I (18, just finished highschool) was planning a trip with my girlfriend (19, just finished first year at college) from Louisiana to Oregon (to see my parents, who moved a few months ago). We’re were planning to leave next month (booked hotels, mapped plan, etc) and her mother started having some anxiety problems and the girlfriend decided not to go since it has been making her mother worry excessively.
I’m thinking about taking the trip alone. It would be around 6 days, 6-8 hours per day, including stops. I would be traveling with plenty of money, food, the great knowledge of the internet, etc.
I’m fairly confident that I can make it safely. I’ve driven similar distance before with my family, but never more than 4-5 hours by myself. I will plan to stop every hour/ 2 hours and stretch/run around and update girlfriend/parents on my location and mental state. I’m decently physically fit and generally have a calm demeanor and strong attention span.
My parents would be worried and didn’t encourage it when I first brought up the possibility months ago, but they said that they would not stop me.
Am I crazy/reckless for wanting to do this trip? Can I do it safely?
I think you’ll go crazy if you limit yourself to 6-8 hours a day. I’d cancel gotel reservations and just drive each day until you’re tired, paying reasonable attention to things like where the be,t hotel is likely to be.
Otherwise, no, that’s no big deal. You’ll be fine.
While I never did it myself, no interest in it, I know so many people who got out of high school, packed up the pickup or hooked up a little trailer and took off to see the country.
When funds got low they’d get a job somewhere, save up some money and hit the road again.
If they were desperate they could find a pay phone and call the parents for funds, but they would have to be pretty damn desperate to ask for help.
Every few weeks they’d make a person to person call home for somebody who didn’t live there and let everybody know they were still alive and kicking.
No cell phones, no GPS, no way of knowing what was ahead.
They’d get home in time to start college, and do it again the next summer.
You’re not crazy, you’re not reckless, and you can do it.
I did St. Louis to Los Angeles twice (car deliveries) in one solid 24 hour run when I was 16. I don’t recommend that but its entirely feasible, and as long as you are reasonable careful and alert it shouldn’t be a problem. With an itenerary of 6-8 hours a day you’ll have plenty of time for sightseeing so make sure your rout has some scenic side trips available, and with that route you’ll have your choice of scenic National Parks, Monuments, and Forests (Garden of the Gods, Rocky Mountain, Grand Tetons, Yellowstone, Sawtooth, Malheur, Williamette) and plenty of nature/science museums And assuming you are driving back you can take a compeltely different route, either north through Washington and along/into Canada to the Great Lakes and down, or south along the Pacific Coast and back across Arizona and New Mexico. As long as you plan carefully you’ll never be that far from civilization, and with a road club membership like Better World or AAA (I recommend the former) if you do have a breakdown or some other automotive issue you’ll have ready assistance.
Once you get hung up in school/work/relationships it is really hard to carve out the kind of time to do this sort of trip, so definitely take the opportunity to do it now and make the most of it. If nothing else, consider it scouting out future places to revisit or live.
The only thing you’ve not mentioned is how reliable your car is. There is a large part of the country where towns (and tow trucks) are many miles apart, and a simple busted hose could cost you the best part of a full day. Any car can breakdown, sure, but it’s a bit more comfortable starting out in a car with, say, 35k on the clock vs 150k.
My rule of thumb for a cross country trip is to figure 600 miles per day, so unless you plan to stop and sight-see, you are over allocating on time. I’d second the suggestion to cancel the hotels, and wing it. At interstate rest stops, you can find hotel cupon books, so you can know what you’ll pay and where the hotels are. Your second and third days you might even be able to cover 700 without pushing it.
I wouldn’t bring much food, just a few snacks. The best part of a trip like this is finding a small, local, non-chain place to eat. Sure, some are forgettable, but you can also find some darn good food that way. I look for BBQ places. However, an ice chest full of cold drinks is nice to have.
I’d also suggest some audio entertainment besides regular AM/FM radio. Keeping a radio station you like dialed in is next to impossible. I find books on tape make the hours and miles fly by.
Make sure have a full size spare tire in the trunk, fully inflated. Also, make sure you have a jack, a tire wrench, and you know how to change a tire. Throw a flashlight with new batteries in the car too.
Do it now while you’re young. It’s too bad your girlfriend’s mother caused her to cancel. The two of you would have had a blast, and you would have had someone to share the driving. Maybe she’ll change her mind.
Take tons of pictures, have fun and don’t stick to a strict schedule. If there is something cool to see, that’s an hour or 3 out of your way, go see it. Some of the best things I’ve ever seen have been stumbled upon by accident.
I’m jealous.
Do the trip!..you may feel a little scared, since you’re only 18 and alone.But don’t let that stop you.
You’re not “only 18”–You’re an adult— and apparently a mature enough person to have already planned the trip and booked hotels, etc.
And 2. You’re not “alone”—you’ve got GPS and a smartphone (and money). Even if something bad happens, like a mechanical problem, you can call for help.
But --take a look at words I bolded above—DON’T just drive straight for 600 miles a day. Take your time, and plan to stop at all the major and minor attractions along the way–the National Parks, especially.If you can spare more than 6 days, do so—Stop and smell the roses, hike a trail, take photos, whatever you want to do.
This trip should be a great experience—enjoy it!
In tourist season around the major tourist sites, it might be a good idea to book a hotel in advance…but otherwise, just stop in whatever motel is nearby when daylight fades.
(And it’s a good idea not to drive too much after dark, if you’re tired .Nighttime driving is incredibly boring and monotonous.so it’s easy to get drowsy and less careful. And besides…you don’t get to enjoy the scenery.)
Do it!
I’ve done the cross-country thing about a dozen times. A few times by myself, a few times with family, a few times with the GF. I actually liked the solo trips the best, overall.
This is what you have wrought, helicopter parents. This able-bodied 18-year-old man thinks going on a drive without someone to hold his hand and squeeze juice boxes into his mouth is a reckless adventure and that he must check in hourly with his cheering section so they do not worry that he has suffered mental collapse and is sobbing by the side of the road with a leg cramp.
“But - and I am only saying this because I care - there are a lot of decaffeinated brands on the market today that are just as tasty as the real thing.”
Would someone under 21 have trouble renting a hotel room by themself? Legally I assume they can, but I’m thinking more along the lines of hotel policies.
For whatever reason driving long stretches mentally and physically absolutely exhausts me if driving by myself without human interaction. If you have not done marathon driving in the past I’d take it slow at first before trying to set distance records. If you get sleepy or your blood sugar lapses you need to get off the road immediately.
If you’re traveling by yourself, have you priced the cost of round-trip airfare vs the cost of the gasoline, hotel, meals, etc that will be spent in driving from Louisiana to Oregon? In other words, would it be cheaper just to fly?
I’d really like to know more about your car, how you use it now, and your knowledge of how it works. And reliability can’t really be based on local hops of 30 miles at 60 MPH versus 300 mile stretches at 75 MPH.
Sounds like a blast! But your real danger is the consequences of a serious breakdown, not a flat tire; think in terms of $$$ plus losing a 4-5 days while a transmission is being rebuilt or if you have a minor crash. Is it a common car that can be readily repaired?
