You often hear about athletes who have specific rituals to prepare for a game. I’m far from an athlete, but after a couple of years of long roadtrips, I’ve developed some rituals that seem to be paying off.
One is getting sleep. Lots and lots of sleep, both before and after the long trip. It’s hard to get a long night’s sleep a roadtrip because I’m so excited about everything that there is to see and do (not to mention the occasional noisy neighbor or storm interrupting sleep), so I indulge with plenty of guilt-free rest before and after the journey.
Another is downloading everything. Podcasts, maps, newspapers, magazines, and videos. It turns out I rarely actually use most of what I download, but it’s nice to know that I have the option in case I get stuck inside a tent in heavy rain. (Before so many things were downloadable, I once arrived in Manitoba just in time for historic rainfall and spent 24 hours sitting in my tent reading every single piece of paper I’d brought.)
Going along with that is charging everything. Besides the phone, tablet, and camera, even camping items like lights and a fan now need a charge. Then, I have all of my radios and other electronic toys, along with several small power banks and one big car-jumping battery to keep everything recharged throughout the trip. It’s too much, really, but I never run out of juice.
I also spend plenty of time researching where I’m going to go. I look at maps, check park websites and apps (you can download National Park Service info through their app), skim books new and old, and search YouTube for travel videos. This way, I can get an idea of the things I really want to do and the things I’d be comfortable skipping.
There are also more mundane tasks like getting the vehicle checked out, putting a hold on mail delivery, organizing pet care, and using up the fresh food in the fridge. I’ve also gotten into the habit of making sure there will be something to eat when I get home, which came in really handy when I tested positive for COVID on the last leg of one adventure this summer.
Sometimes I’ll gather food for a roadtrip for weeks or months ahead of time. I stock a plastic tub with canned food, barbecue chicken packets, and snack bars. Sometimes I’ll stash some home-baked goods in the freezer to save for the journey.
But my silliest tradition is probably making ice. It only saves a few dollars and a few minutes of stopping at a convenience store, but it goes along with the theme of all of these rituals: reminding myself that another fun roadtrip is coming up!
The anticipation might even be more fun than the journey itself.