The high road across America — Nashville, the Gateway Arch, Kansas plains, the Rockies, red-rock Utah, neon Nevada, home.
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Drive times are Google estimates, no stops. Add 25–30% for fuel, food, dog walks. Longest day is Day 3 at 7h (St. Louis → Salina). Wednesday morning departure.
If Day 3's 480 mi / ~7h feels too long, splitting at Kansas City turns it into two manageable days (~4h + ~3.5h) with a real family + dog evening break. Trip stretches 7 → 8 days; arrival shifts to Wed Jun 24.
Every day's route as a one-tap Google Maps link. Fuel stops assume Ram's 23-gal tank at ~18 mpg loaded → safe 350-400 mi between fills.
Cell signal dies in parts of CO mountains, eastern UT, and the AZ slice. Save these regions to Google Maps offline (Android) while you're on home wifi:
Storage: ~150–300 MB per region, ~1–2 GB total. Expiration: offline maps auto-expire after 15 days unless refreshed on wifi. Tip: do this the night before departure on home wifi, not at a hotel.
Northern route mostly avoids extreme heat. Day 5 climbs into the Rockies (cool at altitude). Day 6 desert and Day 7 Mojave morning are the hot windows.
Hampton Inn standard: 2 pets, 75 lb each, $50-75/stay. Two medium dogs (25-50 lb) fit at all properties. Call ahead to confirm ground-floor room near grass.