Dan

My wife and I are interested in driving across the United States from West to East and are wondering about the most interesting and/or scenic routes to take. We are looking to travel early next year, 2000, between February and April.

David

I believe the biggest factor for your trip has got to be the weather at the time of year your travelling. If you're skiers and the like then there is no problem with leaving California (as a starting point) and traelling through Utah, Colorado etc. My guess is that is not what you're considering; so I would suggest a route through Arizona and New Mexico once you leave Calif or the west coast. The northern sections of these states also have winter weather to be forewarned of but with a little flexibility you can avoid the bad weather. Leaving Calif you can reach Nevada (Las Vegas) then the Grand Canyon and the red rock country of Arizona (Sedona for instance) If the weather is bad you can detour by travelling out of Calif on I 10 to Phx Tucson and into New Mexico. You'll need to explore what these areas have to offer; beautiful deserts, saguaro cacti etc.
If you went through Northern Arizona you can reach Santa Fe. Again I would be careful of the weather as travelling through the plains is tricky this time of year. You'll be reaching St. Louis and more decisions; go north and east or south and east. What you need to determine is what you want to see and why you want to see it and plan accordingly. At this time of year hotel rooms should be no problem so flexibility is available.
One last suggestion; althought eh interstate highway system is great; try toi get off the interstates whenever you have the time and get a glimpse of the small towns etc and you'll have a lot more contact withthe locals. The Ozarks in Missouri are beautiful; so are the Smokey mts in Tennessee and the Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia(i think?) Washinton DC is beautiful in the spring and so is New England. (lots of decisions to make!
Keep planning!

Nikole

Well unfortunately youre going to get stuck to a route due to the weather that time of year! Otherwise I would suggest going across the north, seeing Yellowstone, Badlands, Mt. Rushmore etc and then spending time in Seattle, Portland and San Francisco *depending on how much time you have*

But....you aren't going to be wanting to drive through Wyoming or Montana in Feb. or March! So maybe head down south. Again a lot of it depends on how much time you have. *and where you are starting from?* I personally am a beach lover so I"d probably drive down the coast see a few things like Williamsburg, HIlton head. Either way have fun

Nikole

oops sorry I was thinking from East to West!! either way most of it still applies!

Craig

Come down South through the deserts to the Gulf coast, then on to the deep South, up through the mid atlantic states, and once you get to Pennsylvania head west to the Poconos and toward up state New york. Then head on back through the great lakes, the midwest and the pacific northwest. I envy you!! I always wanted to drive across the country but always found "responsibilities" to get in the way. Have fun.

Paul Rabe

As noted earlier, your choice of time of year means you'll have to take a southern route. Suggested places to visit: Las Vegas, Grand Canyon (absolute, positive, **MUST SEE**), Zion Nat Park, Bryce Canyon, Carlsbad Caverns, White Sands, San Antonio, New Orleans, Vicksburg (if you want to see a city destroyed in our Civil War), Natchez (if you want to see a city totally untouched by the Civil War), Savannah, Charleston, and then up east coast to wherever you're gong.

hamlet

I did the East to West trip 5 years ago Starting from New Jersey we drove straight to Tennesse (wtih a stop in Natural Bridge VA) slept in Knoxville for the night and then had major stops for sightseeing in Nashville, Memphis, Santa Fe, Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, Santa Monica, Monterrey and we finished in San Francisco. I preferred to see the cities along I-40 in the south more than the northern or more central route.