Driving from Sacramento Saturday morning, any rest tips??

[07pilot4me]

hello,

driving a little past midnight Saturday morning from Sacramento. anyone have tips in case i get tired driving???

looking for "safe"rest stops or

if adrenaline kicks in, we might leave earlier Friday night, any "cheap"motels to catch a couple of hours of nap time.

willing to close our eyes at a rest stop, provided they are safe and all

taking the 5 straight down, this should be fine at this hour right?/?

 

[mommy2allyandaveri]

You should be fine, although you will likely hit a bunch of traffic in LA.

Straight down 5 is perfect. About half way down is Kettleman City. They have lots of great food and gas choices. That would be a good place to stop for a sleep as well but we have never done that. The drive usually takes us about 6.5 hrs with a stop for lunch.

 

[07pilot4me]

i'm hoping that the adrenaline will let me drive straight or with only one stop. will also help that its at night and the kidies are asleep

 

[lisadave4]

We are in the Bay Area and have done this drive a bunch this past year. We are huge fans of leaving by 5 and arriving just before midnight. Our kids crash in the car and as soon as we get to the hotel. We also get a good night's sleep. Good luck with whatever you do!

You will be fine leaving at that time with 5. We never hit any traffic leaving anytime after 3 as well.

 

[DmaxHawk]

i'm hoping that the adrenaline will let me drive straight or with only one stop. will also help that its at night and the kidies are asleep

Don't tire yourself out the day before, try to catch a nap before the trip. Drink some coffee before you leave and during your trip. Have some good things to listen to on the way.
If that doesn't work, try driving on the wrong side of the road, that'll wake you up j/k.

If it was me, I would leave a little later in the morning (3am). Since the brain reacts to light, you'll be able to catch the sun and itll be easier for you to stay awake during the last half of the trip when you start to get tired of driving.

Maybe take some bananas they say one has enough energy for a 90 minute workout.

 

[07pilot4me]

so no traffic when you leave at 5? interesting.... problem is we dont have res for friday night

We are in the Bay Area and have done this drive a bunch this past year. We are huge fans of leaving by 5 and arriving just before midnight. Our kids crash in the car and as soon as we get to the hotel. We also get a good night's sleep. Good luck with whatever you do!

You will be fine leaving at that time with 5. We never hit any traffic leaving anytime after 3 as well.

 

[07pilot4me]

thanks!

i plan to see if 5 hour energy drink really gives you 5 hour energy

Don't tire yourself out the day before, try to catch a nap before the trip. Drink some coffee before you leave and during your trip. Have some good things to listen to on the way.
If that doesn't work, try driving on the wrong side of the road, that'll wake you up j/k.

If it was me, I would leave a little later in the morning (3am). Since the brain reacts to light, you'll be able to catch the sun and itll be easier for you to stay awake during the last half of the trip when you start to get tired of driving.

Maybe take some bananas they say one has enough energy for a 90 minute workout.

 

[Mugglemama]

If that doesn't work, try driving on the wrong side of the road, that'll wake you up j/k.

 

[LuLusApple]

You should be fine, although you will likely hit a bunch of traffic in LA.

Straight down 5 is perfect. About half way down is Kettleman City. They have lots of great food and gas choices. That would be a good place to stop for a sleep as well but we have never done that. The drive usually takes us about 6.5 hrs with a stop for lunch.

ack don't stop in kettlemen city the EPA is checking them out because of a huge toxic waste dump run by waste management has pcbs possible leaking. They have the largest number of birth defects currently in the nation.
Don't drink the water or the food. Serious not an April fools joke

 

[samkj]

ack don't stop in kettlemen city the EPA is checking them out because of a huge toxic waste dump run by waste management has pcbs possible leaking. They have the largest number of birth defects currently in the nation.
Don't drink the water or the food. Serious not an April fools joke

EWWWWWW!! We stopped going to this stop years ago. When I was a kid (I am now 40, so this was a 30 years ago!) it was a great place to stop, but I don't think they have done much (if any!!) updating since then! There are many much nicer, easier stops right along the freeway. I think we go to HWY 52 (????) its about 4 hours from Sacramento, so after stopping there are only a couple hours left!

 

[07pilot4me]

We are in the Bay Area and have done this drive a bunch this past year. We are huge fans of leaving by 5 and arriving just before midnight. Our kids crash in the car and as soon as we get to the hotel. We also get a good night's sleep. Good luck with whatever you do!

You will be fine leaving at that time with 5. We never hit any traffic leaving anytime after 3 as well.

i took your advice, bit the bullet and booked a Friday night room

used priceline and paid $45 + tax for Holiday Inn resort on Manchester

will try to leave by 5. hope we dont encounter any easter traffic. hope to get there by 12

 

[disneylovingfamily:4]

We usually stop either at the Santa Nella (I doubt I spelled that right) Stop or before the Grapevine..

 

[jenniferrose]

Just so you know... most rest stops along 5 (at least between Sac and Kettleman City, not sure about further south) ... are closed. They are rebuilding them all. We just made the drive from KC to Sac last weekend and I don't recall seeing any open!

There is a nice gas station/store about.. oh... 30 miles north of Kettleman City that has a large parking lot and even a little area for the kids to stretch their legs if they need to. I want to say it is in Avenal, or at least it is the turnoff for Avenal.

 

[pixiewings71]

Santa Nella is a good place to stop for a bathroom break so is Lost Hills. Those are go to stops on our drive.

 

[jernysgirl]

We usually stop either at the Santa Nella (I doubt I spelled that right) Stop or before the Grapevine..

Santa Nella is a good place to stop for a bathroom break so is Lost Hills. Those are go to stops on our drive.

We always stop at Santa Nella too.

 

[MrsPinup]

So funny, I am leaving from Roseville tomorrow morning and driving straight down. I am leaving sometime between 2am and 4 am. Not sure when at this point. I want to have as much time in the park as possible. Good luck on your drive...maybe we will pass each other

 

[DTDkettleCORNfan]

We live in the Sac area, and we always take 99. I have heard that there are more places to stop. Might be something to consider. My parents leave around the same time as us (from the same area) and usually take I-5 so they can stop at Anderson's Pea Soup. So far, neither I-5 or 99 has been much faster or slower. Have a wonderful trip!

 

[TiggerMomNine]

We learned during our last few trips that a book on disc was a really good way to stay awake during the long drive. It really works to prevent the nodding off!

 

[Diznygrl]

Dude, Kettleman City has an In N Out, that's good enough for me! Guess I've been eating toxic waste burgers all these years. Oh well, they still taste good!

 

[lisadave4]

Quote:
"i took your advice, bit the bullet and booked a Friday night room

used priceline and paid $45 + tax for Holiday Inn resort on Manchester

will try to leave by 5. hope we dont encounter any easter traffic. hope to get there by 12 "

Good luck! I hope it works out for you. We will be leaving around 5/6 on Tuesday night. If you get a decent amount of sleep- it will be worth the money!!! You won't have to spend your first day at disney running on fumes.