol.

[ESF]

Aug 26, 2019 20:28:43 GMT -5 frlcb said:

My parents are from Kingman and my dad grew up in a motel that my grandparents owned on Route 66. I wouldn't expect much from Kingman lol.

LOL. A friend of mine grew up there. I've heard stories. I have very low expectations!

[lilypad1126]

I literally just arrived on the west coast today, from my cross-country trip. Thank God I am flying home. Some things I learned:

1. Whoever said that your day will be longer than anticipated isn’t wrong. I expected long days, but it’s HARD to drive more than 7-8 hours comfortably. We took 4 days to drive from MI to OR and while we didn’t NEED another day, I was so over it today. Some of that could also be b/c my dad is incapable of combing stops (stop 1, bathroom, stop 2, gas, stop 3, food, etc etc). UGH.
2. Plan your packing. I packed a smaller bag that I took in to the hotel every night and left my large suitcase in the car. It makes it easier to keep the car organized and to not accidentally leave something behind.
3. Hotel ice in your cooler works well if you have a decent cooler. We have a styrofoam walmart cooler, and it actually worked well. it was so nice to have plenty of water/soda/yogurt with us. Also, b/c i’m weird, I brought a couple insulated tumblers that we used in the car and in the hotel room, which was nice.

Good luck. It sounds like you have some fun things planned to help break it up!

[mrsjrd23]

Keep in mind if your hiking is being done within the boundaries of the National Parks,dogs are not allowed on trails or backcountry.

[sunshinedaydreams]

Aug 26, 2019 10:26:56 GMT -5 ESF said:

Day 6 - KC to Indianapolis
- is the St Elmo steakhouse worth it?

If you're already downtown and want to splurge, sure.  But I wouldn't say it's a must do.  They get a lot of hype for their famous shrimp cocktail (which is good, and spicy AF), but not sure it's worth it to go just for that.  It's good food and a cool historic spot, but nothing really different than any other steak place, IMO.

If you decide against it, there are also a lot of good places to eat on Mass Ave.

[georgeglass]

We are working on plans for a trip next summer, and I just wanted to share this place that allows dogs in Moab - www.moabspringsranch.com/

We always take a cooler with us and also I now swear by packing cubes.

[ESF]

Aug 31, 2019 8:47:44 GMT -5 JayhawkGirl said:

ESF for the coolers, get the Yeti blue ices. They boost the life of your ice a ton - you use them in conjunction with your regular ice. Also, pre chill your cooker with “throw away ice” before you pack it (this part don’t use the yeti blue ice yet).

And...we do love our Yetis. We pre chilled ours all day weds/Thurs in July in Kansas. Packed our cooker Thursday evening, left it in the car in the garage all night (hot) for our Friday departure. We drove to Colorado Springs, leaving it in the hot car Thursday night through Tuesday. Everything was still cold/frozen. I think we added ice once but we mostly didn’t open it (it had all our food for a week in the cabin).

Wow. I have heard about Yeti products. OK might have to get a couple of these! Thanks for the tip!

[mrspez07]

It seems crazy to think about right now, but snow is possible in late September in Co over the mountain passes. Be prepared for that.
Also, the National Monument in Grand Junction is a good alternative to hike in Moab if you want to get a jump on your day.

Where in Denver are you staying? Happy to give Rex’s in good/bad areas.