Hello followers! Now that I am back at my trusty desktop, I would like to overview the last day and wrap up the whole trip experience for you :)
Day 10 was a long haul home. We got up in Sacramento, and headed out at the noon checkout. We grabbed gas and beverages since it was already HOT, and headed north. After about a 2 and 1/2 hour drive, we stopped at the last In-n-Out Burger in Redding, CA and got our grub on! Man, I love that place! We kept pressing on....
It was hot. Kept getting hotter. Hit 103 degrees around Weed, and were thrilled to get into southern Oregon where it finally got into the 90's! We stopped in Roseburg, OR for gas and Applebee's and kept making the drive. At that point, we had been on the road for 9 hours. With our transmission stuff and inner tie rod, we were taking it low and slow to make sure we got home ok... can't push it when you have your cubs in the car!
Stopped for coffee late, and kept going. At least traffic was light traveling at the time of night. We put the top up in Oregon when the temp hit 76 degrees because the cubs get cold at that temp at freeway speeds, but we were shocked to be sticky at 63 degrees at 2 am in Tacoma... it was 84% humidity! Despite being 40 degrees cooler than earlier in the day, at least that was 15-30% humidity... man, that makes a difference!!!
We pulled in at 3-ish a.m. and were ready to sleeeeeeeeep!!! Whew! What a haul. The cubs did great, especially considering it was the last day. We ended the trip 2 states short in the license plate game... we got Hawaii on day 8 or so, leaving us missing New Hampshire and Rhode Island. Oh well, there is always next trip!!! ;)
Lessons we learned as a whole:
1. All of the tips from Day 1! Re-read those... lol...
2. Top down in the full sun is TOUGH on the peeps in the backseat.... When trip planning, do a day trip trial run in similar conditions to what you will be doing on your trip. We learned that a convertible is NOT fun for the people in the backseat at more than 65 mph... and it takes away the best part of a road trip... the chatter that goes on in the car along the way. This lead to having to let the cubs plug in more than I would have liked. That was bad pre-planning on the part of the Bears.
3. Don't discount small, locally owned hotels... two of the best rooms were the small, local motor lodges. The big hotels may have been "newer" but in general, the "older" but clean hotels had the best amenities and service. And a 10% increase in what you spend can make a HUGE difference... definitely check out all the options before you book.
4. The places that had pools? Great. But we never got to use one because of our itinerary. Think your mileage through and add in time for gas and food stops. If you are going to get back to the hotel for the night after 9, basically count out the pool... and find a property that is cheaper because it doesn't have one.
5. The car got better gas mileage than we thought... I haven't added the final total yet, but I am pretty sure we came in under budget. I'll post final numbers in a few days after I get things settled...
6. Plan in your budget for water if you are going somewhere warm! We planned for drink stops, but we didn't plan to carry a cooler to carry enough water cold, and it gets warm fast at 100+ degrees, and you go through A LOT when it's that hot. We had an episode of dehydration with Youngest Cub, and after that had to build in cooler travel temps and more cold drink stops. This added time and money to the plan.
7. All in all, the first few days were hard because we were getting used to the routine of a road trip, since it was our first. The middle 2 days were rough because we logged high mileage in the heat without a lot of activities, and everyone got a little cranky from mis-communication. By Day 6, we had the routine down and the needs for stuff to do and see worked out, and those last days were the best. We figured out the differences in the cubs personalities and expectations, and better knew how to roll with both. :)
8. No matter how prepared you think you have your car, have a plan for what to do when something happens. Thankfully we didn't have to use our AAA coverage, but it was nice to know we had it, and if it wasn't for Google, it would have been much harder to take care of what we needed to. But we met some great folks along the way, so as per a road trip, it all led to some great experiences. Another kudos to Rimrock Express Lube in Billings, MT and Leo at Discount Tires in Gallup, NM for taking such great care of us. If you are near them, please give them your business... they are totally worth it!
We definitely worked out the bugs and are much better prepared for our next adventure! When we go, you will too.... this blog will go live again with our next trip (other than the promised budget post!)
Until next time,
Mama Bear... happy and HOME!
Showing posts with label national parks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label national parks. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 16, 2014
Friday, July 4, 2014
Overview of our EPIC ROAD TRIP!
Since I am sure at the end of each day I will NEED to recap the day, I figured it's a good opportunity to share the spirit of the Great American Road Trip with the internet world!
Most people think I am crazy when I tell them our plans, but I can assure you, I am not. :) Let me explain...
This was the same stuff I heard back in 2008 when I did a similar style road trip with Girl Cub, and it was an awesome experience! She was the age then that Youngest Cub is now, and I am sure he will be just as excited from the experience as she was. That trip was 8 states (Washington twice, Oregon twice, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and California twice) in 10 days, and was done at the high point of gas prices in a small SUV (with bad brakes, by the way! Added to the adventure!). We did hotels on Priceline to plan our itinerary, and did the whole trip for under $2,500. Let's face it- for a 10 day vacation, $250 a day is pretty good when you factor in lodging, food, transportation and activities.
Well, our state tally is higher this time (13!), and our budget is lower... and it is happening in a convertible sedan with four people- Myself, Padre Bear, Giant Cub (who is 17) and Youngest Cub (who is 13). Boys instead of the one girl, and much more difficult to plan. You see, with Priceline you can bid and you get a room with only one bed. That was just fine with Girl Cub and myself, but not so much with the boys. This time I turned to Booking.com and found rooms that were within our budget but had 2 beds and preferably Wi-Fi... (most have a pool, and some have a hot tub, which Padre Bear and I will looooooove after a day in the car!) Let me tell you, this has made a difference in our hotel budget! Last trip was $500 and we were able to stay in mostly two-star chain hotels... this time, they are one-star chains and some local places. I guess this is the new version of the "adventure" word I used earlier! I set the planning budget at $600, and after all taxes it finalized at $658. We are planning about $500 for gas, since the prices get lower after we get out of our home state, and we are getting a National Parks Pass for $80, which we can also use for the rest of the year after we return. I chose hotels with breakfast if I could, and when we can't, it will be cereal and fruit in the room before we head out. We are only going to do one meal in a restaurant per day, the other will be things like chips and sandwiches (with bring-along snacks in the car), so I am setting a food goal of about $600 for the whole trip. There are some places we will have to pay entrance fees, and I am sure there will be some souvenirs, but I think we will still come in under the first trip with 2 additional people.
I have made a bound (cheap to have done at Staples!) tour book for Youngest Cub with a copy of the maps of the each days drive and details of the places we are stopping, in the hopes that will minimize the "Are We There Yet" questions and help him better appreciate the places we are visiting. Each Cub has a state list for marking off license plates they see, and electronics like game devices and phones are limited to only when the captain (aka ME) says electronic devices are OK. I want them to SEE the road trip, not just ride along!!
The point of this blog is to hopefully inspire others to plan their own epic road trip... it can still be done, albeit a lost art in our hectic and rushed world. This is Giant Cub's last summer before he runs off to college, and the gift of time and memories with the kids is priceless.
Now, without further ado, here is an overview of our itinerary... Home is Tacoma, Washington :)
The Great American Road Trip is alive and well....... 35 hours until departure...... See you at the end of DAY 1!!!
Most people think I am crazy when I tell them our plans, but I can assure you, I am not. :) Let me explain...
This was the same stuff I heard back in 2008 when I did a similar style road trip with Girl Cub, and it was an awesome experience! She was the age then that Youngest Cub is now, and I am sure he will be just as excited from the experience as she was. That trip was 8 states (Washington twice, Oregon twice, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and California twice) in 10 days, and was done at the high point of gas prices in a small SUV (with bad brakes, by the way! Added to the adventure!). We did hotels on Priceline to plan our itinerary, and did the whole trip for under $2,500. Let's face it- for a 10 day vacation, $250 a day is pretty good when you factor in lodging, food, transportation and activities.
Well, our state tally is higher this time (13!), and our budget is lower... and it is happening in a convertible sedan with four people- Myself, Padre Bear, Giant Cub (who is 17) and Youngest Cub (who is 13). Boys instead of the one girl, and much more difficult to plan. You see, with Priceline you can bid and you get a room with only one bed. That was just fine with Girl Cub and myself, but not so much with the boys. This time I turned to Booking.com and found rooms that were within our budget but had 2 beds and preferably Wi-Fi... (most have a pool, and some have a hot tub, which Padre Bear and I will looooooove after a day in the car!) Let me tell you, this has made a difference in our hotel budget! Last trip was $500 and we were able to stay in mostly two-star chain hotels... this time, they are one-star chains and some local places. I guess this is the new version of the "adventure" word I used earlier! I set the planning budget at $600, and after all taxes it finalized at $658. We are planning about $500 for gas, since the prices get lower after we get out of our home state, and we are getting a National Parks Pass for $80, which we can also use for the rest of the year after we return. I chose hotels with breakfast if I could, and when we can't, it will be cereal and fruit in the room before we head out. We are only going to do one meal in a restaurant per day, the other will be things like chips and sandwiches (with bring-along snacks in the car), so I am setting a food goal of about $600 for the whole trip. There are some places we will have to pay entrance fees, and I am sure there will be some souvenirs, but I think we will still come in under the first trip with 2 additional people.
I have made a bound (cheap to have done at Staples!) tour book for Youngest Cub with a copy of the maps of the each days drive and details of the places we are stopping, in the hopes that will minimize the "Are We There Yet" questions and help him better appreciate the places we are visiting. Each Cub has a state list for marking off license plates they see, and electronics like game devices and phones are limited to only when the captain (aka ME) says electronic devices are OK. I want them to SEE the road trip, not just ride along!!
The point of this blog is to hopefully inspire others to plan their own epic road trip... it can still be done, albeit a lost art in our hectic and rushed world. This is Giant Cub's last summer before he runs off to college, and the gift of time and memories with the kids is priceless.
Now, without further ado, here is an overview of our itinerary... Home is Tacoma, Washington :)
DAY
1- HOME TO BUTTE, MONTANA
DAY
2- BUTTE, MT. TO YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK TO BILLINGS,
MONTANA
DAY
3- BILLINGS, MT. TO CUSTER’S BATTLEFIELD THEN DEVILS
TOWER
NATIONAL MONUMENT TO
RAPID CITY, SOUTH DAKOTA
DAY
4- RAPID CITY, SD. TO MOUNT RUSHMORE & CRAZY HORSE
MONUMENT
TO COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO
DAY
5- COLORADO SPRINGS, CO. TO FOUR CORNERS MONUMENT TO
GALLUP,
NEW MEXICO
DAY
6- GALLUP, NM. TO METEOR CRATER & GRAND CANYON TO
WILLIAMS,
ARIZONA
DAY
7- WILLIAMS, AZ. TO HOOVER DAM TO LAS VEGAS, NEVADA
DAY
8- LAS VEGAS, NV. TO CAMP PENDLETON TO ANAHEIM,
CALIFORNIA (Get to see Marine Cub that day!)
DAY
9- ANAHEIM, CA. TO SANTA MONICA PIER TO SACRAMENTO,
CALIFORNIA
DAY
10- SACRAMENTO, CA. TO HOME
The Great American Road Trip is alive and well....... 35 hours until departure...... See you at the end of DAY 1!!!
Until next time.... Mama Bear
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