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Hello. I have to move from DC to Sacramento. All the Uhauls and similar moving trucks I've ever used have had bucket seats. If I had a bench seat, I would be able to lie down. But I don't.
What should I do? I'll be traveling in the dead of winter. It's not like I can pull over somewhere and plop down on a cot.
A lot of people who move that sort of distance decide how many hours they will drive each day and then stop at a hotel to rest for the night. As cold as it is, napping in the truck isn't the best option, bucket seats or no.
It's about a 40-hour drive (2724 miles)
I'd probably figure 4 days of 10 hour drives (with breaks and food stops) or 5 days of 8 hour drives.
If you mean that you can't drive long distances without lying down every few hours to stretch out your back, you may want to re-think driving a moving truck out to California.
Location: When you take flak it means you are on target
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If it's the dead of winter and you plan to sleep in the truck you will freeze to death. Take a hotel. Watch the truck they get stolen frm hotels all the time.
A lot of people who move that sort of distance decide how many hours they will drive each day and then stop at a hotel to rest for the night. As cold as it is, napping in the truck isn't the best option, bucket seats or no.
It's about a 40-hour drive (2724 miles)
I'd probably figure 4 days of 10 hour drives (with breaks and food stops) or 5 days of 8 hour drives.
If you mean that you can't drive long distances without lying down every few hours to stretch out your back, you may want to re-think driving a moving truck out to California.
If you meant something else, I didn't get it.
I've driven from DC to St. Louis straight and I still had some gas left in the tank (no pun intended). I don't think I would need that much rest. I would probably need to sleep for 2-4 hours two or three times. I'm serious. I hardly slept during law school.
I share the other poster's concern about stopping at hotels. I just don't think that's safe. Also, I wouldn't be able to sleep. I would be too wound up from the drive.
Yes, I could nap in the truck. I'm one of those people who can sleep anywhere. However, I don't have the best lower back, and I will absolutely have to lie down during the trip.
I don't care if it is cold. That's what jackets and blankets are for.
Are there any travel centers with chairs that you can sleep in?
Ideally, I would like to rest at rest stops and travel centers only. After driving for about a day, I would naturally wan to take a shower. I presume you can do that at travel centers. I was hoping they would have somewhere where you can lie down too.
I share the other poster's concern about stopping at hotels. I just don't think that's safe.
I moved with my CR-V full of valuables from Columbus, OH to Des Moines, IA. I stayed overnight in Pekin (IL) without any problems, and that was during August. It's now January. PA to CO is an icy mess at the moment. Criminals are knocking over warmer places.
Once you get out of DC the Eastern PA, there are a lot less sketchy areas.
Yes, there will be showers at the travel centers. I don't know about chairs to sleep in -- I never noticed.
In any case, if you're going to make this trip before mid-April, please pay close attention to the weather. You may be the greatest snow driver of all time, but portions of I-80 get shut down when the conditions get too bad. Out on the prairie, there are few trees and buildings, so the wind can turn a little snow into a whiteout with little warning.
Today, we've been dealing with ice. You may have seen the video of the trucks that hit each other in NB. One was on fire at the side of the road.
I'm not trying to scare you, but such conditions demand total concentration. Running "wired" on low sleep is not the safest way to tackle driving across the middle and western sections of the country, January - March. There are occasionally 2 - 3 days in a row of dry weather, but storms can blow up quickly. It pays to stay alert.
When we moved many years ago, we had a truck that was completely open to the back, so we put the couch directly behind the front seats and took turns sleeping on the couch while the other drove.
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