Route Planning

There are two ways to go about a long road trip like this; plan the entire route turn by turn or just wing it and head the general direction you want to end up.  I tend to blend these two methods together so I have a 'target' route that I know will get me where I'm going combined with a freedom to deviate and reroute anywhere I want.

Creating a plan (the route I know will work)

Since I don't have unlimited time (or money) I have to have at least a rudimentary plan to get where I'm going. I have a Garmin GPS (BMW Navigator IV) so I use the Garmin route building software called BaseCamp to create my detailed route plans. The routes are loaded to the GPS and I can simply choose the route I want and it tells me where to go along with various information like how long until I get to my destination.

BaseCamp is sort of like Google Maps in that it creates a route between points that you choose on a map and makes changes as you add or delete waypoints you want to visit. I actually like using Google Maps better but Google does not create nice tidy route files that the GPS wants. Like most things in the Internet world there are a small flock of incompatible file formats and almost nothing works right with anything else. I've played with the various online tools to convert between the formats but none of them would do the job without my having to manually get in and "fix" things.

BaseCamp and my GPS require licensed map files so I downloaded and installed the latest files and built my routes. If you've never done this you don't know how frustrating it can be. The routing software sometimes chooses the most bizarre paths and you have to go in and create what are called 'shaping points' that force the route to follow the roads you want. You don't want to add too many or it overloads the GPS so it becomes an art to choosing the exact places to put the points to get the best effect. Sometimes one shaping point will do the job, sometimes it takes several.

Once the routes were created I saved them to the GPS and I'm ready to go. I may make some minor changes but right now my planned routes look like this (Aqua is outgoing, Pink is the return route)...

The outbound trip is always more of a straight line shot for me because I want to make sure I get to races and therefore limit the amount of 'wandering' I do. For this trip I've combined parts of routes from other years that worked (or were especially fun) along with some new roads so I'm not too bored.

The inbound route meanders around a lot more and crossed back and forth over my outbound trip. That's not my normal plan - I tend to loop back around one side or the other just to mix in some different scenery. This year however I'm trying to scout several areas for potential vacation homes. Telluride and South Fork in Colorado and the Angle Fire area in New Mexico. I also want to hit the amazing area around Aspen again just in case something affordable can be found (Ha!). The inbound trip also contains almost exclusively 'back' roads and avoids interstates or heavily travelled highways wherever possible. The goal is not really to get anywhere quickly but to enjoy the ride - The Journey is the Destination.

Other than the hotels for the first two nights on the road, and of course the stay in Salt Lake City, I haven't picked places to stay for the night. I've found that I can always find a place to sleep if I'm not too picky and start thinking about how far I want to get before it gets too late. Having a wife at home who can track exactly where I am all of the time and contact me while I'm riding makes those last minute searches for an available room a LOT easier, for me at least! If I'm tired or it's getting late she can see which towns I'm approaching, find places to stay and make the reservations in a few minutes. If I have the time I'll just ride into town and troll for a decent looking place.