Solve by drawing a diagram.

A Tour bus travels 7 1/2 mi south, 3 1/2 east, 4 1/3 mi north, and 11 1/2 mi west. How far has the tour bus traveled when it crosses its own path?

I'm pretty sure it would have traveled 18.5 miles. Try drawing it out on a graph (7.5 down, 3.5 right, etc.). Then add up all the distances it traveled right up to where it reaches a position where it already went. Hope this makes sense.