Trucks Stop Help

I completely agree with Turtle. Always call and be respectful. I got myself in a bind one time in unfamiliar territory. Every piece of information I found on the local Wal-Mart said no truck parking. When I called the manager they said, "I can let you park here but I've got a very specific area I want you in. Come in to see me when you get here and I'll show you how we do it."

It was that simple. When I got there I saw signs everywhere saying "No Overnight Truck Parking."

Haha. I know. It's a tough run. I went into Richford and from there down to Rutland. Sheez, the run to Rutlanf was a whopping 100 miles but took 02:45:00 to get it done. There were a couple of small truck stops but if you didn't know where to look you see them too late and can't turn around anywhere. Still a fun challenge.

Funny.

Now I find myself in the same situation. By the time I get loaded, I won’t have time to make Champlain. And if I don’t make Champlain, I won’t be able to get unloaded, get to my shipper , and then get to parking tomorrow. Lol

Yep. That's what I'll do. Even though they told me no when I called in Saturday, I'll still call them in the future if I think I need to overnight.

Potsdam and Malone Walmarts both show no overnight parking in truckers path.

Doesn't matter. I'm at these stores every week or two, and trucks are always parked. As mentioned, call ahead to be sure. The answer may change from one manager to the next.

That's how I got to park where I did in Rutland. When I arrived and checked in with them they walked outside and pointed out where I could park. They said I'm always welcome to park there and don't have to call ahead - but I will anyway. To much at risk out there to take anything fir chance.

I completely agree with Turtle. Always call and be respectful. I got myself in a bind one time in unfamiliar territory. Every piece of information I found on the local Wal-Mart said no truck parking. When I called the manager they said, "I can let you park here but I've got a very specific area I want you in. Come in to see me when you get here and I'll show you how we do it."

It was that simple. When I got there I saw signs everywhere saying "No Overnight Truck Parking."

Good to know.

I ended up making it to Champlain with 40 minutes to spare. I had two backup plans just in case.

Potsdam and Malone Walmarts both show no overnight parking in truckers path.

Doesn't matter. I'm at these stores every week or two, and trucks are always parked. As mentioned, call ahead to be sure. The answer may change from one manager to the next.

Where did you end up parking in Rutland? Would be good to know in the future.

I love that run up Rt 11. It’s one of my favorite runs.

That's how I got to park where I did in Rutland. When I arrived and checked in with them they walked outside and pointed out where I could park. They said I'm always welcome to park there and don't have to call ahead - but I will anyway. To much at risk out there to take anything fir chance.

I completely agree with Turtle. Always call and be respectful. I got myself in a bind one time in unfamiliar territory. Every piece of information I found on the local Wal-Mart said no truck parking. When I called the manager they said, "I can let you park here but I've got a very specific area I want you in. Come in to see me when you get here and I'll show you how we do it."

It was that simple. When I got there I saw signs everywhere saying "No Overnight Truck Parking."

Hi everyone,

It's been a while since I've posted. I'm on month three driving solo and doing well. However, I picked up a load yesterday that presents me with my biggest challenge to-date.

It's a live unload in Northern Vermont along the Canadian border next week. I can't span the distance on an 11 hour drive clock. The pickings appear slim once I get past Syracuse. In fact, there is a message in my que to top off in Syracuse before proceeding any further. I'm traversing route 11 across from rt 81. I've checked several websites and can't find anything except a small truck stop on route 87 just south of 11, but I won't make that on 11 hours unless it's a perfect drive with no lost time.

If I can't find anything between Waterloo and Champlain, I'm considering leaving a day early and breaking up the trip into two short driving days and arrive early for the live unload. For added excitement, I have a live load two hours away from the consignee and have to drive out again. So, I'm trying to get as close as I can the day b4 the live unload.

Grateful for any help.

Howdy, Bill !

You haven't stopped IN for a bit; hope all is well since you've (hopefully) overcome the truck stop follies!!

Any update would be welcome; stay SAFE this holiday weekend, good sir.

Best always,

~ Anne ~

Hey Grumpy.

Glad to hear you made it into Champlain safely. I mean to tell you...you better have a couple of back up plans when you roll into the great north east. It just isn't trucker friendly. When I rolled into Syracuse to top of before proceeding North it was only 1800 and the Pilot was overflowing into the streets with overnighters.

I ended up parking near the customer for the night. The Walmart in Rutland is trucker friendly and has a large parking area adjacent to the lawn and garden center. Call ahead. Also, there is an Amtrak terminal in the same parking lot. So, make sure to park away from that. Oh, word of caution - there is a lot of foot traffic going to and from the Amtrak station, be vigilant and cautious. Every local I talked to in the area warned me to make sure my truck is locked at all times. There appeared to be a sizeable homeless population in Rutland. I had several people walk up to my truck just looking around at it. I made sure that people knew I was in the truck.

Finally, there are a handful of truck pulloffs along the 3 hour drive to Rutland from Northern VT. But, if you miss them, there is nowhere to turn around and go back to them.

Take care

Good to know.

I ended up making it to Champlain with 40 minutes to spare. I had two backup plans just in case.

Potsdam and Malone Walmarts both show no overnight parking in truckers path.

Doesn't matter. I'm at these stores every week or two, and trucks are always parked. As mentioned, call ahead to be sure. The answer may change from one manager to the next.

Hello Anne,

All went well, even though I had COVID and didn't know it until Friday of that week.

I will say, like I told Grumpy; you need back up plans for backup plans going into that area of the country. It simply isn't very trucker friendly for overnighting - limited places to park. Heck, it's difficult to find a place to pull over let alone park for the night. Malone walmart was not amicable to me overnighting at their location so I pulled up about two hours shy breaking up my long leg into two short legs of driving.

Where I stayed the first night was a Sunoco with a dirt parking lot that had room for about 20 trucks. Maybe 10 trucks were there when I arrived at 2200. The next day I drove about 4.5 hours to the consignee and then another 3 to the next customer where I overnighted and had a live load the next day @ 0700.

I'm not sure what to think about my FL sending me into northern Vermont being as I've just over 3 months of solo driving under my belt. Teachable moment, punishment (lol, just kidding), or confidence in my abilities and resourcefulness? No, they really are great to work with. Sometimes my FL will call me and talk to me about a plan they are working on and ask me if I'm OK with it. I appreciate that and always tell them whatever you need me to do. You plan the loads and routes, I'll run them to the best of my abilities. I've been pushed out of my comfort zone on multiple occasions. Though, it would have been nice to run this route healthy, not sick. I just wasn't able to enjoy it as well as I could have otherwise.

On this trip I was able to work my primary plan without having to use a backup plan. But, I could have never planned as successfully as I did (main plan + 3 backup plans) if it weren't for the help and advice from members of TT. Everyone was so helpful!!

Hi everyone,

It's been a while since I've posted. I'm on month three driving solo and doing well. However, I picked up a load yesterday that presents me with my biggest challenge to-date.

It's a live unload in Northern Vermont along the Canadian border next week. I can't span the distance on an 11 hour drive clock. The pickings appear slim once I get past Syracuse. In fact, there is a message in my que to top off in Syracuse before proceeding any further. I'm traversing route 11 across from rt 81. I've checked several websites and can't find anything except a small truck stop on route 87 just south of 11, but I won't make that on 11 hours unless it's a perfect drive with no lost time.

If I can't find anything between Waterloo and Champlain, I'm considering leaving a day early and breaking up the trip into two short driving days and arrive early for the live unload. For added excitement, I have a live load two hours away from the consignee and have to drive out again. So, I'm trying to get as close as I can the day b4 the live unload.

Grateful for any help.

Howdy, Bill !

You haven't stopped IN for a bit; hope all is well since you've (hopefully) overcome the truck stop follies!!

Any update would be welcome; stay SAFE this holiday weekend, good sir.

Best always,

~ Anne ~

While I agree the NE isn't truck friendly, I never thought it was as bad as everyone makes it out to be. The only thing I don't like about it is you need to run either overnight or be ready to shut down by 3 in the afternoon to have a spot.