From El Paso To Houston Non Interstate

[LeeB]

Next year sometime we are road tripping from California to Pensacola FL. What other routes can we take through Texas other than I-20 to I-10? We will be driving a 33ft Class A towing a Equinox.
Thanks LeeB

Please note not sure of the time line and yes I am aware of Tornados. I’ll watch the weather and stop for few days if I have to.

[twogypsies]

Hwy 90 is a very good highway.

[DKRITTER]

Originally Posted by twogypsies

Hwy 90 is a very good highway.

I'd probably take 90 as well. It would be a fun leisurely trip across Texas and many neat places along the way.

Remember there is a whole lot of nothing between El Paso and San Antonio so be prepared.

[creativepart]

This far south tornadoes are not a thing. That’s far north Texas / Oklahoma. Tornadoes occur when cold air and warm are collide. Down here in south Texas we have warm air, hot air and hotter air. They don’t really collide they most just meld.

Hiway 90 is about your only practical choice. It’s a fine road with typical Texas high speed limits of 75 mph. It adds miles and you’ll still go through San Antonio.

We live just north of SA and go to Arizona each winter. We usually take I-10 but have taken Hwy-90 a couple of times.

[Trapper2022]

That’s an 11 hour drive at highway speeds. Most of the road from El Paso to San Antonio is 80 mph the rest is 75. Have driven it several times in RVs going 62 mph and it is a long boring drive that takes me two long days. We Always take hwy 10 but will be following your thread because it would be nice to find a more relaxing way across the area. Safe travels

Enjoy the journey

[LeeB]

Happy New Year. Thanks in looking it the map it does look like 90 will fill the bill. Plus we have heard about Marfia and the lights. I am assuming there will be camping along the way. Perhaps a few Elks Lodges along the way.
Thanks LeeB

[TXiceman]

Originally Posted by LeeB

Happy New Year. Thanks in looking it the map it does look like 90 will fill the bill. Plus we have heard about Marfia and the lights. I am assuming there will be camping along the way. Perhaps a few Elks Lodges along the way.
Thanks LeeB

A really nice state park neat Marfia is Davis Mountains SP at Fort Davis, TX. Also Balmorhea SP is near by. At Fort Davis there is the restored fort and McDonald observatory.

As for the Marfia Light, I have never seen them. I think it depends on how much you have had to drink as to how many lights you will see.

Enjoy the trip.

Ken

[twogypsies]

Do a side trip to Big Bend Nat'l Park if you have time. It's not often one gets in the vicinity!

[creativepart]

Originally Posted by TXiceman

A really nice state park neat Marfia is Davis Mountains SP at Fort Davis, TX. Also Balmorhea SP is near by. At Fort Davis there is the restored fort and McDonald observatory.

Yes, Fort Davis Mountains SP is wonderful. Unfortunately, Balmorhea SP has been closed for 3-years and is still closed for a 1-year rebuild of the parks sewer system. Who knows when it will reopen. It was a favorite stop of ours.

There is a great State Park in Comstock only a mile or so off of Hwy 90 right on the Rio Grande River before Del Rio and near the Lake Amistad Reservoir. It's called Seminole Canyon State Park & Historic Site.

Big Bend NP is great, however, much of it is closed right now and it's a 160 mile round trip from Hwy 90 to the park and back. Nearby though is the town of Lajitas with a very nice RV park called Mustang Ranch RV Resort.

[LeeB]

This are great information thank you all so very much
LeeB

[Isaac-1]

Note Balmorea State park has been mostly closed for reconstruction for the last couple of years including the campground, with the expected reopening date being pushed back repeatedly.


As to the options staying off I-10, there are not many options, there are only 2 highways that head east of of El Paso, I-10, and US62 which goes to Carlsbad. If you take US62 and want to avoid going into New Mexico there is TX highway 652, which is a somewhat narrow paved highway with no shoulders, and no sign of human habitation, that is somewhat roller coaster like going up and down hills (or at least it was when I drove it 15 years ago). The first sign of civilization on this route is the town or Orla, which when I was last there was a ghost town with a boarded up gas station and a lot of dilapidated mobile homes.


If you take the I-10 route you will have to travel at least as far east as Van Horn (120 ish miles from El Paso) before you can get onto US 90, though US 90 from Van Horn to Marfa is a somewhat boring stretch of road. Of course your next option is TX 118 from I-10 to US 90 in Alpine, I have done the Fort Davis to Alpine section in my coach, and it is a scenic drive, and not bad, though from I-10 to Fort Davis it can be winding in places, with a few low points with (mostly dry) creek beds cross the road. Probably doable, but more fun in a sports car. 118 is certainly the more scenic route, plus you get McDonald Observatory and Fort Davis (the highest elevation town in Texas), as well as Davis Mountain SP.


If you stay on US 90 east of Alpine if will parallel the Mexican border for a while, before heading towards San Antonio, east of San Antonio it crisscrosses I-10 a number of times, and runs along I-10 in some places all the way to Florida. Much of US90 is 4 lane highway, and those places where it is not, it is generally 2 lane with wide shoulders.


If you want another route across much of Texas avoiding I-10, except in west Texas, try US190 from the terminus at I-10 near Iraan to Louisiana. I drove much of the length of this highway in 2019, just to avoid driving I-10 again, the downside of US190 is that it zigzags all the way across Texas, often making sharp corners in towns along the way. The advantage to this route is you get to see lots of small towns along the way that you would never see otherwise, unfortunately there is not much of interest in many of them, and gas stations with easy access while towing may be limited.

[Jake21]

Originally Posted by creativepart

Nearby though is the town of Lajitas with a very nice RV park called Mustang Ranch RV Resort.

Actually the resort is Maverick Ranch. Love that area.

Also if you want a real treat, stop in Marathon and have dinner at the Gage Hotel. (Call to make sure they are open of course). They have an RV park down the street but I have not stayed there. Full hook ups and good reviews online.

[wolfe10]

Originally Posted by DKRITTER

I'd probably take 90 as well. It would be a fun leisurely trip across Texas and many neat places along the way.

ABSOLUTELY. Unless in a real hurry, that is the way we always go (90 from Van Horn to San Antonio). Good road and very little traffic.