Towing from No CA to WDW, 'best' route?

[StormyCA]

DH wanted me to ask about our upcoming trip and the 'best' route to take towing our 31 ft trailer. We pull with an F350 diesel. Right now we're planning on 6 days to get there via I-5 cutting over to I-40 then heading south out of Nashville on I-24 through GA to I-75 to FL and WDW. He's pretty determined to stay only on major Interstate Hwys as being the 'best' way to get there. He wants freeways (emphasis his), not highways with intersecting roads or that go through town after town. And he does NOT want to take I-10 as he's convinced it will be more 'crowded' along the gulf coast and he doesn't want to be caught in freeway rush hours or 'city traffic'. We're going to the Smoky Mtns after WDW and will be taking I-80 home so we want to take a different route east.

He's never been east of Arizona on I-40 and I've never been east of OK City (and that was 30 years ago and I was headed west from Chicago!) so neither of us is familiar with the roads/hwys. It's hard to tell from maps or websites what roads are freeways and what are secondary highways.

 

[FLBBQMAN]

I would be carful going that way right before you get to Chattanooga there is some steep grades that you will be going threw and the only good time to go threw Atlanta in my travels is at night the traffic is not fun from 5 am all the way into the late night. have safe travles anyway you decide to go.

 

[TheRustyScupper]

Towing from No CA to WDW, 'best' route?

1) Head East.
2) Drive.
3) Immediately before entering ocean, turn South.
4) Drive.
5) We'll leave a light on for you.

 

[whiplash]

Sounds like a great route. I don't think I'd worry too much about the few mountains on I-24. Went thru there last December with a 34' 5th. whl. pulled by a 3/4 ton Dodge (Hemi). no problems. Atlanta is always busy, we have found Saturday mornings to be the best. Just get in the right lane and stay there, no hurry, no white knuckles. After Atlanta your home free. Wave on the way home, I live 4 miles to the Ohio Turnpike, just south of Cedar Point. Have a GREAT trip!!!

 

[North of Mouse]

Going 'through' or around Atlanta at 'most' times are the pits, big time. We avoid that City like the plague (lived near it before). 'But', if you must go that direction, I would go between midnight and 4am (not kidding, either!).

 

[Teamubr]

Your route seems pretty good for avoiding I-10. Atlanta will be the biggest hurdle. Don't worry about the 'hill' before Chattanooga. (Mont Eagle) It is over and down in a few miles and compared to some of the climbs out of CA, it is nothing.

I drive down from St Louis. I pick up your route in Nashville. I-75 can be busy on a summer weekend with the vacation traffic, but better than I-10 and it's terrible pavement.

Just try to plan on getting through Atlanta mid day or over night.

j

 

[2goofycampers]

With your tow set up Monteagle Tn will be no problem.
As for Atlanta, we try to avoid the morning and evening rush hour and hope for the best.

If you're gonna stop overnight between Nashville and WDW there are a couple easy off/on places if you need them.

 

[Jedana]

DH wanted me to ask about our upcoming trip and the 'best' route to take towing our 31 ft trailer. We pull with an F350 diesel. Right now we're planning on 6 days to get there via I-5 cutting over to I-40 then heading south out of Nashville on I-24 through GA to I-75 to FL and WDW. He's pretty determined to stay only on major Interstate Hwys as being the 'best' way to get there. He wants freeways (emphasis his), not highways with intersecting roads or that go through town after town. And he does NOT want to take I-10 as he's convinced it will be more 'crowded' along the gulf coast and he doesn't want to be caught in freeway rush hours or 'city traffic'. We're going to the Smoky Mtns after WDW and will be taking I-80 home so we want to take a different route east.

He's never been east of Arizona on I-40 and I've never been east of OK City (and that was 30 years ago and I was headed west from Chicago!) so neither of us is familiar with the roads/hwys. It's hard to tell from maps or websites what roads are freeways and what are secondary highways.

I can tell you where you don't want to tow--and that's over that super tall bridge in Mississippi over the river. I hate that bridge. I have never towed anything over it, and have driven it once. I will never do it again. People were stopping in the right hand lane, getting out of their cars, and taking pictures. It was horrible.

Oh, and the bridge in Louisiana--where you're ON the water. Yeah. Hate that too.

/drove from NV to FL
//never again

 

[hushupu]

You should have no problem even with the mountains. the engine brake on your truck will allow you to safely handle any mountains you come up on. The secret to getting through Atlanta is to avoid travel from 6:30 am - 9:00 am and 3pm - 7pm on weekdays. Have a fun safe trip

 

[StormyCA]

Thanks all! Keep the info coming!

We checked the Sigalert website for Atlanta and it DOES look like traffic is the the pits pretty much all the time!! Doesn't look like there's a convenient route around the city either! DH is considering heading south out of Nashville & heading east in Birmingham now. Not going til next Spring so he has plenty of time to explore various routes.

DH has towed us over the Sierras & the Rockies more times than I can count. I don't think Monteagle will be a problem.

I can tell you where you don't want to tow--and that's over that super tall bridge in Mississippi over the river. I hate that bridge. I have never towed anything over it, and have driven it once. I will never do it again. People were stopping in the right hand lane, getting out of their cars, and taking pictures. It was horrible.

Oh, and the bridge in Louisiana--where you're ON the water. Yeah. Hate that too.

/drove from NV to FL
//never again

Yikes!! What bridges are these? I don't like bridges, either. But you know, if you lift your feet off the floor, touch the roof of the car with your index finger, & hold your breath the entire time you're on the bridge you'll NEVER fall off!! It works!! Haven't fallen off yet!!!

 

[iheartpeterpan]

Thanks all! Keep the info coming!

We checked the Sigalert website for Atlanta and it DOES look like traffic is the the pits pretty much all the time!! Doesn't look like there's a convenient route around the city either! DH is considering heading south out of Nashville & heading east in Birmingham now. Not going til next Spring so he has plenty of time to explore various routes.

DH has towed us over the Sierras & the Rockies more times than I can count. I don't think Monteagle will be a problem.

You'll have no problem with Monteagle.
I would take 24 East out of Nashville and through Atlanta over 65 South any day. The 65 South route will add many miles to your trip, and 65 South is ALWAYS a traffic disaster. I am not sure when your trip is, but 65 South of Nashville is frequently SHUT DOWN these days due to a gas tanker explosion that took out a bridge. It is going to take them months and months to fix it.

I have towed through Atlanta going to Disney several times and as long as you go mid-day or overnight it is very manageable. I live in Nashville and go that way.

 

[bama_ed]

StormyCA,

When you are on I-40 in Texas headed to the Fort, you need to plan to stop in Amarillo and eat at the Big Texan Steakhouse if it's lunch/supper time.

http://bigtexan.com/

We stopped there with the Boy Scouts on the way back from Philmont Scout Ranch on two different occasions and let them order huge hunks of meat cooked on the grill. I myself last time pounded down a 24 oz ribeye with sides and regretted not getting the 36-er. We watched 2 folks attempt the 72 oz steak "eat it in an hour and it's free" and they failed miserably.

It's touristy, sure, and kitchy. But it's delicious and a lot of fun. They have a menu on-line to download so you can get an idea of what's available.

Bama Ed

 

[Teamubr]

I would still do I-75 through Atl before I did I-65 through B'ham and over. I just stay on I-75 and drive right through the middle. If I-75 is bad, the loop will be as bad or worse.

We stopped there with the Boy Scouts on the way back from Philmont Scout Ranch

I didn't know you were a Scouter. I turned 16 at Philmont. Trek 717A-77.

j

 

[bama_ed]

I didn't know you were a Scouter. I turned 16 at Philmont. Trek 717A-77.

j

Jim, that's cool. I bet that birthday was special.

Yep, I'm an Eagle Scout and my two sons are Eagles also. I went to Philmont twice as a boy. My first trip was 1980 and loved it so much I signed up as a Jr ASM in 1983 so I could go again with my younger brother. When my boys got into Scouting, I organized and led three treks (2007, 2010, 2012). I love the place. Between the 5 trips, I did Baldy Mtn twice in the north, Mt Phillips in the south three times, and hiked into Base Camp via the Tooth of Time four times.

I've already told my wife when I retire in 10-15 years, I'm going to apply to work on staff for at least one summer so I can check that off my bucket list. I'll be the old guy working in Base Camp checking in/out tents, cook kits, or something. My boys have aged out of Scouting and after doing the adult leader thing for 14 years in Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts with them, I've stepped back and let a new crop of leaders plan our 2015 trip.

Do you have any Tobasco Donkey CD's? You need to pick up both - they were Philmont staffers who worked out in the camps together and the songs are pretty decent. My favorite is "(The) Tooth of Time('s Been Chewin' On Me)".

http://www.thetobascodonkeys.com/

Be Prepared!

Bama Ed

 

[Teamubr]

Yep, I'm an Eagle Scout and my two sons are Eagles also.

Not to take this off topic too long, but I'm an Eagle too. I went through Cubs and Scouts, when I turned 14 I heard there were girls in Boy Scouts so I switched to Explorers. Stayed in Exploring with a high adventure post until 21, then stayed on as an adult with the post and council level training staff. I met my wife when I was 17. She joined Explorers with me. We both worked with the program until I was 24. I made it through pre-med and needed more time for school and work.

I only made it to Philmont once. Did a southern trip. Started out in Urraca Mesa. Made it over Mt Phillips and hiked back into base over the Tooth. Amazing trip. I still remember the signs and warnings about being off Tooth Ridge by the afternoon storms and all the markers for the people that were killed by lightning on the trail.

My DS is 16 now. He did Cubs. I was the den leader. Unfortunately we moved to a Scout troop that wasn't very organized and the kids weren't given good direction. Fair amount of bullying and "clicks". I tried working through the district exec to get them back on track since I knew how the program should work, but my son never warmed back up to it. Shame because I know how he could have benefited.

We now return you to your regularly scheduled topic.

j

 

[StormyCA]

Looks like we're sticking to the 'original' route but will be timing it so we go through Atlanta between 3-4 am. DH is a very early riser so it won't be a problem. I'll probably be dozing in the passenger seat so hopefully he'll be able to navigate any merges & lane changes with out my 'help'.

It'll be the last leg of the trip and the next day is an off-site 'down day' at Wallaby Ranch anyway so we'll be able to catch up on any missed sleep.

Thanks all!

 

[Eyeeore]

Atlanta at that time should be relatively quiet unless one of the locals decides to unload a mattress or ladder in the road (pretty much a daily occurrence). I remember seeing some sort of sign last fall when we were through there about not taking RV's, etc. through downtown so calling ahead might be a good idea.

As you come south out of Chattanooga, there is a BBQ place just over the Tennessee/Georgia line at Dothan that is well worth the stop. I'd suggest a google search of Miller Brothers Rib Shack in Dothan, GA. We make a point of stopping there on each trip.

We've not pulled our 5er into their lot yet as we're usually staying on DVC points but hope to be in the campground in 2016.

Have a great trip across.

 

[StormyCA]

Atlanta at that time should be relatively quiet unless one of the locals decides to unload a mattress or ladder in the road (pretty much a daily occurrence). I remember seeing some sort of sign last fall when we were through there about not taking RV's, etc. through downtown so calling ahead might be a good idea.

As you come south out of Chattanooga, there is a BBQ place just over the Tennessee/Georgia line at Dothan that is well worth the stop. I'd suggest a google search of Miller Brothers Rib Shack in Dothan, GA. We make a point of stopping there on each trip.

We've not pulled our 5er into their lot yet as we're usually staying on DVC points but hope to be in the campground in 2016.

Have a great trip across.

As in not allowed at all or as in 'don't get off the freeway'? I've got sigalert.com bookmarked so we'll be checking traffic well before we enter any urban area, especially if it looks like we're heading into rush hour!

Love BBQ, thanks for the suggestion!

 

[2goofycampers]

We always stop at any of the Sonny's BBQ. Yummy. Cracker Barrel is always good also. Love's and Pilot are usually easy in & out for fuel.

 

[garneska]

Stormy,

We don't think there is any issue with taking the rv through downtown Atlanta except of course for traffic, don't do it at rush hour. I know that trucks are supposed to take the by pass unless they have a delivery to make downtown.

Best advice is early early morning or late at night. I commute to downtown for work an at 6:30 traffic is starting to get bad.