The July Fourth weekend is the most popular weekend for a summer road trip, typically twice as popular as any other time in the season. It’s also known for heavy drinking and traffic accidents, so if you’re on the road, be extra careful.

Obvious? Yes, but warranted as we all tend to focus on the fun, driving ourselves to distraction. That’s not the only road trip tip that may prove useful; even the most experienced roadsters can have that “what did I forget?” feeling as they leave home. So beyond checking the car’s oil, water, tires (don’t forget the spare), and wiper blades, consider a few more tips from a variety of travel experts:

• Don’t underestimate your sense of smell. Nothing brings you down from a high quite like a whiff of “what the bleep is that?” upon vehicle reentry. Stink can pile upon stink with a vengeance, so before you go, vacuum the dog hair and food spills; and as you go, leave the fast food wrappers at the next rest stop.

• Loosen the plan, and get off the freeway. It’s good to scout out desired stops and have an idea when you’ll arrive, but a too-firm schedule just leaves you frustrated at construction delays, or whizzing past entertaining diversions, such as “world’s biggest ball of twine” (any “Michael” fans out there?). Do so with an updated road map in the car (free at larger rest stops); cell service has dead spots.

• Sometimes unplanned diversions turn out to be the best part. We once explored — alone — prehistoric cave paintings on a cool, quiet morning in Montana that way.

• Enjoy books on tape, satellite radio, and podcasts — together. Technology makes it too easy to separate, when the point is to experience adventure together. There’s some funny and mind-expanding stuff out there, so put it on speaker and share.

• Parking ticket? Pay before you go. True story: Son on road trip plus unpaid tickets equaled license seizure at a speed trap in Nowhere, Idaho. And a last-minute rescue trip by parents. Make sure current registration, license, and insurance documents are in the car.

• Not to diss Idaho as a road trip destination; Wallet Hub just ranked it 2016’s seventh best state for fun and affordable road-tripping.

• Trunk 101. Oil. Water (for you and the vehicle), tire iron, and road flares. Umbrella, blankets, flashlights with spare batteries, emergency food, spare phone chargers, and a first aid kit. You never know. Oh, and hiking shoes for those unplanned nature treks. Like prehistoric caves.

• Text your whereabouts. A friend or family at home should know where you are, just in case.

• Bring. A. Spare. Car. Key. One of ours is at the bottom of Whitefish Lake, Mont. Fun story — well, it would’ve been if we’d brought a spare.

• And finally, make new friends. You never know what local sites you’ll discover, or weird stories you’ll hear, by talking to a waitress or cashier. One of our most treasured friends — and a fascinating “I was there” story about a world event on the cover of Time — resulted from road trip chit-chat.

• Have fun!

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Sholeh Patrick is a columnist for the Hagadone News Network and family road trip fan. Contact her at Sholeh@cdapress.com.