Advice for tent camping our way from Oregon to Ohio?

[queenmom55]

Hi All,

I have read a lot of great posts regarding route choices east to west, but I want to get some specific advice regarding tent camping. My husband and I will be driving from Klamath Falls, OR to Athens, OH with our 15 year-old grandson next month. We have some flexibility in terms of time and we want the drive to be pleasant rather than a grueling push to "get there." We have made cross-country trips but never with a 15 year-old!

I am hoping for some advice about a route that will provide scenery and decent tent camping after a 300-400 mile day of driving. My preference is for trees, mountains and water but I realize that will not always be possible. Although we will eat from the picnic cooler to save money, I would also like to hear about any restaurants or roadside attractions that should not be missed.

Thanks for a great forum and all the combined wisdom it represents,

QM 55

[DonnaR57]

Are you a AAA member? If so, they publish little booklets called "CampBooks" that go with their "TourBooks". These are more likely to have listings for national forests and state park campgrounds than the big RV park books like Woodall's and Trailer Life directories.

The most obvious route I saw, when I opened my atlas' USA map, was to get down to I-80 and take that across as far as western Illinois, where you'd catch I-74 down to I-70 at Indianapolis. Then straight into Columbus OH to use US-33 down to Athens, OH. Along that route, you've got the Bonneville Salt Flats and beautiful mountains surrounding Salt Lake City, then the mountains through southern Wyoming and the high desert scenery faced by our pioneers in Nebraska. Iowa gets greener with more water.

Since this is your road trip, though, you may just want to take out a USA map and see what attractions interest you. You don't have to stick to any one road -- roads connect and you can go "a little out of your way" if there's something you really want to see, and enough time in your schedule to do it.


Donna

[Midwest Michael]

You can really find what you are looking for with pretty much any route you'd pick.

I'm also a tent camper, and really the first step I do is look at my atlas an look for the campgrounds that are actually marked right on the map. Typically these are state parks, or other public campgrounds that are well maintained and usually work out quite nicely.

My next step in my research is to search the actual state parks websites of the states where I'll be traveling, and look for options that might be on my route. If that doesn't work or it looks like it could be tough to find a spot, I'll just google camping and a place name. While private campgrounds are usually first to come up, that will often also result in things like county or city run parks with camping.

[queenmom55]

Thanks for the tips,

I will be checking out the state park websites etc. I know we can look at the map and find places to camp, but I am eager to hear about favorite places and routes. We have the option of selecting different routes to Ohio and I wonder if there are any suggestions. It seems to me we could take 70 or 90 or 94 or some combination. Perhaps Hwy 50, off the interstate is a better choice? If you wanted camping, scenery, and stops to keep a 15 year old boy happy, which way would you go?

Thanks,

QM

[glc]

You could head from home down to Reno, then take US-50 (The Loneliest Road) across Nevada. I would plan on an overnight in Ely. There is a restaurant there where you eat in an old jail cell. Staying on 50, you then could take I-70 across Utah and Colorado. You could go to Moab and see Arches and Canyonlands. You could go to Rocky Mountain National Park.

If you headed north to I-90, you would have Yellowstone, the Black Hills, and the Badlands.

I'd personally do one of those before I'd just blast across I-80 all the way.