driving down feb/march

[cottontail]

Hi:

Anyone from Canada who has driven down end of february and the beginning of march. How was the drive. Which route did you take, and did you run into any bad weather, fog that time of year?

Thanks,

Deb.

 

[binwinbinwin]

We drove down to Florida in early March 2007 and went via I-75 through Windsor/Detroit. We didn't have any problems on I-75 (it's a fairly straight route with lots of exits for gas, hotels and restaurants). We were lucky since we had good weather during our trip (no March snow storms). Some people buy the book Along-Interstate-75 by Dave Hunter, which provides lots of information on rest stops, restaurants, hotels, gas stations, local radio stations, tourist attractions and useful driving tips. The book is sold at CAA and Chapters, as well as at i75online.com Just be careful when driving through the mountains of Tennessee, which sometimes can be treacherous due to rain, fog or snow.

 

[CanadianGuy]

We made this trip last year, coming from Eastern Canada. (Feb24 to Mar 04) We did end up (long story) taking a section of I-81 and I-77 ... the tip about driving thru the mountains is a good one. We saw several accidents along the way in the mountainous areas.

Also - we saw LOTS of rain once we got below Pennsylvania. If you're driving your car make sure you have good wipers and why not have your car checked out by a mechanic before the trip!

Knox

 

[disneyfan2]

Not sure of Exact directions, but we crossed at Queenston Lewiston and it was great we had a mid afternoon flight. But there was a Huge snowstorm here in Ontario (Mid Feb) while id Disney. That was my biggest fear because buffalo tends to get more snow then us. That is one big concern i have with Flying Jan-Feb out of Buffalo. I would hate to have our flights delay or cancelled because of snow storm. However, we were already in Florida. Too bad it didn't cancel our flights home i could have used an extra day in WDW...

 

[striker3636]

We have driven down twice in late Jan/early-mid Feb via I75. One trip was fine until we hit a snow storm Ohio on the way back. We were towing our trailer, and our tow vehicle was awesome, but had we been using anything else, we would have had to stop. (big Chev Suburban). Our second trip we hit a major storm through the mountains on the way back. It was extremely scary, and had there been a place to safely pull off for a while, we would have. There were additional challenges with lane closures due to construction. It's a good thing it was the wee hours and the kids were asleep - very stressful. We hit fog on the way down through the mountains - thick, but not enough to cause major delays.

Make sure you allow for additional drive time in the event of bad weather, breakdowns, or construction. Obviously if the trip down is uneventful, you have extra time at WDW, and on the way back, time to chill at home before back to work/school.

Dave Hunter's "Along the I75" is a must - it helps with finding everything from accomodations to 24 hr gas stations. It is well worth the money!

 

[Disneyof3]

The last 3 years we did I79 to I77 to I?. Any way we went through Buffalo to Ohio to North Carolina and that way. The weather was my main concern with going through the mountains. Basically it was the day we left the decision was made depending on the weather. The weather was all times fine and no problems while in the mountains. The first year we did I75 and on the way back we hit a ice storm coming out of Tennessee and I have never seen so much ice in my life. We had to stop the van every 15 minutes to scrap the van. It delayed us 2 hrs and when I called my mom back home she said the sun was shining and no problems. We hit the northern part of ohio and the sun was out and life was normal again. I79 way is much shorter and is a difference scenery but I would make the decision on the day you leave depending on the weather. Best of luck and have fun

 

[cottontail]

Hi:
We have driven both ways but usually in april/may. But one year in beginning of december we went i75 and there was about two feet of snow right in detroit where you get onto the I75, we thought it odd that they were not keeping up with the ploughing at the entrance to i75.

On the way back there was also an ice storm but in ohio, we actually awoke in troy ohio to i75 closed, but it soon opened, we had ice all over the car there was ice all over everything.
We started out goint slow but the transports were still going the speed limit with all these bad road conditions we must have seen three transports jackknifed about 8 cars in ditches all around the bowlinggreen ohio I belive. It was incredible how fast the transports were going, it was scary.

I now wonder if the transports were from the south and did not understand how to drive in icy and snowy conditions. That is why I am a little leary about driving in february/early march.

Deb.

 

[nosnobunny2006]

We have also driven down both ways many times - I75 and I79. In the winter we prefer I75 because the weather is more predictable. It's a hard call because you can get perfectly good weather all the way. Or either way, you could run into bad weather at that time of year. It isn't so much the snow that you have to worry about, it's the ice. That can get just plain nasty. Whichever way you go, just make sure you're prepared for the worst. If it doesn't happen - great but at least you're ready.

Beth