Cross Country NH to WA
Jul 2nd, 2015, 04:42 AM
#1
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Cross Country NH to WA
Any advice will be greatly appreciated. My husband and I are planning to travel cross country from New Hampshire to Seattle, Washington leaving right after Thanksgiving arriving middle December. We are thinking of purchasing a travel trailer and camp along the way. We will then look for a campground in the Seattle area to stay through February. Heading back to New Hampshire arriving by end of March. Suggestions of routes, must sees, campgrounds ( opened year round), ect.
Other possibilities would be to stay in motels along the routes and rent a travel traveler once out in Washington.......
Would love any feedback.
Other possibilities would be to stay in motels along the routes and rent a travel traveler once out in Washington.......
Would love any feedback.
Jul 2nd, 2015, 05:32 AM
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Just a few considerations. I have not done this route as a whole but have done parts of it and thought about a lot of it.
1. Can your low altitude car pull a trailer over a high mountain pass (the summit of Mt Washington is lower than some of the passes). Are the brakes good enough to hold it on the downhill parts?
2. Do you own chains for your car, and can you put them on yourself?
3. Do you want to pull a travel trailer on the New York Thruway, the Ohio and Indiana Turnpikes, and through the suburbs of Chicago?
4. Do you want to pull a travel trailer across the (really) windy plains of a Dakota, Wyoming or Montana, and Western Washington?
5. The winter temperatures in Seattle are certainly warmer than in NH, but it rains, showers, sprinkles, and is foggy a lot more than you can imagine. How do you feel about two weeks in a trailer with constant rain? We were there for ten days at one of the better times of the year and never, ever saw Mt. Rainer, not even once.
Not to be discouraging, but if I wanted to do this, and it is tempting, I would choose a different time of year.
Others may totally disagree.
1. Can your low altitude car pull a trailer over a high mountain pass (the summit of Mt Washington is lower than some of the passes). Are the brakes good enough to hold it on the downhill parts?
2. Do you own chains for your car, and can you put them on yourself?
3. Do you want to pull a travel trailer on the New York Thruway, the Ohio and Indiana Turnpikes, and through the suburbs of Chicago?
4. Do you want to pull a travel trailer across the (really) windy plains of a Dakota, Wyoming or Montana, and Western Washington?
5. The winter temperatures in Seattle are certainly warmer than in NH, but it rains, showers, sprinkles, and is foggy a lot more than you can imagine. How do you feel about two weeks in a trailer with constant rain? We were there for ten days at one of the better times of the year and never, ever saw Mt. Rainer, not even once.
Not to be discouraging, but if I wanted to do this, and it is tempting, I would choose a different time of year.
Others may totally disagree.
Jul 2nd, 2015, 07:43 AM
#3
You want to drive across the country, in two weeks±, w/ a trailer, in winter (not 'officially' winter but close enough).
Horrible idea IMO.
Your other option to just drive and stay in motels makes much more sense,
Then you want to camp through the winter in Seattle - maybe http://koa.com/campgrounds/seattle/extended-stays/
Horrible idea IMO.
Your other option to just drive and stay in motels makes much more sense,
Then you want to camp through the winter in Seattle - maybe http://koa.com/campgrounds/seattle/extended-stays/
Jul 2nd, 2015, 10:14 AM
#6
Camping in (anywhere near) Seattle through the winter does NOT sound like any fun to me. It's dark, short days, and likely cold/rainy so honestly I'm having a hard time picturing why you'd want to do this trip as described at that time of year.
Jul 2nd, 2015, 01:52 PM
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It may not sound fun to you all, but we have family in Bothell and are looking forward to the adventure. We flew last year and stayed for a month while spending one week of it in California traveling up the pacific coast line. Yes it can be rainy but it does not rain all day long as you have stated. I thought this forum was going to be helpful, if I wanted opinions to why it doesn't make sense to you I would have asked my question on Facebook. I was hoping for advice not judgement.
