Highway 10

[powerboatr]

Originally Posted by glennb100

You might want to consider angling up to I-20 and then hooking back up with I-10 where the two merge in West Texas.

Why? I-20 is in much better condition than I-10 across Louisiana and you miss driving through the heart of Houston. I-20 skirts the south Dallas suburbs and the traffic is not too bad.

if you do decide to grab 20,
pickup hwy 231 north just past Marianna Florida take it north west through Dothan up to Montgomery and then I-65 to Birmingham to grab 20
i would add I-20 thru Shreveport, its expansion joints will drive you out of your mind, not bad once you get in texas, avoid the i-20 corridor thru big d anytime after 2pm until around 8 pm, the 635 / 20 merger is nutty, heading west in the late afternoon.

but its better than houston.

[RickO]

Fort Stockton, TX is a "driving distance" stop between San Antonio and El Paso. They only place that we have stayed in that town is Fort Stockton RV Park. I don't mean to insult anyone, but we call Fort Stockton the armpit of Texas. I'm sure there are some that will disagree.


No disagreement here, Wayne. We've stayed at Fort Stockton RV Park 3 times now...after driving around and looking at two others. It's no destination resort but as an overnight stop it works great. The on site Road Runner Cafe is also worth about 5000 calories and a bucket of laughs
As for it being the armpit of Texas... you may need to look a little farther south on the body IMHO

[wddogger]

In case anybody missed this:

The federal government has posted signs along a major interstate highway in Arizona, more than 100 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border, warning travelers the area is unsafe because of drug and alien smugglers, and a local sheriff says Mexican drug cartels now control some parts of the state.
The signs were posted by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) along a 60-mile stretch of Interstate 8 between Casa Grande and Gila Bend, a major east-west corridor linking Tucson and Phoenix with San Diego.
They warn travelers that they are entering an "active drug and human smuggling area" and they may encounter "armed criminals and smuggling vehicles traveling at high rates of speed." Beginning less than 50 miles south of Phoenix, the signs encourage travelers to "use public lands north of Interstate 8" and to call 911 if they "see suspicious activity."

I drove this route westbound in April 2010, to avoid traffic and construction encountered on I-10 in Phoenix on the eastbound leg, without problems and saw another vehicle only occasionally. Travel with caution.

[RickO]

That's nuts. We drove that stretch in November and our daughter just made the trip back and forth from San Diego and Phoenix at Christmas without noticing anything unusual. I sure hope this spurs some serious action.

Rick

[Bob and Inga]

Maureen,

We drove the east end of I-10 a couple of times this past year. FL, AL & MS are all pretty good and nothing to worry about. In LA there are a couple of 'watch outs'. When you get near the east end of the I-10/I-12 split, the road gets bad, but only for a couple of miles so no problem, just slow down a bit.

Danger, warning, broken parts - at the west end of the Basin Bridge just east of Lafayette, appx mm 104 - 122 or so is a really bad stretch. It will beat you to death if you don't slow down. If you wear dentures, use double glue. Put your 4 way flashers on and drop down to 45 and it won't be as bad, but it will still be bad.

On our second trip east we exited in Lafayette and stayed at a city park there, Acadiana Park CG. $13 for 50 amp and water. Then we used a couple of state roads to head east missing most of the bad section (twice was more than enough for one year).

RV Park Reviews :: Lafayette, Louisiana ( LA ) - RV Parks and Campground Reviews

Then at the west end in LA is another bridge with really bad expansion joints. I-10 in TX up to Houston was ok.

A good place for a night or two in MS is at the Davis Bayou CG in Ocean Springs (next to Biloxi). Leaving you can stay on US-98 and follow the gulf for a nice ride back to I-10.

RV Park Reviews :: Ocean Springs, Mississippi ( MS ) - RV Parks and Campground Reviews

If you are Passport America, then a nice 1 nighter in TX is the Gulf Coast RV park, breakfast included.

RV Park Reviews :: Beaumont, Texas ( TX ) - RV Parks and Campground Reviews

Happy travels,

Bob

[FDchief]

We did the same route last year twice in a three month period. I can't remember any bad spots that you really need to avoid. I did it in 7 days, but my gps said it should only take you 57 hours

[h2guy]

Originally Posted by wddogger

In case anybody missed this:

The federal government has posted signs along a major interstate highway in Arizona, more than 100 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border, warning travelers the area is unsafe because of drug and alien smugglers, and a local sheriff says Mexican drug cartels now control some parts of the state.
The signs were posted by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) along a 60-mile stretch of Interstate 8 between Casa Grande and Gila Bend, a major east-west corridor linking Tucson and Phoenix with San Diego.
They warn travelers that they are entering an "active drug and human smuggling area" and they may encounter "armed criminals and smuggling vehicles traveling at high rates of speed." Beginning less than 50 miles south of Phoenix, the signs encourage travelers to "use public lands north of Interstate 8" and to call 911 if they "see suspicious activity."

I drove this route westbound in April 2010, to avoid traffic and construction encountered on I-10 in Phoenix on the eastbound leg, without problems and saw another vehicle only occasionally. Travel with caution.

This is HORSE HOCKEY!!

Those signs are posted to deter people from boondocking in that area, as has been the practice over the years.

Has NOTHING to do with traveling the freeways through AZ.

[RickO]

Originally Posted by h2guy

This is HORSE HOCKEY!!

Those signs are posted to deter people from boondocking in that area, as has been the practice over the years.

Has NOTHING to do with traveling the freeways through AZ.

I wasn't sure what you were saying was "horse hockey" so I went back and re-read Signs in Arizona warn of smuggler dangers - Washington Times the Washington Times article on it and I think you're right. It's easy to read the story as implying it's no longer safe to use the Interstate 8... but a careful read seems to reveal that they're talking about "use of public lands".

Good eye. I feel a bit better.... I think.

rick

[wddogger]

For those who missed it at the end of my post, I said:

"I drove this route westbound in April 2010, to avoid traffic and construction encountered on I-10 in Phoenix on the eastbound leg, without problems and saw another vehicle only occasionally. Travel with caution."

I intend to travel that route again in the near future to avoid traffic and construction encountered on I-10 in Phoenix. "Travel with caution" means just that, not "don't go there". If caution is the equivalent of "horse hockey!!" in your book, suit yourself.