Since I have been back, and whilst I was away, I have had quite a few people ask me how I go about planning my road trips each year. Well how about a guide on how I do it. It may or may not help others, but at least I will have somewhere to point people if they ask.

You are going to need to know a few things before you start.

– How long have I got?

– How far can I drive comfortably each day?

– How far can I get in that time?

– What do I want to see?

– Where do I want to stay?

– Can my car traverse these roads?

– Do I know what top do if I get in trouble?

There are loads more questions, but that lot will get you started.  The first three questions are really just to give you a guide on where you can get to and back from in any given time. You will notice I said “drive comfortably” in the second question. That is pretty important. Driving is more tiring than a lot of people think, especially if you aren’t used to long distance driving. Also, country driving is a lot different to driving around metropolitan area. I have driven for 90 minutes on dead straight and flat roads, and you can go into a zombie like state if you aren’t careful.

Probably the most important question of the ones above is “What do I want to see?” I plan my trips around what it is I want to see. In 2006, my first photography road trip, I wanted to get down to Melbourne and then drive back up the East coast. In 2007, Broken Hill was my destination. Last year, 2008, I wanted to go to Bourke and then drive down the Darling River to Wilcannia. This years trip was a wander along the Murray River. On all my trips I have planned the whole trip around a place or places I want to see.

Now hopefully, the things you want to see are within the limits you have set in the first three questions. There is no point saying I have two weeks and I think I can drive 2000kms, but I want to see Perth and I live in Sydney. I would recommend picking a spot about half the distance you think you can travel. That way, you can plan to see a few things along the way. It isn’t really a road trip if you spend all your time driving. The most enjoyable places I have visited over the past four years haven’t actually been at my destination, they have been along the way there.

So you have picked a place you want to get to, it is now time to jump on the interwebs and start researching a few things. There are two web sites that get hammered when I look at doing my trips. http://maps.google.com/ and http://www.google.com. Use the “Get Directions” function in Google maps to plan your trip. It may not be perfect if you get out to places like Mungo National Park, but it is close enough to give you an idea. This years trip was pretty easy, as I was following the Murray River, but previously I have used http://maps.google.com/ to help me plot my route.

I am often asked how I find the places I take photos. Firstly, ask questions on the internet. Find a local group to the places you are travelling to on http://www.flickr.com/. Do searches on Flickr of town names along your prospective route. Another fantastic site is http://loc.alize.us/. You can zoom right into places you are travelling to and see what other people have taken photos of. Here is an example of what I saw when I zoomed into Mungo National Park before I left on this years trip.

Once you have a rough idea of your route, you can start looking for places to stay. This trip I have just finished I used http://www.wotif.com/ quite a bit. It ended up saving me roughly $150 over the length of the trip. That was savings on the price of a room on http://www.wotif.com/ compared to the normal rates advertised by the motels. A handy tip, you don’t HAVE to book through http://www.wotif.com/. Twice on my trip I asked the motel people if I could book directly through them and both times I got another small discount. I imagine they must pay a commission to http://www.wotif.com/. This was the exception rather than the rule. I always ring the motels and have a chat first. Ask them about the room, the size, how secure it is, whether it is upstairs and how close can you park? Also, do they have Wi-Fi and whether it costs extra. I have no idea about other countries, but for us Aussies, you can drop in to McDonalds and get one hour or 50 meg of data for free via their Wi-Fi connection. Most of them you don’t even have to get out of the car, you can sit in the car park and connect. It is enough to check emails, check accommodation and Google anything you need to know. This year I purchased a 3G modem for my laptop and used that quite a bit in places that I couldn’t get Wi-Fi. It was a bit expensive first time to buy the modem, but now that I have it I just recharge the account when ever i do a road trip.

Now, what to take. Well, that will depend on where you are going, but pack clothes to keep you warm. Pack clothes to protect you from sun. Take a good hat. Sunscreen. Sturdy walking shoes. Pretty much, pack for all four seasons. If you go for two weeks, you are likely to use half of it, no matter where you go. I haven’t done a road trip yet where it hasn’t rained. I usually travel in the cooler months, but I have gotten sun burnt before. Better to have the gear there than freeze or get sun burnt. On my trips I wear a pair of long cargo pants and a long sleeved but light collared shirt. I wear heavy boots and thick socks because I do a lot of walking, and sometimes through some rough areas.

As for camera gear, take it all, and some. I left my macro lens at home on this trip and saw these fantastic caterpillars at Mungo National park. I could have got some stunning shots of these bright yellow caterpillars on green foliage with red dust backgrounds. So take it all. Pack extra batteries, or better, rechargeable batteries and a recharger. Some sort of back up device for your photos. I dump all my shots from each day on to the laptop and also onto an external USB hard drive that I store in a separate place in the car. That way if someone grabs the laptop bag, I still have photos in a hidden place. If you have a GPS device, take it and keep it on and with you. It can help you GEOtag your photos, and may even help you find your way home if you get lost. Believe me, it happens. Take your MP3 player. It is an amazing thing that music can trigger memories. Certain songs now trigger memories of my road trips. Souljacker by Eels got me through the massive bog of 2008 on the Menindee to Ivanhoe Road.

If you do have to drive unsealed roads, take your time. Drive to the conditions. Be patient. Don’t push your vehicle to hard. I was passed this year by a P plater on a dirt road in a hotted up little sports car. I was doing about 60kph and he flew by. About half an hour up the road he was changing a tyre. And he still had to get home, but with no spare.

It is also important, especially if you are in isolated areas, to pack food and water to help you survive if you break down. I always travel with at least 5 litres of drinking water in the car. Also, lots of fruit and sweeties. If you are doing a leg of the trip that is quite isolated, let people know where you expect to be at the end of each day. Even call ahead to the local police or hotel. And if you do break down in an isolated place, stay with your car. Here is a most excellent guide to surviving if you get in trouble.

That is about it. It isn’t at all difficult. I would recommend it to anyone with a hankering to get out and take photos in places that you have never seen. Say g’day to the locals, I can nearly guarantee you will meet some characters. Be prepared to walk for long stretches, it is good for you and it is amazing what you will see. And on that point, to drag out one of my old chestnuts, don’t just look, see! There isn’t going to be a huge feature around every corner. Slow down and look around, no matter where you are. There are loads of interesting things about the place.

If you have any other tips, please comment below. I am by no means an expert, and I just know there will be others with some great ideas as well.

I hope you find this helps if you are planning your own road trip. Have a great time and let me know how you go.

Note 1 : It has been pointed out by nammo that I said nothing about a 1st Aid kit. Well, to be completely honest, I don’t travel with one, but it is a fantastic idea and one that I whole heartedly suggest. Thanks Naomi.