We’ve been on a couple of smaller roadtrips with Juniper and there wasn’t too much extra to go into the planning. Just have a jug of water in the car, food, treats, know your rest areas and off you go. Nothing compared to the trip planned for July!
Juni, Jethro and I will be driving over 9,000 km on a cross Canada road trip. We will be camping en route to BC and each day will be roughly 8 hours in driving time alone. Here’s some of the things that I’ve been planning to make this trip as enjoyable for them as it will be for me…Fingers crossed 😉
I’ve done the drive to BC a couple of times in the past but, with just myself or my daughter and I in the car, we can get there in less than 4 days. It’s a much different story with pups who need to have their exercise and don’t understand spending 20 hours in the car driving.
I like to use Google Maps to plan my routes and used it to calculate the distance BC and Ontario. I moved my little blue line along the route I wanted to travel and picked campsites along the way that were roughly an 8 hour drive apart, booking what I could. There will be one longer day between Manitoba and Saskatchewan as the options were limited without a big detour. Side note: I use Google Maps a lot for weekend adventures too. Just scroll over to an area you think looks interesting, look for green spaces and zoom in 😉
Picking the Campsites
I looked for sites that had access to trails and possibly dog-friendly beaches to plan our night-time stops. And we got lucky for almost all of them. One of the things I have learned through experience is that you have to be ready far in advance and get your spots booked as soon as the online reservation system opens for each location.
Certain spots fill up within moments of sites opening which can make planning your route more difficult. Another important thing to I’ve learned is that, not all campgrounds allow dogs. And even if they do, they may not allow dogs in all areas of the campground. I always check the activities allowed at the park itself and find that the campsite map is great to see if the icons indicate any dog-free zones. My worst nightmare would be to show up somewhere after a long day driving and exploring, only to find out that I don’t have a site for the night that allows dogs.
Breaking up the drive
Once the campsites were picked, I added them to the map and started to look closer at what was available between “Point A” and “Point B” each day. Was there a Provincial or National Park? Conservation area? Point of Interest? Place to go for a hike? When I drive long distances by myself, stops are a quick run to the rest room, grab a snack and go, unless there’s a point of interest/must-see-sight.
This would never work for Juni and Jethro nor would it be fair. Plus, we’re in no rush 😊 I opted for the first stop to be about 2 hours drive time from where we start each morning. Finding locations that have nice long trails, dog beaches and lots of things to explore. This way, the pups can get some energy out and we can all stretch our legs before another day on the road. The plan is to have them tired out so they will sleep for the next stretch until we stop again for a nice walk.
Food storage and Water
Juni and Jethro are raw fed. To plan for this trip, I invested a good cooler to keep their meat fresh longer and avoid multiple stops for ice. Another thing I had to consider is restocking on their food. As we are car camping, I want to keep them on a frozen raw diet instead of going dehydrated raw since I don’t have to worry about weight 😊
(UPDATE: At the time I was planning the 2022 road trip, they were eating a raw food only available in Ontario. I did a search online to see which of the commercial raw foods are available across Canada and slowly started switching them to one of the two manufacturers I found about a week and a half before the trip.)
Now to determine where I can replenish along the way and make sure I have more than one option picked in case the food I need is not available. Their supplements are all premeasured out in daily doses in small plastic containers.
For water, I always have 2 of the 4L jugs of water from Walmart in the car. They are fantastic for camping as well and easy to refill with clean water as I go along.
Update: since writing this, we have been camping and tried out Big Country Raw. The pups loved it! The ingredients are similar, the consistency is fantastic, and they come in individual 1 lb bricks as well as 2 lb tubs which will be easy to pack into the cooler. We are currently at 5 lbs of raw being fed per day between the two of them, cooler space is at a premium.
Emergencies
Nobody wants their trip to be interrupted by an emergency visit to the vet. But should something happen, it’s important to be prepared.
Check along the route and know where the emergency vet clinics are before you head out. This way it’s not something else you need to deal with when you’re already dealing with whatever is going on with your furry companion. And, in case of a technology malfunction, I have a small notebook from the dollar store that I write all these things down. The notebook lives in the centre console for the trip so it can easily be accessed at any time. I will also make sure to pack their rabies certificates and vaccine history should I, for any reason need this.
Creature Comforts
I drive a 2017 Escape and currently use a dog hammock on the back seat for them to sit in. My pups are a decent size, and I want them to be extra comfy on this trip. I will be folding down the back seats which creates a bigger, flat area for them. I purchased a new dog mat for the car which is meant for the trunk or truck bed. This will keep them from coming into the front as well just like the hammock does. To keep the camping stuff from sliding around and knock into the pups, I bought a metal dog barrier.
I have this as far back toward the rear of the vehicle to give them space but also allow for enough room to pack the cooler and camping gear. Another bonus to having the car set up like this is that I will be able to access the camping gear with the dogs still securely in the vehicle. Juni likes to crawl over the backseat and squeeze through the gear in the trunk when we get to campsites.
Any small squishable items such as clothing, sleeping bag, blankets, etc. can fit in the gap created under the folded down rear seats, behind the passenger and driver seats. As I am driving by myself, my cooler will be at the feet on the passenger side with any important things, my travel planner, wallet, chocolate will be on the passenger seat for easy access. I will be reconfiguring the car in the next couple of days and hope that my mental design works in practice 😊
Come Road Trip with us in 2023!
That’s right! We’re off on another epic road trip in 2023. To follow along, check out Juni and Jethro’s Instagram account and Youtube (fingers crossed I figure this out). I’m also seting up a page where I will write about each leg of the journey (link to follow)
For checklists and tips on camping with your pup, be sure to check out Juni’s Corner and Puppy’s First Camping Trip.
A HEART FOR ADVENTURE 
Hi Kathrin,
What wonderful additions to your family!
Good luck for your cross-country road trip, I’m sure that will be a memorable experience for a lot of different reasons, I’ll be sure to follow.
Have a great summer!
Oliver
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So nice to hear from you! And thank you 🙂 I couldn’t be happier with my two new family members. I hope all is well and everyone is doing great! Give my love to your girls. Have a fantastic summer too 🙂 Kathrin
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All is well here, the girls are looking forward to the summer break. We’re going to Germany for the first time in three years and are very excited!
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