Denver to Arches National Park - Early October Route

[RogerRabbit02]

Wow, thanks Donna and Southwest Dave.

I'm under the impression that from St. Louis to Denver is approximately 12-13 hours. Since I like lots of stops and stretch breaks with food (lol) I'm thinking between both my daughter and I driving it can be done with no problem. I've done worse to the east coast before.

But I haven't driven this route before so I'm unfamiliar with it. So I appreciate your advice and will take it to heed. I'll monitor it as we go.

[RogerRabbit02]

Donna I appreciate the heads up about UT128. My maps are routing me from I-70 to 191. So we'll be coming down the west side of Arches which looks much simpler.

We are definitely out west and visiting parks for the scenery, so this route is another great option to consider.

[Southwest Dave]

It would seem you have taken your travel time estimates straight off an electronic map. To cover 850 miles in 12 hours would mean you have to travel at 70mph from start to finish with no slow downs, no stops for fuel, bathroom or rest and have zero hold ups due to construction, congestion or weather. In other words, it's not going to happen in the real world with problems a computer does not compute. It's more like 15 hours with minimal stops and the fact there are 2 of you makes little difference as neither will be getting any proper rest while the other is driving. That means you will both be fatigued and means the driver is just as likely to drop off to sleep as the passenger. Starting drives at midnight or 3 in the morning is also a bad idea as it just means you will again be fatigued later in the day and then that will carry through your trip with your body clocks being way out of sync. In the nicest possible way you really need a rethink.

[Southwest Dave]

Donna I appreciate the heads up about UT128. My maps are routing me from I-70 to 191. So we'll be coming down the west side of Arches which looks much simpler.

We are definitely out west and visiting parks for the scenery, so this route is another great option to consider.

This drive adds little time and is very scenic so I would consider taking it. I would recommend you get paper maps rather than relying on electronics so that you get to go the way you want to go. Sometimes a Sat Nav will add 100 miles or more to a journey to keep you on Interstate and all to save 10 minutes and at the cost of missing some lovely scenery like this little detour.

[glc]

It's not even a detour - it's actually about 7 miles shorter!

[Rick Quinn]

Hello again:

Getting back to that marathon drive from St. Louis to Denver: as a general rule of thumb, you should always add at least 20% to whatever fantasy time Google assigns to a drive between two points. That allows for fuel stops, bio breaks, traffic (slow trucks!), and a very brief lunch stop. By that calculation, the 12.5 hour drive, which is already much too long, becomes a 15 hour drive, just as Dave said, and that's not just exhausting, it's dangerous! Please take us seriously when we say this: fatigue is a killer, and even if it doesn't kill you literally, it'll take a toll on you physically, and it's just really not worth the time you save by not stopping in between the two cities.

The smart move here is to take a more casual pace. Get a decent nights' sleep in St. Louis; leave there at a more reasonable time of morning, and head west. Hays, Kansas is a bit over 500 miles, which is really plenty for one day; If you're bound and determined to push yourself, Colby, Kansas would be about 109 miles more, for a total of 620. That's the absolute MOST I would recommend--and only if you get a full nights' sleep before starting out! Either way, your second day would be a piece of cake, and you'd arrive in Denver early enough to see a thing or two.

My two cents.

Rick

[Southwest Dave]

And of course if Denver was only chosen as an overnight stop option, you could go right through there next day and get closer to Arches NP. Oakley KS has limited lodging choices and is 600 miles from St Louis and the following day 550 miles would get you to Fruita CO which is just 100 miles from Arches NP. It'll be safer, more relaxed and you will arrive to Arches fresh and ready for a day of exploring.

[RogerRabbit02]

First off, Thank You guys for all your great advice and suggestions. I'm glad to see we have a wonderful and experienced group of contributors to this site. I understand and have taken into account all of your suggestions.

My daughter and I are true road warriors and not afraid of a long drive, heck she and another girl drove straight through to Dallas from Michigan, LOL. I did it once myself when I was much younger. That being said I do indeed plan on taking my time.

Okay, here's the latest curve.

As of an hour ago the layover in St. Louis is a "no-go" for scheduling issues with family. So we'll take the Omaha, Des Moines route to Denver. We will stay in one of those places to cut the trip in half. We'll decide which one when my daughter arrives here in a day or so.

As usual, I'll check before we head out to see if by any chance any weather will impact that route as its a bit more north than going through Missouri and Kansas.

I do indeed agree with you all about adding some "float" to any travel time estimates. I appreciate the corrections.

So thank you for the suggestions about the approach to Arches. Depending on the time of day, it sounds like something we should do.

Looks like I'll be going back to AAA to get a stack of more paper maps, TripTiks and Tour Books. It's funny because the representative and I were laughing about me taking this opportunity to teach my daughter how to read (and fold) a paper road map.

I appreciate you all...

- - - Updated - - -

And of course if Denver was only chosen as an overnight stop option, you could go right through there next day and get closer to Arches NP. Oakley KS has limited lodging choices and is 600 miles from St Louis and the following day 550 miles would get you to Fruita CO which is just 100 miles from Arches NP. It'll be safer, more relaxed and you will arrive to Arches fresh and ready for a day of exploring.

Yes it is an "option", but since we have friends we can visit, we made it (Denver) a hard stop.

[DonnaR57]

Yes, do teach your daughter to read (and fold) a paper map. So far, nothing electronic can replace the detail of a paper map, at least as far as GPS/satnav's and mapping programs are concerned. Whether you get a TripTik is totally up to you -- they do give you "G", "F" and "L" markings at each interstate exit about the availability of Gas, Food and Lodging, and the back always has interesting information about the area in which you're traveling.

Yes, glc, I am sure about the UT-128. Unfortunately, I'm not at the computer that currently houses the photos that I took from that road, or I would post one or two. It's gorgeous, though!


Donna

[glc]

Whoa - you need to rethink this - you are going to try to do this in 6 days while visiting Arches, Zion, and the Grand Canyon? Even if you cut out the GC, that's not enough time.

2 days from Michigan to Denver, 1 day from Denver to Arches, 1 day from Arches to Zion, 1 day from Zion to Phoenix via Las Vegas (I-15 to I-515/US-93) - this only gives you ONE day to see TWO parks. Add just one more day and you can do it. This will give you 1 day in each park.