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Summer 2022 Adventure across northern usa

6K views 69 replies 11 participants last post by  Viking Lady 
#1 ·
The countdown clock has started. Adventure to begin 8-1-2022, destination Boston Massachusetts USA. Approx 2800 miles mainly I-90. As with the last adventure, I will put updates and photos on this thread daily and welcome everyone to follow along and join me through the Club Touareg Forum.

The Winter Adventure was great, now I am doing the same basic route in Summer.
My Touareg had its pre-trip inspection at VW Dealership (a great dealership) and all systems are in “excellent” condition. My Touareg has approx 121k miles on it.

New additions for this adventure are the Malone AirFlow 2 cross bars and the Thule Force XT L cargo box.

The weather is hot and in places in the triple digits. No worries about snow and ice on this adventure. But Summer Driving has its own special issues, and the fuel prices are crazy, so I will need to adjust my driving style, speed and hours on the road accordingly.

Tire Wheel Vehicle Plant Car
 
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#45 ·
Only crossed that one once 50yrs ago, going from Niagara Falls to Boston.
Cpt Sully, that the review board tried to hang responsibility on. Great performance under pressure guy; how many people would think of landing a jetliner on a ice cold river? That took balls! And most passengers didn't even get wet! Wonderful outcome, tragedy averted. Can see why the passengers travelled to an affair to honor him.
 
#46 ·
Another pilot hero, sadly don't even know his name. In the early '60 a jet fighter had malfunction over Tucson. Rather than eject and allow the plane to crash in a populated area, the pilot ordered his navigator to eject, then flew his plane in a straight dive into an open field, surrounded by buildings on Davis Monthan AFB. He was the only casualty! A true hero.
 
#56 ·
Well, it is about time for me to point my Touareg to the west (again). Route will be mainly on I-90 From Boston Massachusetts to Coeur d’ Alene Idaho Area. Planning to start this trip on 9-23-22. I will post notes and photos along the way, as usual.
 
#57 ·
Enjoy, but you are just a touch early if you were trying to catch the seasonal changes, should wait another 2 to 3 weeks if that's what you want to see
 
#59 ·
Ohhh Good to know so you will be just in time
 
#60 ·
Day 1 headed west (9/23/22)
cooler weather today, blue skies and clouds on the drive into New York via “the Pike” in Massachusetts and the “Throughway” in New York.

Cloud Sky Plant Road surface Natural environment


As I got closer to todays destination the traffic really picked up - guess everyone wants to get out for a weekend.

Automotive parking light Wheel Tire Automotive side marker light Vehicle


My Touareg, my dog and I are going to rest up and get an early start in the morning.
Premium Fuel prices today $4.69 USD/gallon.
 
#61 ·
Day 2
Great day for driving a Touareg. Went thru New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and 1/2 way thru Iowa today. (That translates to 11 hours drive) Best fuel price today was $4.33/Gallon USD but it was only a 91 octane “Premium”. Luckily I have several bottles of VW Gasoline Additive (octane booster stuff) with me so I dropped one into the tank to help with the octane. Several hundred miles later I was able to get 93 octane again but at $4.79/gallon.

Cloud Sky Plant Ecoregion Window


My Touareg grabbing a drink……
Car Tire Vehicle Wheel Grille


Iowa - the State where they grow the majority of Ethanol (used to be called corn) in the usa
Cloud Sky Plant Street light Land lot


My latest Touareg accessory is the Amazon Auto - pretty fun toy. It works just like Amazon Echo (for homes) connects via 12v plug and bluetooth so it streams through all my Touareg speakers and connects to wi fi off my iphone. So, I listened to music and news, and played Mad Libs, and Star Trek Trivia games, and listened to some stand up comedy podcasts too. If you have Amazon Echo I guess you already know these fun extras. It’s fairly new to me and I think it is fun on long trips.
 
#65 ·
My latest Touareg accessory is the Amazon Auto - pretty fun toy. It works just like Amazon Echo (for homes) connects via 12v plug and bluetooth so it streams through all my Touareg speakers and connects to wi fi off my iphone. So, I listened to music and news, and played Mad Libs, and Star Trek Trivia games, and listened to some stand up comedy podcasts too. If you have Amazon Echo I guess you already know these fun extras. It’s fairly new to me and I think it is fun on long trips.
I've been using one for about three years now! I love it.
 
#62 ·
Day 3

Drove Iowa and South Dakota today.

Surprised by an 000 odometer this morning at an Iowa fuel stop. and took a photo. Ignore the trip meter since I never ever use it.
Car Odometer Speedometer Gauge Trip computer


South Dakota had huge wind all day long. Cross wind north to south, while I was driving west so it really hurt my MPG. Was concerned about the Thule box and cross wind but ends up all was fine. I did need to keep my speed down to about 80 and the road destruction areas (some refer to these as construction areas) were 65.

Sky Ecoregion Natural environment Natural landscape Road surface
 
#63 ·
If you don't use the trip meter then how do you monitor economy?
 
#66 ·
Hi VW 4 Life. I calculate at end of trip using paper and pen. Each fuel stop along the way I use the paper and pen to jot down the specifics. A day or two after trip is when I calculate trip mpg.
 
#68 ·
Day 4 my Touareg, my dog and I went thru South Dakota, a bit of Wyoming and 3/4 through Montana. Weather was sunny and warm.
Stopped in at the Crow and Cheyenne Tribes Trading Post for a couple hours. For those less familiar with North America, these are 2 Indigenous Peoples native to North America. Their reservation land is by the site of the major June 25-26, 1876 victory over the 7th Cavalry which was led by Custer. The famous Battle of Little Bighorn.
The Trading Post is an awesome place to spend a few hours.
Wheel Tire Car Land vehicle Vehicle


And they have some great printed t-shirts too. I liked this one. A great reminder of what happens to people when they “trust the government” and give up their weapons. Yep, that didnt work out well at all 100 years ago and it sure wouldnt work out good today (imo)

Guitar Font Rectangle Art Musical instrument


So the adventure is coming to an end tomorrow. Thank you all who followed and/or commented on my thread.
My Touareg will be going into shop for tire rotation, oil change, an overall checkup and a major washing very soon. I love the reliability, comfort and handling of my Touareg - makes up for its “excessive drinking of gasoline”. I cant wait for my next adventure.
 
#70 ·
Hi TommiT.
Yes very enjoyable adventure.
Not sure how soon my next adventure will be - or where I will go. But there will definitely be more adventures, and I will post them on Club Touareg.
 
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