How do you find pullover spots?

[Arch Hoagland]

Pull over for what?

Many times I've had to make a potty stop so I'll take an exit where I can see far enough ahead that the exit also has an entrance back onto the interstate.

I'll pull off the road on the exit to do my business and then get back on.

You will often see tractor trailer drivers pulled off at exits.

[Waiter21]

^^ Exactly


If I need to do a non-emergency stop, but don't need any services, i.e. I want to do a fast restroom stop, I'll watch for exit ramps that have the entrance ramp directly across the intersection. These are mainly found in the rural areas.

I get off at the exit, cross the road to get onto the entrance ramp, then pull off the side of the entrance ramp. You often see truckers here. Its a very safe place.

[MN_Traveler]

Pretty much the same for me as people have said above. There are some stretches where it is tough: ex I5 northbound in california from fresno through sacramento and north up to like red bluff had ALL of the rest areas closed, with no advanced warning. I kept thinking i would stop at the next rest area, only to see CLOSED as i got there. That was ... painful. I probably could have stopped at the occasional truck stop, but they were relatively few. Likewise on I39 from the Illinois border down to bloomington illinois, even though it is farm country, there are few rest areas, few truck stops, and the exit ramps are not the straight through type (there is a median that forces you to turn either right or left (and the ramps are marked “no parking anytime”. And on I49 in missouri, the ramps are likewise marked “no parking”. If i hit stretches where i know the options to pull over are few, i premptively take advantage of stop opportunities (even if i dont “have” to ... and drink less coffee [emoji4]. (A lot of the big western states are great - they have lots of “truck parking areas”. No resources, but big unpaved spaces to pull off the road for a few minutes...)

[doc]

Arch has the answer
Sometimes it may take a bit to fit that pattern.

[Charming]

Not sure what you are looking for. Just a spot to park and walk around, we will often stop at truck stops. Many have enough room on the property to pull up for a few minutes to walk the dogs or run to the restroom. On the interstate, they are usually well marked before the exit.

[dix39]

For a quick/emergency stop it is not usually planned, like many others, we take the next exit that will work and stop on either on the off or on ramp where it is wide enough for others to pass, unless there are highway signs indicating that a rest area, Walmart, truck stop, etc is coming up soon. One down side of using on-off ramps is that they are usually sloped enough to affect the refrigerator if parked there very long.

For longer planned stops I still use the low tech Rand McNally Road Atlas from Walmart for $7.97. They show Walmart and rest area locations for every state. I've been using them since I first discovered them many years ago. The down side is there is no way to know if a rest area is closed, which has closed occasional problems for us. Do the programs mentioned keep up with this?

Steve

[mike625]

Originally Posted by Bigd9

Pretty much the same here.

Sharon also uses The Next Exit book to locate good places to stop.

also use Garmin - The Where to & Categories

Then can select Rest stops
Gas stations - truck stops
shopping - Walmart or Home depot or any large shopping area

along with the "my active route" option - not failed my yet.

[F4Gary]

Originally Posted by TonyDi

If your traveling on interstate hwys. and have a co-pilot the best thing we've found is Next Exit. It's <$20 and you only need to buy it once. It tells you everything about upcoming exits.

The areas near exit ramps also are wide enough to pull over for a minute or so. Many trucker do this. I try to avoid doing this, but when necessary, I always turn my flashers on.

The iExit app is free.


I also use the "up ahead" feature of my Garmin.

[Nikcoh]

I just read on IRV2.com about Allstay Camp & RV App for $10. It lists all kinds of info. LP, dump stations, rest areas, Cracker Barrel’s, casinos, overnight parking and laws by state. Filters can be applied to find exactly what you’re looking for be it a KOA or a Flying J. You’ll make the$10 back by savings fuel and free overnight stays.

[Barneyb]

I have the RVparky app on my phone “thanks to finding it from members on here” but I also just bought “The Next Exit” it is nice to have, I have my wife use it to look ahead. It list every exit on all highways across the US and tells you what is off the exit either direction.

[steveschlott]

I'm going to try the Next Exit on my upcoming trip. The main downside I can already see is it's Interstates only. I take interstates most of the time, but many areas of my upcoming trip are not covered, like the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Thanks for all the feedback!

[MSHappyCampers]

We've found a lot of truck stops that have back-in parking only! Leaves us out pulling a toad!

[riverforest]

Originally Posted by MN_Traveler

I5 northbound in california from fresno through sacramento and north up to like red bluff had ALL of the rest areas closed, with no advanced warning. I kept thinking i would stop at the next rest area, only to see CLOSED as i got there. That was ... painful.

are you sure ? i'm driving that route next month. from dunnigan to red bluff the rest stops are like 20-25 miles apart. can't see them ALL closed ???

[Arch Hoagland]

Originally Posted by riverforest

are you sure ? i'm driving that route next month. from dunnigan to red bluff the rest stops are like 20-25 miles apart. can't see them ALL closed ???

Couple weeks ago we came down I 5 from Eugene to Sacramento where we cut over to 99 where we headed to Fresno.

All rest stops both ways were open all the way from Eugene.