When you head out, how long do you drive for?

[VanLifeCrisis]

Im curious how many continuos hours/miles you typically put down when you are on the move.

Im thinking to spare my vehicle i will limit myself to only a couple hours a day, spots forgiving. But may go longer if i got someplace i really wanna get to.

ive made a lot of 5 hour long drives to baltimore, and rather not do that kinda stuff again. I even did a round trip, that was rough.

 

[Almost There]

I *can* drive for as long as 10 hours a day with meal, gas and pottie breaks but I don't usually choose to do so unless there's a specific destination that I need to get to.

When I head out this fall I'll put in a couple of long days in the beginning. First of all to get out of Ontario it's about a 7 hour drive for me so the first day is at least 8 hours. Then once I'm headed south the start of where I want to begin my sightseeing is another 10 hours drive.

Once I get to Nashville I'll be into sightseeing mode while I do the Natchez Trace Parkway and hike parts of the Trail.

From there on to Arizona I'll probably be on a 2, 2, 2 time schedule - I love the concept - 2 hours driving, parked by 2 PM, stay 2 nights! As long as I get to the RTR in time, who cares.

In my younger days I've been known to leave home here in Ontario and show up in Florida 28 hours later which included a 4 hour nap in the passenger seat - can't do that anymore... :dodgy:

 

[masterplumber]

I tend to try and pack to much in, in to short a time. So driving from CO to CA with just a couple 1/2 hour naps is not unusual. Last weekend I loaded my motorcycle into the back of a friend's trailer and helped him drive to Montana. We left at 6:00 on Friday after work, and 600 miles later were in Lame Deer, MT at 3:30 in the morning. We got busy at about 6:00 AM and pretty well kept busy until going to bed around 10 or 11 that night. I woke at 6:00 the next morning, loaded up my bike, had breakfast, said my good byes, and hit the road at about 8:30 AM. took a different more scenic way home which included 100 miles of dirt roads, and pulled into the garage at 8:15 Sunday evening. I really hope I can hit the road this winter for a while, and I also hope I can slow down a little and let the trip take me, rather than me taking the trip. I envy those of you that are full time and can stop when something interesting catches your attention, since there is no place you have to be right now!

 

[ilovemyvan]

"How long do you drive for?" My answer is tooooo muuuuuch! My husband and I agree on just about everything in life except the pace of our traveling. He is go, go, go all the time, I'm a stay and enjoy the roses. It makes for interesting conversations. :dodgy:

-Nicole

 

[Reducto]

If I'm in a hurry to get somewhere or I'm trying to get far from hot weather I'll drive 10-12 hours a day. If the weather and my schedule allow I average about 2-3 hours per day. Rest stops suit me just fine so I just hop over to the next one and hang out inside the van on my computer for a day or less if length of stay is restricted.

I had to drive from Reno to St Louis in 2 days once, I got it done but it was not pleasant.

 

[cyndi]

My happy place is from 10ish in the morning until 2ish in the afternoon. Generally the time in whch school buses and poor rat race participants are off the road.

I've driven longer, faster and further many many times. But, I try not to. I try to plan so that I barely have to plan and never have to rush.

 

[peacetara]

I try to manage about 1hr of driving a day, when I'm "moving". Sometimes it might be 2-4 hours, if I'm in a hurry to get somewhere, but I try really really really hard to never go past 4hrs in 1 day. I *CAN* do more, but WHY!? The journey should be just as fun as the destination in my opinion, or you are doing something wrong. If I'm not enjoying the driving part, then I pull over and stop for the day/week/month.

Like tonight, I'm planning ~ 3hrs of driving, because I want to get out of the heat. I got delayed somewhere for a couple months and ended up getting stuck in 90+ heat. *ICK* So I'm in a hurry to get out of this awful weather.

 

[Seraphim]

We can do 5 hours but don't want to. 2-3 hours, or one hour, depending on what's around us. Stopped doing longer hours once I retired and my time was all my own.

 

[Theadyn]

So far it's been drive all day for me when I do get to go on trips. I'd like to do 4-5 hours tops in the future, though.

 

[minimotos95]

I can easily do 14-16 hours without even thinking about it. I enjoy being on the road, so once I'm on the road it's hard to get me to stop unless I've reached my destination, I am hungry or tired.

My van's maiden voyage/shakedown away from the RV park is planned, I will drive roughly 15 minutes to the BLM land just outside of town, depending on traffic. stay a while then drive ~30-45 minutes to the national forest at higher elevation and stay a while. Soon after that and after a few 1 hour highway jaunts if no mechanical problems arise time for a trip to the Pacific coast, one long day driving across the desert/mountain states then a relaxed day up the OR coast.

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

You guys are made of sterner stuff than me! I think im gonna go with tara's philosophy, or maybe the 2,2,2 method

 

[akrvbob]

It's pretty impossible to generalize but I can say it's my goal is to keep my diving days short. But if they have to be long for whatever reason, then I grudgingly drive long days.
Bob

 

[HarmonicaBruce]

I'm good for about 16 hours.  For a 2 day trip I like to drive all day and stop at a bar and have a few then sleep in their parking lot.

 

[rvpopeye]

I'm kind of in the 222 club but if I see something interesting............................I'll stop and spend as long as I want.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

After being parked for a while, when I am moving to a new area, I try to do 12 - 14 hours the first day.  I stop every 150 miles or so for gas and a walk.  After that, it depends.  If I am escaping the cold (e.g. Northern Wisconsin to Southern Arizona), I will continue to push until I reach moderating temperatures.  This is also the only time I will take the interstate and the only time I will push past dark.  Otherwise, I slow way down.  I might do 8 hours or I might do 15 minutes; it depends on what I find, I'm usually in no hurry.

One rule I only break during my escape is that I want to have my camp set up, dinner and a walk done before dark.  As I age, I don't enjoy driving in the dark, especially if the road is wet.

 -- Spiff

 

[peacetara]

I have to agree with Spaceman Spiff, driving after dark is generally not a lot of fun, so I try not to do it. Setting up camp in the dark is even less fun, even if all you need to do to setup camp is find a reasonably level spot to park for the night, it's still a lot more pleasant to do that before twilight. Besides you can't enjoy the sunset if you are driving/finding camp!

 

[GotSmart]

I try to avoid rush hours. (and soccer moms  :dodgy:  ) If I have to be somewhere, I will push.  State rest stops are preferable to me over WM.  I try to do a days driving, and rest a day or so.  It is much better when someone you know offers a place to park.

 

[compassrose]

For trip planning, I am shooting for 150 - 200 miles because this is going to be a long trip. I plot my trip using the now non-supported MS Streets & Trips program with the MegaPOI overlay. Then I start looking for places to park or stay. I double check on the internet for places then I make a "stop" on my map and go to the next leg of the trip. There are some days that we will be running over 200 miles and others where we will be traveling under 100. Just depends on where we need/want to stop. And of course this can change at any time. I rarely make reservations. Although I have reservations at a state park outside of Carlsbad NM because it will be Labour Day weekend and our last chance to make another trip thru the Caverns before leaving NM. Oddly enough the park had plenty of open sites. But that change means I have to rework my trip a little as we will now be heading south thru Pecos (again) instead of east then south thru Brownfield.

I am night blind and my daughter is night blind. Neither one of us want to drive at night. I also don't like to drive in torrential rains. So weather will also play a factor in deciding our stops and stays. It's all about what I am comfortable doing.

 

[highdesertranger]

these days after about 400 miles I am done. I can drive farther but try to avoid it. mind you I average about 50mph so 400 miles is about 8hrs. highdesertranger

 

[karl]

When I'm running from weather, or haven't been traveling for a while, I'll push up to 10 hrs, then after a couple days start to unwind and get into a more comfortable pace.
6 hrs, with short breaks every couple is my happy pace.