Road Trips
A road trip is defined as "a journey via automobile, sometimes unplanned or impromptu", thus encompassing any journey by automobile, regardless of stops en route. Road tripping professionals break down the road trip into several classifications:
- The Classic/Touring Road trip: a cross-country journey with the intent of sight seeing.
- The speed run: From point 'A' to point 'B' as fast as possible, with no unnecessary stops.
- Relocation: A road trip centered on relocating from one location to another.
- Park Hopping: A road trip centered on ‘hopping’ from National Park to National Park. This is not always limited to National Parks, but may be extended to trips to any government land (forests, monuments, etc.).
- Regional Trips: Inner-county and trips within a state, but may be extended to short trips into neighboring states.
- International trips: Road trips to the United States, Canada, Mexico, or within other foreign destinations outside of the traveler's home country.
- Ultimate Road Trips: Usually are months in length and encompass large goals, such as driving through every state in the contiguous United States or most provinces in Canada.
- Caravanning: Road trips involving multiple vehicles traveling together.
History
The first recorded road trip was attested in stele in the court of Ramses II. He was said to "come down on the Medeans in his chariot after driving allnight from Memphis." Road trips were important throughout antiquity. Alexander's march into India was described the historian Nearchus. During the Roman Republic it was not uncommon for young patrician men to gather together to tour the Roman world. Jung even identified the Road trip as a persistent element of human culture.
Although the modern road trip can trace its roots to post-WWII America, road tripping in general began long before The Great War.
The first successful transcontinental trip by automobile took place in 1903, and was piloted by H. Nelson Jackson, Sewall Crocker, and a canine by the name of Bud. The trip was completed using a 1903 Winton Touring Car, dubbed “Vermont” by Jackson. The trip took a total of 63 days between San Francisco and New York, and cost US$8,000. The total cost included items such as food, gasoline, lodging, tires, parts, other supplies, and the cost of the Winton.
Although many would make the trip after 1903, the first woman to cross the American landscape by car was Alice Ramsey and 3 women passengers in 1909. Ramsey left from Hell's Gate in Manhattan, New York and traveled 59 days to San Francisco, California. Ramsey was followed in 1910 by Blanche Stuart Scott, who is often mistakenly cited as the first woman to make the cross-country journey by automobile East-to-West (but was a true pioneer in aviation).
Records
The Mother Road: Route 66
New highways in the early 1900’s helped propel automobile travel, primarily cross-country travel. Commissioned in 1926, and completely paved near the end of the 1930’s, Route 66 is a living icon of early road tripping.
Motorists ventured cross-country for holiday as well as migrating to California and other locations. The modern road trip began to take shape in the late 1930’s and into the 1940’s, ushering in an era of a nation on the move.
Highest Motarable Road
A road from Raka (Raga) to Tsochen (Coqen), through the Trans-Himalayas, rises to 5565m at Semo La, N 30°06'36" E 85°25'54".
There may be a higher pass at Marsimik La, India, at N 34°05'36" E 78°37'06". This report gives its elevation as "5590m/18634feet", but 5590m is 18340 feet. SRTM gives an elevation of 5582m. The road may be motorable by skilled riders on powerful motorcycles, and by Indian army jeeps, but I doubt if it is motorable in the sense that most drivers and vehicles could consider it motorable.
An alternatve candidate may be Lo La. According to Martin Adserballe, who cycled over it in September 2006, the main pass "is situated at N 29°54'569 E 86°42'427. The pass itself was 5578 meters according to GPS
Khardung La, NE of Leh in the Indian Himalaya is "5682m" or "5602m"