A backpacking trip is an inexpensive way to see some of the most beautiful places on the planet, whether in your hometown or halfway around the world. Use these suggestions from Nalley Nissan while planning your trip!

Determine a location. Choose a location based on your experience, the amount of time you want to backpack, and the attractiveness of the area in which you’ll be hiking. Research locations and don’t take any chances. Most backpacking areas have websites and someone to contact for information. Be sure to inquire about hiking or camping permits, the best time of year, and alternate trails.

Gather your supplies. Backpacking trails provide astonishing views and rarely experienced privacy. They also lack department stores, grocery stores, and supply depots. Regardless of the length of your hike, be sure to have a lightweight backpack capable of carrying all your necessities. For overnight trips, bring a lightweight tent and/or sleeping bag. You will also need to plan to bring enough food. Make a list before you leave, and keep your meals simple on extended trips.

Think safety. In addition to not having supply depots every mile, backpacking trails lack hospitals and drugstores. Bring a first aid kit. It should include band aids, bandages, a cold pack, gloves, and scissors. To avoid having to use the first aid kit, bring a flash light or head lamp, warm clothing, sunglasses, sunscreen, chapstick, iodine tablets for water purification, and anything else that may prevent injuries or discomfort.

Don’t get lost. Bring a map and be sure to look at it before your trip begins. Use a geological map that contains elevation changes and details about the terrain. Talk to park rangers or other knowledgeable people about the trail you choose. You should also bring a compass. If you don’t know how to read a compass, learn. As much as possible, you should also plan exactly where you’re going and about how long it will take. Tell someone where you are going and when you plan on returning. Many backpacking trails do not have cell phone coverage.

Pay attention to details. Make sure you have more than enough food and water and do an equipment check to make sure everything works. If you have a hiking partner or partners–strongly recommended–do an equipment comparison and see if you can lighten the load. In areas with bears, never leave food in your tent or bring a tent that has had food in it recently.

Be aware. Be on the lookout for botanical or environmental dangers–poison oak and cold night temperatures, for example. Look for animal tracks. Choose your campsite carefully and avoid sites with dead overhead branches, exposed ridges, or evidence of flooding.

Got more tips? Let us know!

Any car accident, no matter the point of impact, is frightening and inconvenient. But rear-end accidents (frequently referred to as fender benders) are a common occurrence on the road and form a significant proportion of all road collisions. According to a report on the Science Daily website, there were nearly two million rear-end collisions in 2006, comprising nearly 30% of all crashes on U.S. roads. Here’s how to deal if you rear-end another vehicle on the road.

First Things First

In the event that you rear-end the car in front of you, you will likely be very dazed or shocked, especially initially. Unless there are life-threatening reasons why you must exit the vehicle immediately, try to pause for a moment in an effort to gather your breath and calm down. You will need to be able to make a number of decisions related to the situation, and the clearer your head, the more likely you are to act appropriately.

Your first consideration must always be to the welfare and safety of yourself and your passengers, as well as the passengers in any other vehicle involved in the accident. According to the severity of the accident, the range of personal injuries caused by rear-end collisions can be significant, ranging from bruises and grazes to whiplash, broken bones, and even death. When you rear-end a car, the impact from your vehicle is transferred to the car in front, lifting passengers and drivers sharply forwards and upwards at the same time. Whiplash injuries are common, difficult to treat, and may not be immediately obvious. If you are in any doubt as to the severity of any injury incurred during the collision, call the emergency services and request an ambulance. Some injuries can be worsened if the injured party is moved awkwardly, for example.

When exiting the vehicle, ensure that you and your passengers can move to a safe place, away from any remaining traffic. Move completely off the road or highway, and as far away from the vehicles as you can. If the impact is minor, you may be able to drive the vehicle to the side of the road, or onto a side road, but remember that, in some states, it is illegal to move your car from the scene of a collision until the police have attended, so don’t do anything hasty. Regardless of where your car is, ensure that when leaving the vehicle you do not exit into moving traffic. Pay particular attention to children or animals, who may be frightened by the collision, and will require additional supervision.

If you have an emergency kit, use this to alert other drivers to your vehicle. Ensure that the engine is turned off, that your hazard lights are on and that you have placed emergency cones or warning triangles at an appropriate distance from the car.

Road traffic safety regulations stipulate that, regardless of the driving conditions, you must be able to stop safely if the car in front of you comes to a halt, even if that car brakes very sharply. It is only in the event that a vehicle rear-ends your vehicle, causing you to shunt into the car in front, that your insurance company will not conclude that the accident was your fault. Like any other type of collision, you will need to surrender your insurance and driver details to the other driver. Even if you are assuming that the accident was your fault, you will need to collect the other driver’s details, too. You will need their license number, their name, address, phone number, insurance company, insurance policy number, and license plate number. You should also establish whether the other driver owns the vehicle.

If possible, and if it is safe to do so, take photographs of the accident scene, showing the road conditions, the position of the cars, and any specific damage noted. Remember that most modern mobile phones include a camera. Insurance companies suggest that you do not admit liability (and that could mean not even apologizing). They also often request detailed descriptions of what happened and the scene of the incident, so try and write down some notes.

Once you have established that nobody needs medical attention, taken all the relevant details, and the police have attended the scene (if necessary), you will need to think about taking your car away. A breakdown recovery service may be needed if the damage is extensive, but you should also contact your insurance company as soon as possible, as they may have specific instructions on where to take your vehicle, outlining which dealers can and cannot carry out any necessary repair work.

A rear-end collision may be inconvenient and embarrassing, and it could even be traumatic and dangerous. Keep a cool head, complete all the steps necessary to ensure the safety of your passengers, and ensure that you comply with both the law and the requirements of your insurance company to insure that it doesn’t escalate into a bigger problem. Please let us know if we can ever be of help at Nalley Nissan.

Project 370Z

If you have an interest in car design and the Nissan brand, then Nissan’s upcoming social media campaign is definitely for you! In conjunction with the recent 2013 Nissan 370Z preview at the Chicago Auto Show, the brand is launching a project designed to help Nissan Z fans get a chance to share their knowledge and passion.

The project, entitled “Project 370Z,” will result in the creation of a unique, one-off Nissan 370Z, dictated by the fans. To participate in the process, go to the Project 370Z Facebook page. There, you can vote on potential modifications and construction decisions, as well as follow the progress of the car.

Project 370Z will be built in several phases – power, handling/brakes, interior, and exterior. Facebook “Likes,” comments, and wall posts will be reviewed during each voting session and the part or accessory with the most fan support will be chosen for the build. For example, in the Stage 1 Powertrain Phase, fans are voting between a Nissan Motorsports HR Head Conversion, a Stillen Supercharger system, or a Greddy Tuner Twin Turbo kit for the factory 3.7-liter V6. Fans will take part and share in every aspect right up until the final design is revealed at its planned debut set for late May at the annual “ZDayZ” event.

ZDayZ is an annual enthusiast gathering that takes place in the Great Smoky Mountains of North Carolina and Tennessee. This year’s ZDayZ will be held on May 17-20. Attendees will get to participate in a car show, exhaust sound-off, dyno competition, group dinners, and multiple group drives.

We at Nalley Nissan can’t wait to see what kind of vehicle you Z fans put together! Do you already have an idea of what should make up a Nissan 370Z? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page. We’ll put together a list of some of the best suggestions and feature them in our next newsletter! 

For everyone who avoids parallel parking like the plague, or passes up that convenient parking spot because it looks a little too tight, Nissan has a solution for you.

The answer to parking woes lies in the Around View Monitor, which can now be found in the 2012 Nissan Rogue compact crossover. The Around View Monitor is comprised of four small, yet super-wide angle cameras that are placed on the Rogue’s front, side mirrors, and rear of the vehicle, giving drivers a virtual 360 degree view of everything closely surrounding the Rogue. This makes navigating tricky turns and tight spaces much less problematic.

And unlike the hands-free parking assist systems available in some Ford models, the driver remains in control of the vehicle at all times.

According to Nissan, this class-exclusive feature can only be found in the Rogue, making it the only non-luxury vehicle to offer a system that uses four cameras to assist the driver in parallel parking. The Around View Monitor is an option with the SL Package, which starts at 27,870, and includes other features such as leather-appointed seats, heated front seats, an eight-speaker Bose audio system, and a power sliding glass moonroof.

We at Nalley Nissan are especially proud of this system, and we love to show it off! If you’d like to try out the Around View Monitor with a test drive, or simply have some questions about the technology or the Rogue, stop by our dealership anytime!

After thousands of supporters visited our Facebook page to vote for their favorite local charity, Nalley Nissan and the Nalley Automotive Group would like to congratulate Harbor House for winning the online public vote and receiving the first free vehicle in Nalley’s Driven For A Cause event.

Harbor House is a child advocacy center in Rome that provides a comfortable setting for forensic interviews and crisis counseling to children who are alleged victims of sexual and physical abuse. The agency works with the Rome and Floyd County police departments, the Department of Family and Children Services, the Floyd County court system and some other law enforcement agencies to provide a less threatening environment for children who need to be questioned.

Harbor House received 895 votes, the most of our 10 finalists and just 27 more than second-place finisher Atlanta Pet Rescue. Because the organization cannot legally transport patrons, Nalley will purchase the car back and give Harbor House a $15,000 check that among other things will help upgrade the buildings the agency uses, including a new furnace and some gutter work.

“The $15,000 is a big start to our annual fundraising campaign,” Harbor House executive director Gail Garland told the Rome News-Tribune. It represents 5.7 percent of the agency’s $260,000 annual operating budget, with $45,000 in private donations sought in total, Garland said.

Nalley Nissan is proud beyond words to help the people who help make our community a better place to live, and we want to thank everyone who took time to get online and make their voice heard. If your favorite charity didn’t win this time around, don’t worry. Another round of nominations and voting will take place later this spring, so be sure to like our Facebook page for updates on how you can continue helping make a difference!