mrwunrfl

Am planning to drive from northern Virginia to southern California.

It will be me and my car with a couple of suitcases of clothes and stuff in the trunk. Leaving September 12 or 13 and arriving in the L.A. area on Sept. 24. Maybe I could leave a day or two earlier.

I could use some advice on how to do this. The longest driving trip I have done was Milwaukee to Pittsburgh and I stopped overnight in Dayton! Am wondering if a CB would be useful. Maybe a radar detector if it would be legal, after leaving Virginia?

The obvious route is I-66 west to I-81 south to around Knoxville and then I-40 all the way to Barstow and I-15, etc. Stops in Knoxville, Memphis, Hot Springs AR, Oklahoma City, Amarillo, Albuquerque, Flagstaff.

Would like to stop in Shreveport LA (Bossier City) to visit Louisiana Downs. A Rangers game in Dallas. This route would be Knoxville, Memphis, Hot Springs, Shreveport, Dallas, OK City, etc.

I have never been to the deep south, so the other option I am considering is: Knoxville, Birmingham AL, Vicksburg MI (maybe), Shreveport, Dallas, OK City, etc. The reasoning for this is that I probably will make it to Memphis and Nashville some day, and the trip to Arkansas would best be done in the spring when Oaklawn Park is open (e.g. to see the Arkansas Derby).

I don't have any good reason for driving through Alabama and Mississippi except for the fact that I have never been there and would like to see what it is like.

I suppose there are two ways to go about driving with sightseeing. First would be to drive in the morning, check in to a motel on the interstate, go sightseeing and return to the hotel, then be right there at the interstate the next morning for the next day's drive. Second way would be to drive in the afternoon into the city arriving at 6PM or 7PM, then sightsee in the morning. Or some other routine?

tracys2cents

I just have two comments...one is that when driving through some of the southern states like Tennessee, radar won't help you with the unmarked cop cars - and 15mph over the speed limit in some counties means a court appearance not just a ticket. PROCEED WITH CAUTION!

If you go through Salisaw Oklahoma, stop at Lesley's Cafe, best piece of pie I've ever had. Get a piece TO GO, as well, or two hours further down the I-40 you will be making a u-turn and heading back to Lesley's.

rkkwan

About the radar detector, if you haven't used one before, then don't get one now for this trip. To "properly use" one takes a lot of observations on police practice, and to decipher what a beep means - as often it'd be false alarm. It also isn't very useful to protect against instant-on radar and laser. Without "learning" how to use one, you're actually more likely to get a ticket with one than without.

Also, most states you're travelling through have limits of 70-75mph (The Texas Panhandle may have 80mph). You'll be okay within 10mph of limit - which should be fast enough. And while in The West, like W. Texas, NM, & AZ, if you really want to drive super fast, then you can still do it as there's really no place for cop cars to hide. They usually don't cruise rural interstates to write speeding tickets either.

As for lodging, by mid-September, summer roadtrips will have died down, and you should not have problem finding motels anywhere, even late at night. Just spend your time tour the place. If you get in late, then sleep then tour. If you get in to a city early, tour and find the hotel. Don't need to plan too much ahead.

Well, that's unless you want to use Priceline and bid for better hotels enroute for about the same price as a motel. Then you need to plan.

rkkwan

BTW, you'll save some miles by taking US287 from the Dallas-Ft. Worth metroplex to Amarillo. That's unless you really want to see OKC.

ronkala

rkkwan is correct about speeding above the limit. We drove from Woodsotck to San Diego last September, stayed a steady 10 MPH above the posted limit, passed several parked police cars with radar, and had no problems. Do be wary of construction zone limits though.

As for the wide open spaces, the Canadian driver who entered the US at Portal, ND ahead of us two weeks ago must have been stunned when he was pulled over on wide open route 52. There were very few cars going in either direction, and no plce to hide, but a sherrif nabbed him.

mrwunrfl

Ok, then no problem with speed because 75 to 80 mph is fast enough for me.

I was planning on stopping in Oklahoma City but I see that US 287 would save about 100 miles. Would the average mph be as high on that leg as on the interstate?

I'll be able to stop at Lesley's only if I go the shortest route since Salislaw is east of OK City. So it's a Rangers baseball game and a day at La Downs vs pie. Quite a dilemma.

rkkwan

US287 is very fast. Speed limit is 70 (or maybe higher now), divided highway with no lights. Only place where it's slow is Wichita Falls with several traffic lights through downtown. But that only adds a few minutes.

ElendilPickle

>>Also, most states you're travelling through have limits of 70-75mph (The Texas Panhandle may have 80mph).<<

Speed limits are 70 in OK and TX, 75 in NM.

>>And while in The West, like W. Texas, NM, & AZ, if you really want to drive super fast, then you can still do it as there's really no place for cop cars to hide<<

There certainly are places for police cars to hide in New Mexico and Arizona; I see them fairly frequently along I-40.

Do watch out for construction zones; there are a couple in Albuquerque and at least one west of town right now.

Lee Ann

MikePinTucson

If you end up taking the route through Dallas, you might want to consider taking I-20, connecting with I-10. Then you could continue on I-8 to San Diego and up the coast, or continue on I-10 through AZ and into L.A. Speed limit through AZ is 75.

rkkwan

TX Governor Rick Perry signed into law a few weeks ago, raising the maximum speed limit in TX to 80mph. I said "may" because it'd depend on whether new signs are actually put up there or not. But I-40 through the TX Panhandle should be a candidate for 80mph limit.

Of course I don't mean one can drive through the states of NM and AZ superfast. I mean there are certain stretches where it's pretty flat and one can see if there's any cop cars. [But one will also need to check oncoming cops; and also don't do it at night.]