There are two different types of travelers. People who want to get to a destination as soon as possible and those who like to take the scenic route. Which one are you?
Yes, if I am flying across the county, I am a ' get there as soon as possible' kind of traveler. The difference is, when I get there, I want to experience the whole place. If I am driving, I am that annoying driver that stops every few miles to take in the scene or stop for a picture. See an old abandoned home that has a sign outside stating it's history? I am slamming my breaks to check it out. Why, you may ask? This is about living in the moment. If you are driving to a destination, ever wonder about the towns outside of that destination? The place you are heading to has some significance to you, so why not stop and see the resemblance of the small town on the way. Making the most out of your trip, building knowledge, and having more things to talk about in the car with your friends.
Knowing the history of the places you go makes all the difference. Making everywhere you stop more intriguing and you that much more wiser. Seise the 5 minutes it takes to stop and read that plaque, or talk to someone from there and ask questions. The more you know about a place, makes it more special and interesting, making your trip that much more memorable. Coming out a wiser person and getting more out of what you're paying for. It helps you build a more personal connection with your trip, where you are at and why you're there.
Do you research before you go somewhere new? Doing some simple research before the trip you are going on, or asking friends for some advice, can help you get more out of your time. Have you noticed, when you google 'what to do in...' there are blogs detailed with suggestions on what to do? That's no coincidence. Those people go out and do the dirty work for you, to ensure you get the most out of your time there. The problem is there is not one blog that has all the information, you will have to look through many blogs and websites to find what exactly you want to do on your trip.
Now, how many times have you actually done the trips you had in mind, not as much as you would like I am guessing. It is about taking initiative, plan that road-trip you have always wanted to go on. Doesn't matter if you are planning ahead or doing a spontaneous drive, just go and do it. Road-tripping is not being lazy, the natural energy will come out once you are in the car, discovering new areas. If don't, you are not the roadtrip person you thought you were. Time for you to do your own dirty work and take your next adventure.
There are so many places to go on a roadtrip. It can be just a day trip to a place not far from your home, maybe it is only an hour away and there are lots of stops around the area that you can hit and stop to see/explore. Maybe it is on the way to and/or from a place you are going for the weekend, with lots of sight seeing on the way home. Or a omething like a quick day trip, that only is a few hours away. A roadtrip can be as long as a week, going up the Pacific Coast highway to Oregon, and visiting all the beaches along the way. You can take a couple weeks and discover all the popular national parks or highly visited destinations, driving though different states. Or you just have the whole day and want to fill it with something enjoyable. No matter the length of your drive, it is still considered a roadtrip. As long as you are with friends or family, and take unique stops along the way.
Create memories and take pictures like no one else has, making you stand out. You can take pictures on your phone, a fancy app that makes your pictures look cool, film camera, disposable, or maybe you have a nice digital camera. You do not buy these things for nothing, so start using them! For me, photography is one of my favorite parts and reasons why I stop so much. It encourages me to go on more roadtrips and stop at more places. Now you just need to find what drives you... literally on the road.
Having a nice camera by your side on these roadtrips will create awesome content. They are worth the money to invest in, as a new hobby, if you do not already have one. Depending on what camera interest you, using it as many times as you can is the best way to learn it. Finding the light and angles that stick out to you, once you are more advanced you can determine the ISO, shutter speed, and aperture. (We will go more into detail about what those are in another blog) It is about taking pictures you would use as a wallpaper or to put up in your house, that you can not find anywhere else. Having your own pictures to admire everyday, makes it personal and you can tell stories about those moments.
Photography is not the only thing that drives me. Spending quality time with friends is also an important factor. The countless memories you can have driving on a road, laughing, exploring, and discovering new things together. This will create deeper, more personal connections while talking through the hours of driving. Bouncing ideas off each other, to get immediate feedback. All the songs you discover, ones you know and sing together as loud as you can, simply because no one else can hear you. That is what I would call priceless moments, that can never be taken from you. Something that happens that no one else would get unless they were with you in a moment like that.
For example, I am going to tell a quick, funny, story of mine on one of my day roadtrips... My friends and I were doing a roadtrip from Palm Desert back to San Diego, (read that blog post for more information) stopping at Bombay beach to explore structures of art on a beach, and got stuck. There were many cars on the hard sand/dirt, so before you start judging, check out the link of other people who got stuck... https://www.facebook.com/groups/542987943061824 Anyways, we got stuck for an hour, and the only thing we could do was call for help to all our resources and laugh about it.
Attitude is the most important thing you can keep stable while driving. Just like my last point, things can get very frustrating on the road but if you are with the right people, that not so funny moment can turn into the best memory. You can only control what you do and think, not what happens around you. The uncontrollable things around you are the road bumps in your day. Wouldn't you like to feel less stressed and enjoy it instead? That is perspective, this moment will be another story.
When you are stuck in a car with people for the whole day, week, or how ever long you guys will be in the car, you want to be surrounded by friends with positive attitudes. You want to behave the way you would want your friends to be like when you are around them. Just some food for thought. Be that person, you would want to be friends with and would roadtrip with any day.
Living in the moment is a hard mindset you can do for yourself. I read a book called Let That Shit Go, and they describe living in the moment as pin-pointing every step you take. One of their examples was going to the grocery store, people dread going right? This may not sound fun but it is good practice, saying in your head every step you are doing. Try not to think of anything out side of grocery shopping, only what you are doing in that store. Picking out fruit for example, think about that fruit, how many you should buy, are they ripe, and will it go bad if you buy it. Harder to do than being said, that is exactly what you need to do on a roadtrip, let the outside worries behind and live in the moment.
If you are dreading the drive, scenery, or music, there is something not right. If you are living in the moment, that long drive and day will go by so fast and be enjoyable. Find little details every mile you go and find something that is beautiful and fills your heart with happiness. Find songs that you love and will make you enjoy those moments that much more. When will you be driving that road again? Put down the phones and pay attention to your surroundings. Your iCloud storage and screen time will eventually fill up, but the memories in your head will last forever.
Now, all the cars from above all happen to be in jeeps, that's because jeeps photograph so well. I have done awesome adventures in my Hyundai Accent and now my Volkswagen Passat. Jeeps work well for the acsustetic photos and taking off the roof, trucks are good for holding large amount of things and sleeping in the bed, but you want to stay gas affecient for the long roadtrips.
Things to keep in mind, time, weather, what will you be seeing, and your final destination of course. Where will you be for sunrise or sunset? That is why time is important, you do not want to miss out on these important moments by slacking! Will you be able to hit all the destinations before the one place you want to see sunset? Weather is important for what you are going to wear, there is nothing worse being uncomfortable in a place you are not familiar with. The good thing is being in the car where you can control the air, make sure it works! Lastly what you will be seeing and where, do you have a bucket list? Roadtrips are the perfect time to break out that long list of places you have always wanted to go.
Now that you have read this blog post, what kind of roadtripper are you?
I hope you think about different ways to interpret your mindset and motivates you to go on a roadtrip. There is so much in California to see that no one talks about, that is why those could be the most beautiful places to see. Why stop there? There are amazing states around to go adventure to as well. Yes you could fly there, but who likes lines and strangers all around? Take your car and be on your own time, seeing more than you can imagine with your friends.
Photos taken by Kailynn / Photos taken of Kailynn by Full Service
Brb - planning my next road trip adventure!