Winter cross-country trip - I need weather info

[imported_Stefan]

Hey everyone. I am thinking about driving from San Francisco to upstate New York in early December and need information on what the weather will be like along the drive. I will be travelling with one other person and we are both experienced campers who would probably like to camp out as much as possible.

Will this be feasible and fun or will we have to be inside all the time or driving on dangerous roads the whole way? We would like to do the southern route going through Lousiana, so we will be going a bit out of our way.

Any information would be gladly appreciated. I have heard that it can be a pretty burly drive.

Please reply here or to "atlaswanderer@hotmail.com".

thanks,
- S

[Mark Sedenquist]

Road Greetiungs Stefan,

December can be a very mild month for winter travel -- February is often much more "burly". On the other hand I have been in some outrageous blizzards in the rockies and the plains of Texas in November, so you have to be prepared.

The route you have chosen, the southern route, for the most part is pretty tame. You can expect some snow and mixed weather crossing the divide but the rest of the trip will feature wind and rain. The other thing to remember is that truckers make the same trip hundreds of times during those months.

Camping in the snow is certainly possible but combining it with a roadtrip can be tough,since many of the campgrounds will be closed along the way. But most of your trip will be in areas that snowbirds travel to avoid snow -- so the campgrounds will be open.

It really isn't a big deal to travel in wiinter. Just keep canned food, water, first aid gear and warm clothes in your vehicle. Keep informed about the weather and road conditions and include enough time in your schedule to "hunker down" for a few hours if the road is closed.

Have fun.

Mark