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I'm new to this site and am even more new to planning a road trip.
I am probably driving from Washington, DC to Oregon at the end of May and have no idea how to start planning.
1. How do I plan a route?
2. How much time will it take?
3. Other advice and tips?
I will probably be doing the drive alone.
Any help on where to start would be GREATLY appreciated.
Thanks!
L
Welcome aboard the RoadTrip America Forums!
You've already made a great first step by finding this site and the many helpful people involved. As a first step, read and follow this advice. As to how long it will take, there are many free on-line mapping tools, but a word of caution is in order. These tools are notoriously optimistic in calculating travel times. We have found it much more realistic to simply take their mileage estimates, which are generally pretty accurate, and then figure that you can average 55 mph for a day long speed including stops, or assume that you can cover 500 or so miles in a day, to determine how long a given drive will take. The other oft repeated basic bit of advice is to slow down and take the time to see some of the country you're going to be traversing on an up-close and personal basis. spend some time out of the car every day if you can, both for your own enjoyment and for safety considerations.
AZBuck
I've actually done that trip, except we ended in Seattle instead of Oregon, but I imagine you're in for a pretty similar route...
We took I-70 for much of the way across, that seemed to be the easiest route; but essentially when I'm heading across, I usually have a big (CURRENT!) road atlas, so that I have a good idea of what alternate routes exist in case of inclement weather and the like. (Snow has a nasty way of making road trips a lot less fun. I've hit snow on 3 of my 4 cross-country adventures.)
I highly recommend a co-driver, which would make the trip less monotonous, as well as giving your eyes a much needed rest. You'd be amazed how fatigued your eyes can get after a couple days of driving. That makes the trip go faster as well, and since a return plane ticket can cost roughly the same amount as several extra days of hotel stays, getting someone to go with you is about the same cost, and is much safer and more fun... just a thought.
-Rob
Oh, and I forgot, allow at least four days... longer if you're alone or hit inclement weather.
-R
This trip is just over 2800 miles, assuming you're going to Portland. To try to do that in 4 days would require that you drive 700 miles a day. That is simply not sustainable. If you just want to blow through on a speed run you can pull it off in 5 days of 560 miles a day. But if you want to see and enjoy any of the wonderful country you'll be driving through you will need to budget at least 6 days for this journey.
AZBuck