School is back in session, temperatures have mellowed and Labor Day is Monday. It’s only a matter of time before we’re firmly back in sweater weather territory. As summer ebbs, the final three-day weekend of the season offers the chance for a last little trip.
“Yeah, this is the big hurrah for a lot of Idahoans,” says Matthew Conde, a public affairs director at AAA Idaho.
He says many residents will hit the road this holiday weekend for one final quick trip to the waterpark or an outing to a national park.
If an impromptu road trip is in the cards, budget for gas. The Gem State currently has some of the highest fuel prices in the nation.
“We have the dubious honor of being in the top five right now, which is very unusual,” Conde says. “The West Coast has started that slide into seasonal savings a little bit faster than we have, so continued demand putting pressure on gas prices.”
And don’t expect much relief once fall arrives.
“The seasonal drop-off we’ve typically seen here in Idaho has been more and more modest,” the AAA Idaho spokesman says. “A few years ago it was about 62 cents, the next year it was 34 cents and last year it was 17 cents.”
Conde suggests having extra water, jumper cables and a rough game plan if the long weekend will provide a quick escape by car.
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