The Ride

Conveyance

We road trip. We stopped flying as a personal preference. Now we get to keep our shoes on, we don't stand in security lines or boarding lines, we don't get groped by strangers and we never get wedged into cramped seats next to garlicky Uzbeks. Also, our vacation stuff fills a full-size SUV. So if you're planning to take a plane and rent a car, stop here and Google "flying vacation".

Road tripping makes your vehicle central to the success of your journey. We've had a progression of rides, bringing us to The Raven (aka Nevermore), the 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee we're now driving.

The Raven? Nevermore? That's right, the car has a name. Well, actually, this one has two. We have been naming our vehicles for years. It's called anthropomorphism. No, we don't need a dog.

Confidence

You need a vehicle to believe in. No junkers. No lemons. We are gone for 1 or 2 or more weeks and are 1000 miles from home. We stick with newer, low mileage (< 100,000 mi.) vehicles, although "very-well-maintained" can work too. The point is you don't want to worry about spending your time getting towed or repaired or stranded in the wilderness. If you're not confident in your wheels, rent something. Or retire and buy a new car. Worked for us.

Comfort

Leg room. Head room. Ease of entry. Adjustable seats. You will so not regret it.

Cargo

We equip for 6-8 days of hiking and traveling before we resupply and do laundry. Consequently we employ all the cargo space of a full-size SUV. With the seats folded down. With boxes and trays on the floor that can be reached behind the front seats. With stuff in side pockets and the glove compartment.

We carry clothes & personal items in four travel bags. Our hiking gear is in two duffel bags. We have a roadside lunch picnic box, a cooler, spare drinks and trail food. We have maps, travel documents, bird books and driving snacks. Bug spray. Sunblock. Bags that fill up with souvenirs. While it's a lot, it helps keep us on the road, on the trail, and out of Walmart.

We have a packing diagram.

What. You thought we wouldn't?

• Getting to the hotel. You'll be in the car for hours on smooth pavement so a good cruising vehicle is indicated. If you take the two-lanes (as in "not the Interstate"), the way we prefer, you'll want substantial passing power.
• Getting to the trailhead. This one depends a bit on how remote your trails are. Some trailheads are accessed down lumpy, bumpy roads that suggest 4-WD or at least AWD and high clearance (> 8"). The Raven has all that and more. And once you're equipped for rugged roads you can even drive them just for fun.
• Getting to the gas pump. Two comments here - first, you can't have all of the above and get great mileage and, second, it's nice to have a big tank for long range. Sometimes gas stations are few and far between out in the boonies. FYI we get about 25 mpg on our trips and have a driving range of around 500 mi.

Council

The Raven meets our needs, and of course we recommend Grand Cherokee, although there are clearly better financial choices. Our leading criterion is to accomodate Dale's bum back and that seriously restricts our choices.

We also strongly considered: Nissan X-Terra, Toyota 4-Runner, Subaru Outback.
Counter examples: Camaro, Mini Cooper and (unless you are a hamster) Kia Soul.

Cars Past