L.A. to Sedalia MO

Hi, I'll be heading out to the RV Boot Camp in Sedalia MO next week. I plan to arrive in Sedalia on the morning of May 24.

RV Trip Wizard is showing me a suggested route that will take me through the Rockies. I'd thought of taking a Southern route to avoid them.

I know I may be trading the potential to encounter Thunderstorms and or Tornados for the pleasures of snow, sleet and ice. Neither one thrills me but I want to make the trip.

I'd welcome your thoughts, recommendations, experiencesm caveats, etc. on the ideal route to MO from Southern CA. in the Spring.

Thanks you,
Openmind

Welcome aboard the RoadTrip America Forums!

You've got a choice of three different routes to Kansas City, basically: 1) I-15/I-70, 2) I-15/I-40/I-25/US-412/US-56/US-50/I-35, and 3) I-40/US-54/I-35, and then US-50 for the last bit to Sedalia. They're all about 1,700 miles long and you'll need three full days, minimum, to complete the trip safely and enjoyably.

Personally, I would probably go with the central route (#2) as the best trade-off between the long grades and unpredictable weather of the Rockies and the straightness and flatness of the roads on the high plains. However, if you plan to make this trip in an RV on only three days (arriving in the evening of the 23rd), then I'd probably opt instead for the southernmost of the routes (#3) as the shortest in miles of the three.

If you have more than three days for the RoadTrip to Sedalia, there are more than enough sights to see along the way, but we'd need to know your interests and how much time you have for the journey before we could start recommending specific venues.

AZBuck

As a 4th option, you can take I-15/I-40/I-44/US-65. I'd probably prefer that one, just note that I-44 in OK is a toll road. This is also right around 1700 miles.

I've made the trek between SoCal and central MO many, many times for several decades. Over the years I have done the #1 route and #3 route on the list. Our favorite is the #1, but yes, it's mountainous. If you're driving your new rig and are not that familiar with it, you may not want to try #1 on the first trip!

Another route that we've used is kind of a hybrid of #3 and #4: I-40 to OKC, swing north on I-35 (which, btw, is toll road in KS), then you can go to US-50.

A little locals tip about Sedalia: just south of there, on a backcountry road near Lincoln MO, is an Amish Buffet eatery called Charley's. You'll have to ask around and see about getting good directions, and this is only open on Fridays and Saturdays. Here's one link to it, and here is another. There's no website for it, as this is run by the Amish who don't believe in a lot of the latest contraptions, the computer being one of them. (The "Website" link on TripAdvisor goes nowhere for that reason.) The food is wonderful, and if you can't find something you like, you're not looking hard enough. They do have sugar-free desserts.


Donna