Fastest Most Direct Route Dallas to Petoskey, MI (Northern MI) (Texarkana: hotels, construction)

[keithwand]

We will be driving from Northern MI to Southlake at the end of the summer.
Anyone out there familiar with both areas as Map Quest show 3 diff. ways to go and I'm sure my GPS will show another.
Any suggestions?

[wagsone]

Previously from your area and have done this trip before--it is brutal!! We take 131-196-94 to Chicago, merging onto 80/94 around Lake Station out to I 57 towards Memphis. At Charleston take IL I-55 to 30 over to Little Rock to 40 through Texarkana into Dallas..We stop at Memphis, which is a long first day, but it is an easy, nice place to stay and makes a much shorter trip the second day. Once you are out in the wilds of Southern Illinois there are not a lot of choices other than roadside hotels to stay. Others recommend the St. Louis route, but I don't like the fact that a section of that route is divided highway only - not expressway- and there always seems to be heavy traffic and construction through St. Louis. They are both pretty similar time wise so it just gets down to your driving preference and if you have any desire to stop any place particular along the way. If you time it right, you can skirt the Chicago traffic fairly easily.

[pepper131]

I like to get out a good ole-fashioned map and see the most direct route by seeing the big picture rather than rely on a computer program.

BTW - not fun leaving Petoskey for DFW area at the end of summer...just when all the great fruit is ready.

[keithwand]

Thanks.

We prev. had done the route from Chicago S. to St Louis and through Oklahoma if memory serves me. It was years ago.

The drive is brutal; more so than FL to MI which is no fun either.