What Atlas do you use?

[Bert]

Last night I met up with an old friend who travels the country with his pop up. We were discussing my summer trip this year. He states that he plans his whole trip with an Atlas and uses GPS as a backup.

I'm interested in what Atlas you use? And if you know of any to stay away from.

I think as a family it could be fun the night before to go over our route as well as to double check the GPS. While on the road it helps so you don't have to disrupt the GPS navigation.

He averages 6 to 8 hours of driving a day and does around 300 to 400 miles. The atlas allows him to look ahead and get a good idea of where he will be. So he can plan where he will sleep. Sometimes he needs to either drive a little less or more in order to make it to a good place to sleep.

[harley]

I just use a basic CAA (AAA) atlas and get paper maps sent early . Stop at tourist info when entering a province or state to see what is interesting to see and grab some local maps. Have on-star but never use it for directions. Is is also convienent to 'train'my girls to actually read a map the old way .

[Tim D]

Originally Posted by harley

I just use a basic CAA (AAA) atlas and get paper maps sent early . Stop at tourist info when entering a province or state to see what is interesting to see and grab some local maps. Have on-star but never use it for directions. Is is also convienent to 'train'my girls to actually read a map the old way .

X2. We always stop at an info center. Best way to find local attractions you wouldn't otherwise know about.

Map reading skills are becoming a lost art on our kids. My son went to a truck driving school and got his CDL. Maps where never discussed. One day when looking at a map I told him that even numbered roads go east and west and odd numbers run north and south and he just looked at me like I was crazy.

[johnboytoo]

I'm 'new' old school - I use maps ---

google maps
and garmin gps's - have a 765, a 5000, and a RV 760 since the built in ford gps maps haven't served me well....

and for planning stops: http://trips.goodsamclub.com/

[mark5w]

Google maps. Print out what I need. On the road I use my Tablet and connect to Google maps if I need additional help.

[Loneoak]

We use the Walmart Atlas as it helps us find Walmarts to boondock at. We also have the Rand McNally Road Carrier Atlas, which shows trucking routes. If the trucks can go there, so can we. We have a Good Sam GPS which we set up with the parameters of our rig, so it can route us around low clearances or roads that are too tight for our rig.

[Lloyd]

We use the Walmart atlas, which I think is the Rand McNally.
I like the fact that it gives me exact addresses for Walmart which I can punch into the GPS. If we decide to use Walmart's lot for one night it makes it real easy for the in and out.

[fhenn]

Originally Posted by Lloyd

We use the Walmart atlas, which I think is the Rand McNally.
I like the fact that it gives me exact addresses for Walmart which I can punch into the GPS. If we decide to use Walmart's lot for one night it makes it real easy for the in and out.

What no Flying J??? After all of these years Hoover saving you a spot

[Loneoak]

One problem with Flying J and other truck stops is that usually there is no room to put out your slide. Some of us cannot do a whole lot with the slides in. Walmart has more space.

[socoguy]

Physical layout varies at FJ so many allow you to park along the apron. There are a limited number of spots. If you get one you can put out the slides on one side. Early arrival is the key. Some allow you to park in the Truck area however I hope you brought the ear plugs.

[campingcpl]

I personally like the Rand McNally truckers atlas. It's a little on the big side but usually shows truck routes when it comes to US and State highways which can be a good thing for clearance and weight restrictions. They also usually show rest areas and other places for truck parking, scales, etc.. I also use Google maps or Map Quest for on line maps and also use a Garmin GPS. We usually plan a route that we want to take and then use the Garmin Base Camp to plot the route on the GPS. With plotting the route into the Garmin we can add our fuel stops and overnight stops or places we want to see along the way into the GPS.

[Coopers_dad]

Whats an atlas? Is that one of those funny paper books my dad told me about? :-P

We use a Rand McNally and have other regional maps. I love planning our route with my 5 year old. We pickup roadside markers and she ( when not sleeping ) has the job to keep a track of how many she can find on our route.

Love driving off the freeways.

[Bert]

I like that the Rand McNally shows the rest areas as well. Helps with planning breaks. Thanks for the input.