Carrying spare gasoline

Wanderoo

I am planning a long trip from Denver to Tucson in a few weeks, taking some back roads.  Do people carry a spare gasoline can with, say, 5 gallons of gas "just in case" when towing your T@B? How do you secure it if you do?  Is it legal? 

Thanks.

DurangoTaB

Good question...I wondered about that on our trip to the Idaho rally where it could be 100 miles to the next gas station...

jkjenn

Roof rack of my Jeep, but you can plan ahead using the Gas buddy website.  I have also done Internet searches and contacted stations ahead of time to make sure they were still one.

Nomad

I carry extra for the generator but my rule when out in real rural areas is to fill up anytime I see a gas station and I'm at 3/4 tank or less. Try to keep as full as I can. Have hit 75-100 mile stretches to next gas. Some rural gas stations really ream ya on gas too - Paid $4.65/gal south of Death Valley.

jenn - Have been in zip cell coverage a lot the last two weeks so none of the apps requiring a connection have been useable.

jkjenn

PXLated said:

jenn - Have been in zip cell coverage a lot the last two weeks so none of the apps requiring a connection have been useable.

I always do it ahead of tine and save the info to OneNote. I am pretty type "A" when it comes to planning. It is also an advantage if Streets & Trips to have it available offline of needed.

Nomad

I'm just roaming - planning is not in my vocabulary this season :-)

leenscottfl

PXLated that is our biggest problem sometime. We never know how long we will be at one place or where we will go next. We like NPS, NF and BLM campgrounds and most of them now have reservations only.

But for gas? From Del Rio to Marathon, TX is 125 miles with nothing at all! First time I went that route I did not know that. But since I too fill at 3/4 I made it with no problem. The wife used to pick at me for doing that. No more.

Nomad

The only place I've run into reservations so far have been Red Rock and Death Valley. On Fridays things start filling up with weekenders so I no longer travel on Friday, I try to beat the crowd and get set up on Thurs. - That's for campgrounds, haven't had a problem when boondocking BLM, etc. so far.

Lisa33

I ran out of gas once in South Dakota.  My TV at the time only had a 200 mile range while towing.  I was at 1/4 tank and looked for a gas station on my GPS.  Closest one was 28 miles away, but 10 miles off the interstate.  Second closest was 60 miles away near the interstate.  Against my natural inclination to not divert far from my path, I thought the more prudent move was to go to the one 28 miles away.  Turned out it was a ghost town when I arrived, which sent me 10 miles back to the interstate and out of range of the 60 mile gas station.  Luckily, I had 2 gallons of gas on the tongue for my generator.  I was very glad to have it.

That said, I don't carry gas just for the sake of having it unless I have a generator with me.  It's just a pain to carry due to leakage unless you invest in something like a Rotopax.  Now, I am more vigilant in planning ahead as I reach areas where gas stations will be few and far between.

I, too, prefer NPS, NFS and BLM campgrounds.  Unless something has changed very recently, most operate on first-come, first-served basis other than major parks.  Even the major parks usually have some that don't take reservations.  I also avoid arriving on a weekend, like PXLated.  

Another gadget some might want to consider is a mobile cell phone signal booster like those made by Wilson electronics.  Nothing will help you if there is zero signal, but I've found the Wilson booster to do a great job when you have one or two bars.  This is the model I own (I liked it so much that I have one in my TV and one in the trailer):

http://www.amazon.com/Wilson-Electronics-Wireless-Booster-Vehicle/dp/B0011GI94Q/ref=sr_1_3?s=wireless&ie=UTF8&qid=1426356069&sr=1-3&keywords=Wilson+mobile+signal

This is looks like a newer model for 4G:

http://www.amazon.com/Electronics-Vehicle-Cellular-Booster-Antenna/dp/B00LGZG9DA/ref=sr_1_4?s=wireless&ie=UTF8&qid=1426356069&sr=1-4&keywords=Wilson+mobile+signal

jkjenn

Lisa, I am probably going to be getting a booster this year, but want to hold off. Wilson is now Weboost and the interview with them from CES in January said they would be revising the current product this year to better be able to hold larger phones.

Lisa33

Good to know about Weboost.  I avoided getting a model with a cradle because I use it for both my phone and my iPad.  The mobile models to which I provided links have an interior antenna that is about the size of a Hershey bar.  It comes with a peel off back so that you can adhere it somewhere convenient.  I've left the peel-off back in place and put the "Hershey bar" (one of their repair guys actually called it that) right up to the back of the phone or iPad when I'm using it.  The one or two bar signal jumps to 4 or 5 bars, allowing me to search the web or upload photos where I couldn't without it.  The signal booster is one of the things I wouldn't leave home without on a long trip.

Nomad

Lisa - I need something for both also. I use the iPad for net stuff far more than the phone for phone. Will have to look at the Hershey bar.
In the photo, the black thingy must be the Hershey.