Not an atlas, mind you...

July 4, 2008 4:17 AM

Help me find the best map for an itinerary-free cross country drive.

10 years ago I had, and lost, a beautiful fold-out map of the entire United States. It was so large as to be unwieldy when fully opened. It was richly detailed, with freeways and state routes, parks and national forests, rivers and mountains. It was printed on heavy paper, with a slightly waxy surface that could tolerate a bit of rain without dissolving.

In 2 weeks my wife and I are going on a very loosely planned drive from Ohio to Montana with a friend who is moving there. We expect to camp most or all of the time, and would like to take the trip slowly and see what's to be seen. I wish I had my old map back, but I don't even remember who published it. What would you recommend?

posted by jon1270 to travel & transportation (9 comments total)

This may be what you had, but WOW, it's $229.
posted by netbros at 6:00 AM on July 4, 2008

If your budget constrains you, I have had good luck with a spiral bound road atlas (opens flat!) and then getting camp books and tour books from AAA. You'll get more detailed information on what's interesting to see in local areas, good advice about where hotels and campgrounds are [you may not choose to go with their recommendations but at least you'll know where camping/food/attractions are likely to be]. You can get these free with AAA membership which I've always thought was a decent idea on road trips anyhow. Have fun!
posted by jessamyn at 6:17 AM on July 4, 2008

I use a combination of a road atlas (as Jessamyn says, spiral bound is the way to go), supplemented with maps from AAA. The national map from AAA is ok, not nearly as good as your old map, but they do have both individual state maps and also regional maps, usually covering two to four states, which have about the right amount of detail for planning the next couple of days.

The AAA tour books are really good for sitting at lunch, looking ahead on the map to where you think you would like to stop that night, and being able to call some hotels to find a place to stay. I see them as a luxury rather than as a necessity, but I have friends with children who really rely on those books when traveling -- they use them to find hotels with the right amenities, kid-friendly parks and waterslides and museums, etc.
posted by Forktine at 6:35 AM on July 4, 2008

No roadtrip across the U.S. is complete without the Rand McNally Trucker's Atlas. Spiral bound, laminated pages (for spill/rip protection, plus you can get some erasable markers and go to town, literally), and truck-specific routes that you can use to avoid the long hauler highways.
posted by nitsuj at 7:40 AM on July 4, 2008

You might bring an atlas too, mind you...

I realize that you want your great big map, everything on one page, but you should probably bring an atlas also.

It was so large as to be unwieldy when fully opened

Especially in the car with 2 other people. Especially outside the car in even a light breeze.

That said, perhaps this map, $30 for the wieldy size, $70 for somewhat unwieldy. More maps if you don´t like that one.

Here is the map of true unwieldyness, at 140" x 90" and $407.49. I think you should buy it, give it a name (I´m partial to ¨Fred¨, but you can pick your own), and write up a blog of your pet map´s trip with photos of the map posing in front of tourist spots.
posted by yohko at 8:36 AM on July 4, 2008

I know you don't want an atlas but I just saw the 2008 edition of that Truckers' Atlas on sale at my local Pilot Travel Center, er, Truck Stop, on $4.99 super-blowout. Hard to beat that unless you really, really need the latest and greatest.
posted by Opposite George at 9:00 AM on July 4, 2008

I use a Michelin road atlas, but you might like the National Geographic United States Classic map. "All major cities, transportation routes, State boundaries, National Parks, inland waterways, and mountain ranges are clearly displayed and labeled. Available in several size, printing, and lamination configurations."
posted by Robert Angelo at 2:04 PM on July 4, 2008

Once you have a paper map, if you'll also have a laptop with you, check out the USA map "Streets and Trips" which gives you every street and lane of every little town or country road you'll pass through, so you can really drill down if you want to - and the $75 version includes a usb GPS device, though that would seem to take the fun out of it and ensure you'll never be lost ever again :-/
posted by -harlequin- at 3:03 PM on July 4, 2008

Thanks for all the great responses. The map I'm so wistful for, if it were available, would probably be in the $20-$25 range; I've never been in the $200+ map demographic. The National Geographic maps look like the best match, albeit less colorful than I remember.

Much as I enjoy the thought of plotting a day's trajectory on a big map spread across a windy roadside picnic table, I'm warming to the idea of getting an atlas. Last year's trucker's atlas would be a great choice if I weren't 75 miles from the nearest Pilot center. The Michelin North America Midsize Atlas looks like a good choice, and is available spiral-bound.

Thanks again, to everyone.
posted by jon1270 at 4:10 AM on July 6, 2008