Soul Searching Solo Cross Country Road Trip and Scared

Hi!

A little bit about me: I am a 24 year old single mom who has undergone quite a bit of stress and pain these last few years. The love of my life cheated on me several times and left me for another woman. I am currently in dire need to find myself. I plan to travel from Indiana to Utah (Zion National Park) then from there to the Grand Canyon. I have a week to fulfill my quest and unsure if it is even possible.

I need to battle a lot of my anxieties and become whole again. I was planning on sleeping at A. Rest stops B. Local Walmarts. Are either of these a bad idea?

I will be driving my truck that is NOT 4x4 and wondering how awful it will be for me to drive on I-70 through Colorado at the end of March.

What advice can you give for a first time solo driver traveling 2,000 miles away from home?

Any safety tips?

THANK YOU!

one week one-way or two way? (2 way there isn't enough time to enjoy the trip)

I-80 doesn't go thru Colorado so you should spend some more time looking at maps.

March weather varies from lovely 70 degree sunny days to 20 degrees and snowing mashed potato-weight precip.

Others will advise it's not safe to sleep at truck stops. Not all Wal-marts allow camping. (the one near me does not)

Unfortunately I only have 8 days to travel, so now I'm unsure of where I should go.

My apologies. I did change the forum post to I-70. I have a lot more planning to do and need to invest in a good Atlas.

My fear is to end up stranded somewhere due to weather

I did find a handy site of walmarts that do not allow camping.

Thank you for your input!

Welcome to the RTA Forum!

The first bit of advice I can give you is to relax. Solo Roadtrips can be great fun, and women are actually more likely to be the ones who head out on the road by themselves.

My bigger concern would be with the amount of time you have and your approach to the trip. I'd really look to limit your driving to about 500 miles a day, which I think you'll find most enjoyable, especially since this is your first time out on the road. At the maximum, you should never be doing more than 600 miles a day because of safety concerns- that is roughly the maximum that professional drivers are allowed to cover in a day. However, when you say you have a week, that does become a big cause for concern - as for a 2,000 mile trip, you'll need at least 4 days each way just to cover the miles.

As far as sleeping, Rest Areas are not safe and are not a place you should consider. Generally speaking, Truck Stops are much safer options, as they are well lit and better patrolled. However, any time you plan to spend the night at a commercial business, be it a truck stop or a walmart, you need to check with the store management, as it is not always allowed.

The other concern is going to be your comfort. Sleeping in a car isn't always that comfortable, and doing this trip in March could mean some very cold nights. Remember, a car provides very little in the way of insulation, and running the heater puts you at risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.

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Originally Posted by Midwest Michael

Sleeping in a car isn't always that comfortable, and doing this trip in March could mean some very cold nights. Remember, a car provides very little in the way of insulation, and running the heater puts you at risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.

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I used to sleep in my Jeep when doing 4WD trips up in the mountains. On one trip I saw temps near zero. The main problem with that was that moisture from my breath condensed on the windows and then turned to ice. Made getting going the next day a real challenge since I'd parked where I didn't get morning sun. (Had 2 sleeping bags and 3 insulated pads and lots of clothes so I was perfectly warm)

I suggest a trial run sleep in the vehicle before the big trip in order to figure things out.

Where are you starting from? With 8 days, I think I'd be looking at places more in the 1000-1500 miles away from home category.

Being stranded due to weather should really be a very minor concern. First, you can use weather forecast to know a day or two in advance if you're in danger of being hit by a storm, and even if you did get caught up in a storm, it's rare for a storm to cause problems for more than a day or so, before roads are clear and back to normal.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Midwest Michael

Where are you starting from?

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I am starting from the Chicago area- northwest Indiana. According to google maps it is only 1,450 miles roughly. Is that more doable? I really have my heart set on the Zion national park and the Grand Canyon. I've been north east and south, never west. I'm a nature junkie and could use some meditating.

You've entered something wrong if you've getting the distance from NWInd at only 1450 miles. Anywhere near Chicago is closer to 1700 miles to Zion.

While it's not impossible to get there and 8 days and back, you're looking at a minimum of 3 hard days of driving each way - and that's assuming you see good weather - plus half a day to drive between Zion and Grand Canyon.. That's a lot of driving, and not much meditating.

Even eastern Utah, like Arches and Canyonlands would be a better choice with the time you've got - but at least it cuts it down to 2.5 days each way. Perhaps an even better option would be looking at the western Dakotas - Badlands and Teddy Roosevelt NP have plenty of meditation possibilities, as do the Black Hills.

Yes, indeed, it's 'only' about 1,600 miles in the best of circumstances (starting out already on I-94 at the Indiana/Illinois state line) to either Zion (1,640 miles) or the Grand Canyon (1,680). But doing a round trip that includes both of them pushes your minimum mileage up to 3,580 or 7 days minimum driving. And that's before you factor in any side trips to see anything else en route, take a different route home for some variety, or spend any time 'finding yourself'. If you run into any bad weather and have to sit it out for a day or so, then you have absolutely no time to enjoy the sites you've driven so far to see. Seriously, even under the best of circumstances but only eight days, about the best you can hope for is a few hours each at both Zion and the Grand Canyon and then a whole lot of sitting behind the wheel, fighting traffic, getting no exercise, and generally stewing in your own juices. If you really want time to get away, think, meditate, and basically let go of all the things that are bothering you, you're going to have to find someplace considerably closer to home, more time to travel, or both.

We can't help you with finding more time, but perhaps we can help you find a spot for some quiet reflection that would require less of a grind to get to (and home from). There are many open beaches along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts that could be reached in a couple of days, including Gulf Islands National Seashore, Cumberland Island National Seashore, and Cape Hatteras National Seashore. Even closer to home, retreats such as the Amana Colonies in Iowa or even rural mountain settings such as the Ozarks and Great Smoky Mountains will let you slow down, breath and think without having to drive thousands of miles for the privilege.

By all means get away, but mot so far that you burn yourself out getting there.

AZBuck

Thank you very much for all of your suggestions! You all have been great help! I am trying to extend my trip to 13 days if my sitter will allow it!