San Diego to Duluth - scenic routes?
This summer we plan to tow our 30' 5th-wheel from San Diego to near Duluth, Minn. I'm asking for suggestions as to scenic routes to take. (Note: I much prefer to stay off the interstates and avoid ci...
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Rexlion has some great routes and stops, so I would second his itinerary. From Salida, you might want to continue north on US 285 and CO 9 to US 40 at Kremmling. Take US 40 east to Granby, then US 34 for a trip over Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park. Lots of tight curves on Trail Ridge, but your medium-length 5th wheel should handle them if you don't mind driving mountain roads. This route bypasses both Colorado Springs and Denver, so you avoid a lot of heavy traffic.
From RMNP, you could just stay on US 34 to US 6/34 and stay on US highways (not Interstates) all the way across Nebraska. It is a good road and McCook, Minden, and Hastings all have some interesting attractions--a Frank Lloyd Wright house in McCook, a Pioneer Village/car museum in Minden, and an excellent natural history-culture museum and planetarium in Hastings (advertised as "the largest municipal museum between Chicago and Denver").
At Hastings, you can stay on US 34 to Grand Island, then get on US 30 to bypass both Lincoln and Omaha. Much of US 30 is the original Lincoln Highway, the very first transcontinental automobile highway across the US. This 2- and 4-lane highway crosses the Missouri River at Blair, just north of Omaha. From Blair, you can pick any number of US highways across Iowa and Minnesota to reach Duluth.
I have done all of these routes for the same reason as you--to stay off the crowded Interstates (and I-80 is the most truck-crowded E-W one in the West) and to visit some of "small-town America" before it disappears altogether.
Have a great trip!
From RMNP, you could just stay on US 34 to US 6/34 and stay on US highways (not Interstates) all the way across Nebraska. It is a good road and McCook, Minden, and Hastings all have some interesting attractions--a Frank Lloyd Wright house in McCook, a Pioneer Village/car museum in Minden, and an excellent natural history-culture museum and planetarium in Hastings (advertised as "the largest municipal museum between Chicago and Denver").
At Hastings, you can stay on US 34 to Grand Island, then get on US 30 to bypass both Lincoln and Omaha. Much of US 30 is the original Lincoln Highway, the very first transcontinental automobile highway across the US. This 2- and 4-lane highway crosses the Missouri River at Blair, just north of Omaha. From Blair, you can pick any number of US highways across Iowa and Minnesota to reach Duluth.
I have done all of these routes for the same reason as you--to stay off the crowded Interstates (and I-80 is the most truck-crowded E-W one in the West) and to visit some of "small-town America" before it disappears altogether.
Have a great trip!
