Road Trip!
 

I am planning a road trip starting in LA. and ending up in Texas for Thanksgiving. I was hoping to go the Grand Canyon for the first time, to Sedona and to see the Barringer Crater. And then head on through to New Mexico. I have never done a road trip like this alone before, nor have I visited either Arizona or New Mexico. I would be greatly for any and all suggestions! Thanks for much!

We did that road trip in the opposite direction this summer. We basically drove I-40 from Amarillo to L.A. with a little "jog" up to Las Vegas. A similar routing should work for you if you want to see Meteor Crater, the Grand Canyon and Sedona. A couple of other interesting places in Arizona and New Mexico along I-40 which are worth a stop are the Petrified Forest National Park (eastern Arizona) and El Morro National Monument, southeast of Gallup, NM.

Once you hit Albuquerque, you'll probably be adjusting your route from I-40 (unless your destination is Amarillo or the Panhandle). If your drive is towards West Texas, be sure to stop at Carlsbad Caverns.

If you say what your final destination is in Texas, I can probably suggest some places to see there (unless you are familiar with Texas already.)

Check this website a day or two before you start out. http://www.nps.gov/grca/planyourvisi...-condition.htm
Expect to see some snow and feel some bone chilling winds.
The crater will be a rather desolate place.

Where are you ending up at in Texas? I like Guadalupe National Park and Carlsbad National Park and they might be close to your route. You could add Petrified Forest too. You could include anything from Tucson or even Santa Fe(snow skiing). Huge variety to pick from.

Thank you so much for your replies! While I was born in Dallas, I moved to California when I was small, so I really haven't experienced much traveling in Texas. I have a relative in Houston so I plan to stop there and then end up in Austin, where my niece lives. I am grateful for any suggestions as to fun things to see in Texas. And I really appreciate of all the useful info on where to check the weather, other possible side trips in both Arizona and New Mexico, and routes. I didn't want to have to board my dogs and since I have always wanted to do a road trip like this, I am pretty excited. Planning it alone though is somewhat of a daunting task however, so again, thanks for all the help!

You might enjoy Acoma Pueblo http://www.puebloofacoma.org, which isn't far off I-40 between Grants and Albuquerque. I'm not sure what you would do with your dogs while you visit the pueblo, though.

Take a day or so to visit Carlsbad Caverns National Park. www.nps.gov/cave

Lee Ann

Travelling with dogs will limit some of your activities. For instance, you can take your dogs on a leash on the rim trails at the Grand Canyon, but you can't take them on the trails below the rim. At Carlsbad Caverns, you'd have to use their kennel service (for a fee) while you toured the cave. And, of course, you wouldn't be able to tour any of the visitors centers since pets are not allowed in government buildings and it's not safe to leave pets unattended in your car. So, be sure to check the pet policies for all the places you plan to visit before you leave home.

Since your first destination in Texas is Houston, I'd recommend cutting down from Albuquerque to Ft. Stockton, TX (through Carlsbad, NM) and pick up I-10 to Houston. Make a stop in San Antonio to see the Alamo (you can't go inside because of the dogs, however), to walk along the Riverwalk and/or see the San Antonio Missions Historic Park (again, no dogs inside the buildings).

On your return to LA, you could drive from Austin through Fredericksburg to pick up I-10. Fredericksburg has some really cool shops, galleries and museums, but you can't take the dogs into any of them. But you could go hiking outside of town at Enchanted Rock with your dogs. From F'burg, you can take I-10 on the southern route through Tucson and Phoenix back to LA. You might even want to take a detour to White Sands, NM.

I really enjoyed The White Sands