one last driving question (Denver, Aurora: travel, work, home)

[cloudstomper01]

Let's say I'm willing to re-do my moving dates. What is the soonest month after January that would be a good bet for a favorable drive from Havasu, Az to Aurora Co...going through NM.? Once again thanks!

See, I'd think March, but then someone told me that's the snowiest month, so obviously I don't have a clue!

[vfrpilot]

favorable drive from Havasu, Az to Aurora Co...going through NM.?

We did Monument to LHC 2 years ago in Jan. It took us 13 hours including stops. I don't see any reason not to plan a trip in Jan. Even the worst storms don't last more than a couple days, then you have a week or more of good weather. Just watch the weekly forecast for the cities you'll drive thru. Lots of traffic flows year round on I-40 and I-25. And folks even drive into the mountains by the thousands to ski.
BTW- Do you live in Havasu? We lived there a while back and still have friends that live there.

[2bindenver]

June.

Realistically, you'll have to play it by ear.

I got stuck in NM last December. Worst storm they ever had. Stuck for 5 days - got home on NYD.

no big deal. just be a little flexible.

[dynimagelv]

Originally Posted by cloudstomper01

Let's say I'm willing to re-do my moving dates. What is the soonest month after January that would be a good bet for a favorable drive from Havasu, Az to Aurora Co...going through NM.? Once again thanks!

See, I'd think March, but then someone told me that's the snowiest month, so obviously I don't have a clue!

Come up thru Vegas....wait til a storm goes thru then run like HE#$....ya got 3 days lol......did it in March twice....worked both times.

[Katiana]

Agree with the above. If you want to wait till it's guaranteed snow-free, you will be talking about June. Seriously. If you do not trust your driving skills, maybe you should fly/take the Greyhound, etc. and have the car shipped.

[gpraceman]

After 16 years of driving to Denver from San Diego and back for the Christmas/New Years holidays, the only thing that bad weather ever caused us to do was change our route. If they were forcasting snow for the rockies, we would take the southern route through AZ and NM (through Flagtaff). If Northern AZ and NM were getting snow, we would go more south, through Tucson and Las Cruces. Going through NM, the only problem might be with Raton Pass, on the NM and CO border, which is no big deal. Most of the time we ended up taking the I-70 route through the rockies, since the weather was going to be nice enough.

Just watch the weather report as your move date gets close before you decide your route. The other thing we would do is drive it in two days, making sure that we were going through the mountains in the daytime, not at night.

[Katiana]

I have given some more thought to this, and here is what I think: If you have never driven in the snow before, this trip is not the time to learn. All the tips people gave you re: tires, snow driving, etc, will not be helpful when you are actually on the road in the snow for the first time. I think you should make the trip as soon as possible. There is no snow forecast in Denver, your northernmost point, in the next two weeks, per accu-weather. Make the trip now if you can. You should definitely try to make it before late October, when the possibility of snow is very real. One thing about the snowstorms here, sometimes the weather people (who get their info from the NWS) say, "we didn't see this one coming." It has nothing to do with their competence and everything to do with the unpredictablility of the weather patterns here.

[Market Mama]

Originally Posted by pittnurse70

One thing about the snowstorms here, sometimes the weather people (who get their info from the NWS) say, "we didn't see this one coming." It has nothing to do with their competence and everything to do with the unpredictablility of the weather patterns here.

Amen to that! Less than a week ago, the national TV station weather folks said that a cold front "snuck into Colorado". The interaction between the plains to the east and the mountains to the west, plus the jet stream (which often travels directly over Colorado), can ... ummm ... "redirect" cold fronts by a state or two and "sneak" down along the Front Range to catch even the professional weather forecasters by surprise.

Have chains in your car all year round, especially if you plan on heading up into the mountains. I've seen it snow on the 4th of July in Buena Vista!

[Katiana]

Re: what others have said about people drivining into the mtns to ski, etc: this is true, but, for the most part, these folks have driven in the snow before. cloudstomper01 has never done it. S/he will learn, and will soon be driving to the mtns in all sorts of weather. But a trip like this, driving with kids, and likely a full car, is not the time to learn.

[Market Mama]

Originally Posted by pittnurse70

Re: what others have said about people drivining into the mtns to ski, etc: this is true, but, for the most part, these folks have driven in the snow before. cloudstomper01 has never done it. S/he will learn, and will soon be driving to the mtns in all sorts of weather. But a trip like this, driving with kids, and likely a full car, is not the time to learn.

Totally true. Snow can make driving scary and verrrry dangerous, especially if you don't have any experience! Snow changes traction, braking distance, plus most every part and partial of the driving experience and, even worse, the consequences of a mistake or misjudgement.