The great American road trip, is there any better way to become closer with your friends, family or just your own little self? Driving, on motorbikes, in RVs, in cars or in minivans, or in the quintessential road trip vehicle, the Volkswagen micro bus, and taking the most scenic and out of the way route as possible to your destination is the great definition of a road trip. With a destination set, the road trip is all but started, and how you get there is what a road trip is all about.

And gadgets. We must have gadgets for our road trips these days. And the most up to date gadgets are essential for many people for a successful road trip these days, as high technology keeps us connected to those we leave behind. Tweet tweet. Yes, the cell phone is the first technological gadget required for a road trip, with text messaging, Wi-Fi, and built in camera.

Any listings of the best gadgets for a road trip must first include the common gadgets; those being a vehicle, a tool box (usually missing the one tool that you will end up really needing), a map, some willing friends with some time on their hands, and gas money. Lots and lots of gas money. Friends and money may not be gadgets, but they are a necessity for a great road trip.

For a successful, enjoyable and true to form road trip, there are many gadgets that would help in the mapping out of your road trip’s route. You would want to have a Global Positioning Satellite, or GPS, with a mapping system to map out the journey, and to find any interesting, out of the way places to drive to, and visit, along the way. You would also use the GPS to find any backwoods places to camp, and have campfires at night, thus avoiding paying for motels or campground sites. The GPS can also keep a journal of your road trip in real time, overlaid on the map, for downloading on your laptop computer. Before leaving on your road trip, you should make sure that all of the proper and updated maps and applications that will give you more of an idea of what you may be missing along the way, and the ability to record every mile travelled are downloaded and working properly.

The best gadgets for a road trip would need to include a digital camera to take pictures of you and your friends at the biggest this and the longest that, in front of all of the natural and man-made landmarks that make for grand and silly pictures. A camera is needed to take pictures of everyone in fun poses, in front of highway signs, empty and derelect factories, and especially any of the remaining HWY 66 route markers that are left on the roads (not in people’s basements). In Canada, there is the largest lobster, largest nickel, largest Bison, etc., and they are booms to their town’s tourism dollars, and America has her own big silly things. Cell phone cameras are great in a tight spot, but a good digital SLR camera with interchangeable lenses will take spectacular pictures of places like the Grand Canyon, and is the top gadget for road trips.

Road trip gadgets must also include gadgets that make camping much more comfortable, as camping is the sleeping mode of choice for most road trippers. A propane camping stove, lantern and bug-zappers are needed for the night time, along with LED flashlights (along with the head-worn cap lights) and electronic fire starters for the stove and campfires. While the car is resting for the next day’s journey to commence, you will need to sleep as well, and sleeping 4 people in a car is not too comfortable. Amongst the camping gear, as a minimum, you will need a collapsible camping tent, sleeping bags and blankets for sleeping under the stars, beside a campfire, or in the tent. Sleeping under the stars is another right of passage for any road trippers, and the camping gear may not technically be gadgets, but they, like your friends and gas money, are still needed. However, dancing naked under the moon isn’t a gadget either, but it never hurt.

A road trip can only be considered a road trip if there are troubles along the way. What good is a road trip without an overheated engine, a couple of flat tires or possibly running into a murderous family of zombies along the way? Bring a titanium edged hatchet just in case. It’s good for cutting firewood, clearing spots for tents, and using as a hammer, too! Binoculars are another gadget that will come in extremely handy, especially for the navigator, trying to find the next exit that the GPS swears is just ahead. And the u-turn spot to get back to the exit that was surely missed. An LED flashlight for finding your way at night, reading the map, or finding those lost keys. And a laptop computer for making silly videos and emailing them back to your envious family and friends are gadgets that should be brought along on any road trip.

The best road trip gadgets are, basically, those that will make you enjoy your road trip all the more, and if there are any other gadgets that you think may help you in your road trip, like an MP3 player, an XBox 360 with all of the Rock Band accessories, or anything else that would just be fun to have along, bring them. As long as you jave the room, that is.

Drive safely, and enjoy your road trip.

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