Special Ops Mission CA to TX

[Mr & Mrs S]

The things I get myself into......( Mods if you want to move this thread that fine by me, wasn't sure where to post this)

Okay first off the situation:

My brother & sister-in- law live, work, and raise there two small children out of a 45 foot fifth wheel chasing jobs all over the country. Well a couple months back they had the worst luck anyone could have. First their trailer suffered a leak which flooded the trailer for an entire day while they were gone resulting in damages totaling 17,000 dollars. So my sister-in-law and the kids had to fly back home to Texas while brother-in-law remained in California bunking with a friend to continue working while their trailer was in the shop. Not two days after he flies his family home he gets laid off from work! All of this happened just before Christmas. So he had to return home to find a job and was forced to leave his truck and trailer in California.

So as of now.....

Well now they have found work back in Texas and they are getting back on their feet and life's looking better. Now their trailer is nearly completed but there's only one problem....... Brother-in-law is working 7 days a week 12 hours a day...........

Yea now you see where Mr S comes into the picture.

I couldn't stand the thought of my sister-in-law trying to bring that trailer home (45 foot long) by herself traveling over 2200 miles.
So good ole Mr. S to the rescue, I'm now arranging to fly from Vietnam to San Jose, California around February 17th so that I can bring the family their house on wheels. Eli ( my nephew) told me he wants his bedroom back. (He's only 5)

So I'm sure your wondering what this has to do with Airforums. Well I've never driven that far out west, so I'm trying to plan my fastest, safest, and least stressful way home. I know weather will play a big role in this and I'll be monitoring it closely as I get closer to time to make this trip.
I took a snap shot from my iPad of a suggested route which directs me further south mostly following I-10 through Phoenix and Tucson, El Paso, San Antonio, Houston then Home ( Newton, TX)

Would that be my best route? Is there long stretches where I won't be able to find Diesel? Any certain rest stops I should avoid? I mainly plan to catch naps along the way at rest areas vs. setting up at RV parks.


Any info to help me choose a route will be greatly appreciated.

[barrettjl]

Hi,

We've traveled I-10 from Junction, TX through El Paso, Phoenix and on to Los Angeles. I don't recall any problems finding places to stop, even along the long stretches of nothing-but-sagebrush in West Texas. Since that is a big trucking route, I can't imagine you would have trouble finding diesel.

If you do go that way, I recommend a stop at Cooper's BBQ in Junction, TX. It is just off the highway, and we had no trouble parking with the trailer (there were some big rigs there as well).

[Top]

Mr. S,
Looks like a nice little trip. I would take the Northern route through Flagstaff and ABQ.Then take this route from Snyder to Newton.

[Bluto]

I agree with Top on taking a Northern route.
A few months ago I drove thru El Paso with trailer in tow. It was a white knuckle drive with all the traffic and crazy drivers. If you do end up going thru El Paso try going thru there at an odd hour when there is less traffic. Like a fool, I tried it mid afternoon.

[Bob Thompson]

I've traveled that area quite a bit at this time of year, I'd take the I-10 route. Winter storms can make travel on I-40 difficult, especially thru Flagstaff and all the way to Albuquerque, while I-10 will most likely be dry all the way. Once you get east of El Paso the weather will not likely be an issue.

[azflycaster]

I recently drove (with Trailer) through El Paso after the rush hour and it was the worst section of driving on our 3500 mile trip. It was so bad that we went a hundred miles way out of our way to avoid it on the return trip.

I-40 is an option, but weather can be a factor. Winter storms will roll into the Flagstaff area making driving impossible and stranding motorist along the way.

[mojo]

I agree with all the above but I would take bad traffic over bad weather. But the winter has been mild and the roads have been cleared quickly with warm sun following the snows. So it all depends on the weather forecast the day you leave. And you can always dive down south to I-10 if the weather changes in route.

[Bob Thompson]

I've passed thru El Paso many times and yes traffic is bad. Yes, they drive as crazy as they do in Miami. The "key" is to get in the lane right next to the fast lane and stay in it. Works every time. Actually, that trick works in many of the cities we've passed thru.

[REDNAX]

That's a big trailer to maneuver. "Fastest" is not relevant, steady is the real key. Keep the days to under 600-miles, have fuel and food stops planned in advance (use Google street view) or use truck stops as default for all food and fuel. Flying J is the default truck stop chain. Also, Wal-Mart. Your driving is business, not pleaure, so treat it as the job it deserves to be. Stop always before dark, stop every two hours to stretch/restroom break, and stop for one hour past every four of driving (truck driver rules). Walk around rig at every stop to check for problems; have alternates to all potential problems as well.

[Silver Goose]

Diesel will not be a problem on either I-40 or I-10. US 287 from Amarillo to Fort Worth is a 4-lane divided highway 99% of the way and is a truck route so diesel is readily available on that leg also. Parking areas and campgrounds are easily found. The northern route will save you about 100 miles and will avoid Los Angeles and El Paso, but as others have said I-40 across AZ and NM has the potential to be a problem in February. If you keep a close eye on the weather before you get to the split and there are no storms forecast from Flagstaff through north Texas, you should be okay with the northern route. Otherwise I would be tempted to take the southern route.

[Mr & Mrs S]

Thanks everyone for throwing in suggestions/ experiences, it will all be taken into account while I'm charting out my course. I would rather take the more northerly route as some have suggested but weather will play a large role in that being possible or not. I do want to say that when I said fastest route I didn't mean as driving 85+ with this monster trailer. I was just meaning by a steady pace avoiding road construction zones or roads closed due to weather.
I will admit I was shocked that out of all the cities I will pass through the only bad one people seem to mention is El Paso!?! I didn't think there would be much to that city, guess I was wrong. That's why I asked for suggestion and help, you just never know. People that have done it are the best ones to ask.
Thanks everyone. Ill be sure to keep everyone posted on how the trip goes, hopefully I won't encounter any trouble or problems along the way.

[REDNAX]

El Paso isn't that bad. One can take the Transmountain Road/375 bypass, for instance, but it's more of a scenic diversion than a time-saver. EP only seems bad because it's a bottleneck on an otherwise fast moving Interstate.

IMO, IH-40 just isn't worth it this time of year. A few hours of winds, alone, make it undesirable by comparison to the southern route.

.

[Mr & Mrs S]

Originally Posted by REDNAX

El Paso isn't that bad. One can take the Transmountain Road/375 bypass, for instance, but it's more of a scenic diversion than a time-saver. EP only seems bad because it's a bottleneck on an otherwise fast moving Interstate.

IMO, IH-40 just isn't worth it this time of year. A few hours of winds, alone, make it undesirable by comparison to the southern route.

.

Thanks for your feedback REDNAX, I was kinda worried about EP after reading everyone's post.

[Airslide]

Originally Posted by REDNAX

That's a big trailer to maneuver. "Fastest" is not relevant, steady is the real key. Keep the days to under 600-miles, have fuel and food stops planned in advance (use Google street view) or use truck stops as default for all food and fuel. Flying J is the default truck stop chain. Also, Wal-Mart. Your driving is business, not pleaure, so treat it as the job it deserves to be. Stop always before dark, stop every two hours to stretch/restroom break, and stop for one hour past every four of driving (truck driver rules). Walk around rig at every stop to check for problems; have alternates to all potential problems as well.

This is well written and good advice...