Southern Pacific Road Trip - San Diego, California to Savannah, Georgia

[Bont]

Hi!

I'm from England and am planning on coming over to the US next Fall (2011) to do a road trip from San Diego to Savannah. I'm planning to take 3 weeks off work and will be doing it with a mate.

At the minute, the only arrangements I'm planning to make are booking my flights to San Diego and from Savannah and the hire of the car.

Any tips and suggestions which people may have - whatever it may relate to - will be greatly welcomed.

The main reason for choosing this route is that there are not many 'touristy' cities on the route and it is hopefully a great chance to experience the wide variety of cultures which the South has to offer.

Thanks in advance.

Bont

[AZBuck]

Welcome aboard the RoadTrip America Forums!

I'll assume from the title of your post that you are referring to Jamie Jensen's description of US-80. No one else uses the term to describe this highway. The Southern Pacific is a (now defunct) US railway. In any event, this is a perfectly good route, but just one among many possible alternatives for getting from the west to east coasts at a relaxed pace while seeing quite a bit of countryside and more than a few small towns. But there is absolutely no reason to follow any one person's suggestions and certainly no reason to follow one numbered highway across the country. For example it would be a shame to make this drive, particularly with three full weeks for the journey, and miss the Grand Canyon, Painted Desert, White Sands, the Alamo, New Orleans, the Gulf Coast, and Cape Kennedy among a host of other venues, just because they don't fall on a line drawn by someone else. For starters, I'd suggest that you get a good map of the US and start seeing what's between your two termini, decide which are most important to you, and only then pick a route that serves the purpose of getting you where you want to go.

AZBuck

[cbanuva]

Good tips. thanks for sharing with community

[Bont]

AZBuck

That's great, thanks for your advice. I've looked at whether there is a best time of year to go - in order to avoid potential hurricanes during the trip but it seems as though there can be hurricanes throughout the year. Would this be your view?

Any more random/off-beat recommendations which anyone has for what to see - apart from the usual more 'touristy' things - would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks again

Bont

[AZBuck]

Hurricanes occasionally happen in May and December, but the vast majority occur during Hurricane Season, June through November, with most coming in August, September and October. The main thing, though, is that there is almost always ample warning of the approach of these storms to allow you to avoid them.

AZBuck

[BlueCuzco]

With New Orleans and Savannah on your itinerary you've got a good dose of the South ahead of you, but don't neglect (if you don't have to considering limited time) the Southern Appalachians. There's flat land South and the Southern Highlands, two very different games. Got to get both to get what the South is about. Could consider driving up through Chattanooga, entering the mountains through the Ocoee River Gorge or on the Cherohala Skyway, fringe the southern border of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and stop in Asheville on the way back down to Savannah. Again, if you have time.

[SDpathfinder]

If your origination city is San Diego then plan on taking highway 8 east through the county only minutes from the Mexican border (J-1 visa required) and enjoy an interesting trek through scrub, rock forests, and desert before hitting the Colorado River and Arizona. If I'm reading you right, I'd suggest taking 95 north out of Yuma as the connector to highway 10; head east to Phoenix from there. A very nice option for someone who wants the less beaten path, is to stay on 60 east when you get into PHX heading for Globe. This takes you past the Superstition Mtns and the terrain east of Globe, AZ to New Mexico is fantastic! If you continue on 60 into NM you'll go by the Very Large Array (as in the Jodi Foster film "Contact"). I like taking 60 as far east as possible, into New Mexico, but be careful--gas stations are few and far between so pre-planning is necessary. Albuquerque's a great city so you can either venture north off of 60 to connect with 40 east there, or continue the backcountry highways. A tip for the Texas panhandle is to stop by the public art work, Cadillac Ranch, on the western edge of Amarillo off of route 40. You can see it from the highway, but it's on a parallel secondary road. Free and bizarre and worth the stop in my book. 40 will take you through Oklahoma City and Little Rock, Arkansas to Memphis, which I love, but sooner or later you have to head southeast so I'd veer at Memphis for the final leg to Georgia. Sounds like a great trip. Safe travels, if you're still up for it!

[glc]

Why would a J-1 visa be required to drive on I-8?