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Best route to Pasadena?

Haydens Heroes

HB Heisman
Sep 19, 2003
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First time going to the Rose Bowl for my family and we were wondering what the best driving route to take would be. We are looking at dropping south of the Rockies even though that adds 3 hours or so.

Good place to stop on the way out there? Somewhere in the middle would be perfect.
 
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From iowa, 35 south through Kansas, to 40 okie, Texas, NM, AZ is the way to go, but there are some stretches that are brutally boring.

70 through Western Colorado, to 15 is a drive everybody should make at least once, but I wouldn't for this trip.

I have done both, and a few other variants multiple times.
 
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Well if you ever plan to motor west
Travel my way, take the highway that's the best
Get your kicks on Route 66

Well it winds from Chicago to LA
More than two thousands miles all the way
Get your kicks on Route 66

Well it goes to St. Louis
Down to Missouri
Oklahoma City looks oh so pretty
You'll see Amarillo
Gallup, New Mexico
Flagstaff, Arizona
Don't forget Wynonna
Kingman, Barstow, San Bernardino

Won't you get hip to this kindly tip
And go take that California trip
Get your kicks on Route 66

Well it goes to St. Louis
Down to Missouri
Oklahoma City looks oh so pretty
You'll see Amarillo
Gallup, New Mexico
Flagstaff, Arizona
Don't forget Wynonna
Kingman, Barstow, San Bernardino

Won't you get hip to this kindly tip
And go take that California trip
Get your kicks on Route 66
Get your kicks on Route 66
 
I-70 you are going through the heart of the Rocky Mountains, so there are major weather risks in the mounts. I-40 also goes through the Southern Rockies in New Mexico/Arizona and can get it's fair share of winter weather as well.

If it were me, I'd find a way to drive through Utah (weather permitting), it's one of the best scenic places there is.
 
First time going to the Rose Bowl for my family and we were wondering what the best driving route to take would be. We are looking at dropping south of the Rockies even though that adds 3 hours or so.

Go place to stop on the way out there? Somewhere in the middle would be perfect.

Would strongly consider dropping south before you get to the Rockies this time of the year.
 
If for some reason you decide to try to go through the 70 Rocky Mountain Pass through Utah, make sure you stop for gas in Grand Junction. There's no service in most places in Utah.

106 mile stretch with no service in Utah. Coming from Colorado, Green River, UT would be your last chance for service until Salina, Utah. Then on I-15 you have Cedar City and St.George.
 
I was thinking of driving and planned on doing south route. I drove to the Insight bowl in 2011 and it does get boring going across NM and AZ. Said I would never do it again. Crazy thing is, it was warmer in Northern Iowa than NM. I did the northern route one September when I was playing in softball in Lancaster Ca. No way would I do it this time of year.
 
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I was thinking of driving and planned on doing south route. I drove to the Insight bowl in 2011 and it does get boring going across NM and AZ. Said I would never do it again. Crazy thing is, it was warmer in Northern Iowa than NM. I did the northern route one September when I was playing in softball in Lancaster Ca. No way would I do it this time of year.
A lot of snow/rough driving conditions up in the mountains this time of year?
 
I'm not sure I'd drive through Colorado and Utah because of the weather/snow. I did that once in January 1995 and it was rough. Green River, UT is a strange place. Scenery is cool on that route though.

I drive to CR from Phoenix once a year and depending on time of year, I'll either take the northern route (Flagstaff) or the southern route (Tucson). Naturally, it depends on the weather because I try to avoid the snow. Some people have routes they prefer, but I prefer dry routes. NM takes forever to get through, but NE is brutal too. Also, getting to LA from Phoenix is easy money: I 10.
 
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Depends a bit on your time frame. Got to love Bryce and Zion and Moab. Utah one of prettiest states around then through Vegas down to LA. Watch the weather forcasts as more risky the further north you go. I've done both a few times too and prefer the Utah route generally
 
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The Amtrak would be the most scenic, think the California Zepher goes to San Fran though.
 
From iowa, 35 south through Kansas, to 40 okie, Texas, NM, AZ is the way to go, but there are some stretches that are brutally boring.

70 through Western Colorado, to 15 is a drive everybody should make at least once, but I wouldn't for this trip.

I have done both, and a few other variants multiple times.
I agree with this route, especially this time of year. I live in Northern California so if driving I'd take the 80 which gets unbearably boring at times, especially in Nebraska. But I've traveled the southern route via the 40 and i35. It's boring but mostly hassle free.
 
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I understand the winter weather concern, but the drive through Colorado via I-70 (the tunnel, Vail, Glenwood Canyon) really is something everyone should do once if at all possible.
 
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Im planning on taking I80 through Wyoming and heading south at Salt Lake City (weather permitting). Anybody ever try that route?
 
Im planning on taking I80 through Wyoming and heading south at Salt Lake City (weather permitting). Anybody ever try that route?[/QUOTE

Yes. I've done it many times (traveling from NorCal to Iowa). Unless there's a major storm, you should be fine. Being a major interstate, they generally keep the 80 open as much as possible.
 
Well, Ol' Doodle is something of an expert on this trip having driven Mlps/St. Paul to San Diego in May of 2010 and then again this year in June for vacation. Doodle will also be driving to Los Angeles for the Rose Bowl, and then just a shade over 2 weeks later, driving to San Diego for a company meeting.

Now, in May/June (both the 2010 and 2015 vacation trips)...the mountain route (I-70) through Colorado is absolutely gorgeous and almost devoid of weather issues and is absolutely the fastest way. Doodle says "almost devoid of weather issues" because actually on that 2010 trip, up near the peak of the elevation just west of the Eisenhower Tunnel we actually did see some snow flurries. Anyway, it is the quickest and most logical way to go to SoCal from the upper Midwest. But heed the warnings of others....the roughly 100-mile stretch through Utah between Green River and Salina LITERALLY has no services. It's not a joking, "Whoa...hahaha...dude we're out in the middle of nowhere". NO. It's absolutely 100% truth. There is NOTHING out there. No services whatsoever. The few exits you will see will say something like "no services, local access only". Basically, what that means is that all of the freeway exits in that stretch are essentially some rancher's driveway. Cell service can be spotty out there as well. As you approach Green River heading west, or Salina heading east, you'll see billboards and signs warning you to fill up on gas and whatnot because you're heading out into no man's land.

Anyway, for a Dec/Jan trip, you really shouldn't even be contemplating the I-70 route through the Rockies unless you plan on bringing chains with you. Doodle knows dozens of people in Denver, Breckenridge, Vail, Colorado Springs...frankly, all over the state. And even if all of them called Doodle an hour before the Doodlemobile was scheduled to trek through their area and said the weather was absolutely ideal....the fact remains that 15 minutes after hanging up that call, there could be a full-on blizzard. It's just a reality of the Rockies and frankly, not worth the risk.

So there are really two remaining viable routes to choose from, both of which assume heading south to KC and then on to Wichita. From Wichita it's either:

US-400/54 west to Tucumcari, NM where it connects to I-40. US-400/54 is 4-lane from Wichita to about Kingman (roughly 40 miles) and then the remaining 380+ is pretty much all 2-lane to Tucumcari/I-40.

or

If the weather is bad, or if you simply cannot stomach the thought of that much driving on a 2-laner (and who could blame you for that!?), or want to avoid small town speed traps, or are worried about the uncertainty of gas/convenience store availability (esp. late at night), then stick to the major interstates and take I-35 all the way to OKC and catch I-40 there. It adds almost exactly 100 miles to the trip vs. the route above, but if you can cover those 100 miles faster or with more peace of mind, then it may be worth it overall.

Assuming normal weather/road conditions and an average speed of 60MPH on the 400-mile US 400/54 route (due to slowing for truck traffic, going through small towns, etc.) and an average of 75MPH on the 500-mile I-35/40 route, the driving time would actually be virtually identical at right around 7 hours (assuming a couple of stops).

So it really comes down to weather/road conditions and your overall comfort level with each route.

Here are several links discussing the US 54 vs. I-40 choice.
http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopi...te_54_Wichita_Tumcumcari_good-Road_Trips.html
http://www.fodors.com/community/uni...rom-tucumcari-to-wichita-good-or-bad-idea.cfm
http://www.city-data.com/forum/wichita/207538-best-driving-route-phoenix-wichita.html
 
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Is the weather in Rockies really as volatile as Doodle mentions? Weather forecast could look fine, but then sudden storm?
 
Look up I-80 pile up in Wyoming, happened last year. Just a sad video to watch.
Went the Wyoming route on the way back from SD in 2010. One thing about Wyoming...the speed limit on the freeway is 75MPH (actually it might even be 80 now) which is all good and stuff....but beware...law enforcement in that state has NO tolerance for even 1 MPH over. Doodle got pulled over doing 77 (according to the trooper). He gave us a warning, but wow! Who ever heard of them even wasting their time with anything less than 5MPH over?! Perhaps at that speed (and especially if it's 80 now) they simply have to enforce a zero tolerance policy.
 
I've made the drive from Iowa to Southern California twice. The rockies are beautiful, but I wouldnt even considering making the drive in December. It was rough enough in August.
 
Yes, driving in the Mountains is not ideal in Colorado. Even some of the people who live out in Colorado hate driving through the mountains. Also, it could be snowing for hours and then all of a sudden could be 70. I agree with everyone though that that is the most scenic route and if you arent scared of driving 25 through snow and hills, that would be the way to go.
 
Is the weather in Rockies really as volatile as Doodle mentions? Weather forecast could look fine, but then sudden storm?
It may have been a slight exaggeration on Ol' Doodle's part in order to make a point. But yes, the problem is the change and the difference in weather patterns with the different altitudes along the route.

In the foothills on either side it may be 40-50 and sunny and hardly any snow on the ground. Then 60-90 minutes later when you're up near the Eisenhower Tunnel (which at 11,000+ feet is the highest elevation vehicle tunnel in the world), it could very easily be a full-fledged snowmageddon.

Mountain route is about 6 hours shorter than the southern route in perfect conditions. In Dec/Jan, you can certainly roll the dice and hope that the conditions will somehow be perfect. But the odds are pretty stacked against that being the case. So even if you do get through it...you likely won't have saved much (if any) time over the southern route.

I-70 through the mountains is an absolutely STUNNINGLY BEAUTIFUL drive that every American should make at least once in their lifetime (as others have said). Just try to do it sometime between June and September. :cool:
 
I'll be taking I-29 to Omaha, then taking a bird to LAX via Denver. Hopefully we don't hit a mountain.
 
I-70 you are going through the heart of the Rocky Mountains, so there are major weather risks in the mounts. I-40 also goes through the Southern Rockies in New Mexico/Arizona and can get it's fair share of winter weather as well.

If it were me, I'd find a way to drive through Utah (weather permitting), it's one of the best scenic places there is.
Bravo! Utah is absolutely beautiful country.
 
Definitely take Route 66 and not Lincoln Highway or Mormon Trail or Santa Fe Trail (or Oregon Trail). Even with Route 66, I once got hit by a snowstorm at Gallup, NM near the Rockies.
 
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If I could give one piece of advice, it would be to pack enough snacks for the entire trip.
 
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Thank you all for the helpful suggestions. Even for the non-helpful ones. ;)
I'd not go I-80 through Wyoming. The interstate stretch from Laramie to Rock Springs closes more than any other segment of interstate highway. Even if it hasn't snowed for a few days the blowing snow ices the road and causes white outs.
 
El Niño makes for a warmer upper Midwest, but more rain in California and more snow in mountains. Might consider dropping down to Texas via 35 and cross 20 and 10.

Only if time is not a factor

Give a little nod to Midland/Odessa on the way.
 
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