OK, so in just over a week, I’ll be driving from Toronto to L.A. to start a new job… Depending on weather, looks like I’ll be stopping in Cincinnati, Memphis, Dallas, Phoenix and then L.A. My partner/husband will be staying in Toronto to sell the house, and flying down with our dogs in a month or two… so this will be a solo excursion…
I tried to get myself down south relatively quickly to hopefully avoid bad weather, but will keep an eye on things as I go and be ready to change routes to avoid storms…
I’ve driven SF-Toronto a few times in the past, and it wasn’t really a problem - then again, it was summer, and I took the northern route across the U.S… This is my first time driving to California in winter, so I’m not sure what essentials to bring… Will be driving a pickup with a shell filled with boxes of belongings in the back, so that should help weigh the truck down…
Planning on driving a maximum of 8 hours a day, and hopefully actually seeing each city a bit while I’m in each… Never been to any of em, so looking forward to at least getting a chance to stay in each… and checking out local specialties if possible.
Already joined AAA in case of trouble, got a Sirius radio to keep me awake and a GPS with live traffic alerts to make sure I’m going in the right direction, have got a cellphone, and lots of warm clothes… I’m stumped after that… Am I missing anything important?
Anybody done cross-country winter drives before? I’m amazed at how little there is online from people who have done the drive… (Maybe they were all smart and waited til Spring… and it was so uneventful that they didn’t bother writing about it.)
Anything I should make sure to see/eat in Cincinnati, Memphis, Dallas or Phoenix? The only thing that jumps out at me is BBQ in Memphis… Is there anything I should make sure to try in the others?
Any suggestions happily accepted…