Be A Master of the Road in 5 Easy Steps

Let's face it, Nitschke's Northern Resort in Minocqua, WI is pretty far "up North" for most people. Depending on the distance from your home, the car ride can be a beast at times. But this distance also happens to be one of the reasons you probably love coming up here in the first place....

• surrounded by nature

• away from the hustle and bustle of the city

• more wildlife than people.

Am I wrong?

Well, the good news is that with a little extra preparation and time, you can master the road, improving your road trip up north.

Just follow these 5 easy steps to save time, money and your sanity during your next Northwoods road trip.

1. CHOOSE LUGGAGE AND CLOTHING WISELY

While choosing what clothes to bring for you and your family, select clothes that perform double duty to save luggage space. Clothes that can be layered are ideal. For example, you probably don't need a thick winter coat in Minocqua in July, but nights can be cool at times. Bring a light jacket and a long sleeve shirt. On average nights you can wear the long sleeve, on cool nights you can wear the light jacket and on cold nights you can wear both to stay warm.

While packing your luggage, roll up your clothes to maximize space in your suitcase. (This also happens to prevent wrinkling as well). Pack two small bags instead of one large bag as this tends to make packing the car easier.

And finally, because our resort does not provide towels, make sure you bring your own. To prevent having to bring tons of towels, have each family member grab two towels of the same color that's unique to them. Mom gets 2 red towels, dad 2 blue, etc... (One for outside play and one for inside showering). This reduces how much luggage you have to bring while ensuring everyone has what they need.

2. BE PREPARED WITH FOOD!

Pack a small grocery bag with snacks for easy reaching during the trip. Also, pack a cooler with easy to make food fixings like bread, cheese and deli meat or peanut butter and jelly or salad ingredients. By keeping the ingredients separate, instead of preparing sandwiches and salads before hand, you can choose what sounds good at the time and fix it up fresh. Make sure you pack paper plates, napkins and utensils to prepare the food.

When it's time to eat, make it fun by stopping at a local park and setting up shop at a picnic table. This makes mealtime more memorable, healthy and economical than going through a drive thru.

Also, don't waste your money on plastic water bottles either. Grab a reusable water container from your house (if you're like me, you have tons laying around) and fill it with fresh ice water. Then, pack a gallon jug of water in the car and refill as needed during the trip. This prevents having to purchase drinks every time you stop at a gas station. Plus, it's budget and environmentally-friendly.

3. ENTERTAIN THE KIDS

Never, never overlook this one. :)

It doesn't matter how long the road trip is, your children will get bored of their tablets/phones/movies at least an hour before the trip is up, so be prepared. Remember the game Mad Libs? It's still as much fun as it used to be and it gets the whole family involved with little effort. Create funny stories about "the fish that jogged across the car" and refresh everyone's knowledge about 'parts of speech' while doing it.

Another great idea that can be fun, engaging and educational on a road trip is a good ol' fashioned map and compass. Your headed up into the woods anyways, you might as well get in the outdoorsy spirit.

Grab a cheap gas station map of Wisconsin, a compass from your local sporting goods store and ask the kids to keep track of where you're going. Ask them for directions, have them find towns you know on the map and entertain them with little quiz questions on map knowledge.

4. PREPARE THE CAR BEFORE YOU GO

You likely already have Kleenex, wet wipes and paper towels at home so stock up your car BEFORE you leave to prevent unnecessary spending on the road. Also, do the following to prepare your vehicle before you take off:

• Top off all your vehicles fluids like windshield washing fluid, coolant and power steering fluid

• Check the air pressure in all 4 tires

• If your vehicle needs an oil change, make sure you get that done

• Pack a small utility bag with common tools just in case you may need them.

• Be sure you have a good-working spare tire, jack and tire iron.

Anything you can do to prepare your car is great. The better prepared your vehicle is, the more prepared YOU are in the unlikely chance that you find yourself on the side of the road.

5. HAVE FUN

The most important thing of all is to have fun while road tripping. I never could understand starting off on the road with a bad attitude. Your attitude will effect the entire family's attitude so make it a great one! As cliche as it sounds, it truly is not about the destination, but about the journey (ok, the destination is pretty awesome considering you're on the way up North to THEE Nitschke's Northern Resort....but you get the point!).

Now go be a master of the road and we'll see you when you get here!

If you haven't yet booked a cabin for the 2018 summer season, now's the time. We are almost at full capacity from June thru September so don't delay...call today! 715-356-7795