Road Trip Planning for Blog Paws Conference
In 2 weeks, I’ll be jumping in the car and starting a 3,500 mile road trip.
As soon as I saw this video, I decided that I had to attend the Blog Paws pet-blogger conference. And I had to bring my dog Milo.
The first dilemma was how to get there.
Milo weighs 22 lbs and is too big to fly in the cabin on airplanes. All of my pet-loving friends, including one who worked for an airline for many years, said that I absolutely shouldn’t have Milo fly in cargo.
So I decided I would drive.
Yes, driving from St. Louis to Las Vegas is 23 hours each way. While my Mom eventually decided to join me on the trip, the initial plan was for me and Milo to take the trip by ourselves. I decided to turn it into a 2 week road trip vacation and see as many dog-friendly sites as I could along the way.
The more I started planning the route, the more excited I got.
My niece Megan lives in Denver and I’ve never been to Colorado. This trip would be a perfect chance to see her and Colorado. I’ve always wanted to see the Grand Canyon. And I’ve never been to 4 of the states on the route.
Listening to me talk about the trip got my mom excited too. When she asked if she could join me, I was thrilled. My mom and I have taken two trips together in recent years and had a great time. The first trip was a road trip across Mexico to see my brother who lives in the remote village of Mahahual. The following year we went back to see him again, this time going to Chetumal, Mexico and Belize.
Even better, my mom just decided she wants to bring her dog Lexi on the trip with us. Milo and Lexi adore each other and will keep each other company so we can do a few non-pet friendly activities without feeling guilty.
Two women and 2 dogs driving 3,500 miles across 9 states. This should be fun!
Where are We Going?
Blog Paws Trip | My new trip on Roadtrippers.com!
I’m using the website Roadtrippers to plan my itinerary.
It’s perfect for a road trip because you can add as many stops as you would like. You can also create a bucket list for the trip to bookmark the places you want to see along the way, without actually adding them as a stop to the itinerary.
Then you can sync everything to you iPhone for easy navigation.
Our Schedule:
- Day 1 – Leave St. Louis, drive through Missouri and Oklahoma. Overnight in Elk City, OK (drive time 9 hours)
- Day 2 – Leave Elk City, drive through the Texas panhandle and New Mexico. Overnight in Sante Fe, NM (drive time 7 hours)
- Day 3 – Enjoy Sante Fe and the neighboring pueblos. Spend a 2nd night in Sante Fe.
- Day 4 – Leave Sante Fe, drive through New Mexico, Arizona and visit the Grand Canyon. Overnight in Grand Canyon Village (drive time 7 hours)
- Day 5 – Visit the Grand Canyon again, then drive through Arizona and Nevada to the Hoover Dam. Spend a little time at the Hoover Dam and then head to our resort hotel on Lake Las Vegas (drive time 4 hours)
- Day 6 – Blog Paws Conference!
- Day 7 – Blog Paws Conference!
- Day 8 – Blog Paws Conference!
- Day 9 – Leave Las Vegas, drive to Utah. Stop and visit with my blogger friend Brett in St. George, UT. Get back on the road and drive through Utah. Cross into Colorado and overnight in Grand Junction, CO (drive time 8 hours)
- Day 10 – Leave Grand Junction and drive through Colorado. Arrive in Denver for a visit with my niece Megan. Overnight in Denver (drive time 4 hours)
- Day 11 – Enjoy Denver and visiting with Megan. Spend a 2nd night in Denver.
- Day 12 – Leave Denver, drive through Colorado and Kansas. Overnight in Kansas City, MO (drive time 8 hours)
- Day 13 – Leave Kansas City and head home to St. Louis (drive time 4 hours)
I’ll be blogging the entire trip, sharing our adventures, mishaps and plenty of photos.
Be sure to subscribe for email daily updates or my weekly newsletter so you don’t miss any of the trip!
