Route Planning Resources

[Gray Ghost]

I am planning a road trip and while I was building my route in Base Camp I ran across some sites that may be of use to others. Riding a 2013 RT gas stops are one of my big concerns. I don't want to stop at every gas station I pass, but I don't want to be the guy that realizes the gas station he passed 15 miles back was the last one he could reach on his current gas fill.

http://www.allstays.com: This site has listings of services at interstate exits, camping/RV sites, and other travel info. I use their Android app quite a bit, especially when we were traveling across the states. We usually started checking around mid-day for a likely spot up the road and the app was ideal for that.

Android app Truxster: Started using this one for planning RV travel, still handy when I am looking for bike routes (I get a 6 cent per gallon discount at pilot/flying J).

http://roadnow.com/interstate-highway-gas-stations: Just found this one last night. The trip I am currently planning is a "get there now" rather than a sight seeing trip so I am concentrating on Interstates. I did check out their section on other roads (http://roadnow.com/us/index.php) and they also list US and state highways. It appears that they don't have all the smaller roads but it should assist in planning for most folks.

So the end result of my planning will be a route in Base Camp that I can load into my Zumo with gas stops and lodging planned out along the 1500 miles. If my planning for length of daily travel is too optimistic I can always use some of my other apps to find a closer place to stop.

Hope this helps someone.

 

[BikerDoc]

thank you.. looks interesting and helpful.. even with the 2014 range I like to know where things are...

 

[PrairieSpyder]

All Stays has a suite of apps for iPhone and iPad. These include hotels, RV & tent campgrounds, truck-stops/travel plazas, Walmart overnight locations, and military campgrounds. I use the hotel app to see what is up the road, like you. Then I use the Trip Advisor app to see actual prices and availability.

Thanks for mentioning these resources.

 

[Dragonrider]

The Garmin GPS I use lists amenities by every highway exit, and has a button on the touch screen to find the nearest gas station....

 

[Princeau99]

which model?

The Garmin GPS I use lists amenities by every highway exit, and has a button on the touch screen to find the nearest gas station....

looking at GPS options now.

 

[Gray Ghost]

The Garmin GPS I use lists amenities by every highway exit, and has a button on the touch screen to find the nearest gas station....

That is a fairly standard feature on Garmin GPS models, including the Zumo 660 I have. That is one way you could do it, and it is the method I used when we were on our 48 state tour. In that case I opted not to plan out each gas stop, primarily because I figured that we would end up chasing squirrels at some point and that would throw all the planning out the door. Plus planning gas stops for a 1500 mile trip is a breeze compared to planning them for a 16000 mile trip.

For years I rode a Yamaha Venture, tank range was about 180-200 miles. I generally tried to stop every 100 miles, mainly to stretch, etc., but that left about 80 miles of cushion if a station was not available close by where I wanted to stop. On the 2013 my mileage ranges from 20 mpg to about 28 mpg. So if I am not finding a station at 80 miles I am getting nervous. Using the planning on the GPS method I can either try to figure out what town is close to 80 miles away and then search for a gas station in that area, or the way I did it was to search for gas stations along the route and keep scrolling through the list until I came to one in the area I wanted to stop or if it was too far, go back to the farthest I could go. That takes a lot of time and in wide open spaces could result in having to try to find a different route. After all, there may be a station I can hit 50 miles away, but what about the route after that? Spending some time looking at the route in advance is faster and takes a lot of the stress out of the process.

But then again, you have a byke that gets better gas mileage and a larger tank so enjoy what you have.

And Princeau99, ref your question about model. I have used a regular automobile type Garmin (Nuvi 750) that has been discontinued. The features were great, but it failed on me several times and had to be repaired. I do believe the vibrations from being on a motorcycle killed it. The Zumo 660 I have has the features that Dragonrider was talking about. It is pricey but is specifically made for a motorcycle.

 

[Princeau99]

Grey ghost

T Thanks for the response. Looks like the 660 is highly recommended, just kind of pricy for something I may not use on regular basis.

 

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

T Thanks for the response. Looks like the 660 is highly recommended, just kind of pricy for something I may not use on regular basis.

You aren't limited to purpose specific GPS units either. I use a Samsung Galaxy Tab 2.0 7" with Sygic app. $160 at Costco right now for the Tab 4 and 19.99 euros, for another day or two, for Sygic with maps of all of N America. See my project here: http://www.spyderlovers.com/forums/showthread.php?64013-Using-a-non-BRP-GPS-Part-1 I'm very happy with Sygic. Unbelievable amount of configurability available. When I stop for lunch or coffee I just pop the tablet out of the cradle and take it in to catch up on email, and SL!