Driving Cross country in December

[Rex Vincere]

My plans for driving cross country in mid-October fell through due to
illness, and now I will need to drive in End of November/early December.
I am driving from NYC to Seattle, and driving a VW Golf in good shape with
new all-seasons. The car will be loaded to the hilt including stuff on the
roof (moving).

I am wondering what the best route would be. My October route would have
been I-80 / I-90.
How treatcherous would that same route be in December? One could always
check the weather report I suppose, but I really don't want to get stuck
somewhere in the middle waiting out a surprise blizzard for a week.

So, I am looking for suggestions.
I thought of I-40 across, but it adds at least 3 days to the trip. Is it
worth going all the way down to 40, ir is I-70 enough?

Any alternatives to interstates that would be fun if I am south enough to
not get snowed in?

Any other advice welcome.

Rex

[Harry K]

Post by Rex Vincere
My plans for driving cross country in mid-October fell through due to
illness, and now I will need to drive in End of November/early December.
I am driving from NYC to Seattle, and driving a VW Golf in good shape with
new all-seasons. The car will be loaded to the hilt including stuff on the
roof (moving).
I am wondering what the best route would be. My October route would have
been I-80 / I-90.
How treatcherous would that same route be in December? One could always
check the weather report I suppose, but I really don't want to get stuck
somewhere in the middle waiting out a surprise blizzard for a week.
So, I am looking for suggestions.
I thought of I-40 across, but it adds at least 3 days to the trip. Is it
worth going all the way down to 40, ir is I-70 enough?
Any alternatives to interstates that would be fun if I am south enough to
not get snowed in?
Any other advice welcome.
Rex

The 180/90 route would be the best. I have made that trip many times
both before and after the interstates. Only once (late Dec 68) was I
held up by weather and even then it was only a matter of driving very
slowly for the first 4 hours. I have had to make an unsched
overnighter due to weather in both Texas and Colorado (different
trips). Just plan on one but it is unlikely to be necessary. My best
time for the trip was 3 days (Syracuse/Spokane). Interstates are well
maintained and cleared rapidly after storms. Only rarely do the real
storms occur and these days they are predicted well in advance.

One thing. Keep your speed down. Your car is going to handle like a
pig (BTDT too).

Harry K

[John S.]

Post by Rex Vincere
My plans for driving cross country in mid-October fell through due to
illness, and now I will need to drive in End of November/early December.
I am driving from NYC to Seattle, and driving a VW Golf in good shape with
new all-seasons. The car will be loaded to the hilt including stuff on the
roof (moving).
I am wondering what the best route would be. My October route would have
been I-80 / I-90.
How treatcherous would that same route be in December? One could always
check the weather report I suppose, but I really don't want to get stuck
somewhere in the middle waiting out a surprise blizzard for a week.
So, I am looking for suggestions.
I thought of I-40 across, but it adds at least 3 days to the trip. Is it
worth going all the way down to 40, ir is I-70 enough?
Any alternatives to interstates that would be fun if I am south enough to
not get snowed in?
Any other advice welcome.
Rex

I've hit snow in Wyoming in June, so I would avoid I-80 and the more
northern I-90 in December. Even if you don't hit snow a breakdown
could leave you stranded in very cold country. Stay south on I-40 and
watch the speed especially around large trucks with what sounds like a
top heavy and loaded VW.

If you need to get there in the shortest possible time and the northern
route is the only option just keep up with weather forecasts.

[fbloogyudsr]

Post by Rex Vincere
I am wondering what the best route would be. My October route would have
been I-80 / I-90.
How treatcherous would that same route be in December? One could always
check the weather report I suppose, but I really don't want to get stuck
somewhere in the middle waiting out a surprise blizzard for a week.
So, I am looking for suggestions.
I thought of I-40 across, but it adds at least 3 days to the trip. Is it
worth going all the way down to 40, ir is I-70 enough?

I think I agree with Harry. The reason is that any weather system that
impacts I90 will usually hit I80 & I70 as well. In many respects I90 is
better because it's route through the northern tier (Montana especially)
is easier than I80/I70 through the CO/WY/UT area. In your place, I
would probably go I80 until you get into the IL/Iowa area, then go up
to I90. Don't hit Chicago near rush hour(s) - Brent says to pay the
tolls and don't go I90 there in any case.

FloydR

[Ted B.]

Post by Rex Vincere
My plans for driving cross country in mid-October fell through due to
illness, and now I will need to drive in End of November/early December.
I am driving from NYC to Seattle, and driving a VW Golf in good shape with
new all-seasons. The car will be loaded to the hilt including stuff on the
roof (moving).
I am wondering what the best route would be. My October route would have
been I-80 / I-90.
How treatcherous would that same route be in December?

Not very. You might see a little snow in spots, but the INTERSTATES 80/90
tend to stay pretty clear anyway, even during snowfalls. The only worry
would be if you happen to drive into a freak early blizzard in the Dakotas
section or further West. The odds of that happening are really low though.
If you can find room somewhere, carry a coffee can or similar metal
container, candles, waterproof matches, candy bars and blankets with you. A
cell phone is handy, but much of the area where blizzards would be an issue,
there is NO SIGNAL. So you should be prepared to survive a few days in the
car, just in case. But don't expect anything to happen. The trip will
probably be very boring, and that's good. That's not saying you shouldn't
be prepared for the worst, though. -Dave

[223rem]

You should consider either towing a mini trailer or renting
a moving truck and a car trailer. That's what I would do.
Overloading a car is not a good idea - make sure you do not
exceed its maximum load, and piling stuff on the roof will make
crosswinds a hazard.

[Rex Vincere]

The weight is not a problem (all the heavy stuff like books have been
shipped). An on top I will have a big Thule box (hoping they are aerodynamic
enough against x-winds) and a bike. I might go for the Sears box which is
bigger and boxier if I need to. (about 150 lbs of stuff + the box + plus the
bike (25lbs)
Inside will be a maximum of 350 lbs (that's what the car takes if I filled
it with boxes of books, and I am not carrying books), and I am going to put
a truck bed net behind the driver's row to stop objects from flying in case
of emergency braking/crashing.

I thought of a truck and a car trailer, but decided driving something I have
no experience in driving/handling in possible winter conditions is even less
smart, no?

Rex

Post by 223rem
You should consider either towing a mini trailer or renting
a moving truck and a car trailer. That's what I would do.
Overloading a car is not a good idea - make sure you do not
exceed its maximum load, and piling stuff on the roof will make
crosswinds a hazard.

[Shawn Hirn]

Post by Rex Vincere
The weight is not a problem (all the heavy stuff like books have been
shipped). An on top I will have a big Thule box (hoping they are aerodynamic
enough against x-winds) and a bike. I might go for the Sears box which is
bigger and boxier if I need to. (about 150 lbs of stuff + the box + plus the
bike (25lbs)
Inside will be a maximum of 350 lbs (that's what the car takes if I filled
it with boxes of books, and I am not carrying books), and I am going to put
a truck bed net behind the driver's row to stop objects from flying in case
of emergency braking/crashing.
I thought of a truck and a car trailer, but decided driving something I have
no experience in driving/handling in possible winter conditions is even less
smart, no?

How much do you value your time? Unless your time is worthless, I would
just sell that car and as many of the items you plan to bring with you
as possible, then ship the rest and buy yourself the cheapest possible
plane ticket to Seattle. You'll save a huge amount of time and hassle
that way.

[Healeyman]

The first part of your trip will always be to Chicago.

From Chicago, if you were to take 94 and go north through Minneap, Bismark,
Billings, and Walla Walla, the distance is 2870 miles.

From Chicago, if you were to take 90 through Sioux Falls, and Rapid City,
Billings, the distance is 2911 miles.

From Chicago, if you were to take 81 through Des Moins, Lincoln, Cheyenne,
Salt Lake, then take 84/82 on to Seattle, the distance is 2976 miles.

From Chicago, down 55 to St Louis, then 70 west to KC, Denver, over to Salt
Lake, and 84/82 up to Seattle, the distance is 3131 miles.

The difference between the northernmost I-94/90 route and the southernmost
I-70 route is only 261 miles. That should only add 4 hours to your trip,
not 3 days.

I'd pick a route that avoids the (bad) weather at the time and don't worry
about how much longer it takes.

Better SAFE than SORRY.

Post by Rex Vincere
My plans for driving cross country in mid-October fell through due to
illness, and now I will need to drive in End of November/early December.
I am driving from NYC to Seattle, and driving a VW Golf in good shape with
new all-seasons. The car will be loaded to the hilt including stuff on the
roof (moving).
I am wondering what the best route would be. My October route would have
been I-80 / I-90.
How treatcherous would that same route be in December? One could always
check the weather report I suppose, but I really don't want to get stuck
somewhere in the middle waiting out a surprise blizzard for a week.
So, I am looking for suggestions.
I thought of I-40 across, but it adds at least 3 days to the trip. Is it
worth going all the way down to 40, ir is I-70 enough?
Any alternatives to interstates that would be fun if I am south enough to
not get snowed in?
Any other advice welcome.
Rex