Midwest to GA - avoid steep grades?

Thanks for the tip on the water bowls. Yes the interstates all look the same in most cases. My wife and I plan to take a more leisurely trek back where we can enjoy the sites.

Camping World has "unspillable" water dishes. The way the top ring is made, it forces the water back down into the bowl. We have put several thousand miles on one without getting any water on the floor.

As long as you stay on Interstates the grades and curves are controlled by standards published by the FHWA. Of course, as long as you stay on the Interstates it all looks like the same two miles; over and over and over and over again.

Based on what we've read, we plan to drive through Atlanta on a weekend. We also plan to skip Birmingham just to save some time. On the way back, when we have time, we can always drive through there. Since everyone's comments made me feel easier about driving the Chattanooga route, I think we'll be able to stick closer to the google maps route:

Kansas City -> St Louis, MO via I-70
St Louis, MO -> Mt Vernon, IL via I-64
Mt Vernon, IL -> Chattanooga TN via I-24
Chattanooga, TN -> Atlanta, GA via I-75
Atlanta, GA -> Savannah, GA via I-75/16

google maps puts that at about 15 1/2 hours, much more reasonable. We'll do a couple LONG driving days but will have more time for vacation when we get there. We're taking our cats and have purchased a couple 35 inch diameter nylon collapsible pet playpens. We haven't taken our cats on any trips. I have read a lot online and most people say to confine them in lieu of giving them the freedom to wander the RV while we are enroute. The nylon playpens are large enough so they'll hold a small litter box and I may include a small dish of water. Else most likely we'll offer water and food whenever we stop for gas. Any other tips for taking cats on long journeys?

Just made a round trip to Savannah using I-20 from Shreveport, La. to Meridian, Ms....then US80/96 to Warner Robins, Ga. then I-16 down to Savannah. No problems with hills, some construction but no problems. I would highly suggest when you get on I-16 to have a full tank of fuel because it is a remote interstate with FEW places to fill up and no rest areas. We did this trip in our car not the motorhome.

Thanks! I will look up the Two Rivers campground - I'd rather stay in the RV and be able to plug in so we could turn on the furnace, than to stay in a motel. :)

Rebelkitty wrote:
Thanks again everyone, We'll probably stay over around Nashville while traveling south. Not sure at this point whether we'll look for a pet friendly motel (traveling with our cats), a campground on the interstate or deal with a walmart parking lot long enough to get some shut-eye for a few hours. Do you know of any campgrounds around that area that I could call and see if they are open around that timeframe?

Two Rivers campground on Music Valley dr. in Nashville open all year

Thanks again everyone, We'll probably stay over around Nashville while traveling south. Not sure at this point whether we'll look for a pet friendly motel (traveling with our cats), a campground on the interstate or deal with a walmart parking lot long enough to get some shut-eye for a few hours. Do you know of any campgrounds around that area that I could call and see if they are open around that timeframe?

I also suggest I-24 from Nashville to Chattanooga, and pickup I-75 to Atlanta. Atlanta thru central city avoids a lot of trucks, which are suppose to take the beltway around the city. Atlanta isn't too bad except for rush hour, and weekends are almost pleasant.

Saves you almost 100 miles and 2 hours or so versus Birmingham, and Monteagle is NOT that bad, certainly not like Colorado. Also I would much rather drive thru Chattanooga than Birmingham.

Again, no real mountains to speak of in your travels. Some hills near Chattanooga but no problem.

I just drove Fl to Mo and back last week in a car. Worry more about extremely heavy traffic in Memphis, Birmingham, Montgomery, and Atlanta. Avoid all four during commute hours. Birmingham was so bad I finally pulled off and ate dinner.

The roads in Memphis are terrible.

Rebelkitty wrote:
Thanks everyone, I definitely feel a lot better now after reading your posts. Since our kids and grandkids are on a time constraint, we plan to drive it in 2 days - planning to drive 14 hours the first day and 12 hours the next day. They are older and with electronics, will be just fine for a long car trip. At least we hope we can make it - we are praying for good weather, as we'll be driving it just after Christmas! Google maps clocks it at 20 hours. Given that we'll be towing a vehicle, do you think 26 hours is a good estimation?

Google Maps / Mileage Calculator shows the route through St. Louis, Mount Vernon, and Paducah and on to Nashville to be 1,047. We usually figure that we'll average about 50 mph, taking into account rest stops, fuel, walking the dog, etc., so 1,047 miles would be 21 hours. 26 should give you some cushion, even though you're looking at a couple of long days and might need a little more frequent rest.

The route through Springfield, MO and Jonesboro, AR is a little bit shorter by mileage, but longer by time since it gets you off of the interstate system for a while.