Moving from California to Sauk Centre Mn in a week or so!!

Hi, were moving from Fresno, CA to Sauk Centre MN in a week or so. I have 6 1/2 month old twins and a 2 year old little girl and a trailer with our 3 bedroom house in it! I've been reading and trying to do research and I'm scared! We plan on driving only during the day and staying in a motel/hotel at night to stick our home schedule as much as possible and taking frequent stops during the day for the babies. I have been looking at different maps/routes and each one has different suggestions. Does anyone know what the safest, quickest, best winter weather, way to get there is?? Time is not an issue, but I don't want to spend a week on the road lol. Thanks, any and all advice is appreciated!!

Hello and welcome to the RTA forums !

The reason you will see different suggestions is because there is never[or rarely] one 'best' route, and there is certainly isn't one that has the 'best weather' guarantee, especially this far ahead of time. Usually the quickest route is the shortest, and the less time on the road the less likely to get caught in bad weather. In this case my mapping program shows 2 identical times by heading North to Sacramento and then I80 through SLC to Rawlins and then up to Casper and Gillette on I90 to US 85/212, or start out by heading South and then North on I15 towards SLC and then I80. I would check the weather forecasts and road conditions close to the time of leaving and make an informed decision then, a third option using I 15 70/76/80 to Omaha and North.

With the trailer and young ones I would recommend a minimum of 4 day's to complete the journey but 5 day's would be a lot more comfortable.

If you are towing, I would stick to the Interstate highways as much as possible. My software shows this to be the most efficient route:

CA-99 to Sacramento
I-80 to Wells NV
US-93 to Twin Falls ID
I-84/I-86 to Pocatello ID
I-15 to Butte MT
I-90 to Billings MT
I-94 to Sauk Center

This is approximately 2100 miles, and I would plan on taking 5 days. This route needs to be continually monitored for weather issues, as would any route you could possibly take. Suggested overnight stops:

Winnemucca NV
Twin Falls ID
Bozeman MT
Dickinson ND

You could, of course, drive farther each day depending on how things are going and how you feel. If you do, replan the overnights carefully because civilization is pretty sparse out there compared to what you are probably used to.