Cross County with Three Dogs - Day 1

Day One: Tacoma, Washington to Redding, California
Starting out the first day, December 16, 2016, we left the empty house at 7:30 am. We loaded three dogs, five dog beds, tons of blankets for cushion, a container of dog food and bowls and four suitcases in the Durango Mauricio bought two weeks earlier. On the back, we had a basket cargo carrier with a specialty cover full of plants that I couldn't bear to leave behind and the movers were not allowed to transport. We didn't know if we would be able to cross California with plants but we decided to take the chance.

In preparation, I had started giving the dogs Bach's Rescue Remedy  for pets as a calming supplement and a supplement called "No Toot" about a week ahead of time. Both worked really well. I've included the links to both on Amazon. I have not found anything that really results in no tooting, but anyone who has ever spent time with a bulldog can understand the beauty of toot reduction! I still use no toot daily.


In Oregon, we drove through the remnants of an ice storm from the night before.

Driving through the passes in the Shasta Cascade Region was making us a little nervous. Thankfully, the ice storm didn't go that far south so we had clear and dry roads.

We made a lot of stops the first day, about every 3 hours, and realized about half way through the trip the dogs didn't need as many pottie breaks as we anticipated. That made the drive almost 10 hours and our arrival was at 5:15 PM. We stopped for the first night at Fairfield Inn and Suites in Redding, California. We paid a $40.00 pet fee. There is a nice large field for walks and stations with doggie bags set up around the property. They also had a nice breakfast. Before booking I highly recommend reviewing my original blog Cross Country with Three Dogs where I explain all the necessary steps to make reservations when traveling with pets.


Close by there was a BBQ place and I stayed with my nervous pups while Mauricio scored some dinner. Ok, in this photo they aren't so much nervous as tired.

We used carry-on size bags. Leaving Tacoma, we had our bags organized like this: 1 for Mauricio; 1 for Nisha; 1 for the dogs (meds, treats, sweaters, etc.), 1 for important documents and files that we didn't want to put on the moving truck. 




I tend to be a worrier and over prepare. We each also had a backpack with some emergency supplies. In mine I put a first aide kit, emergency blankets, and various medications. A pack of 10 emergency blankets is less than $10 on Amazon and takes up very little space. Mauricio had our laptops and any tools we  might need. Plus we each had a flash light. As a safety tip, if you own a pair of walkie talkies, they are a good item to have on hand. Cell phone service is not always guaranteed and it is best to carry one every time you are separated by dog walking or making pit stops. 

The first night we reorganized and combined our suitcases so we each had half of one suitcase and three days of clothes. That way we didn't have to unload both every night. Also, when we arrived at a hotel, Mauricio would check-in while I stayed with the pups in the car. Then we took the pups to the room and I stayed with them while Mauricio unloaded the bags. We realized that was not the most efficient way to debark in Tucson and changed our routine.

All in all, the first day was a success. It started out the scariest because we didn't know what to expect but we started getting our routine for stops and walks ironed out and make it safely. That's all that really matters!

Check out my day-by-day posts for details about each hotel and area.

• Day Two - Bakersfield, CA
• Day Three - Tucson, AZ
• Day Four - Fort Stockton, TX
• Day Five - Houston, TX
• Day Six - Mobile, AL
• Day Seven - Home, FL