Reading a Map

• Texas Road Map, 1971
  
  Before a map can help you plan a trip, you need to know a little about maps. All maps use lines to represent roads, but not all roads are the same. Maps show this in an easy-to-understand way. Rand McNally, for example, uses two thin parallel red lines filled with blue for Interstate highways, which also sport the highway numbers using a small version of the Interstate shield you see on the roads. Main two-lane highways, on the other hand, are simply red lines, while less important roads are black lines--but each road has its number or name clearly marked. Once you're familiar with the way a map describes roads, you can tell at a glance which ones go where.
  
  Maps also have symbols for just about everything that would interest a road-tripper, and they're usually easy to understand at a glance. Towns are black dots; airports are small airplanes; parks and forests are green areas; and lakes and rivers are blue. In the Rand McNally example, points of interest are red dots, covering everything from Disney World and the U.S. Capitol to the International Vinegar Museum and the Geographic Center of the U.S. Monument (both of those happen to be in South Dakota).
  
  Maps will also tell you distance. Mileage tables list the miles between major cities. For an estimation, consult the scale of miles, which says how many miles equal an inch on the map. Or look at the road you plan to travel and add up the number of miles, which is written in small type next to each segment of a road on the map.
  
  

Point A to Point B

• Papers Maps: Never Obsolete
  
  Once you've decided where you want to go on your road trip, it's time to consult a map for a little planning. How much consulting you do depends on what you want out of your trip.
  
  For example, if you simply want to get from where you are to one destination, you can consult a paper folding map, or go to Google Maps or MapQuest and print out a simple map, and look at that. They will tell you which roads connect A and B, and roughly how far you have to go.
  
  But even a trip like that might not be so simple, if you need to take three different roads just to go from A to B. In that case, you need to look at your starting point, follow the road to a junction (intersection) with the second road, follow that road to another junction, and then follow the third road to your destination. You can do this by eying the map, or following the route with your finger. If you want to make such a multi-part route a little easier to see, highlight it with a colored marker.
  
  

A Multi-Destination Trip

• More complicated itineraries require a little more mapping. If you plan to spend time in a city or other metro area, it's also a good idea to get a more detailed map of the area, since the inset area maps that come with folding road maps or even road atlases aren't usually very detailed.
  
  If you are traveling for pleasure, and you have a little extra time, don't forget to use your map to look for something interesting to see. Natural features, parks and whole towns that might be worth a brief stop. Once you see something that intrigues you, go to a guidebook or the Internet for more information.
  
  Mark the places you want to go on the maps. That way you are utilizing the advantage that paper maps still have over electronic navigation devices, which offer only small pieces of a map at a time on a screen that's hard or impossible to mark up. With a marked-up paper map or atlas, you can see the whole trip unfold before your eyes and get the big picture, right away.