Moving to San Francisco in January from Syracuse.

[Santry7]

My husband and I (with dog) are moving to San Francisco in January. We are planning to drive across the country starting from Hilton Head, SC and ending in San Francisco, via Denver. I'd welcome any suggestions on routes, stops, attractions, restaurants, etc. We are planning for the trip to take three weeks. Thanks.

[Mass Tim]

Welcome to the RoadTrip America Forum!

Three weeks is plenty of time to take this trip and to see a decent amount of the country, especially since this will be a one-way endeavor! Will you be driving with just your vehicle, or will you be towing along any of the times needed to make your move - i.e. will you have a trailer? It may seem a minor detail, but I think that if you were wishing to traverse some of the secondary roads, that additional burden could make it more difficult.

Aside from Denver, are there any places you've wanted to see over the years and haven't been able to. Likewise, are there any places you may get the opportunity to stop at on this trip that you may not to in the future? For example, on your trip you have the time to see both Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon, if you're so inclined. Those would be on the top of my list on such a trip, as it lends itself to a bit of a north-south zig-zag routing being viable.

[Southwest Dave]

As Tim mentioned, you have plenty of time for the journey and exploration but winter can be restrictive in places like Rocky mountian NP, and Yellowstone is by and large shut to vehicles in January with very limited access. However, along I70 there are many wonderful attractions and scenic drives with wonderful National parks such as Arches, Canyonlands and Zion in Southern Utah.

I would search the forums and RTA planning resources in the tool bars above and study a good map to start putting your own ideas into place. You will need to leave 'wiggle' room for any weather related delays and check to see what is and isn't accessable, for example the north rim of the Grand canyon won't be, but you could head to the south rim. You won't be able to cross the Sierra Nevada so you will have to plan to go around the top in the Lake Tahoe area or south via Bakersfield, which could work well with a visit to the south rim and Las Vegas.

As you move along with your planning keep asking questions as and when needed.