Looking for suggestions for a drive from SoCal to central Texas

[Vic2021]

Hi all,

The movers picked up what goes in storage and it will be delivered the following Saturday in San Antonio.   We've been so busy we haven't planned our driving trip to San Antonio.

For Christmas we went from So Cal to Texas stopping in Tucson, Las Cruces (White Sands.) On the way back we stopped at Carlsbad and Tucson again.  

We have seven days.  We do need strong internet access on Wednesday and we would like to beat the heat a little.  

Any ideas on a route?  We like hiking and outdoorsy stuff.  Open to anything that's interesting.

Thanks.

Vicki 

P.S.  It occurs to me that road trip resources might be helpful.  We generally have a destination or theme in mind and plan around that.  Once we are in Texas we will be taking care of van registration and drivers licenses - setting up domicile.

[Kirk W]

Are you coming by car or by RV? And for a route it would help to know more specifically where you are leaving from as southern CA is a pretty big area. I-10 is probably the only reasonable route for the first part of the trip. Am I correct that this is your move to TX or does your 7 day time line mean that you will be returning to CA and are not yet moving to TX?

You would probably find Carlsbad Caverns well worth a visit and if you travel the US routes rather than interstates, San Angelo, TX is also a very nice stop with interesting things to see. It would then be easy to route through Fredericksburg, TX.

Edited September 17, 2021 by Kirk W

[2gypsies]

Since you took I-10 previously you could head up to I-40 stopping at the Grand Canyon and Flagstaff where there's Sunset Crater and Wupatki Nat'l Monument Indian Ruins and Walnut Canyon Nat'l Monument. Continue east on I-40 to Petrified Forest Nat'l Park and on to Albuquerque then head a little north on I-25 to Santa Fe, NM - very nice town with beautiful historic buildings and also good hiking.  Taos is nearby.  Then I-25 south to I-40 east again and at Amarillo, TX pick any of the highways to San Antonio.  Secondary highways in Texas are good.

[TXiceman]

On I-10, a great p lace to stop is Davis Mountains state park.  There is McDonald Observatory and historic Fort Davis.  Near by is Alpine and to the south the mysterious lights of Marfa.  Fort Davis is the highest elevation city in the state of Texas.

 

Ken

[ms60ocb]

35 minutes ago, TXiceman said:

On I-10, a great p lace to stop is Davis Mountains state park.  There is McDonald Observatory and historic Fort Davis.  Near by is Alpine and to the south the mysterious lights of Marfa.  Fort Davis is the highest elevation city in the state of Texas.

 

Ken

Ditto and this side trip gives a a chance to drive through the BIG BEND area and plan future trips.

Clay

[Barbaraok]

This time of year, it will be hot on I-10 all the way across Arizona.   After that it will be moderate.   Assume Livingston is the destination,  I'll second the recommendation of Ft. Davis (nice national monument there to the Buffalo Soldiers,  and the McDonald Observatory is fantastic.   Also spend a day around Fredricksburg (stop in at 'Russlin' Rob's' for salsa and hot sauces) lots of things to see in that area.   You didn't say how many miles you do each day, so it is kind of hard to give you any side jaunts you might want to do.  

[Vic2021]

Thanks Everyone for the great responses. We did two nights in Flagstaff and two in Santa Fe. We are at a hotel in Sweetwater before stopping in San Antonio tomorrow. 

We booked KOAs which has been a good start for us. The van is overstuffed with some items that will go in storage. 

Unfortunately we picked a bad moving company and now have no idea when our items will be shipped to San Antonio. We we will stop for a few days to visit family and then yes. We will finally make it to Livingston. 

Is the Escapees park tolerable in September without AC? 

After Livingston we plan to head to the East Coast for a fall color tours. Again we have none of that planned. Any tips are appreciated. We will go as far north as we can stand the cold. 

Thanks again for the replies. It's been a bumpy start, but we can smooth it out. 

Vicki 

[sandsys]

In Minnesota, parks shut off their water October 15th to prevent freezing pipes so you might want to head up here instead of taking the time this year to head for the east coast. We get lots of color in our leaves in October. Then you won't have so far to drive back in the cold as it's a straight shot down I-35 to San Antonio.

Linda Sand

[2gypsies]

Northern Michigan is also gorgeous the first 2 weeks of October. Then parks begin closing down.  Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore near Traverse City, MI is fantastic! We volunteered there for 9 Fall seasons.