Bill S. wrote:
From the beach area in Delaware, I want to find a good plan to get over to I81 south, to Tennessee. GPS route takes me across Annapolis Bay bridge down to the Beltway, then CCW over the northern outer loop to 66 (I think), on over the I81.
That may be the fastest based on the GPS, but the beltway is really a mess of slow to stopped traffic, and I'd like to aviod it.
Is there a good way to get to I81? Maybe around Baltimore beltway (maybe a little better?), to Frederick, Md; Harpers Ferry 340 to I81?
How about 113S over Chesapeake BBT? What would you do?
I have lived just off I-66 around the area of Manassas for the last 30 years and routinely travel the 66 to beltway and up the west side to the Military Hospital in Bethesda and the GPS route you mentioned is not that bad. I have traveled that route at all times of the day and there will always be traffic and it's hard to predict how heavy it might be on any particular day. The really bad stuff is the eastern side of the beltway and I-95 south of the beltway down to the Fredricksburg area. This is where when an 18 wheeler tangles with the "little ones" and they close I-95 sometimes in both directions for Med evac helos that you hear about the "epic traffic jams" and the really bad horror stories. Coming from where you are I would shoot for doing "the dance" so to speak between 10AM and 1PM and it should not be that bad. I-66 going west just outside the beltway can get congested for 5 or so miles almost anytime of the day, but that's just because you have both directions of the beltway along with I-66 inside the beltway all dumping onto I-66 going west and it take a few miles for all that merging traffic to sort it's self out. Don't get discouraged and the traffic will get better after you get to the area of 123 and 50 on I-66 going west.
If you need fuel there is a Sheetz at Rt. 15 off I-66 that I think also has diesel and is withing a mile of I-66 and very convenient for on/off and fuel island access. That's going to be the best fuel alternative till you're a few miles south on I-81.
As mentioned don't stress out and just take it easy and relax and go with the flow or lack thereof:W
Larry
