Wanderlust—that impulse to travel the world and explore—seems to intensify and form a life of its own during the four years of college. Not only do you become more independent and capable of traveling to places you couldn’t in high school, but you are also constantly barraged with pictures of your friends’ and roommates’ winter break trips, spring break getaways, summer vacations, and of course, study abroad. Suddenly, it seems like the only thing keeping you in your hometown is your obsession with your dog, and that at some point you have to turn off the Kardashians and go somewhere…anywhere.
My suggestion for the ultimate summer adventure? A cross-country road trip.
This past summer I drove over 5,700 miles with my two best friends. Richard is my boyfriend, Wilson has been my best friend since middle school, and they’re twin brothers. We drove from our hometown of Pensacola, Florida, through Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, to San Diego and up the Pacific Coast Highway. We concluded our trip at Yosemite and then drove all the way back to our southern roots.
We packed minimally—a few outfits, some blankets, and enough mix CD’s to last us a lifetime, and went on our merry way. Because we love the outdoors and were on a pretty tight budget, we decided to pitch the tent at a state campground every night (one night in Inglewood, California we ended up having to stay in a pretty interesting motel/casino/rental car lot…We survived).
We ate barbeque in Austin, listened to The Killers’ “Dustland Fairytale” while driving through the New Mexico desert, surfed in Carlsbad, bought cheap trinkets in San Francisco’s Chinatown, and watched the sunset over all of Yosemite Valley from Glacier Point. We hiked. We swam. We explored. We did whatever we wanted and in the process we discovered just how amazing this country really is.
Overall, this trip took about two weeks and only cost us around $700 each for gas, food, campground rentals, and everything else you could think of. You don’t need to learn a new language, shell out a bunch of cash, or cross any seas to see truly remarkable landscapes and to have new experiences that will (temporarily) cure your wanderlust. Grab a few friends, a map, and a great playlist and jump in the car!