What to do, driving from Baltimore to Boulder.

[LeighLewis]

I'm planning on moving to Colorado next month, and I'll be driving by myself, so I'm looking for some tips on the drive and any fun/interesting things to do along the way.

I will be driving from Baltimore to Boulder in late February. Not exactly the best time to move to Colorado, but that's how it is working out. My tentative plan is to stop in Roanoke btwn Baltimore and Nashville, since that is quite a drive and I won't be able to do that in one shot. I may potentially have a friend coming with me, but we will still probably stop. Is Roanoke about equidistant from BMore/Nashville?
(I'm stopping in Nashville b/c a friend will be there that weekend, and the friend who may come with me knows someone there, I know it's not exaaaactly on the route).

So from Nashville, I plan on stopping in Kansas City, and then on to Boulder. It looks like I can do those drives in one day each. But I'm not too sure, so if anyone knows let me know, what those drives are like and how long they are.

I'm not a big fan of that part of the country (the midwest...MO and KS...sorry if I offend you!) so I'm not sure what'll be along the road, but if there's anything fun, quirky, interesting, scenic, etc. that's not too far off of the highway that would be cool to check out let me know! Also, what's there to do/see in St. Louis or Kansas City, that could take just a few hours. (I don't plan on staying a while in St. Louis, but since I'm driving through there I'll probably check it out a little bit, same with KC).
It looks like from Nashville, I'll be on I-24, then 57, 64, and then the rest is I-70.

[AZBuck]

Welcome aboard the RoadTrip America Forums!

To answer your specific questions. Wytheville, or more generally the junction of I-81 and I-77, is much closer to the halfway point between Baltimore and Nashville than Roanoke and should offer plenty of lodging choices. From Nashville, KC is about 550 miles, which is a good days drive and about what we recommend on average. Boulder is a good 625 miles farther along after KC, so that would be a hard day. You may want to consider pulling up for the night somewhere in eastern Colorado if you're not used to such long drives, but with 2 drivers and gaining an hour of daylight as you head west through the time zone, Boulder just might be within your reach. If on the other hand, you spend even a few hours each in St. Louis and Kansas City, then you really should plan on taking three days from Nashville to Boulder, As for places to take generally refreshing breaks along the Interstates on your way west, check out these lists. For things a bit farther afield, there are other lists, and here are some things to do in St. Louis.

AZBuck

[LeighLewis]

Hey thanks :)
Actually, I won't be driving with anyone from Nashville to Boulder. So maybe I'll have to rethink my game plan a little bit. My friend plans on coming with me to Nashville, and then flying back to DC. It'd just be a weekend trip for her and we'd be meeting another friend in Nashville. I'm usually good for about 6-8 hours of driving, and then no more after that. Last year I drove from Athens, GA to Baltimore, which I think is about a 10 hour drive, and it was tough. I did stop at a rest stop for about 30-45 minutes at one point, and took an extra long food/gas break in Northern VA.

[LeighLewis]

Also, any idea what gas costs would be driving Baltimore-Boulder?

[glc]

Fuel price calculator

You will need to know how many miles you will be driving, what you expect your gas mileage to be, and guess what the average price per gallon will be.

[PNW Judy]

Gas Buddy is a great place to find out what prices are to help you with your cost estimate.

[LeighLewis]

Hello! I really want to get a picture of the lovely sign welcoming you to Colorado. I'll be driving from Kansas on I-70. I want to be able to get out of my car and take a nice shot. (I'm doing a Polaroid project...I have 20 slides left, and I'm driving from Baltimore to Boulder and planning on using the Polaroid to document my trip). Do I have to take a side/country road for this portion of my trip? I think there's one on a road called 24 or something that parallells 70 going into Colorado. Now I'm sure I'll probably see it for miles while I'm there, I Just want to make sure I don't miss it, and sorta plan it out before hand.

[Midwest Michael]

The "Welcome to Colorful Colorado" sign on I-70 entering from Kansas is right along the interstate, not at a nearby rest area like in some states. To get a picture, you'd probably have to pull onto the shoulder and take a quick pick. Its not the safest idea in the world, but that's probably your only real option other than shooting it through a moving car window.

US-24 is the same highway as I-70 in this section, they are signed together. If you were looking at another option where you could more easily stop along a 2 lane road to take a picture of the sign, you could detour onto US-40 at Oakley, KS and then rejoin I-70 at Limon, CO.

[AZBuck]

I-70 and US-24 are exactly the same road as they enter Colorado from Kansas and I would fully expect the standard "Welcome to Colorful Colorado" sign to be posted at the state line.

AZBuck