CA to MA via US Route 6 and back on Interstate 10

[Dave&Andria]

Hi. My wife and I are planning our first major road trip ever. We do not have an RV, but we have family in MA and FL. We would like to take 3 months - we were thinking June, July and August and stay on Route 6 from Bishop, CA all the way to Provincetown, MA. I've seen many do it in the reverse, but we live in Southern California. I guess our main question concerns the weather and all its oddities. Does June - August sound like the best time to everyone or is there another recommended period? We are both retired so the months aren't an issue. We grew up on Cape Cod and the best weather there is summertime. We are concerned about tornadoes in the Midwest and hurricanes in Florida. That about covers it. Thanks everyone! Dave & Andria

[AZBuck]

Welcome aboard the RoadTrip America Forums!

Tornado 'season' is May through June, although they can occur at any time of the year, so July and August are fine from that perspective. But on the other hand, July and August are two of the heaviest travel months for summer vacations. My own predilection for this would be to aim for arrival at the eastern terminus of US-6 sometime in late September or early October to take as much advantage of fall foliage in the Poconos and Berkshires as possible.

That would also set you up to cross the southern US on your return run in the cooler fall and early winter months rather than in the heat of the summer, particularly in the desert southwest. Also, keep in mind that tornadoes are far more unpredictable, both in where/when they'll pop up and in what they'll do even after they form, than hurricanes, I'd concentrate on that. If a hurricane does start to form during your travels, you'll get plenty of advance warning and can move inland and/or out of its path with relative ease as long as you don't wait until the very last minute and get caught in evacuation traffic.

AZBuck

[DonnaR57]

My husband and I made a trip from our home in SoCal (San Diego County) to Orlando FL, then up the east coast to NJ, back in summer 2012. The weather: hotter than Hades in the deserts of CA, AZ, NM and TX (as you might expect). Humid as could be in the rest of the states. We came home via MO, KS, CO, UT and NV.

Here's that trip report, if you'd like to look it over.


Donna

[Dave&Andria]

Thanks very much for the tornado advice Buck. That's great information.

Dave