How Much Of The Country Do You Actually Get To See?

Theodore Roosevelt national park on I 94 has a rest area for trucks. The rest area is on the side of a drop off overlooking the park. Amazing view there. I got to see Canada from the American side of the St Clair River. And I got to see the mountains in Mexico about 6 miles from the border. If I really wanted to I could have spent some time in Seattle but I don't do cities. I saw the space needle from the highway that was good enough for me. I much prefer the wide open spaces and small towns. I stayed at a little truck stop outside of Livingston MT and when I woke up in the morning I was able to walk across the road and pet the horses lol. There is plenty of great and wonderful things to do.

Don't forget the lights. I don't remember where I was, but I was coming down off of an overpass, and it was even with or higher than a city. The lights were absolutely beautiful....

I had 2 days waiting to unload in Denver, so I rented a car. I drover 100 miles West of Denver up into the mountains, found a lake, and some other cool scenery, including an old log cabin that looked like it hadn't been lived in for awhile.

I was home and my dispatcher called and said, 'get on a bus and go to Montana to pick up a wrecked truck'. I was like, ' wha? you want me go bus all the way to Montana (I lived in Texas).... ' Yes, and you get paid mileage.... I was like, ' wha, again....' I got paid to bus all the way to Montana from Texas. ' lol Sooo, I bus to Montana and pick up the truck.... they also wanted me to bob tail it to Arkansas.... again with the ' wha? '. lol I hadn't worked for them but 7 months, and as far as I'd always heard, you're not supposed to bob tail anywhere. So, here I am, bussing to Montana, and bob tailing all the way to Little Rock. I got a newer truck out of the deal, but you talk about the easiest run I ever had. :) All I did there was site see. lol

In under a year I was able to get through 44 of the lower 48. As far as sight seeing goes I've been able to meet up with some of my old navy buds I haven't seen in decades; Either passing through, or telling my FM that I'd like to take a few hrs before my next reload. You can always take some "home time" if you'd like to have an extended time off

If I really wanted to I could have spent some time in Seattle but I don't do cities.

I am currently researching changing careers to trucking so I don't know how any of this works. Are you saying that you can pick and choose whether you deliver in the big cities?

I would much rather avoid big cities myself. Traveling through them is terrifying enough for me.

Are you saying that you can pick and choose whether you deliver in the big cities?

No, you won't have that option with most over the road or regional jobs. You'll be in big cities all the time. There are jobs like LTL jobs, where you can avoid big cities, but most of the time you go where the freight goes, which is everywhere.

I think he was referring to spending some free time in the cities when he made that statement.

Hi, Shannon, generally you go anywhere in your company's service area. With little choice of destination. Some companies make an exception for New York City, or Northeast.

If you start getting picky about your destination ("I don't do cities") you probably won't get the weekly miles you're looking for.

(F'rgot) Have you seen these?

Becoming A Truck Driver: The Raw Truth About Truck Driving

Truck Driver's Career Guide

I am on the PODS flatbed account and truly do the continuous 48. I take my reset on Sunday, and I almost always leave the truck. I have a had a full day off in Chicago, Las Vegas, New Orleans, Memphis, Nashville, San Antonio, Oregon, Montana, Colorado, St. Louis (the city museum is freaking amazing and wacky) ... I rented a car in Eugene, OR and drove an hour and a half to the coast and was able to touch the ocean and look at all the beautiful scenery. I have also been hiking, seen vegas shows, toured the alamo, eaten a TON of good food ... I think a lot of it depends on what you haul and how you run. Recaps burn me out. I would rather bust butt all week and take a nice day off.

I've been thinking about this for a while and would like to hear from people with experience. How much do you really get to see?

It seems that all you get to see is from the front seat of your rig. Do you get to see more than just scenery as you pickup and dropoff? Lets say you deliver near Vegas or New Orleans do you actually get to experience those areas or is it just in and out? Sure you probably cant party and get buckwild or whatever but do you really get to walk the streets or anything?

I love to drive and see nature and all of that but I just don't understand how it all works as far as enjoying the places you travel to. Will I get to only see the ocean or can I stop and feel the ocean? Im sure you cant just drive an 18wheeler around to see the strip in vegas or random sites. How does it work?

Amanda recommends the City Museum

St. Louis (the city museum is freaking amazing and wacky) ...

The way I describe the City Museum to out-of-towners is it's like a cross between a McDonald's Playplace and junk yard.

Next time you're in St. Louis, check out Cahokia Mounds. It is near the intersection of I-55 and I-255, off Collinsville Road. Its an easy on/off from either interstate and there is Rural King store about two miles away.

Truckerpath has hotels with truck parking on it. This helped me when I had a day cab loaner truck but might also help you if you wanted to spend a weekend off duty on a vacation. Keep in mind where you park at for a otr vacation. Try to find a spot where when you come back your bumper isn’t laying on the ground. A good dash cam that could run while your gone would be a good idea.