Time frame is January 2020; 9 January to be exact.

Normally I would simply look at a map or follow my GPS instructions. We have done the trip once before but purposely routed ourselves along the Salton Sea which we had never seen. This time around we simply want to get from A to B although if there is some sort of "scenery" to be viewed we would be interested in that.
Is taking Rte 371 east off of I-15 worthwhile or more trouble than it might be worth?
We have all day to get there and thanks for any recommendations.

Since you have plenty of time, consider going east on I-8 beyond Alpine to 79 and north though Julian & Santa Ysabel. I haven't continued all the way to 371/74 into Palm Desert but have gone from Palm Springs to Temecula & enjoyed the desert mountain scenery far more than I-15.

MmePerdu,

Interesting suggestion and thank you.

I meant to mention, Julian https://visitjulian.com/ is known for it's fruit orchards and related businesses & is a nice place to stop for lunch or just the apple pie it's famous for.

And Dudley's Bakery in Santa Ysabel: https://www.dudleysbakery.com/

Be sure to check weather in January and road conditions if you decide to take the mountain route through Alpine, etc. This year it looks to be dry right now but last year much of those areas were problematic.

I personally like the idea since it is January of going through Temecula instead and stopping in the old town for lunch. We ate at a place celled the Goat and Vine which was really yummy-casual but still nice range of menu

The Goat and Vine

Jpie,

thank you for that recommendation and the caution as to road conditions. Believe me, I share the concern about roads. I am simply not going to be in any mood to have to negotiate anything despite my own history of growing up driving on treacherous routes in Winter. I love in South Florida now where the only hills we have are overpasses and landfills.

I have road conditions on the mind since I am going to be making a drive from Seattle to Palm Springs starting this Saturday, so I am watching Southern CA. pass conditions (as well as OR/Northern CA pass) closely at the moment. They are actually predicting a fairly heavy snowfall tonight on the passes north of LA-luckily that should be long gone by the time I get there around New Years Eve. Luckily that won't affect you coming from San Diego anyway. But much as I love Julian and Alpine, I probably wouldn't drive that route in January. Although really it may just depend on the actual conditions on the 9th-it could be fine. Like you I grew up in snowy wintery weather but after many years in the NW I definitely don't like to drive in winter conditions anymore.

Either way have a fun trip-the drive either way should be fun and that whole area is relatively scenic.

That's useful additional information. Skip "interesting" then & go for flatter/straighter, the freeway.

Thanks all for your comments and recommendations. In the end I may just wait and watch to see what the weather and road conditions are like on the day. Sometimes, "mountain routes" and the various stop-offs aren't all that worthwhile but hearing about the ones above was very helpful.

Yes I am with you-you can never really tell about the conditions in that area until the day you want to go. But I will add that the mountain routes are really lovely during the spring and summer months when we have gone and a wonderful way to avoid the heat those times of year!

Dukey1-I just arrived in Palm Springs from my looong drive from Seattle. I took the trip slowly-stopping overnight in Portland, Ashland OR, Sacramento and then Bakersfield. All the mountain passes were clear (Yay!) but there was a fair amount of snow on the side of the roads near Tehachapi on the pass coming down towards San Bernadino.

My cousin drove over yesterday from San Diego and she told me that there is an area of the "60" highway that is down to one lane and now she has shifted her route to catch highway 79 north just north of Temecula up to Beaumont and it is a much better route due to the construction. Here is a map of the route:



She said she made it yesterday from her house to the Palm Springs tram visitors bureau at the entrance to town in just over 2 hours. Anyway I just wanted to mention it since she said the route is much better than continuing up the 215 due to construction.

Jpie,

thank you very much for that update. It is appreciated.