Cross country, only have 2 weeks, suggestions?
So I'm trying to plan a roadtrip this summer with my husband and a couple friends, we are from Atlanta, GA so we're starting there, but we'd really love to go to the Northwest and back (we are thinking about moving to Portland, OR so we'd like to get there during our trip). We have friends and family between us for plenty of stops along the way if we want, and we'd also like to do alot of hiking and camping out.
Issue is, I've only got 2 weeks to do it in. Is this even doable?
Suggested trip so far, I'm positive we can't fit this all in so tell me what I should take out:
Start in Atlanta, GA
Stop in St. Louis, MO (10 hr drive)
Stop in Denver, CO (14 hr drive)
Hike Yellowstone for a day or two (12 hr drive)
Stop in Seattle, WA (12 hr drive)
Stop in Portland, OR (3 hr drive)
Hike Redwood Natl Forest (6 hr drive)
Stop in Grass Valley, CA (6 hr drive)
Hike Yosemite for a day or two (4 hr drive)
Stop in Las Vegas, NV (8 hr drive)
Hike Grand Canyon for a day or two (5 hr drive)
Stop in Roswell, NM (10 hr drive)
Stop in Austin, TX (9 hr drive)
Stop in New Orleans, LA (9 hr drive)
Back in Atlanta! (7 1/2 hr drive)
Your (and Everybody Else's) Computer Lies
Welcome aboard the RoadTrip America Forums!
Unfortunately, the first thing you're going to have to do is to go back and redo your entire driving itinerary. You no doubt got those estimated driving times from a computer based model (Google Maps, MapQuest, Streets and Trips, or others). They are NOT realistic. Computer programs assume that you can drive at or above the posted speed limit for every second, that you never have to stop for gas, that you never get hungry, that you never need to go to the bathroom, that you never encounter traffic, and that you never ever just get tired. They are simply fantasy. The most you should plan on driving on any given day during a multi-day RoadTrip is about 550 miles, less if you actually want to stop somewhere and have fun, or enjoy the many places you'd otherwise just be whizzing right past. So until you redo your plans with that limit in mind, you simply won't have a clear idea of where you're going to be each night when your body screams "Enough!".
AZBuck