NE FL to Grand Canyon and back - YOUR Route and Itinerary -

blw2 · 11-11-2016, 07:03 PM

I thought it might be fun for some of you planners out there, to do some arm chair trip planning... based on your previous travels..... that'll help me with some ideas for a trip we're planning

WHAT would your route and itinerary look like?
3 weeks going from NE FL to the Grand Canyon, and back
Time frame is July
plan 3 nights at the canyon

I figure some of you know those routes and lots of attractions and points of interest along the way....I'm interested in how you would approach it.....
which route?
stops / points of interests that you would do?
places to take zero mile days?
boondock &/or dry camping stops?
CG stops?

penguin · 11-11-2016, 08:37 PM

Take I10 all the way into Phoenix then grab 17N into Flagstaff. Your there and can see everything from there.

blw2 · 11-11-2016, 09:00 PM

boy, that's a whole lot of non-stop driving there....

I'm thinking my limit is no more than 500 miles or so, and most days I'll hope to find something interesting at the end of that....

vkb · 11-11-2016, 10:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by blw2

boy, that's a whole lot of non-stop driving there....

I'm thinking my limit is no more than 500 miles or so, and most days I'll hope to find something interesting at the end of that....

There is sooooo much to see between where you are and the Grand Canyon.
Since you are familiar with northern Florida...get outta there efficiently...come across the Panhandle and into LA...take in as much as you can there..then you have options...across Texas, with many interesting stops...or you can angle up through Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas panhandle, NM & AZ.
Be sure to make reservations at the Grand Canyon...that time of year it is a zoo ! Once in that area, you have so many options...
Depending on how much time you have...
to the N.E of Grand Canyon you have Lake Powell and Monument Valley..which can be another way to come into AZ from the east.
In Utah you have Bryce, Zion, Grand Staircase, Moah/Arches..and more.

You have so much planning time...write the States and ask for maps and information !

JamieGeek · 11-12-2016, 02:28 AM

Just google the state and add travel guide or visitors guide; the first link will go to the site to request the state's travel guide (many will simply let you download them).

I did the above and got this link to AZ's one: Visitor's Guide | Visit Arizona

KNMIB · 11-12-2016, 02:32 AM

Illinois to east of New Orleans then 110 to Phoenix last April. Stayed In New Iberia La to get a taste of the bayou, Avery Island home of Tabasco was really neat. San Antonio Tx river walk was great along with the Alamo stayed at a KOA that had bus service to downtown. Las Cruces NM has a great campground that over looks the city. Deming NM has Rock Hound State park south of town very nice and a lot of hiking and Geode looking. NM and Arizona have so much to see it would take you months. Happy Travels.

bigben · 11-12-2016, 03:02 AM

Not sure how many trips you've made with this many miles. We've done several and I remind myself and DW that you cannot see everything. Also 21 days, 4000 miles - I'd plan what we call "driving days" into the mix when we extend our normal day by 200 miles. We both don't like traveling more than 250 miles on normal days.

With that said we've RVed and SUVed that route at least 10 times in the last 6 years. Enjoyed San Antonio, Deming, Silver City/Gila Monument, Tucson, Williams. Loop back through Albuquerque and into Amarillo.

Bryce and Zion Canyon are also great stops. But like I said - cannot see everything in 21 days.

It is a great trip - really love the southwest.

blw2 · 11-12-2016, 10:38 AM

but what would YOU do?
What would YOUR itinerary look like?

bigben · 11-12-2016, 01:31 PM

I can give highlights of our meanderings but unless you eligible for stays on military installation our campgrounds will differ.

My route would include Destin Beach, Naval Aviation Museum aboard NAS Pensacola, Bourbon Street, San Antonio River Walk, vineyard/wineries in Deming, Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument, Old Tucson, Red Rock Country of Sedona, stay at Grand Canyon RV park with train to Grand Canyon, then head back across I-40 with a stop in Albuquerque and/or Santa Fe.

JamieGeek · 11-12-2016, 03:17 PM

We did that trip, once, in a week. Our route involved airplanes and rental cars

(Put 700+ miles on the rental.)

I'd love to take a whole summer and just meander around the southwest with the RV.

vkb · 11-12-2016, 04:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JamieGeek

We did that trip, once, in a week. Our route involved airplanes and rental cars

(Put 700+ miles on the rental.)

I'd love to take a whole summer and just meander around the southwest with the RV.

Jamie...you would love it ! Having been born n raised in 'the GREAT southwest'..and having parents who treasured their weekends and vacations..got us out and about all over NM, Colo, & Calif. (when travel was not as easy as it is now)
The best, part is, in my married life, Ron and I share the love of travel...and we have revisited, several times, those places..many of them, out of the way, hidden treasures. I appreciate, more, as an adult..going there by choice.

Mr Sunshine · 11-13-2016, 12:12 AM

Can't plan your itinerary, but would add to what's been suggested. The Dallas/Ft Worth area is worth a stopover. For those old enough to remember, the Sixth Floor Museum at the Texas Book Depository is a must.

vkb · 11-13-2016, 04:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr Sunshine

Can't plan your itinerary, but would add to what's been suggested. The Dallas/Ft Worth area is worth a stopover. For those old enough to remember, the Sixth Floor Museum at the Texas Book Depository is a must.

Agree with you regarding the Texas Book Depository...well worth the visit

Joe-FL · 11-13-2016, 02:04 PM

We did that trip several years ago on our Harley. We said if we did it again in our RV it would be about the same trip. But we don't rush when we travel in our RV.

We only run between 300 and 350 miles a day. We like to be setting up camp by 3pm or 3:30pm at the latest. Plus we only generally run 2 or 3 days straight before sitting for an extra day. So in our planning we locate an area we want to spend extra time in and plot out accordingly. There are US routes available in New Mexico and Texas that allowed us to see more of the sites and stay off the interstates.

You have a pretty good time line so there is no rush. You could even go out on a far southern route and return more on a northern route, maybe hit the southern parts of Utah, Colorado, and even Kansas before cutting south toward Florida.

Sounds like a fun trip!

Travelin' Texans · 11-13-2016, 03:33 PM

We grew up in the Texas panhandle, so my advice is not to travel I-40 in the spring/early summer from about Flagstaff to OKC as winds /storms can be horrible. Fall is the best time to visit.

SuperD · 11-13-2016, 05:02 PM

I agree with Texans, wind storms along I-40 can be bad, I have seen more than one semi in the ditches due to the wind!!! There is nothing to block the wind in that area except a few barbed wire fences!!!

Chance · 11-14-2016, 12:45 AM

I agree with others -- so much to see. It would be hard to make specific suggestions without more information.

Are you planning to visit the South Rim, North Rim, or both? That would likely affect my route and travel plans a little. I've visited both numerous times and for some reason like being at the North Rim a lot. It seems a little quieter. I have to say I've always avoided going during summer when kids are out of school, so can't comment on July crowds. My visits have been mostly in May or September. The one exception was hiking the canyon.

How do you normally drive these long trips? Some like visiting locations along the entire way, while others (like me) may push a few days there and back in order to have more time to see things far from home that I may not see again in years. One approach isn't better than the other, but will affect itinerary.

Lastly, have you seen other nearby areas you'd like not repeating, or is everything near Grand Canyon new to you?

KNMIB · 11-14-2016, 01:12 AM

We have travelled west the last 17 years and the last 3 in a motorhome. We love the Southwest and started or travels because our son moved to Phoenix after college. We have spent a lot of time in Utah, Arizona, New Mexico and southern Colorado. We love them all and they all have many places to see. Some of our best trips are the ones I planned the route and some possible things to see but then just winged it and looked for stuff on the way. We push it the first couple days to get in those areas then we just see what we can without rushing.

blw2 · 11-14-2016, 02:50 PM

ha ha, yeah I can imagine about that wind....
A couple years ago when we 1st got the RV, we took her out to San Antonio and back. It was around Christmastime, and I remember some gusty breezes even then going through TX.

I was holding off putting too much about our habits and plans, hoping to just see what YOU would do.... in a what if sort of way.

I've pretty much almost decided that we'll stay off the I-10 Southern route, just because of temperatures. Just looking at historical data, it seems like the I-20 to I-40 route is just a wee bit more reasonable.... with highs in the mid to upper 90's but lows get down nice. We might leg down to San Antonio again to visit family, but not sure about that, unlikely at this point....

I haven't gotten too deep into the hourly data, but guessing it'll typically still be pretty hot during the evening and early part of the night, with those cooler temps not hitting till the early AM....so we'll still probably want to stop at CG's to plug in at last most of the time.... Although i do love the idea of boon docking out there in the desert a bit.
If temperatures allow, we'll probably plan in some dry camp stops at walmart or the like.... especially on the big mile push days...

As much as I'd like to do the North rim, my wife likes the shops and touristy stuff so I have already made reservations at the South Rim. So far that's the only thing "locked"
We like the idea of returning a different route
We like to stop at attractions along the way.

Not opposed to a hard push, here and there, but ideally not 2 days in a row. Probably will push when close to home both ways, just to maximize the "out of the area" time

Preference is most days to have stops along the way to break it up.... museums, zoo's, points of interest, nature/hikes, history, etc....
could be stopped by maybe 2PM or 3PM for activity and camp, or stop mid day for some activity, then drive a few more hours to a parking lot or boondock location for just the night....
or pull in someplace to wake up to an attraction, then on the road after lunch....

I'm looking at it like this.....

the canyon is the anchor in the middle.

I'd love to find one "secondary anchor" as a mid-journey focus both on the way out and the way back. The secondary being a destination being a zero mile day, or perhaps a very slight driving day at the most....

Then with the rest of it mixed up with little attraction stops of maybe an hour or three

Chance · 11-14-2016, 08:25 PM

I'm not sure I-20 or I-40 routes will be much cooler than along I-10 route in July (maybe lower humidity), but I get your point.

If you travel west on I-40 or combination of I-20 to Dallas area and then 287 to Amarillo to pick up I-40 there, I'd consider a night at Palo Duro State Park if time works out to overnight. If you like hiking there are trails there. No shopping for wife though. Some refer to Palo Duro as the Grand Canyon of Texas, but it doesn't actually compare. The Grand Canyon is spectacular, particularly when hiked deep into it.

If you have extra time, I'd also consider a detour through Santa Fe. I'm not into shopping, but last time I went through they had an art festival that I found interesting -- lots of local artists and vendors. There are also some old churches of interest within walking distance if you like that type of attraction.

Again, if you have extra time and want to change your route back, I'd consider going up to southern Colorado. Headed east you'd go through Four Corners, you can visit Mesa Verde National Park, and then Durango. That's more touristy with some shopping. We've done the Durango to Silverton narrow gauge train ride and highly recommend it if not afraid of heights.

I haven't been there in July so I'm not sure if getting tickets would be difficult. My wife made reservations the first time we rode the train.

If you had more time, I'd also recommend going further west into Utah as mentioned above by others. However, since you will likely end up driving over 4,000 miles, you may want to limit what you try to include. I like nature more than cities and crowds, so my preferences could be very different than yours. I enjoy simple things like visiting Meteor Crater between Winslow and Flagstaff (just off I-40 and east of Grand Canyon) even though it's not a well known site.

I can't recall exact route, but I think we went through Santa Fe when we visited Durango/Silverton, Mesa Verde, and Lake Powell. From there we went to Grand Canyon (although North Rim). You can access South Rim also from Lake Powell, it's not that long a drive. When I hiked the canyon we took a shuttle van back and it only took a few hours to get back to South Rim. And it came close to Page.

By the way, don't let your fuel tank get too low. Gas stations aren't always close by.

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