Whats your driving strategy when headed west?

[mcseal2]

I usually hunt with a buddy and we drive out and straight through. I prefer not having the hassle of airports unless I'm going to AK. I like having my own vehicle with extra gear too.

We usually pack the truck the night before leaving for a hunt and put it in the shop. That way the minute we are off work and able we grab a shower, change, and head out. We drive through the night and usually hunt or scout the following morning before setting up camp and catching a nap.

A few tips:

I like to take an Advil PM the night before the trip. My mind is excited for the trip and this lets me get to sleep early and be well rested for the next night.

If I do have to stay in a hotel overnight on the way to a hunt I look at the elevation of towns along the way and try to stay in the highest one. I sometimes elk hunt with a buddy in Wyoming. Hunting with him is always very physical and not something I want to tackle tired. The highest point between my house and his is Casper so I stay the night there and let my body start acclimating before I get to his place. It seems like I need 3 days to start adjusting to elevation, so if I can get 8 hours or so of that time in sleeping I will. As a flatlander I'll take any advantage I can get. Hunting with him we stay in his house also so I have much less stuff along to pack in and out of a hotel room. I don't have to be self-reliant on the other end on that trip, I just need myself and my hunting gear.

I like having a trip bag with things separate from my other bags. I have a Kuiu Taku 2000 bag for this. It has my essential stuff plus a hoody, phone charger, whatever I want organized and on top of the gear stacked in the back seat. It's bigger than I need but that makes it stay on top and not slide down somewhere.

A battery pack can help limit the mess of cords going from the truck outlets to devices. I put a big Anker 26800 pack under my flip down center console I can have cords for my cell phone, MP3 player, and whatever else needs charged. I run one cord from the dash to it so it stays charged when needed. At camp that charger goes in the tent to charge my headlamp, Steripen, phone, everything. It can get topped off if needed from the truck during the day.

I always have a 32oz Ozark trail cup I keep re-filling with tea when grabbing a meal or fuel. That way I have caffeine on tap as needed.

I find that listening to hunting podcasts makes the trip go much faster and keeps me awake. I also have an old MP3 player with a few thousand older songs I don't hear much anymore. Plugging it into the truck can be awful nice in places where the radio picks up 1 station that plays the same 10 songs over and over. That gets old on hunts where I spend an hour or two in the truck getting to and from spots each day. It gets REAL old on an antelope hunt where I spend even more time in the vehicle.

Little things but ones that work for me.

 

[Elkhntr08]

Usually sleep in the truck for a couple hours. This year I’m pulling the camper and have pretty much the entire season, so, pulling over and sleeping in a great free bed will be great.

 

[Fatcamp]

Keep in mind that every year multiple threads are started on hunting forums about vehicles being broken into and stolen at hotels/motels. Be absolutely sure to take all valuables inside. Every time.

 

[manitou1]

I drive straight through 17 hrs. Too excited to stop.

 

[fingers]

Keep in mind that every year multiple threads are started on hunting forums about vehicles being broken into and stolen at hotels/motels. Be absolutely sure to take all valuables inside. Every time.

This concerns me as well. It's a pain but I can't see leaving my bow/gun, optics, and likely a self defense pistol in my truck at most any hotel I've seen along an interstate. I end up lugging my bags in the hotel.

 

[Lelder]

If you fly make certain the truck rental company understands you “need” a 4x4 truck. Some guys I met in ID came in and the rental company slid them in a 2wheel without them noticing. That wasted a day. They went back and got another truck. It broke down later. They spent thousands and only hunted a few days. I will pay the price to always be in control of my own stuff. If something goes bad it’s on me.

OMG that was my buddies!!! Lol

 

[Billy Goat]

Drive straight through. Has been around 32 hours of travel time. Fuel stops, few times to eat. 2-3 guys in the truck, rotate drivers into the bed we make in the extended cab part. Wouldn't work solo, but I'm not a fan of staying at a motel with the options of unloading the vehicle or theft. If I was solo I would nap in the truck. I'm normally good as long as the sun is up. 2-5 am are the harder hours. Fortunately the guy I normally travel with can sleep like a rock in the truck, so he drives midnight til morning or so.

 

[Bcleck90]

AL to WY this year. My buddy who went with me last year backed out so I’m going solo. I have a Tacoma with topper so I’m in the process of building an elevated platform to sleep on during the trip. Take it slow, drive, sleep, drive some more. Figure I’ll get there eventually and just enjoy the ride.

 

[highstepper]

Last two trips to SW CO, my buddy and I drove from from South Louisiana (23-24 hours) . We overnighted on the way there a little more than half way and again close to our hunting area so as not to arrive in camp too beat down from the drive. We learned that lesson after driving straight through to AZ one year. We drove straight back, taking turns, on both trips. Comes a point when you just want to be home in your own bed.

 

[Rich M]

Last time I went (2017) it was 30 hours each way, 2 guys. 1 fuel tank on 1 off was the driving method after I reached the other guy who was 10 hrs north of me. Got there, switched trucks, then I napped and he drove. We pushed thru, stopping for and hour or so at a rest area but neither of us got much sleep. We stayed at a hotel 1 night on the way back.

This year I'm driving with my 80 yr old dad. Probably gonna do the 24 hr run straight thru to get there, 2 days home sleep at hotel. Will let him drive on long stretches between cities while I nap a little and I'll do the rest. Full 2 week vacation, 3 days driving about 48 hours worth.

Planning to leave at about 0400 and drive thru to be there in time to watch the sun come up and do some scouting by vehicle and get a lay for the land. Then set camp, nap and scout by vehicle in the evening to see what else we see. 2 other guys will be coming in that day as well. 1 is flying and has 5 hr drive from airport, 1 has a 15 hr drive. Opening day is the following day. 9 or 10 days later will reverse trip at sunrise and drive 2/3 way home, get hotel. Next day get home.

The next trip will be about 36+ hour drive each way - I will consider flying. Will see how the dynamics of that trip come together - got a buddy about 20 hours north of me. Would be 3 of us rotating at that point - can easily go straight thru however long it is from there.

 

[H2PVon]

Always had 2 guys. One drives while one sleeps.
When I took my son last year, even though he was 17, still didn't trust him driving overnight so we stopped a few times.

 

[gumbl3]

Leave really early .. 2, 3am.. Don't mind driving country I know in the dark but prefer not to hit mountain highways I don't know when the sun is down.. Other than than, Monster, steady stream of copenhagen and pee break every two hours.. This usually gets me to wherever I'm going before the sun goes down..

Did have to get a hotel on a trip to Idaho, word for the wise, there's no hotels within 30 miles of Moab on a weekend, seems to be a popular getaway

 

[Professor]

My son and I made our first western trip last month. We drove from West Georgia to Idaho. It was 2500 miles one way. We did it in 4 days but stopped along the way a couple of times so I could show him a couple of my childhood homes and the rivers I use to fish. Actually I drove. My son has his licence but we rented a jeep and he is not 25 so could not drive. For us, camping along the way was not realistic. We were tent camping, which clashes with 14-18 hours on the road. Showing up at a campground at midnight ,finding a site and then setting up is difficult. Especially some of the state sites we went to. The sites are not marked well and GPS more often than not tried to drive us into a lake. Some of the other campers looked like they had set up extra legal businesses as well. Best not shine headlights and flashlights on their campers. This fall I will take my truck with a work top on it so we can just pull over and go to sleep. My son can also drive my truck, so maybe we can get it done in two days.

 

[TurboSportTSi]

For those that sleep in their vehicles, where do you park for that? Rest stop? Walmart? I am thinking that may be a good option if I can fit in my SUV with all my gear.

 

[Professor]

Not comfortable with rest stops or Walmart. I like to get a bit off the freeway. I always try to line up state parks with free camping or National Forests with free access.

 

[Fatcamp]

Interstate rest areas work for us. We carry. Never had a problem.

 

[Professor]

I carry too. I just have a hard time getting any sleep in an area with that much interstate traffic. It don't matter how big my gun is if I am asleep.

 

[Middleofnowhere]

I hate flying. Being confined in close quarters with a bunch of humanity, no thanks.

I hate hotels too. I find them gross.

 

[Tufrthnails]

I'm flying to CO this year but my brother lives there so I have access to a vehicle once I'm there. I drive from FL to KY every year and just do the 12hr trip straight threw with maybe a 30 minute nap if need be, but much further then that I'd split the trip into two days. I leave at 7pm to get through Atlanta in the middle of the night. Check your route for bad traffic areas like Atlanta and try to get through them in low volume times.

 

[Professor]

My son was a great navigator. We were negotiating a lot of flooded areas in Missouri and Iowa. On the way back we went through North Dakota and Minnesota trying to avoid the flooding but to no avail. A lot of roads were out and a lot of exists closed. Still we had to take some state roads to get around the heavy traffic on I 70.