413 miles via FL 864, FL 82, I-75 and I-10 with a short detour at the intersection of I-75 and I-10. Auto miles: 413. Cumulative route mile: 413. Cumulative auto miles: 413.
We made a last-minute decision to take Marlene’s Toyota Camry rather than my Hyundai Tucson. That was because the Camry gets better mileage and because we are planning on using the Tucson next summer for an even longer road trip.
We didn’t depart Lehigh Acres until 7pm. I did my volunteer gig in the afternoon, but got off at 3pm. But there was preparation to be completed – most notably packing for the trip. And readying Marlene’s house for a month of absence. Because we left so late our destination was… a rest area. That was a first for us. Yes, we slept in a rest area. We arrived at 1am and departed at 6am. Marlene got maybe 4 hours of sleep; I got maybe 3. A hotel would have been more comfortable, but a waste of money for a short night.
This was a straight shot, a long 6 solid hours of driving. We made a brief stop at Aldi on our way out of Lehigh Acres to get some snacks (can’t do a long road trip without snacks) and a detour at the intersection of I-75 northbound and I-10 westbound due to construction.