More on Green Traveling (and Green Driving in General)

In the week and a half that Guthrie and I posted about Green Travel, we have actually learned a ton more that I wanted to share with everyone. Most of these refer to traveling by car and are from or inspired by The Green Year by Jodi Helmer, a cute little book from my grandma.

For the first time Guthrie and I used a GPS. Though not very useful in Minneapolis where 99.9% of the time we know where we are going and it's gridded, taking out much of the guess work, it would have been helpful in Atlanta! On trips, it's quite helpful because it saves buying maps and printing off directions. If you must look up directions (and this is anytime), have the directions sent to your phone or at least write it on a scrap piece of paper and recycle or compost it afterwards.

More on packing light - in cars, 100 pounds of cargo decrease fuel efficiency by 2 percent. It can add up quickly if you travel a lot! If you currently store things in your car -- take it out! You only need the essentials: car emergency kit and some winter clothing items if you drive in Minnesota in the winter months. Those golf clubs? They should be stored in the garage.

If you are gone more than a couple of days, contact the post office and stop the mail. Transporting excess mail that won't be read for a while and can just wait will save the post office on fuel costs.

Keep an eye on your Tachometer (you know, the thing with the RPMs we rarely look at). Keeping the car revving lower than 3,000 rpms will not only save on gas, but is more gentle on the engine, extending the life of your car.

A/C v. Windows? This book says that you improve fuel economy by 20 percent or more if you drive with the A/C on and the windows up, though this is on the highway, which is where you mostly are on road trips. In the city, most of our driving is within an hour of home and not on the highway. Put those windows down says treehugger.com.

One for air travel -- invest in a luggage tag and keep it in your luggage always. Using those small plastic/paper tags at the airport every trip is just waste. They rip and really only last one trip.

Hotel stay - whether or not you can stay in a green hotel, leave a comment card at the end of your stay highlighting what the hotel did well and what kinds of things they could improve upon. If the hotel does not already have a sign saying that they will, leave a not telling them not to change the sheets or new towels unless they are put on the floor.

Update on our trip -- sadly we had to cancel our trip to Iowa for Labor Day weekend, but instead we are heading up to Duluth to visit Guthrie's family and to fish. When we do visit IA, we will be able to stay with a friend to help keep our carbon footprint down since it was not looking good for mother earth as of the last post.

Have a safe and fun labor day!

Peace!

Eighteen - Green Travel

Guthrie and I are about to head out to Austin, TX this week for our anniversary. Labor Day, we are driving to Des Moines, IA to visit with friends and family. In October, Guthrie is off to Montreal (jealous!) for work. With all of this travel, how do we still be good to Mother Earth?

Before you leave:

• Unplug all electronics
• Lower or turn off any heating and cooling devices

Flying? Here are some tips:

• Pack only what you need, don't bring extra weight
• Most of the energy is used in take off and landing -- take a direct flight whenever possible. We are flying to San Antonio to avoid this and driving a compact car the hour to Austin
• Take a train! It could reduce your CO2 emissions by 90%
• Reuse those quart sized baggies -- we have two that we reuse over and over again for flying
• Reuse little plastic containers -- pack your own shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, contact solution and all of those other liquids and gels with buying new ones. We have a little travel basket in our hallway closest where we save these things just for this reason
• Cook when possible - we are renting a small cottage where we can stop by the farmer's market or co-op to get food and prepare it ourselves during the day
• Bring a water bottle! Just because you're away doesn't mean you throw your eco-lifestyle out the window

Driving? Here are some tips:

• Check your tire pressure
• Make sure the vehicle is properly serviced
• Look into ways to offset your carbon footprint as we did with Enterprise when we had to give in and rent our first car
• Leave the car at the hotel and walk, cycle, or use public transportation -- we'll be on the bus in Austin!
• Pack only what you need -- don't bring extra weight 
• Plan ahead -- it helps avoid getting lost and driving around
• Try to avoid sudden acceleration, engine revving, and sudden braking - it can use up to 30% more fuel. Keep you eyes on the road 3-4 cars ahead
• On the highway, drive with the windows closed to reduce the drag (though this brings up the AC v. windows down issue, find a balance)
• Don't idle

*info from Carbon Footprint

Where to stay?
The most eco place would be a campground; however not always the easiest and best choice for every vacation. We looked into it for our Des Moines trip when the friend were were going to stay with had flooding in her house, but, again, with recent rains and flooding, ever close campsite is sadly closed. Instead, we started looking at Green Hotels which is a guide to find hotels that have sustainability in mind when making business decisions. Of course, the only one listed was in Cedar Rapids. Strike three. I think we are stuck at a motel. At least we can reuse sheets and towels as much as possible. If you are planning a vacation, a great site National Geographic's Center for Sustainable Destinations.

What to eat? 
Guthrie and I have taken many mini-road trips. When we are hungry, we work hard to pass up the McDonalds (can't even remember the last time I ate something from there...) and all of the other fast food chains. Sometimes, it is unavoidable, and you are hungry, and you would rather use their bathroom than the one at the Citgo...but I digress. Point is: look for those mom and pop shops and support the local economy. Guthrie and I have found some gems, and some scary places -- but they all at least leave you with a story! When in town, continue to support local and independent shops and restaurants. You'll get a better feel for the city and really be helping the local economy. I know we definitely want to do things that will help Keep Austin Weird :-)

Offset your Carbon Footprint
Use a calculator and then offset it! The link is for TerraPass - it's easy to calculate your flight and you can offset it through them or through another organization. Carbon Fund and Native Energy are also really helpful. It's not perfect, but it's better than doing nothing. Money goes to planting trees and conservation efforts and other projects that reduce CO2 in the air.

Some things to keep in mind, I know we will! Happy and safe travels to you!

Peace!