Good route Portland, OR to Phoenix, NOT thru California?

Earl... that's not a bad idea... I will definitely consider it.

I'm actually even considering a re-do of our trip north last May... I-84 east up the Col. River gorge, down to Baker City, to Boise, Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, Phoenix.

It's a couple of hundred miles longer this way, but my reasoning is that there are many more good places to stop for the night all along the way, with very little in the way of long, long desolate stretches.