Day #66 – Plan B

Sarasota FL

In two weeks, we plan to get our trailer and get going again. Before that happens, we need to get to Pittsburgh, and get back. Yesterday we discover that we need to drive our truck for 500 miles before we’re allowed to tow anything. If we ever intend to leave Florida, we’re going to need a plan!

We get online and buy tickets for the Auto Train. The Auto Train operates every day of the year non-stop between Sanford, Florida and Lorton, Virginia. Sanford is about a half-hour drive north of Orlando, and 150 miles from Sarasota. Lorton is about a half-hour drive south of Washington, DC, and about 250 miles from Pittsburgh. So we still need to drive 400 miles over two days, which sure beats driving 1,102 mi – about 17 hours 26 minutes according to Google. The money works out about the same as hotels, gas, and food for 3 days. Most importantly, we will arrive and not be exhausted.

Next, we get plane tickets for the return trip home. Tuesday, Feb 9th has the cheapest rates, so that’s the date! We fly into Sarasota, and our car dealer has offered to pick us up at the airport.
Okay travel plans are done!

Now, what about that 500 mile trip? Well, we are supposed to be having fun, are we not? When we get back to Sarasota, we plan to get a rack put on the truck to haul the kayaks, and then we are off to see Big Cypress National Preserve, Everglades National Park, and then Key Largo, which is 277 miles away. We get some fun in the sun and a road trip in the new truck. We’re talking about taking our camping tent and sleeping bags to keep the costs down. On the way back, we get the trailer and get going.

There you have it. Plan B. It sounds easy, doesn’t it? Yeah, we should all know better. But every day brings us fresh new hope! Hey, it could happen.