Orange County CA to Austin TX Please Help?

I will be moving from Orange County CA to Austin TX this Wednesday and I desperately need your help! There are two simple routes I can take. I can take Interstate 10 most of the way, or I could take Interstate 5 South to Interstate 8 and then catch Interstate 10 when I get South of Phoenix.

From what Google tells me, it takes about the same amount of time to get to Austin either way. But what I really want to know is WHAT ROUTE WOULD YOU TAKE AND WHY? My concerns are things like traffic, road conditions, terrain, gas, food, lodging, safety, and of course, HAVING A WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE!

I appreciate any help I may find on this forum, for this my first post:) Thank you.

Hi and Welcome to the RTA Forums.

As you have already stated, there is very little difference between the two routes. At around 1500 miles, you are looking at the best part of three days driving.

You will not have any concerns as far as gas, food and lodging are concerned. These are all readily available along the interstates. To my knowledge, there is not a great deal difference in terrain.

As for the 'HAVING A WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE!', well that very much depends on you. How long do you have for this trip? What are your interests? and what is your budget? Besides relocating, what else are you hoping to get out of this trip?

First you need to answer those questions. Then you need to check a good map to see what there is along the route, which may interest you. You will find roadtrip attractions on the green bar above, and also on the map centre. Check out those, and when you have more specific questions, feel free to ask. Someone here will be able to help you.

Lifey

Welcome to the RTA Forum!

I would probably lean towards I-8, simply because you'd be dealing with San Diego traffic instead of LA traffic, and you'd bypass Phoenix. However, there is very little difference otherwise, and this is a relatively small portion of your trip.

Honestly, the way I would decide if I were you is to take the route I haven't taken before, and if you haven't taken either, I'd simply take the one that seems like it would be more interesting, based on the areas it goes through.

Roadworks west of Phoenix and south of Phoenix may slow you down. No roadworks on I8 afa I know.

thanks so much guys:) based on what has been said here, including bypassing phoenix, im taking the 5 south to the 8 and i am taking 3 days to get there. i have never been on the 8 before, and if the terrain is similar, that's what i plan to do. here is my basic / lodging plan, no attractions yet...

drive 519 miles to: Motel 6 Benson #4036
637 S Whetstone Commerce
I-10 At Sr 90/exit #302
Benson, AZ, 85602

and stay one night.

drive 514 miles to: Motel 6 Ft Stockton #333
3001 W Dickinson Blvd
I-10 At Dickinson Blvd, Exit #256
Ft Stockton, TX, 79735

stay one night, and then on the last day it's only 350 miles to my destination in austin.

what do you guys think? I WILL HAVE EVERYTHING I OWN IN MY CAR, including important documents (in boxes under boxes in my car), but as far as i can tell, benson az and fort stockton are pretty safe communities and i plan on making online reservations at both motels but asking the front desk if i can get a room close to the car or park in front of the office? what do you guys suggest? have you ever been to these towns? my stuff being in the car is my biggest concern.

thanks again, you guys are the best!

P.S. I FORGOT MY MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION!

i have AAA, but i am covered for only 3 miles towing, the 100 miles towing will not kick in for another 6 days and i have to leave before that. the AAA rep says in no way will we leave you stranded if you need a tow and if there is no repair shop within 3 miles, the tow truck driver will take you to where he came from and there will almost always be a repair shop there.

are you familiar with this? and does this sound safe? thanks!

what do you guys think about this?

Those are well-planned stops. Both of those Motel 6's appear to have outside rooms that you can park right in front of. Call each hotel and ask for a ground floor room where you can do exactly that.

I have some local knowledge - and this is how I'd recommend you get through San Diego:

Take I-5 south to I-805. Take CA-52 east, which is now complete as a freeway to CA-67. Take 67 south to I-8.

Actually, the terrain on 8 is considerably different than on 10. East of San Diego, you go through the mountains up over 6000 feet. Then you drop down into the desert into El Centro. West of Yuma, you pass within 1/4 mile of the Mexican border and go through the Imperial Sand Dunes. Between Yuma and the I-10 junction in Casa Grande, you are driving through a whole lot of desert. You will have at least one border patrol checkpoint along I-8.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Yeehaw

Roadworks west of Phoenix and south of Phoenix may slow you down. No roadworks on I8 afa I know.

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yeehaw, thank you very much.

glc, is this so i bypass san diego traffic? i can see how its pretty direct. i think i'll go with your suggestion, you seem to know what youre talking about. thanks.

It bypasses the close-in downtown traffic. The 52 is a heavily traveled freeway, and it may have some slight delays at the 125 interchange where it narrows down, but the stretch between 125 and 67 has only been open for a couple months and it's not really "discovered" yet.

Actually, I-8's highest point is just over 4000 ft. You'd have to go to the top of Mt Laguna (not on I-8) to get to 6000 ft). The climbs are gradual - only one point ("Japatul Hill", we locals call it) is a climb enough to slow trucks and RV's down. It won't bother a car.

GLC - I'd forgotten that the 52 finally opened! I haven't been on it yet. Yes, 52 will definitely get out of San Diego traffic unless you decide to run that between 2 pm and 5 pm. :-)

As far as I-8 goes - - we just drove that into Arizona (Stanfield) last weekend, and there was no construction any more. They were done with the stuff on either side of Gila Bend, going eastbound. (There was a little, westbound, around Yuma. Nothing major, though they wanted to slow us down to 35 on a Sunday when no construction was actually being done. Grrrr!)


Donna

Quote:

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Originally Posted by AustinEdge

... and if there is no repair shop within 3 miles, the tow truck driver will take you to where he came from and there will almost always be a repair shop there.

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That is what they did for me, in AK, almost 100 miles. They are not going to leave you stranded in some remote area.

Lifey

I agree, your stops are well planned. Still a lot of driving. Use lower gear driving the mountains east of San Diego also down hill and avoid using your breaks all the time.
You also will find a border patrol check point before Las Cruces NM. Instead Fort Stockton you could stay at Balmorhea SP. Often overlooked and an oasis in the harsh lands http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/spdest/f...rks/balmorhea/ just a very short distance off the interstate.
The I20 stretch to Junction is 80mph. Don't speed because highway patrol is waiting for you. I knew about this but still got a ticket only doing 8 miles over the speedlimit.
Fredericksburg TX is a nice town on your way to Austin.
I like I8 with the mountain drive, the farmlands, the sanddunes and the low desert. Gila Bend has lots of options for fast food and Benson is a good place to spend the night.
Yeehaw

Border Patrol checkpoints going eastbound:

We did not encounter any eastbound BP checkpoints on our June 17th trip, in California. In Arizona, though, there is one just after you pass Fortuna. That's a pretty permanent station - sometimes it's closed but mostly it's been open over the past 6 months. A few months ago, they had a temporary BP station set up right by Spot Rd., but as of the 17th, it was shut down. Beyond Stanfield AZ 84 exit, though, I couldn't say. (We use AZ 84/AZ 347 to cut the trip off into Tempe.)


Donna