20 Days on the Road

I made it! For those of you who don’t know; I drove from California to Maryland on November 1st and got to my parents house on November 20th. I took the south route to avoid harsh weather on my road trip and was able to see family and friends and sightsee on the way.

Why did I road trip in the first place? 

I am doing the World Race in January 2021. I wanted to spend the holiday season with family and friends back in MD before I leave for 11 months. 

Also, the place that I was renting from was no longer an option. So I was soon out of a place to live which pushed me to move by November 1st.

Packing:

I have a lot of stuff! With the help from friends, my car was packed and was able to get rid of things that didn’t fit in my car. It took SO long to go through stuff I didn’t need anymore, vacuum seal bags of clothes, bubble wrap my glass things and decor. The last thing on the list was to eat and pack the last little bit of food I had and away I went. 

20 Days of Adventure:

12 States: California, Oregon, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland. 

9 nights I slept in my car and the other nights I slept at my family’s house and friend’s houses along the way. 

-put thousands of miles on my car; almost at 300,000 miles by the end. I had to get an oil change in Austin, Texas. 

-I hiked through national parks, saw amazing sunsets, drove through beautiful areas, walked on the beach, attended church in Texas and so much more.

-I was able to spend time with family for a few days in Redding, CA.

-Texas, North Carolina and Virginia is where I met up with friends!

-I carried my passport everywhere I went. Whether I went hiking or went into the gas station, I carried it. If for some reason my passport got stolen, there is a high chance I wouldn’t get another in time to go on the World Race in January, so I carried it around with me. 

-I sat for a LONG time. I spent that time playing music, podcasts, sometimes sitting in the quiet, calling friends and family and spending time with the Lord.  

What I learned: 

-Saying goodbye or see you later is hard. I miss my family and friends back in CA. 

-Sleeping in my car isn’t all that bad. I’m so glad I had a sleeping bag, blankets and pillows cause it got cold some nights. 

-I missed home cooked meals. I enjoyed eating Chick-fil-A, but got tired of fast food and was grateful for home cooked meals when I did have them. 

-I prefer to road trip with people. However, doing a road trip by myself is not going to deter me from doing it altogether. I saw and did so much that I wouldn’t have done if I shipped my stuff to MD and flew home. 

-Even in a time like this with Covid, people were still willing to see me and even invite me in their home. Truly blessed by this!

-There were some sketchy times where I didn’t feel 100% safe. Throughout my road trip, I continued to pray that God would protect me. Sometimes I had to make decisions to leave the area, walk a little faster, drive away, make a phone call, carry pepper spray and a knife with me. 

-God reminded me that I’m not in control and to slow down. For example, one day I was supposed to go to three different parks and hike. I woke up with a migraine and only went to one park that day. That was really hard for me to accept, but I knew it’s what I needed to do.

There are even more things I learned on this road trip, but I hope you got a glimpse of what my time with like for 20 days on the road. 

Sarah Nicholson