Summer trip Florida to Nevada

[Kyfan]

We're planning a trip in the next few weeks from S. Florida to Las Vegas area in the Forester. We're retired and in no hurry, and no specific destinations on the way. We haven't been out west before and would like to go the southern route through Texas, but a little concerned about it being hot weather. We're from Kentucky and living in Florida now. I don't see how 110 degrees in the desert west could be much hotter than the 95 degree high humidity here. Am I wrong?
What would you experienced travelers recommend for this time of year, southern route or head north and then west?
Thanks

[Slimjc]

Well, I have spent a lot of time in both climates. Although there is no humidity to speak of, it is very hot. It really is like being in an oven. If you do not have shade, and there is very little, you just cook. I am not sure Vegas past May is a good plan, unless you are towing a pool.

[bikendan]

Don't understand why you're doing this trip in the summer, since you're retired and can go off season, when it's less crowded and WAY cooler.

I wouldn't want to visit Vegas in the summer in a RV.
Best to be in a hotel for those 110°+ days.

[lbrjet]

No, you are not wrong. I lived in Tampa for five years and currently live just outside Phoenix. There are only on average about 12 days a year above 110. 105 here feels better to me than 90 in Tampa. They are both hot, but at least I am not sweating the minute I step out the door. My son got married in July in Vegas 10 years ago and it was 110 and hot. All the pavement heats up and adds to it. Didn't stop us from enjoying ourselves and walked for miles. If you have good A/C I wouldn't worry about it.


2010 F250 5.4L 3.73
2011 Flagstaff 831FKBSS
Equal-i-zer 4pt 12K

[twoclaws]

I don't think the route will make a difference in temperatures. The plain states can hit 100 degrees in summer. Been there done that. Plan the trip, take your time and enjoy the experience.

[bubbles]

S. Florida, Atlanta, Memphis to pick up I-40 all the way to Kingman, AZ and then north to Vegas. Hot and not so hot areas. I-10 route has hot and hotter areas.

[Slimjc]

Maybe come through Salt Lake City over I-80 to I-15. The Wasatch is an amazing range with camping elevations at 8,000 feet. Cool and gorgeous. Just a thought. I have a neat route to Vegas from here that is quite nice - if you are interested I can write it out with GPS coords.

[Kyfan]

Yep, Dan you don't completely understand. We are retired and can make a leisurely trip, but circumstances dictate when I need to be there. It has to do with my son, a Naval officer in Ca. He's going to meet up with us, and soon after has orders for a 2 year deployment. Other than that we would probably wait.
Thanks

[Kyfan]

Originally Posted by lbrjet

No, you are not wrong. I lived in Tampa for five years and currently live just outside Phoenix. There are only on average about 12 days a year above 110. 105 here feels better to me than 90 in Tampa. They are both hot, but at least I am not sweating the minute I step out the door. My son got married in July in Vegas 10 years ago and it was 110 and hot. All the pavement heats up and adds to it. Didn't stop us from enjoying ourselves and walked for miles. If you have good A/C I wouldn't worry about it.


2010 F250 5.4L 3.73
2011 Flagstaff 831FKBSS
Equal-i-zer 4pt 12K

That's about what I figured. We're going to take in all the advice we can get from the experts here and then lay out a route. Really appreciate all you guys and gals help.

[Kyfan]

Originally Posted by bubbles

S. Florida, Atlanta, Memphis to pick up I-40 all the way to Kingman, AZ and then north to Vegas. Hot and not so hot areas. I-10 route has hot and hotter areas.

I like your route, except for Atlanta, Maybe head out on I 10 for a ways, then north. Have you been this route?

[Kyfan]

Originally Posted by Slimjc

Maybe come through Salt Lake City over I-80 to I-15. The Wasatch is an amazing range with camping elevations at 8,000 feet. Cool and gorgeous. Just a thought. I have a neat route to Vegas from here that is quite nice - if you are interested I can write it out with GPS coords.

That sounds very interesting, I'd like to see your route, but don't want to put you to a lot of trouble. Maybe just a list of roads.
I appreciate the offer.

[Forester Fred]

We pretty much made the same trip in March from Delray Beach, FL to Death Valley. We ran up the FL Turnpike and jumped on I10 - west to Mobile, AL. From there we cut up across Alabama into Mississippi on RT 98 then RT 49. Got on I20 in Jackson MS and went west to Dallas TX. From Dallas we took 287 to Amarillo and got onto I40 until Kingman, AZ. Turned right and ran up 93 into Vegas. At first I was a bit leery of the state roads (RT98, RT 49 in AL/MS, 287 in TX) but they turned out to be better roads than some of the interstate sections we drove on.

We're retired too and were meeting our son in Death Valley so we had a timetable. We stopped early the first night in NW Florida to see a cousin who was staying at a campground there. Second night we made it to Vicksburg, MS. Third night was just NW of Dallas in Bridgeport. Fourth night just west of Albuquerque, NM. Fifth night just outside Flagstaff, AZ. Sixth night in Pahrump, NV.

We didn't kill ourselves driving. We stopped and visited Dealey Plaza in Dallas and the JFK museum. We visited Petrified Forest National Park and stopped at the meteor crater outside Flagstaff, the corner in Winslow, Arizona and Seligman, Arizona (to see RT 66). If you're going to drive straight through it won't take you as long. It was a good ride with only a few bumpy parts on the highways (mostly Arizona).

[camaraderie]

If I were leaving from Tampa...I'd head out on I-10 then cut up at Lafayette LA on I-49 till it intersects I-20 to Dallas...from there Rt287 to Amarillo via Wichita falls...then West on I-40 to Albuquerque which is a great place to visit...but you can also wander up to Santa Fe which is worth seeing and worth some time in the higher elevation. Staying west on I-40 will bring you to the Petrified Forest and painted desert which is a must stop...stay near there in Holbrook and then a bit further west you can get off and see Winslow AZ...of Rt.66 and Eagles fame...you can even stand on a corner looking for that flat bed Ford etc.!!
On through Flagstaff where you can head up to the Grand Canyon (must!!)...or continue then leave I-40 in Kingman for the drive north to Vegas with the Hoover Dam on the way.
Vegas in the summer is low season...and we actually got a room in a Strip hotel with FREE parking for the RV for less than the less convenient RV parks. You may wish to stay aboard...but just pointing this out as a possibility.
Have a great trip!

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by Kyfan

Yep, Dan you don't completely understand. We are retired and can make a leisurely trip, but circumstances dictate when I need to be there. It has to do with my son, a Naval officer in Ca. He's going to meet up with us, and soon after has orders for a 2 year deployment. Other than that we would probably wait.
Thanks

I understand now.
Please thank your son for his service.

Hope your RV can keep up with the heat. Stay at a RV park with a pool.

[HONDAMAN174]

Living here I have tried to camp during summer and have since been veto'd. Above 95 degrees, my 13.5k unit cannot keep up. At best, 20 degree difference. If you have the ability to get a hotel room with Rv parking, I would highly recommend it.

Some of the names I would check: silverton, south point, rio, sunset station, alienate, red rock. Away from the strip but would be easy for you and your Rv.


2014 Evo 2850 "Woodstock"
2011 Toyota Tundra "Clifford"

[mtnlvr]

If you aren't dead set on Vegas, I'd recommend Reno, NV. It's next to Lake Tahoe, lot's of casinos, shows and not as hot. I purchased my rv in the midwest, followed I-80 west thru Colo., Utah to Nev. Nice drive!
Otherwise, look for campgrounds w/ lot's of shade trees!

[Kyfan]

Originally Posted by Forester Fred

We pretty much made the same trip in March from Delray Beach, FL to Death Valley. We ran up the FL Turnpike and jumped on I10 - west to Mobile, AL. From there we cut up across Alabama into Mississippi on RT 98 then RT 49. Got on I20 in Jackson MS and went west to Dallas TX. From Dallas we took 287 to Amarillo and got onto I40 until Kingman, AZ. Turned right and ran up 93 into Vegas. At first I was a bit leery of the state roads (RT98, RT 49 in AL/MS, 287 in TX) but they turned out to be better roads than some of the interstate sections we drove on.

We're retired too and were meeting our son in Death Valley so we had a timetable. We stopped early the first night in NW Florida to see a cousin who was staying at a campground there. Second night we made it to Vicksburg, MS. Third night was just NW of Dallas in Bridgeport. Fourth night just west of Albuquerque, NM. Fifth night just outside Flagstaff, AZ. Sixth night in Pahrump, NV.

We didn't kill ourselves driving. We stopped and visited Dealey Plaza in Dallas and the JFK museum. We visited Petrified Forest National Park and stopped at the meteor crater outside Flagstaff, the corner in Winslow, Arizona and Seligman, Arizona (to see RT 66). If you're going to drive straight through it won't take you as long. It was a good ride with only a few bumpy parts on the highways (mostly Arizona).

We're leaving a couple weeks early so we can take our time and see some sites. I like your route, and suggestions. I'm going to dig out the map and take a look at a few different routes recommended. This looks like a good one.
Thanks to you and all the others that have contributed. I'm real glad I found this site.

[Kyfan]

Originally Posted by bikendan

I understand now.
Please thank your son for his service.

Hope your RV can keep up with the heat. Stay at a RV park with a pool.

Thanks Dan,
I hope the AC can keep up also. It has done a good job here in Florida on some short trips. We have a small RV the Forester 2251sle for the two of us. It has the one 13.5 kw ducted ac. The Chevy Express 4500 has a great AC when driving, it pretty much cools the whole RV. I appreciate the thanks to my son. As a Vietnam vet, Air Force 69-70, I know what it means to him and all the vets.

[Forester Fred]

Originally Posted by Kyfan

Thanks Dan,
I hope the AC can keep up also. It has done a good job here in Florida on some short trips. We have a small RV the Forester 2251sle for the two of us. It has the one 13.5 kw ducted ac. The Chevy Express 4500 has a great AC when driving, it pretty much cools the whole RV. I appreciate the thanks to my son. As a Vietnam vet, Air Force 69-70, I know what it means to him and all the vets.

A trick we do (there's only 2 of us) is we leave the front bunk mattress cutout in place so there's a solid roof in the front/van portion of the motorhome. We then took an expandable round curtain rod with 2 sets of curtains. We only used 3 of the curtain panels. Hang the expandable rod under the edge of the bunk mattress with the curtains hanging down behind the driver and passenger seat. The center panel is the "door" for moving from front to back. In my Chevy we never had any problem with being too hot. The curtain keeps the cold air in the front and if you're traveling in the winter, keeps the heat in the front. If it gets into the 100's you can always fire up the genset and run the coach AC to supplement the dash AC for about a half hour before landing at a campground.

The curtains also work great for at night - no fumbling with a windshield cover or inside cab cover with the stupid little velcro dots. Drop the center panel down and nobody can see in. We do that when we stop someplace and park the motorhome to keep prying eyes from looking into the camper from the windshield.

[Kyfan]

Originally Posted by Forester Fred

A trick we do (there's only 2 of us) is we leave the front bunk mattress cutout in place so there's a solid roof in the front/van portion of the motorhome. We then took an expandable round curtain rod with 2 sets of curtains. We only used 3 of the curtain panels. Hang the expandable rod under the edge of the bunk mattress with the curtains hanging down behind the driver and passenger seat. The center panel is the "door" for moving from front to back. In my Chevy we never had any problem with being too hot. The curtain keeps the cold air in the front and if you're traveling in the winter, keeps the heat in the front. If it gets into the 100's you can always fire up the genset and run the coach AC to supplement the dash AC for about a half hour before landing at a campground.

The curtains also work great for at night - no fumbling with a windshield cover or inside cab cover with the stupid little velcro dots. Drop the center panel down and nobody can see in. We do that when we stop someplace and park the motorhome to keep prying eyes from looking into the camper from the windshield.

Great idea, An easy mod and pretty cheap too. I appreciate the tip.