Cross Country Travel

National Parks? Yellowstone, Yosemite, Sequoia. All can't miss stops.
I'd also recommend stopping in San Francisco.

Good luck with the drive. I've done it and all I can say is that I hope you don't have any back problems and have a comfortable car.

Cliche as it may sound, the Grand Canyon is probably something you should see, if you haven't already. Awesome - in the sense that word was truly meant to be used, not the bastardized slang it has become - is the only word to describe it. It looks like every picture you've ever seen of it, and to have all that massiveness spread out picture like in front of you and know it's REAL is a humbling thing inded. Hiking the South Rim in 99 was one of the best things I ever did.

Also stop at Mount Rushmore if you can.

As for San Francisco, just make sure you eat at Fisherman's Wharf, which, I know - duh. I wish I could remember the name of this little hole in the wall place I ate at a few years ago, but they made the best fish and chips on earth. Might have been called "Jimmy's" (with your basic wood paneling, red check tablecloths - standard stuff). Sorry, zero help in my description, but I'm sure if you eat anywhere on Fisherman's Wharf, you'll get great food.

Have a great time - I love road trips, and it sounds like you've got some really great spots picked out already.

I am so envious.
As for places to see, I can't contribute because I haven't been where you are headed. As for Eats this is a cool website to visit for the killer off the road Eats. I visit there often to check out their reviews.

www.roadfood.com

No chain prom here, just good Ma and Pa type cooking. Hope you have a wonderful trip!

tip: rent a car. don't put 1000s of miles of wear & tear on your own. and if you do rent, never use the extortionate phone rate, get a car with the condition of unlimited mileage, rent from a major high volume location that will give you more choice of cars (before you drive off with it you can exchange it if you don't care for what they give you), and return the car to the same location instead of in another state or whatever.

when I do these kinds of trips, I always use Budget rentacar through some kind of member discount e.g. coupon via Costco website or Triple A discount, combined with a special offer such as a free day on a weekly rental. last time I got a brand new Chevy Trailblazer (pure luck, I only specified a "standard SUV"), rented it for a week, put several thousand miles on the clock, paid about $120. time before that I got an almost new Cadillac CTS. LOVED that one.

I thought there'd be more replies to this thread, as not all that much has been suggested by way of destinations. So I figure I'd bump it and toss in that I've been to vegas twice, and while this is something that may not appeal to everyone, but it's fun to see just once. It's only a 4 hour ride to the Canyon from there, as well (our Canyon adventure was a side trip). If you like outdoorsy stuff, I can't recommend spelunking highly enough. Did that a couple times, too and LOVED it. I can't recommend a specific destination for this, since the cave we used to go to was on a farmer's property and he's since sold the place, and the new owners aren't keen on people caving there. But there's plenty of places in Kentucky & Tennessee, and the place we used to go was in West Virginia. I never looked into it, but there may be more. I also did a recent look up online, and there's some places in California that look cool, too, but I didn't write down the web addresses (I found 'em on a Google Search). C'mon, guys. Stump's got a long drive ehead of him. Let's help the man out.

That's the thing... you can't really pick your destinations. You need to know where you want to end up and just drive. The destinations will choose themselves after that point.

Empty gasoline can and 20 bucks taped to the side. Trust me... you'll need it.

Also... snacks and water for the person waiting for the other person to get back with the gasoline.

I meant to post this earlier: I don't know anything about camping there, because we didn't do that. They recommend that if you hike, don't plan on hiking all the way to the bottom & back in a day (there's signs all over the place warning that people die every year trying). Halfway down the South rim & back again was probably the most grueling hike I've ever done, so I can see their point. Also, if you can help it, try not to get stuck behind one of the donkey tours. They move fast enough, but they piss and shit all over the trail, which ain't that wide to begin with.

Take two pairs of shoes with you to the Canyon. And yes... don't make the hike in one day; it'll kill you. That and take layers of clothing. It gets bitterly cold at night...

Uncertain from your post whether you're doing this drive entirely on your own, but having done a lot of solo intra-state driving down here in Australia (where the states are BIG relative to the US), and also attempting to lap New Zealand in a week with my 2 brothers, I have some driving survival tips:

Allow generous amounts of time to get anywhere - particularly where your routes encompass single carriage-way highways through any kind of hilly or mountainous terrain (ie: New Zealand "highways"), the distances may seem short in miles, but if you're unable to maintain a constant high speed, the time it takes to cover those miles zooms up far more than you realise.

For fuck's sake, make sure you stop and rest and *stretch*, particularly if doing all or most of the driving on your own. This goes double if you use a vehicle with less than stellar seating design. If at all possible, allow at least a day's respite between long-haul distances. I once had to do a non-stop dash of some 500kms and come back the next morning in my 94 Pulsar, and I could barely move by the end of it.

Ensure you have sufficient WATER (or fruit juice/whatever) within easy reach at all times. If you have the heater or air-con on, blowing in your face for hours at a stretch, you will dehydrate like so much desert sand in a very short time. Proper hydration helps you get enough oxygen to your brain, meaning you won't get as fatigued as quickly.

Similarly, stopping for "real" food, vs surviving on "travel snacks" is also a lot better for your sanity and general wellbeing.

As has been mentioned above, if you are in the slightest doubt, GET PETROL/GAS/FOSSIL FUEL before you keep driving.

If you're on your own, helps to have your driving music sorted in a format that can be adjusted with one hand and peripheral vision only.

If you're hiring a car, I'd try and ensure that your cell-phone has an in-car charger that is adaptable/usable with the make of that car. I've only ever used my own/brother's car for these sorts of things and we've got car-kits already installed so I'm not entirely au fait with the current in-car chargers as accesories situation. Disregard if irrelevant.

Last of all, if you're taking your own car, check your tyres (tread and air pressure), oil, water, and wiper blades before you go, and if you stop for a while somewhere (like, days or weeks), again before you depart. Take some battery jumper-leads and a torch and a first aid kit too.

Sorry if any of this comes over as condescending/patronising, but so many otherwise sensible people (inc myself) can tend to overlook really simple basic things that can help prevent being stranded on the middle of some godforsaken stretch of bitumen.

And for God's sake, don't cross any bridges in Minnesota.

* BUMP! * Sorry to bring this thread back up, but I thought this bore mentioning. I just got back from a vacation to Alaska (a place I'd seriously recommend anyone, especially anyone w/ a love of the outdoors, to go), which prompted me to add that, while I know Alaska is not on your planned itinerary, I was able to watch a glacier calve off huge icebergs into a fjord. A couple of times. That was almost as impressive as the Grand Canyon. I understand that there's a Glacier national Park in Wyoming. I don't pretend to know if this phenomenon exists there, or if the glaciers have receded too far from the water's edge, but this may be something you can look into. If conditions are right to see this spectacular sight on your trip across the lower 48, by all means do yourself the favor.

Edit: I just re-read your original post, Stump, & noted you mentioned Vancouver. We spent 2 days there before leaving for Alaska, and it was a great place. I highly recommend the section of town known as Granville Island. A little touristy in points, w/ lots of gift shops & such, but the indoor market, and the selection of all kinds of food available therein, is spectacular. The Granville Island Brewing Co. also served up some of the best beer I've had in awhile. The food there's limited to snacky type stuff, but the pork bites were great. Great place to stop off for a brew & a snack & get off your feet for a bit.

Expect to get at least one speeding ticket.

Granville Island is a great spot if you make it this way for sure! Taking the tram to the peak of Grouse mountain is a great thing to do as well.

If you need New Orleans or suggestions for the south let me know. Makes it easier though if I know what route your taking.