Just to start out, my solo trip was only technically solo for 5 out of the 15 days we traveled. But the 5 days that it was just straight myself and my pup were SO relaxing. After 10 days with my huge family, a quiet vacation is certainly needed. Now being in the truck for 21 hours the first leg of the trip just me and the dog, never again. My original plan was to stop overnight but I couldn’t leave until later in the day. All I wanted at the moment, was to be home with my family and not waste any time. I did carefully plan out the safest places along the way to park and take a nap, which is the moment that Teddy decided he should wake up and “guard” the truck. SOOO napping didn’t exactly happen, due to a dog barking at anyone that came within 50 yards of the truck. And at a rest stop, that’s every second. My time with my family was amazing. It had been almost 2 years since I’d been home, and the rate my siblings are popping out kids out meant I had 2 nieces and 1 nephew that I hadn’t met before. Meeting them finally was so incredible and seeing the 4 older ones is always my most cherished time. It’s also EXHAUSTING! Kids are a lot! After spending quality time with my immediate family, I then loaded the truck and Teddy back up to head to Branson, Missouri with my mom and younger sister for a girl’s weekend. Most that know me are aware of my feelings towards the state of Missouri but turns out there are some awesome sites to see. We went to the Top of The Rock, if you are ever in the area, it is a MUST go! Golf cart tour with drive up bars in caves, then dinner overlooking Table Rock Lake, and bag pipes playing while cannons shoot off at sunset…. what else could you want in an evening? After two days with my mom and sister, we loaded up the truck for another 10-11 hours headed to our cabin in the woods. The cabin was adorable, situated right next to the river, which turned out to be possibly problematic once the rain wasn’t ending and the river was rising at a rapid rate. The rain gave us one day of doing absolutely nothing (super needed), then the sky cleared, we hiked, went to a brewery, walked downtown, drove loops looking for bears, while keeping relaxing at the top of the list. Our first solo trip turned out great and has me already planning my next adventure.
Now that everyone has a quick recap of the trip, let’s get to what the real purpose of this post is all about. What did I learn about planning a solo trip (well partially solo)? The drive from Florida to Kansas was the most daunting part of the entire trip. Being that I was unable to leave first thing in the morning. Put me driving through the night to make any decent time. I quickly had to make some choices on what would constitute a safe spot to nap and where I was willing to stop for gas and bathroom breaks in the middle of the night. This may seem like a bit of over kill but my dog weighs 11 pounds and I listen to and watch WAAAYYY to many serial killer true crime documentaries/pod casts (which is also what I listened to this entire drive). And the quickest thing that will put a damper on any trip is being kidnapped. I only stopped at very well-lit gas stations that I could see from the highway. If I got off at an exit for a stop then the station had to be at the end of the off ramp, that way I wasn’t going off my intended path. With this I also had my gun with me the whole trip. Obviously, a personal choice, nothing I ever write about will ever be me attempting to stir up a political discussion. But if you do choose to take this route, google the different carry laws in each state you will be traveling through. It will let you know how you can carry, where the gun needs to be stored, if it can be loaded, etc. I do not have my concealed carry license so this was important for me to know which state I could do what. I also just live my life with my location being shared with my best friend 24/7 and hers shared to me. So, if my trip would have gone down the path of a kidnapping then my hope for rescue and living would rest on her shoulders. I know, everyone thinks it’s your parents’ job to inflict the feeling of guilt onto your life, but no, it’s your job to make sure that your best friend might feel lifelong guilt for holding the answer to your possible rescue.
Not only deciding where to fill up with gas for safety but also gas prices was a big deal for me this trip. Illinois can go fuck themselves with their gas prices. But, if you don’t go ahead and fill up the moment you see $2.87 offered, then you become forced to fill up in Illinois for $3.45. To maximize my time, I also made sure that most of these stops all coincided with each other. I never let my tank get lower than ¼ of gas so about every 4 hours I was stopping for gas, bathroom, short dog walk, more coffee, stretch, and back on the road. Luckily Teddy did amazing, he also slept the ENTIRE drive so good company he was not. But he also wasn’t a pain in the ass, so I’ll take his lazy traveling ass any day. With everything I had planned and my rules for driving we made all 4 legs of this trip without any issues or complications. But if there had been any we (me…Teddy wouldn’t have done shit but kept sleeping) would have been ready for them.
Now for the actual solo portion of our trip in Tennessee, picking the Airbnb that we stayed at was my biggest concern. There were many cabins up in the mountains, very secluded, that I wanted to stay at. But the only thing these cabins were near, was the house where the owners lived. Which made me feel a little uncomfortable again because I would be by myself. In the end I found this adorable cabin on the river, that used to be a huge 2 story cabin that was now sectioned into 4 small cabins. Not only were there other people around, but this Airbnb also backed up to this little pub where I ate dinner and got a beer each night. Made me feel more comfortable not being secluded and just had to walk 20 yards for a sandwich or drink, win win. When it came to hiking, we did one hike in Branson with my mom and sister, which is also the moment I realized there has never been a day in his short life that I have worn out my dog walking or playing. This tiny little dog on his first hike ever (and this wasn’t an easy hike at all) made it 6.3 miles with no issue. The hike we did in Branson I’m not sure if I would have chosen to do just Teddy and I, but I didn’t have to make that choice. Once we were in Tennessee we went on a few hikes, and I chose more populated trails and stuck to the paths. We met a lot of people a long these hikes because, who doesn’t want to pet a friendly fluffy puppy. I mostly chose breweries and restaurant’s that Teddy was allowed in, where once again he added to his fan club. The few times I did go eat alone I chose to sit at the bar, and I enjoyed a nice quiet meal each time with a little bit of conversation with the bartender. Overall, I am very comfortable with having meals and doing stuff like that alone. I know a lot of people who aren’t but sitting at the bar makes eating alone much easier.
Traveling to new places is something I do quite often all over the world. But normally when I’m dropped into a new place, I’m with a group and required to have a minimum amount of people to go out and explore. Usually not knowing the language or the area, but we’ve gotten very good at finding our way and figuring it all out. That part never makes me nervous anymore, but now wanting to start taking these trips outside of work alone is what brought me onto this track of what is the safest way I can do this. It probably seems like I’m over thinking all of this and going overboard, and I’m not someone that normally over thinks things (this is where everyone that has ever met me rolls their eyes and says, “Yeah, sure Jan….” ha-ha). The world today is a scary place, we have way too much access to news and situations going on around the world. If you’re wanting to venture out on solo trips as well, I think the more prepared and safer you are the better. I have a long list of places I want to visit here in the U.S. and abroad. As I prepare to head back out on a 6-month deployment overseas, I think my next adventure will be in the U.S. since I’ll be ready to be back on home soil for a bit. The best part about planning a trip alone is you get to go where you want and see what you want. You don’t have to worry about any other opinions. Top of my list is possibly visiting Boston, New York City, and D.C. I have previously visited all three of these places. But never got to go see any of the museums and things I wanted to see there. That is currently the three-city trip I am making plans for to go on next year. But for now, the only preparations being made are to head out for another 6 month “work trip” and unfortunately Teddy is not invited.
Check out my Instagram for photos from this road trip Teddy and I went on! But here are a few photos from the trip!
Meander With Mal 