Clines Corners - New Mexico - 04/30/13

After about 100 miles of signs advertising the "world famous" fudge at Clines Corners, we decided to cave and stop there to fill up on gas and try this fudge. It's very tasty! Good road side stop to stretch your legs and look at south western and Route 66 themed nick nacks (didn't buy any of those however :P).

Amarillo - Golden Light Cafe - 04/30/13

For lunch today we stopped in Amarillo, Texas. We had wanted to stop for some traditional TexMex, but the restaurant we planned to go to was no longer open. So we tried out the Golden Light Cafe on historic 6th Avenue off of Route 66.
Great local atmosphere, a real taste of the local community. And the food was great too! My mom and I both got the open faced chilling cheese  burger and split some fries. The portions were huge (as you can see from the photo), so we left quite full and ready to drive for another long stretch of I-40.

 

Overview of Day #3 - 04/29/13

Our third day of the trip was much more successful than the first two as far as distance travelled. We started in Effingham, Illinois and then drove through Missouri to Oklahoma.
It was great to drive though St.Louis and see the arch and then stop in Springfield for dinner at Lambert's (more about this in previous post).
Oklahoma is just as windy as it's described...the trees actually grow in the angle the the wind blows! I've never seen that anywhere else. Really enjoyed todays travels. We spent the night in Oklahoma City.
Cost
Gas: $130
Tolls: $20
Hotel: $120
Food: $30

 

Lambert's - Springfield, Missouri - 04/29/13

Today we're driving from Illinois to Oklahoma (so basically driving all of Missouri today). We stopped at Lambert's, "the home of the throwed rolls," for dinner. Southern comfort food and of course fresh out of the oven warm rolls being thrown at you. What could be better?

 

Overview Day #2 - Tire Trouble - 04/28/13

This morning my boyfriend, David's, family drove to Toledo to meet my mother and I, and bring us all of his belongings to move out to California as well (David is already living in LA). It was great to see them and with a lot of team work we got the Uhaul repacked with everything (somehow!!!).

Got on the road for only a few minutes before one of he tires blew out...luckily Uhaul sent someone to change the tire at no extra cost, and we made it back on the road. Staying in Illinois tonight at town called Effingham.

Pretty excited for tomorrow and going to Missouri! We are planning on stopping at the "home of the flying rolls," but more on that tomorrow.

Total Cost Day #2

Lotto tickets for mom and I: $2   ;)
Food: about $20
Hotel: $110
Gas: $140
no toll roads today :D

Totals Cost of move thus far approximately $1,940. Budgeted $3000.

Overview of Day #1 - 04/27/13

After a late start we made it to our hotel in Toledo, Ohio at around 3am the first night. It was a long day but we got to see some really pretty woods/hills in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

 I'd estimate that our first day cost well over $50.00 in toll charges, but we've been using an E-Z Pass...which makes travel a little faster, but also easy to loose track of how much this move is costing.

Not to many fun stops YET because we've been a bit behind schedule. But  there will be more.

Total Cost Day #1:
Gas: Approximately $140 (gas is currently around $3.50 a gallon where we've been traveling so far)
Trailer Rental: $1145 (this included insurance)
Movers: $220
Food: $20
Hotel: $45
Toll Charges: $50 plus

Made it out of NYC!

We finally made it out of NYC! Also learned a lesson in planning for movers.
We had initially scheduled to pick up our UHaul at 9am in hopes of being out of the city by noon, but were told the trailer wouldn't be ready until 11am, but in the end it wasn't ready until 12:30. The only plus is that they gave me half of my deposit back, which paid for the extra time we had to have our movers.
So, we made it out of NYC by 5pm... 5 hours later than expected. What can you do?
The money stuff for anyone planning a similar trip:
The total cost of the Uhaul rental came to $1,145, and we get 9 days to make the move. The price for the movers (which was necessary since I lived in a 4th floor walk up with a good amount of furniture), came to $220 because of the time.
We've only made it to Jersey and already spent almost $50 in tolls (didn't calculate in the extra fee for the trailer)....off to a pricey start. Luckily the hotel we booked for tonight is only $45...but we'll see if we make it there since we had the late start!

 

Money Saving Tips

The price of cardboard boxes can surprisingly add up fast. Ask your local grocery store if they have any that they are going to be throwing out! You can get boxes of many sizes from them for free and save yourself a good amount of cash.

Make sure to check that the boxes are sturdy (so the bottom won't fall apart when you pick up your packed box), and have a lid or flaps to close them (so you can stack them in your car/trailer/moving truck).

If you do buy new boxes or any other packing material, (bubble wrap, tape, etc.) keep the receipts! All costs of your move are tax deductions. This includes moving vehicle/trailer rentals, gas, hotels, food, airfare, etc. It will save you a little money at the end of the year.

As a reference, I spent about $45 total on packing supplies ($30 on boxes, $10 on bubble wrap and tape and $5 renting furniture pads from Uhaul).

Map of Route

Link to Route

Here's the route I'm taking (approximately). The total drive time is about 44 hours and 2,946 miles. Yikes!

Preparing for the trip :)

Hello! My name is Brianne, an animator moving from Brooklyn, NY out to sunny Glendale, CA!

I've decided to create a blog to document my move at the request of a few friends of mine. Expect plenty of photos and updates! The move starts on Saturday April 27, 2013, and I expect to arrive in LA sometime the first week of May (but there's a very loose plan in place for the trip, so we'll see what happens)! My Mother (and cross-country moving pro) and I will be driving on I-80 toward Chicago, then I-40 (old Route 66) to avoid driving over the (or at least some) mountains with our Uhaul trailer. Wish us luck, and see you on the road! 

I will also post some updates on expenses of the trip for anyone who stumbles on this blog looking for information on the cost of a cross country move (since I have been recently scoring the internet in search for this information myself). Hope that I can help out a future traveler! :)

Cheers!