Driving the Grapevine in December? (Fresno, Bakersfield: living, moving to, trailer)

[leo_075]

Hello,

We are in Northern California at the moment near Fresno and will be moving to Florida at the beginning of December. I've driven the Grapevine numerous times, however, never in the winter time. We will have a moving truck (Uhaul) with a car trailer and me and the kids following my husband in our 4-runner.

My concern is that we will get stuck in a snow storm or my husband getting into an accident with all the weight in the moving truck.

Is it generally pretty bad in the winter time driving over the Grapevine? Is there ANY other way around driving that way?

Thank you all very much in advance!

[EscapeCalifornia]

You could take 58 east from Bakersfield to 395 south, then I-15 down the hill to the 10 east. I'm assuming you want the southernmost route. The Cajon pass probably isn't any better than the grapevine weatherwise, but at least you'll avoid some traffic you'd hit in LA. Weather in the mountain passes is unpredictable. You could breeze through with zero problems (I've done it in December) or there could be 2' of snow on the ground.

[leo_075]

That's what I thought.....uhg. Well we've driven the 58 in the winter time before for Chrstimas and we were fine, but I know what you mean about unpredictable. I really don't want to hit the LA traffic either. Thanks for your input and yes, we're taking the 10 there.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by leo_075

Hello,

We are in Northern California at the moment near Fresno and will be moving to Florida at the beginning of December. I've driven the Grapevine numerous times, however, never in the winter time. We will have a moving truck (Uhaul) with a car trailer and me and the kids following my husband in our 4-runner.

My concern is that we will get stuck in a snow storm or my husband getting into an accident with all the weight in the moving truck.

Is it generally pretty bad in the winter time driving over the Grapevine? Is there ANY other way around driving that way?

Thank you all very much in advance!

In all likelihood you would have 24-48 hours of advanced warning on the weather there. That route (I-5) is about the most important route in California for trucking, commerce, etc. There is a lot of pressure to keep it open. If the weather gets bad they plow it and the CHP escorts people through there. But still it would suck to be in that area if a bad snowstorm hits. Also, the beginning of December is hydrologically not as risky as January, February, or March. It could be 80 degrees heading up that grade.

[leo_075]

Thanks...that is very reassuring! I appreciate it.

[sue-z]

Charles is correct, snow in early Dec. is not nearly as likely as after the first of the year. It could happen but I have not seen it very often in many decades living here. You could take 58 and come down through Antelope Valley on the 14 if you want to avoid the Grapevine.Another thing about snow on the Grapevine, if the weather is iffy try to avoid hitting it during the overnight hours or early morning, that's when it is more likely to be closed. sue-z

[MWJamesLDS]

I've been driving back and forth over the grapevine for years, especially durning holiday seasons like Christmas (family in both Visalia and Orange County) and have never experienced a delay from snow. If you are truely worried, just check the road conditions online before you leave. As someone else pointed out, you can just take the 58 from Bakersfield through the Tehachapi pass. It only adds about 20 miles or so.

[jdavid93225]

I live near the top of the Grapevine, and drive it nearly on a daily basis. There is about a 99% chance that you will not have any trouble. There are very few occasions when the freeway isn't passable. In the nearly 15 years that I've lived here, I've only seen people get stranded on the road one time. That was a particularly bad storm about five or six years ago. A severe storm had been predicted for a Friday night, but it never delivered the punch that was expected. Two days later, though, a perceived "minor" storm dropped nearly four feet of snow overnight. No one was really expecting it to do so.

I recommend that you check the weather and traffic reports before you head over the hill. If it's all clear after you reach Bakersfield, then keep on truckin'. If bad weather is predicted, you would likely do well to wait it out.

Once you reach the bottom of the hill on the north side, it will only take you about one or two hours to reach the Santa Clarita area, where you'll be through most of the danger for winter closures. I've only seen one time (in 1989) when there was anything closed south of the Grapevine, which was due to a freak storm that brought the snow level down to around 1000 feet. Santa Clarita and the Newhall pass both received about 3 to 6 inches of snow. The closure lasted for about half a day.

As others have already said, driving over the pass in December is not likely to be problematic. Most likely, you will have more to worry about with Tule fog than you will with snow. Most of the snow we receive here comes from January through April.

You also inquired about alternate routes. The 58/395 route mentioned earlier could be better for traffic, but that route also has two mountain passes (Tehachapi and Cajon) compared with just one over the Grapevine. I would suggest just staying with the I-5 route as originally planned. Access to the 10 by way of the 210 is pretty easy. Yes, there is more traffic once you get to the San Fernando Valley, but the fact that you only have to cross one major mountain pass should more than make up for it.

[edelweiss]

Snow or not, just take it slow and stay in the right lane. There's a lot more that can happen between Fresno and Florida than just in your trip over the grapevine. I agree with everyone else though. Check traffic and weather before you leave.

[katie45]

That's the time of year when the Tule fog can be a nightmare! It is thicker than pea soup and the worse fog in the world to try and drive in!

Fog Season