1.
Avoid high-traffic (buffalo) areas.
Living right outside Washington,
D.C., we’ve all experienced traffic jams. Either on the beltway or right outside our
high school, we always find ourselves trapped behind some idiot who can’t
drive, or we’re stuck crawling down the road due to people gawking at some
major car accident. But a few summers ago, in the small town of Medora, North Dakota, my family was caught behind a 2,000 pound buffalo just sitting in the middle
of road. It had no intention of moving, and we had no intention of trying to
move it. Soon enough there was a traffic jam of five cars (and yes, this was a
traffic jam by North Dakota standards). Luckily, the buffalo eventually found a new spot
to graze, and we were able to continue on our journey.
This is the actual mayhem-causing buffalo.
2.
Don’t let 16 year-olds drive.
On last summer’s vacation, during
my attempt to complete my tedious 45-hour driving log, I thought it would be
the perfect idea to drive for one day of the trip. I mean, it was in North
Dakota, which was virtually hours of driving on straight road. Somehow my
parents agreed, allowing me to drive an SUV, while pulling a jet-ski (still
confused why parents agreed). The speed limit was 70, and my parents said I
could go 80. I mostly followed that rule, except for the *teensy weensy* amount
of time when I pushed that up to 85. Partly because I’m a rebellious teenager,
and partly because that road felt like the Autobahn, and I didn’t know when I
would ever have that chance again. I know I gave my family a few white-knuckle
moments, but hey, at least I was 5 hours closer to completing my driving log.
3.
Plug in your cooler the right way.
This last tip might be the most
important. So let me repeat, PLUG IN YOUR COOLER THE RIGHT WAY. For every trip,
we have this navy blue electric cooler filled up with water bottles, pop, and
small snacks. Well, we learned out the hard way that our cooler, when plugged
in incorrectly, can act as a heater. The first day we drove to the middle of
Ohio, unknowingly super-heating all of our food. When we reached the hotel, we
settled down, plugged in the “cooler” and continued to sleep. Throughout the
night, we all noticed small popping sounds that appeared to be coming from a
distance. Living in the suburbs of D.C., noises from outside aren’t out of the
ordinary. But this was Ohio. Yet we thought nothing of it. We didn’t make the
discovery until early the next morning, when all the pop cans were too hot to
touch, each grape had exploded from its skin, and the plastic water bottles
were starting to melt. While we had to restock our supply, it definitely provided
us with a humorous story to tell for the rest of the trip.
Any questions, comments, or funny
road trip stories? Email me.
This is a very useful list! I had a similar experience (not in North Dakota though)where I was driving a van, full of luggage, with a big bike rack on the back on a very unfamiliar road in southwestern Virginia. The road was very twisty-turny and very narrow. It didn't help that the GPS took us on a totally random route and my entire family was shouting at me. Not letting 16 year olds drive is definitely a good idea.
ReplyDeleteI really liked your post. I can't imagine driving for three weeks. Oh my gosh I would die. But it seemed like you had a blast. The post was well written and your voice was lovely. By the way, 85 on a 70 speed limit... Sarah, thats hard core :)
ReplyDelete-Lehna Asongwe
I can definitely relate to the buffalo traffic jam. My family and I were driving through Yellowstone Park in Wyoming when I was about 12, and all the cars had to wait for about 30 minutes while a whole herd of buffalo blocked all the traffic. Some people got annoyed, but most of us (my family included) thought it was GREAT and got out of our cars to take pictures.
ReplyDelete