The I-15 in December?

Hi All,

I am new to this forum and have been reading a lot on here lately, its a great resource of information and I have found it great, so thank you :) Now, I do have a question...

I am from Australia (currently living in the Netherlands) and I have booked a holiday to the USA to see some sights and visit some relatives in Salt Lake.

My initial plan was to arrive in Las Vegas on the 1st Dec (have a hire car arranged, just a ford mondeo or something similar). I was then going to drive up to SLC spend a couple of days with my relatives, then drive back to Vegas and eventually onto LA where I return the car and fly out on the 7th of Dec. At some stage during the trip I was also hoping to make a detour to visit the Grand Canyon.

This was all fine until I put some thought into it and started reading these forums...being December I expected it to be cold but never really planned for snow and bad weather.

From what I have read in these forums, this time of year pretty much cancels out the North side of the Grand Canyon...which is fine for me as I am just as happy to visit the south side. My main concern is the southern end of Utah, up to Salt Lake...

Being from Australia I am used to long drives but don't really have a lot of experience with snowy conditions and I am just wondering what the I-15 is like in early December? Is it safe driving this stretch or should I just cut my losses and get a flight from LV to SLC?

I am a sensible driver and am happy to drive cautiously in case I hit bad weather but only being a 7 day trip I just don't want to get caught for a long period anywhere. I know weather is pretty unpredictable but I was just hoping to query your experiences on the I-15 around this time of year...

Thanks in advance and if you need any more information just let me know :)
Heath

Welcome to the RTA Forum!

While its certainly possible that you could see snow along this route in December (even Vegas itself gets some snow from time to time), but generally speaking, if you stick to the Interstates you should be fine. The interstates are the first thing to get plowed, and if the weather does get to the point where they have to be closed, they are generally opened within a day or two.

I'd also say that if you run into the kind of storm that shuts down I-15, then you might very well have just as much trouble getting between LAS and SLC via plane. The difference would just mean being stuck in an airport instead of in a car.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by heath

I know weather is pretty unpredictable but I was just hoping to query your experiences on the I-15 around this time of year...

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I have driven I-15 between Las Vegas and Salt Lake many times in the winter months -- I have never seen the road closed due to ice or snow. I am been in some wild snowstorms in a few places -- lots of wind and ice -- but it rarely snows enough to ever get close to closing the road. In addition to being an interstate highway, it is the primary North - South trade route between Canada and Mexico and delivers skiers to the Utah ski resorts -- hence it is kept open at all costs....

You will be fine -- here are some winter driving tips.

Mark

After the occasional snowfall on the I 15, it is cleared and litely graveled within hours.
Rarely a delay.
Rarely a snowfall for that matter.

The snowfall is usually along a 10 mile stretch just South of the Nevada/Calif border.

We travel it frequently, and iceing has never been a problem either.
I wouldn't sweat it one bit.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Wake Bandits

The snowfall is usually along a 10 mile stretch just South of the Nevada/Calif border.

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The small community of Mountain Pass is one of the spots -- but the place I have seen more spin-outs due to ice is just north of St. George. I have personally pulled two cars out of ditch just to the north of Little South Lake over the years one time narrowly averted becoming a ditch denizen myself.

Mark

Thank you all for suggestions, they have helped greatly. By the sounds of things I was just thinking too much into it....

Provided I stay sensible it seems like it will be all ok :)

Thanks again for all your input!