This was a quick trip north with just one night in a hotel. The weather was good but there were some very long travel days. And a bit of car trouble. It was unique in that the entire CV2 Carnival Vista cruise occurred between Hops 1 and 2.
By the numbers:
- 5 days, 4 nights (including 1 “night” for the CV2), 4 hops, 1,471 route miles (368 miles per hop).
- 41 extra miles, mostly in Brunswick GA looking for a tire shop.
- 41.7 gallons of fuel consumed (36.3 miles per gallon).
- Total fuel cost: $132.44 ($3.18 per gallon).
- One night in a hotel at $72.80.
- I didn’t tabulate toll costs but it was probably around $30.
Highlights:
- Seeing my stepsons – Jett’s sons – and their families. I love them all and they are always very hospitable.
- Playing my step-grandson Zachary to a draw in a game of chess. I hadn’t played since my visit last year and I made a bonehead move early on that cost me my queen. But I fought back. And Zachary played well.
Lowlights:
- The failure of my front right tire in GA. This was a Cooper tire with plenty of tread left. There was no reason for it to fail. But it didn’t blow out and I was able to drive around Brunswick GA to find a tire shop that was open on a Sunday and could replace the tire. The new tire added an unexpected $115 to the travel cost of the trip. I now am unable to trust both Goodyear and Cooper tires.
- The hotel that I booked in advance for the overnight stop in Florence SC – the Baymont by Wyndham – was a hot mess. We had to move next door to the Super 8 by Wyndham.
- Hop 4 traffic in DC and NYC. I hate stop-and-go and there was a lot of it on Hop 4.
Planned and actual routes:
There were a few differences between the plan and the actual:
- Hop 4 took the toll route. That saved some miles and some time.
- We switched hotels in Florence SC.
- We had to divert Hop 2 into Brunswick GA to get a new tire.