Successful Road Trips
Thankfully, I had an emergeny bin in the back of my Jeep. While I was stopped, I ran to the trunk and opened up the bin where I grabbed out an extra sweatshirt, a bag of pretzels and a bottle of water. I was also incredibly thankful that I had filled up my Jeep prior to leaving the Duke campus because we were sitting in traffic for hours. When you travel on the road, you can never be too safe with what you stock your car with in the event that something unexpected happens.
Another great idea for road trips is to put together an “emergency” road trip kit in which you purchase a tupperware bin and include items such as a first aid kit, flashlight, jumper cables, an extra blanket, ice scraper, batteries, non perishable food, a few bottles of water, an extra pair of gloves, and a fresh pair of clothing. While this may sound somewhat ridiculous to some people, the fact of the matter is that you never know what could happen while you are on the road. Case and point; a few years ago, I was returning from classes at Duke University when it started snowing. Unprepared for any type of winter weather, the roads had not been salted, and as the snow started to fall more quickly, the temperature also began to plummet. Before long, the very road that I was driving on (a major highway) had started to freeze over. It was only a matter of time before other panicked people started crowding the roadways in a rush to beat the weather. However, due to the massive amount of traffic on top of the fact that the roads were starting to freeze, accidents started happening left and right. Eight hours later, I was still on the same highway, and the highway had turned into nothing short of a parking lot as I watched people slide helplessly off the sides of the roadway into embankments.
Things such as clothing you know that you’re going to bring with you as well as other miscellaneous items such as your camera, gifts for family members, extra boots, scarves or other weather-appropriate items as well as a hard copy of any emergency numbers you might need for the road (in case your cell phone fails). Because technology doesn’t always work out the way it is supposed to, this is also another good reason why it might be a good idea to bring some cash as well as some loose change in case you need to use a payphone.
The key to a successful road trip boils down to the planning that is involved. If you know that you have a long trip from to make from somewhere like North Carolina to somewhere else like New York, then set aside some time to figure out what sorts of items you will need to bring with you in order to be prepared for just about anything. For example, when I travel, one of the first things that I make sure I have with me is my EZPass and any prescription medication or otherwise (I.e. my allergy pills). The next thing that you want to make sure that you have with you (but which I am often neglectful with) is cash. While most places take debit/check cards, you can never be too sure. Besides this, electronics have been known to fail, which can mean that you may have no other choice except to use cash.
About the Author
Perisher Resort Snow Report Saturday 27th June 2009