This is my first traditional blog post so go easy on me! We love a good road trip, racking the miles up on our big SUV often. Living in a small town, we frequently drive over 30 miles to get groceries. Even farther to the “big city,” over 2 hours a way to make big box store runs to stock up on lots of veggies. Amanda’s transplant team is in Houston, over 5 hours away, which we’ve made as often and twice a month at times. So when it comes to road-tripping, it’s nothing for us to hop in the car and take off.
Our record is a 4000-mile road trip to the Appalachians in Tennessee to celebrate Amanda’s first heartiversary. Even though it was only a little over 1000 miles to get there, we spent days driving all over Tennessee to hike different waterfalls. As we prepare for our upcoming 2nd heartiversary trip, I realized quickly that we’d break the record easily. It will be over 3000 miles up and back. We decided to stay in just one location, inside the Grand Teton National Park, to visit Yellowstone and the Tetons both. So that will give us lots of windshield time, going back and forth to Yellowstone, a massive park in itself. Being in the mountains, I don’t think it will be wasted time!
I’d initially planned for us to fly to Salt Lake City for this upcoming trip. We were going to recycle an all-wheel drive SUV and make a loop through Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado. After some convincing from Amanda, we decided to drive there. The compromise was that we go at least 12 hours the first day and only make the trip in a 2-day drive. From where we live in Texas, it takes at least 7-8 hours to get out of the state. So I wanted to get the bulk of the drive out of the way and beyond where we hadn’t been before.
1. Freedom, do your thing!
This is number one for a reason, the ability to move about as you like is so nice. Change your mind and want to leave a day early or late, or maybe even sleep in and go a few hours later, no problem if you’re driving. No airplane schedule to keep up, not to mention no TSA to deal with. You can also change on a whim, don’t want to see this but go to that; it’s all in your hands. You control the trip better when you’re behind the wheel.
As you roam, remember to take in all the beautiful views. Hopefully, whoever is driving isn’t staring down at their phone but make sure to keep your eyes up to take in all the sights around you. See something you’d like to take a closer look at, an ethnic or local restaurant for lunch catch your eye, just whip right in. Freedom to have a karaoke session is always a plus; this is typically frowned upon in an airport setting. Throw some 90s county on in our vehicle and watch out because we’ll both be belting it at the top of our lunges!
Flexibility is the name of the game when on a road trip. Want to get corny photos at the state line? You be you, I know we did on our last trip! Being able to flex can be oh-so-important if you are traveling with little ones in tow. This flexibility comes in handy for those bathroom breaks after multiple cups of Starbucks!
You’re able to get off the beaten path when you road trip also. On our Tennessee trip, we’d already spent a great day in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park, but Amanda wanted to see bears bad. So on her heartiversary we got up at 4am and were in the car in minutes headed for Cades Cove. I’d overheard a ranger telling a family, “if you want to see bears go to Cades Cove.” We rolled into the park just as the sun was cresting and straight into a bear jam once in the smoky thick fog-covered valley called Cades Cove. We only saw a glimpse of the bears once we got our turn. Tired of the traffic, I decided to venture off the blacktop. We stumbled on a primitive Baptist church that was a neat find. Leaving there, we cut across, heading off the crowd we were following. Upon turning around to double back so we wouldn’t miss anything, we stumbled on a mama bear and a cub. We would proceed to have 10 minutes of solo time with them, two more cubs arriving before we left. Try that on a guided tour; we have bear selfies for proof!
2. Food, to be or not to be, healthy that is.
No surprise, food ranks high on the list, a big one for us! Eating a whole food plant-based diet has all the perks of health, but that comes at a cost when eating while traveling. There aren’t that many healthy fast food options on the main drag or in airports. Although to your surprise likely, Taco Bell is actually a top choice when we are on the road, though. Being able to customize our order via the app is an excellent choice for us. We wouldn’t dare try to order a complicated burrito with the cashier though! They rarely even know what the fresco option is, taking all the dairy off and adding tomatoes in its place. An excellent hack for the plant-based crowd. Did I mention not dealing with TSA, no state trooper will confiscate your burrito. Though if you had donuts, you might be in trouble!
Does it annoy anyone else when you plop down at an airport chain restaurant to order your usual fare and find out it is not on the “airport” menu? This happened to me recently at DFW airport. I had a 4-hour layover, so plenty of time to research menus. A large family Italian chain was available at the terminal I was waiting. I perused their menu and found eggplant parmigiana a suitable dish, only to find out it wasn’t even on the menu despite checking their website.
Grocery stores are a frequent stop for us too. You get to experience the natural feel of a local when visiting a grocery store. That can be hard to do when not road-tripping. On one trip back to my hometown to see family, Amanda and I wheeled into the local grocery store. A former Piggly Wiggly when I was a child, we grabbed some nice cheese (pre-plant-based lifestyle), crackers, and fruit for a snack. A little boujee of a choice for this small-town store, I had to dust off the box of crackers, and I’m not sure how long that brie had been there either! While we were checking out, the cashier said in a heavy Louisiana accent, “y’all ain’t from here, huh” no ma’am, we’re not!
We love to cook and like staying in places with a kitchen. So packing the kitchen sink is a bit hard when flying; getting my chef’s knife bag through TSA wouldn’t end well, I’m sure. Also, you can pack snacks and lots of them, and even do your own meals on the road as we often do for park days. Our snackage bag wouldn’t make carry-on luggage size requirements anyway!
Picnics are always fun too, I would remember my mother packing a Smorgasbord of food on road trips as a kid. I remember seeing more families pulled over eating at rest areas and such when I was young as well. Not much of that any more I guess. We frequently have car picnic dates for border tacos at least once a month just because.
3. Clothes, your wardrobe options can be endless!
This one’s for Amanda and why she really likes to road trip. No restrictions on how much she can bring; multiple outfits a day check, full-size shampoo check, a different pair of shoes everyday check! In all honesty, I bring quite a few boots and clothes myself. It is great not having to weigh your suitcase and worry about what not to pack in a carry-on too.
They say to pack your suitcase, take half the clothes out and take twice the money. That’s about right, but my lady like to be all fashionista. That means we buy clothes before the trip and take twice as many as we need and have less money than we should because of said clothes buying!
My vacation with the railroad is seniority based, later in the year takes more time on the job. With nearly 20 years in, I hold the last week of October through thanksgiving typically. This works out great for us with Amanda’s heartiversary in late October and our anniversary in early November. That time of the year can be hard to pack for though; Tennessee last year was warm some days and cold the next. Our upcoming trip to the mountains in Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado can be unpredictable also, warm one day and blizzard the next. So having a wardrobe on wheels will keep you prepared for anything.
4. Money, save some for your next adventure.
Driving almost always saves money in the long run. Especially if you have kids in tow with you. Even with high gas prices and our not-so-fuel-efficient large SUV, it’s still more affordable and comfortable than flights. Although when I initially planned our current trip, gas was cresting at $5 a gallon. So we opted to rent an all-wheel drive Subaru which gets 30 mpg. The savings in gas alone paid for the rental, so it was a no-brainer. Gas has since come down, but the current prices are always something to take into consideration when trying to decide to drive or fly.
This goes with the food section as well; who likes paying double for half the selection of food at the airport? Even a Buc-ee’s snack run is cheaper than buying anything at an airport! You’ve got the option to go whereever you want to eat. We opt for snacks we bring from the house most of the time, saving a bundle.
The grocery store comes in here too. You’re always saving when you go to a grocery store. Unless you haven’t eaten yet, then you’ll end up with half the store in your cart! You can never go wrong with a grocery store run for snacks, twice the volume, half the gas station’s price. Almost always fresher too, unless you have to dust crackers boxes off!
5. Time, quality that is.
This one may sound weird, and you may be saying well, I could make it there quicker flying. Road trips to your destination may be longer than flights but can be quality time spent with loved ones. That’s always a plus, and I’d opt for windshield time with loved ones over an airport lounge any day.
I know of no job with a worse schedule than railroad train crews; we are on call 24/7 with very little predictability to when we work. This makes for short time spent with family sometimes. I get home sometimes just as Amanda is leaving for work and be leaving as she gets back. So time together in the car is often more quality than at home. Since I’ve been working out of state for nearly six months the time of a 5000-plus mile road trip spent together will be welcomed.
Let’s be real; when else do you have hours upon hours of direct time with your partner or kids? Amanda and I do spend a ton of time with each other, but my schedule is so crazy, keeping me gone a lot. So we make up for it with road trips sometimes. How much no TV time do you get with your significant other? Our upcoming trip, according to Apple Maps, is 21 hours. Let’s just say 15 accounting for copilot naps! That’s still substantial quality time with a loved one.
Also, when adding up airport wait and layover times, you just might not be saving that much time. For us, it’s a 2-hour drive to a major airport, although we’ve been using a small airport that only flies to DFW lately, that’s only a half hour away. With an arrival time of a couple hours before the flight plus our drive, then connection times, and waiting for a checked bag, it can all add up quickly.
Bonus reason. Pets want to go too!
We don’t vacation with our fur babies; I know horrible parents. We take them with us to our Houston transplant follow-ups often. Traveling on a plane with dogs or cats, god help you with a cat on a plane, can be difficult. We’d never fly our pooches in a kennel in the belly of a plane anyway. Taking your beloved pet with you on a road trip can be great fun. Though we need more frequent stops with them, puppuccinos, sonic hot dogs, and Chick-fil-A grilled nuggets are some of their favorite road trip snacks. One downside is getting hot-boxed after their favorite snacks have time to settle!
Road tripping over flying might not always be the best choice for you, but it’s always an option. If you haven’t tried a long cross-country road trip go for it, at least once. There are many more valid reasons for road trips and tons to flying as well. We just like a great American road trip, though. Car loaded with clothes and food, both enough to outlast our intended stay!
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Love this and can’t wait to read more! I see y’all are having fun on the trip. Be safe!!