Driving from VA to CO

[Malamute]

Super 8s allow dogs, Ive stayed at them for many years.

I stop every couple hours to walk the dogs at rest stops or other places that are good. It helps me also, I get seized up sitting for long.

Keep your vehicle doors LOCKED when getting gas, even when you are standing next to it filling the tank. I even do when someone else is in the vehicle. One scam is to open a door on the other side and grab anything not nailed down, most people never notice it happening.

Get a spare chipped key if you dont have one, its cheaper to do now than when you lose one on the road. Spare unchipped keys can also open doors and let you roll windows up or down but wont start the vehicle. If you have a door remote, not having it on the key will help prevent locking the key in the vehicle. Same with the unchipped key. I dont leave any other keys on the vehicle key, if the vehicle is jacked, Im not giving them anything else that may be useful, that includes not leaving insurance and registration in the vehicle, only in my wallet.

I keep a small bowl in the rear door pocket/drink holder spot along with bottled water for the dog. More water bottles elsewhere (20 oz gatorade or soda bottles work well) and refill at motels as needed rather than carrying a case of bottled water, though having lots of water in the summer is a good idea in case of a breakdown. I also keep spare leashes by each vehicle door so i can grab one no matter where I need to get the dog out from.

It can be tough in the summer to keep dogs cool. Its not legal in some states to leave a vehicle run when not in it, and an invitation to get it stolen. I ended up putting a window AC unit in mine for summer travel and a small generator in the rear cargo box. Having another person to sit in the vehicle when going to the bathroom is nice, but I usually dont, so the AC and gen works OK. Same for getting food. Heat can build up very quickly. I used to take a white sheet to put over my truck to help keep it cool, it helped, but I havent used it in a while. Still take it in case of a breakdown. Parking so the sun is directly behind helps some also, but isnt always an option.

Parking where you can see the vehicle, and getting seats in restaurants where you can easily see it is also good. I always ask, they usually will accommodate that.

[pangloss]

Dale Fricke's Archangel holster works best for me for long car drives. It doesn't conceal quite as well as DSG or JMCK though. You might also look into a SafePacker holster from The Wilderness.

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[Bigghoss]

You'll be driving through Kansas. Bring caffiene.

[Tensaw]

Over the last several months, I have done an 11 hour trek several times. Generally carrying a G19X or G26 in a G34 length (for the comps that are to come don't ya know) Wing Claw 2.0 AIWB. Two things.

While wearing synthetic compression shorts, the pad (wedge) on the holster kind of ate me up - just from having no breathing/movement all day. Cotton drawers fixed that. I found that loosening the belt (with generously cut in the waist pants to start with) helped quite a bit with comfort. Loosen up upon entry; cinch down upon exit. Less hassle than in and out of the holster.

As you probably know, there are a lot of good reasons to keep the pistol on your person in this situation, so I will refrain from listing them.

Have a great trip/move!

PS. I found I make a little better time by bringing food. That just leaves gas and pee breaks, in addition to the not insignificant savings of time and money - plus you are probably eating better food. Even with the baby and dogs, the BYOF thing may be a winner.

PPS. On these long drives, I just decide before I get in the car than it's going to be a haul and I just need to chill and enjoy the ride i.e., not be in a hurry to get there. I sort of start thinking about the trip in terms of X number of podcasts and rotations through the play list.

PPPS (geez...). There are still some places in the country where cell service is non-existent. Generally, google maps will still work as long as the route has been downloaded (pretty mysterious how that works); but if you have to re-route for some reason, you must have something resembling a decent signal. For a trip like yours, a $100 GPS might be worth considering.

[Drang]

...
PPPS (geez...). There are still some places in the country where cell service is non-existent. Generally, google maps will still work as long as the route has been downloaded (pretty mysterious how that works); but if you have to re-route for some reason, you must have something resembling a decent signal. For a trip like yours, a $100 GPS might be worth considering.

Or download offline maps, either in Google Maps or in one of the many offline maps apps.

[Cypher]

Or download offline maps, either in Google Maps or in one of the many offline maps apps.

Or buy an actual map

[Wake27]

Or buy an actual map

Yeah I just got a solid atlas in case of the gps going down.


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[Shoresy]

In no particular order (beyond my stream of consciousness):

- Shoulder holster is my go-to for long drives.

- When traveling with an animal, we usually left one person at the vehicle with it running. It's a bit of a shuffle and can expand your timeline, but can move pretty smoothly especially if you talk through things beforehand. As mentioned, BYOF works pretty well - you tend to eat better/cleaner, a dollar goes further, grocery stores are (generally) easier parking, and you can set up multiple meals in one shot (ice or ice packs may be key to making that last part happen).

- Motel 6 is also pet-friendly. We've stayed there several times with minimal complaints. Nothing exceptionally wonderful about them (other than, not familiar with La Quinta pet rooms, but Motel 6 has hard floors. Pretty sure our cat got fleas from the carpet at a Quality Inn. Hard (I think linoleum?) a la Motel 6 is easier to clean and sanitize between critters, fewer concerns about picking something up).

- Not sure how much you've traveled with the kid - be prepared for your pace to slow down significantly. YMMV (no pun intended), no guarantees, but our first long trip at around the same age was SLOW. It may be a good idea to know what alternate lodging is available if you have to stop earlier than planned.

[Drang]

Or buy an actual map

Luddite.

Advantages of electronic maps is that they are more likely to include up-to-date closure/construction info, and live recommendations based on same.

Which is not actually to say (note the emoji) that a hard copy map is a bad idea. (Does AAA still do triptics?)

[Cypher]

Luddite.

Advantages of electronic maps is that they are more likely to include up-to-date closure/construction info, and live recommendations based on same.

Which is not actually to say (note the emoji) that a hard copy map is a bad idea. (Does AAA still do triptics?)

You can't break a paper map




I bought this at the shoppette on Fort Lewis in 1992. It cost me a $1.90. I bought it because I was driving from Fort Lewis to Fort Sam Houston Texas it was my first cross-country road trip in my first and only brand new car.

As stupid as it sounds having that map in my car made me feel like I could take off and go anywhere