winter travel in the northwest

[beachgramma]

Has anyone traveled in northern Montana to Washington/Oregon in early January? We would like to visit our family in Montana at Christmas and then head south questionable where-- just someplace warm and thought that heading due west and then through California might be the best route. I know that weather is very unpredictable but just wondering if this has been done by anyone?

[rondeb]

We live on the East side of Washington State. We insure that we are out of here before the snow flies and do not come back until it is gone. Pretty tough passes to go over. You will need to be willing to chain up if required. Make sure you carry the required number of chains for the front and back tires. Just personally, I would not make that trip, but some are much more adventurous than we are. LOL

[2gypsies1]

Personally, I wouldn't advise driving your RV from Wisconsin to Montana in January.

An option would be to head directly south from Wisconsin to a much warmer spot in Alabama or Texas, set it up in an RV park and drive your vehicle to Montana or better yet, fly to Montana and return to your RV. Perhaps they could give the flight to you for your Christmas gift. 🙂 When our kids lived in Michigan we would go to Gulf Shores State Park, Alabama and drive back in only our vehicle to Michigan for the holidays.

[J-Rooster]

rgatijnet1 wrote:
As mentioned weather is unpredictable. Keep informed as to what to expect each day on the road. Get yourself a set of chains for the rears and have them available, even if you do not need to install them. Some places require that you have them with your rig and the fine is more than the cost of the chains. There used to be places that rented chains but I have since bought mine.
When driving in Winter temps, drive slow and do not make any quick adjustments. Do not change lanes or steer when you are going over an overpass as the road could be covered in ice.
From experience, driving in a blizzard can make it difficult for your defroster to melt the snow on a 4 foot tall windshield. Other than that, just enjoy the trip.

X-2, on Ronnie's post! I can't remember about Idaho or Montana, but in Washington State you must carry tire chains in your vehicle during the winter months and when going over the Mountain Passes even when the sign says no chains required. The Washington State Patrol sits on top of these passes and when they see a vehicle with no chains on (when the chains required sign is on) you will get pulled over a ticketed. The best route IMHO is I-90. Good Luck

[beachgramma]

Thanks for all the input I will have to let my husband know.

[BigSkyBob]

Actually the weather in Montana in January is very predictable. It will be cold, sometimes 35 below zero, and with snow and ice covered roads and the mountain passes might be plowed but will be a challange for a coach, especially if towing. If you plan on a route on I90 you will have several passes to navagate, some over 6000' elevation. I took my coach south in January a few years ago and was sorry as it was white knuckle most of the time and I'm very occustiomed to winter driving conditions. Best of luck.

[rgatijnet1]

As mentioned weather is unpredictable. Keep informed as to what to expect each day on the road. Get yourself a set of chains for the rears and have them available, even if you do not need to install them. Some places require that you have them with your rig and the fine is more than the cost of the chains. There used to be places that rented chains but I have since bought mine.
When driving in Winter temps, drive slow and do not make any quick adjustments. Do not change lanes or steer when you are going over an overpass as the road could be covered in ice.
From experience, driving in a blizzard can make it difficult for your defroster to melt the snow on a 4 foot tall windshield. Other than that, just enjoy the trip.

[WyoTraveler]

You don't mention if you will be in RV or passenger vehicle.

[downtheroad]

frankdamp above is right on with his post. Just keep in mind that you will also need to have traction tires and sometimes even chains over the mountain passes that he mentioned.

Oregon requires that you actually carry chains in the winter.

West of the Cascades...expect cool, damp, rainy conditions and occasionally ice on the roads in the mornings...

[frankdamp]

You're right in your comment about the weather being unpredictable. East of the Cascades in January will most likely be cold and snowy but the two main passes (Stevens - US2) and Snoqualmie (I-90)are kept well plowed. If they get really nasty, they might be closed for a few hours at a time so clearance can be done quickly. Stevens is about 4300 feet high and is mainly 2-lane. Snoqualmie summit is around 3000, but it's full Interstate configuration.

Once you get onto the west side, the lowland regions are usually OK. The next "gotcha" southbound (assuming you'd go I-5) would be the Siskyous, on the OR-CA line. Again, that's full Interstate standard and well looked after, but there may be delays.