south missouri to south texas

[rjack]

we want to make a first trip to the texas coast for a month or so beginning end of january...25"FB...and want to be on the waterfront in a pastoral setting. glitzy amenities unnecessary. routing suggestions? site suggestions? two geezers and a dog. rjg

[Melody Ranch]

Arroyo Colorado. There are numerous places for your stay.

[SteveH]

I have three site suggestions, Matagorada Island State Park, Mustang Island State Park, and Cameron County Park at South Padre Island. Have a nice trip.

[soldiermedic]

OOOOOOOOO West Plains!

Ran through there a couple of times working at the wheel welding plant.

Most direct route is 35 all the way through, might I suggest a stop in San Antonio at the esteemed Mi Tierra Cafe and Bakery.

Steve

[blmitch5]

Originally Posted by rjack

we want to make a first trip to the texas coast for a month or so beginning end of january...25"FB...and want to be on the waterfront in a pastoral setting. glitzy amenities unnecessary. routing suggestions? site suggestions? two geezers and a dog. rjg

Well if your back in April join us at the Air Midwest Rally! Heres the info.


Airstream Forums - Air midwest spring airstream rally, branson west mo.

Have a great trip!

[Dave Park]

Given that CO and NM are "out of the way" I'd suggest driving down into east Arkansas, cutting across to Tupelo, MS (nice countryside en route). After Tupelo, hop on the Natchez Trace Pkwy south. It's a 55mph state park that's 500 ids wide and 444 miles long. Follow that from Tupelo to Natchez. From there, you can go through middle Louisiana, avoiding the south I-10 route to south TX (That stretch of I-10 is the MOST BORING HIGHWAY IN AMERICA!)

From Natchez, west into mid-LA and Caddo Lake, TX, you can follow decent backroads across to pick up Hwy 79, which is a lovely rural route through some lovely small towns. That dumps you out at I-35 in Austin, where you can jaunt down to San Antonio and Fredericksburg and head south.

Overall, a route like that adds about 150 miles to a "direct freeway" route, but you'll not see a single high-rise on your way, and LOTS of nicer countryside. Plenty of history on the way.

Lots of variations can be made on that theme, like skipping Natchez Trace and just heading for Arkansas. LA. TX.

Alternatively, you could do the part of historic Rte 66 as far as Amarillo, then come down the panhandle, though that can feel a little desolate at times. If you do that, check out Paloduro Canyons (be aware of road work closures in the state park).

[slowmover]

Originally Posted by Dave Park

Given that CO and NM are "out of the way" I'd suggest driving down into east Arkansas, cutting across to Tupelo, MS (nice countryside en route). After Tupelo, hop on the Natchez Trace Pkwy south. It's a 55mph state park that's 500 ids wide and 444 miles long. Follow that from Tupelo to Natchez. From there, you can go through middle Louisiana, avoiding the south I-10 route to south TX (That stretch of I-10 is the MOST BORING HIGHWAY IN AMERICA!)

From Natchez, west into mid-LA and Caddo Lake, TX, you can follow decent backroads across to pick up Hwy 79, which is a lovely rural route through some lovely small towns. That dumps you out at I-35 in Austin, where you can jaunt down to San Antonio and Fredericksburg and head south.

Overall, a route like that adds about 150 miles to a "direct freeway" route, but you'll not see a single high-rise on your way, and LOTS of nicer countryside. Plenty of history on the way.

Lots of variations can be made on that theme, like skipping Natchez Trace and just heading for Arkansas. LA. TX.

Alternatively, you could do the part of historic Rte 66 as far as Amarillo, then come down the panhandle, though that can feel a little desolate at times. If you do that, check out Palo Duro Canyon (be aware of road work closures in the state park).

X2 This is excellent routing!!

I-35 should always be avoided. Any north-south travel in Texas is good on US-281, some miles to the west of 35: better scenery, no big cities except San Antonio (pick up Interstate 37-South to Exit 56 [town of George West] to get back on 281 to the Rio Grande Valley; avoid US-77).

Hwy-16 is some miles to the west of 281 and an even more interesting road. (See Enchanted Rock).