aptruncata Posted March 11, 2013 Share Posted March 11, 2013 I wanted to share my thoughts on night time driving with the toy. Over the weekend, I had a chance to roll out in the toy with the wife and our dogs. The destination was mostly along the PCH 1 hwy with some steep mountain roads 216 miles north from my home into morro bay, CA. We left our home in the pouring rain at 4am in the morning and arrived at 8am. and enjoyed the most beautiful weekend. By leaving at 4 am, I didn’t have anyone tailgating me or worry about cars approaching too fast. I was able to spend more of my time watching the sunrise and drive at ease. Some parts of the 101, I had to get down to 2nd gear and crawled at 30mph but it didn’t matter because nobody was on the road. (I did put on the emergency blinkers just in case). We planned on checking out on Sunday noon but I liked the drive so much I decided to sleep early and got up at 4am Sunday morning and left camp. Again the drive was so much more enjoyable without other cars. I came home and took a nap for a couple of hours and am considering doing this for most of my trips. I know it sounds a bit extreme but it seems to work out for me and the slow toy. Anyone else prefer driving early morning or late night? BTW....i got 16.28mpg for the trip Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikesta Posted March 12, 2013 Share Posted March 12, 2013 I agree with you. Positives: 1. less traffic 2. If you have kids, -no yelling, screaming or are we there yets 3. Its quiet Negatives: 1. More wildlife out 2. When the sun comes up (If I've driven all night) I get really sleepy in the dawn hours. 3. Wife is asleep with the kids I've learned that if you eat sunflower seeds, you can drive 24hrs straight... if you get sleepy pop some seeds in your mouth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aptruncata Posted March 12, 2013 Author Share Posted March 12, 2013 I've learned that if you eat sunflower seeds, you can drive 24hrs straight... if you get sleepy pop some seeds in your mouth. lol please refrain from doing that for the safety of others on the road. most i ever was 14 only stopping for gas. I love driving but there no way i can pull another 10 hours. unless of course someone is handing over their 4wd shorty for free. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikesta Posted March 12, 2013 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Its only a shorty dream at this point, however I am on the prowl.... one can dream. I think your on to something here but you're not supposed to talk about it because if everyone else catches on to you strategy... there will be a ton of traffic at 4am.. Shhhhhh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xanthogar Posted March 12, 2013 Share Posted March 12, 2013 I work nights so I leave home at aroud midnight and drive for a couple hours and then stop at a rest stop to sleep. I then get up around 9am so there's no traffic when I drive I get to places around noon which is check in time and feel much more rested then leaving early and fighting traffic or at night and paying for an extra night in a campground.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waiter Posted March 12, 2013 Share Posted March 12, 2013 I like to drive at night also. One of the drawbacks, During the day, I can see all those neat places that are perfect to stop for the night, :-(If I'm running along the interstate, I look for Love's truck stops. They seem to be the newest, are very large, and always seem to have a good spot out in the parking area thats away from main Enter/Exit traffic.JOhn Mc 88 Dolphin 4 Auto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fred heath Posted March 12, 2013 Share Posted March 12, 2013 I always try to hit major metro areas at night. The beltway around DC is a good example. Having made the mistake of navigating during the daytime hours (toys are not good on 4 lanes of bumper to bumper traffic), the night is definitely less stressful. On the interstates it's mostly truckers who for the most part view us as kindred spirits. I actually make better time at night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero Posted March 12, 2013 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Neither my wife or I like driving at night anymore. It's fine in rural areas like where we live. But when I,m tired, it's late at night and I hit a congested area with a lot of street lights - it almost blinds me. Same with some on-coming cars and newer types of high powered headlights. Yes, I'm over 60, but have perfect vision otherwise. On a relative scale my wife is a "spring chicken" and 12 years my junior. She hates driving in the dark also if there are artificial lights around. We live part time in Michigan which is 700 miles from our place in NY. Since I got banned from Canada, we now go the US route and do the trip in one day with no camping. We leave NY early morning and get to our place in MI around midnight. Last year, when it was dark and raining we hit a congested area full of glaring street lights and had to pull over. The lights reflecting from the road made driving for us near impossible. Later when we got the unpopulated part of the trip, no problems. Next time maybe I need to bring a six-pack of beer. If I have trouble seeing - I'll down the beers, be less nervous and then be fine. That certainly used to work for me, but . . I no longer drink. Mabye we need to eat more carrots. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sdboltdude Posted March 12, 2013 Share Posted March 12, 2013 I enjoy night driving drive from san diego to Yosemite every year and leave at 4am or earlier its so nice driving in LA with no traffic will drive at night for this summer big trip (1st big trip in rv) going to drive to Devils Post Pile in Mammoth and work way around to Yosemite will leave early morning at night to drive to the next campsite that's first come first camp site Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob C Posted March 12, 2013 Share Posted March 12, 2013 My wife and I have always started out trips by leaving the house at 3:00am. If we are heading east, we get through Chicago by7:30 am and most of the idiots are still eating breakfast. If we are heading west, we get to the Badlands by 3:00 local time and have always gotten good campsites. I have always gotten up early even when I am not working. On the other hand, driving late night for me is a definite NO. Once I start to get tired, I can't keep my eyes open. If I feel tired, I have to pull over right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanman Posted March 12, 2013 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Having lots of oldies I've found the condition of the windshield makes a large difference. Driving the Subaru with 22,000 and a pristine windscreen at night OK, the 86,000 Dolphin with a trashed front viewer not so much. If we end up using the RV much at night a new front viewer will be installed.I also don't care for the stock headlites, another replacement for much nite driving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nam Posted March 13, 2013 Share Posted March 13, 2013 I'll be installing some HID driving lights, which probably helps driving at night. I also planning on running a new headlight wiring harness directly from the battery to reduce voltage drop, which makes the halogen headlights are not as bright as they should be. Early morning is fine with me but late night does not work as well. I like the sun flower or seed idea too...except for the clean up part, which I have a 12V vaccum handy behind the seat at all time Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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