R2RImagine the rich feel of leather enveloping you while staring at a dashboard of buttons that control everything from temperature to music choices.
I am guessing that sitting in the first class of a renowned Air Emirates flight would be similar to the decked out GMC Yukon XL we were driving. Such was the machine that we were fortunate to road trip across Canada with HitTheRoad.ca
Matt piloting the beast somewhere in Northern Ontario
HitTheRoad.ca. is a website which arranges vehicle transport to points across Canada, or for snowbirds that may want their car in Florida or Arizona for the winter. The company vets ‘drivers’ who want to go to the intended destination, and the client offers a ‘fee’ to the driver for gas expenses. The agreement includes a specific number of kilometers which is more than enough to get from A to B plus a few highlights along the way. It is not an employment arrangement, rather a convenience for clients who want their vehicles at a destination, and drivers who do not have a vehicle, but wish to get to this same destination.
Everybody wins!!
After a month of arranging for drivers abstracts, and references we knew we had made the ‘approved drivers list’. I started to watch the list of vehicles that were going to destinations, and one popped up from Toronto to Calgary! I eagerly sent off an email to David, the owner of HitTheRoad.ca, requesting this drive. It didn’t take long to assess the details and we were confirmed to drive this vehicle across Canada - the classic Canadian Road Trip!
The best part about a road trip is that you can let adventure unfold as it happens. You aren’t tied to a bus schedule, and you certainly don’t have to put up with the a nasty bus passenger across the aisle rotating between listening to music at an unreasonable volume or drooling on themselves while sleeping.
We made time to visit a friend on route
The truck we drove was a dream machine on the highway, silent (unlike our recently departed Chevy Aveo), and with cruise control which was essential because it was pretty easy to be over the 110 Km/per hour speed limit! We had a full leather interior and power everything. From the comfort of the driver's seat I could simply touch a button to adjust windows, change custom controlled temperatures in any seat and select a satellite radio station that had all my favourite 1970 Rock hits.
The provinces rolled by, and we enjoyed the views of the wilderness of northern Ontario, the beautiful great lakes, and the endless prairies. As always, we stopped at some of the kitchy tourist stuff, and the incredible scenery that makes up the wonderful country we live in!
We are lucky to live in a gorgeous country
5 days later we rolled into Calgary, and met the owner to return the vehicle. We were thrilled to be in Calgary, and for us it was a great way to get home in a highly affordable fashion! It certainly is a twist on the usual road trip.
We are now watching the list to look for wildcard adventure opportunities. Why not take a road trip to Florida and then figure out what to do from there? Or how about Phoenix for some sun and golf?
Road tripping means you have time to stop for some comfort food in the many small towns you pass through
HitTheRoad.ca was a great Reason2Roam for us. It provided the opportunity to visit more amazing places at our own pace.The next time you need to get across Canada, look up HitTheRoad.ca and consider adding kilometers to someone else’s ride - tell us in the comments below where you would go!
