It takes a long time, and it costs a lot.

I drove across the country in 48 hours, but not all 50 states. Slept in the car, so didn’t cost much. Probably $128. in gas. Lots less for food. Won’t recommend it!

It can take as long and as short as you want. When I first drove cross country I learned to limit myself to 500 miles a day. Too tiring otherwise. Could pass through 3 or 4 states that way or only 1 depending on size. Motel 6’s were as low as $29.99 (plus tax) so didn’t cost a lot for motels.

There is so very much to see in each state, so 1 day isn’t enough in any one. But you could plan on visiting one a day taking 50 days (but also 50 days back?)

The motorcycle record for riding through the lower 48 is five days and some hours. Check out the Iron Butt organization for more details.

If you start in the small states up in the Northeast, you can check off a lot of states pretty quickly by car. You also realize how rural most of New York really is. The big states in the southern half of the US take absolutelyfreakingforever to drive through. ;)

A great memory: Driving to Unadilla New York to pick up a lathe in the fall. The leaves were changing colors and it was beautiful. There was a little town that had this huge sign “Home of Boy Scout Troop Number 1”

If you ever need to get from central VA to Ohio, pull out the atlas. There is a state route through West Virginia that makes an almost straight line west. There is an Underground house that you’ll see on the way. You don’t see a lot of those, so it’s an interesting piece of Americana. The last time I drove by, it had a bunch of empty disposable aluminum pie plates hung on strings to scare the birds away. Very classy. ;) Don’t forget to grab some microwaveable pork rinds at the mini-mart too. They have barbecue flavor now.