Roads Less Traveled

Breaking Up Monotony

One thing that makes traveling less enjoyable is retracing our steps, so to speak. When you are driving somewhere new, everything is experienced for the first time, making the travel more interesting and enjoyable. When you have to go back the same way, you’re looking at stuff you’ve already seen and experienced, taking away the enjoyment and making it far more monotonous and boring. I know that I find myself in these instances measuring the passing of time by landmarks we’ve already passed, and since they’re now in reverse order, it makes time seem to pass MUCH slower.

Unexpected Stops

By taking a different road back, we continue to see new (and sometimes unexpected) surroundings. Several stops we’ve made on our trips over the years have been because we took a different way home and found a place or attraction we didn’t know was there. A good example of this is the Great Platt River Road Archway Monument over I-80 in Nebraska – we didn’t know it was there, but decided to stop and take a driving break on our way home from South Dakota, and wound up thoroughly enjoying it.

Small Town, USA

Many times, taking the “roads less traveled,” by default, means you’re going to experience less traffic. Instead of barreling down interstates, we like to find the older state and US routes that take you through small towns that the US interstate system bypass. Much like Radiator Springs in Cars, these towns often have seen their better days, but the townspeople love their little piece of land and are often happy to see someone stop and say hello.

Less Traffic

This is a little more obvious, but when avoiding interstates, you also avoid often heavy traffic. When you’re pulling an RV like us, the slower pace and lighter traffic can be a welcome change of pace vs the breakneck speed of fast cars and heavy-duty semi-trucks. It also means it’s often easier to make a pitstop, since you don’t have worry about off-ramps and on-ramps.

Of course, sometimes it’s just not feasible from a logistics standpoint to avoid interstates, especially if you are on a time crunch. Sure, you could take US and state routes from Ohio to Florida, but I-75 is one of the busiest interstates for a reason. Still, even if it’s just for a small stretch, we encourage you to find those roads less traveled and take your time to experience some areas that you might otherwise miss.