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Driving across Illinois from Indiana to Iowa or Missouri relative breeze. Driving end-to-end through Illinois from Wisconsin to Kentucky is an absolute drag.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Drewjdeg
Yes. That drive though Illinois seems endless.
Agreed. Trying to get through Illinois from top-to-bottom really is excruciating, especially because it involves a rather indirect re-routing onto several different interstates. The thing about it for me is the endless stretch of farmland; it's the same solitary farmhouse after another for hundreds of miles. Driving that route in the winter is mind-numbing.
Another stretch that I found particularly excruciating is I-40 through the Texas panhandle. Absolutely featureless. Some of the ugliest scenery in the entire country.
I-80 through Nebraska is a long haul that also seemingly takes forever with nothing interesting to look at along the way.
"Time Warp" stretches of interstate highway in the Southeast:
- I-40 from Nashville to Memphis
- I-16 from Macon to Savannah
- I-10 from Jacksonville to New Orleans
- I-85 from Atlanta to Mobile
- I-75 from Macon to Gainesville, FL
- I-55 from Memphis to Slidell, LA
- I-20 from Atlanta to Augusta
Uninteresting topography combined with lack of urban diversions conspire to make these stretches intolerably dull; an hour on any of these roads feels more like two.
I-55 ends in Laplace. I-59 is the one that ends in Slidell.
Another stretch that I found particularly excruciating is I-40 through the Texas panhandle. Absolutely featureless. Some of the ugliest scenery in the entire country.
Yeah, I seem to remember some mildly interesting hills on the New Mexico side but those petered out eventually. The Panhandle is mostly ugly warehouses and oil rigs, and Amarillo is colossally underwhelming for a city its size.
I also remember 44 through Missouri being really boring until you hit St. Louis, though maybe that's because I'd been on the road for a week and a half and just wanted to get home to Ohio.
Agreed. Trying to get through Illinois from top-to-bottom really is excruciating, especially because it involves a rather indirect re-routing onto several different interstates. The thing about it for me is the endless stretch of farmland; it's the same solitary farmhouse after another for hundreds of miles. Driving that route in the winter is mind-numbing.
Not all that dissimilar from 90 across S Minnesota, although you’ll hit many more small cities at least in Illinois to break up the monotony.
"Time Warp" stretches of interstate highway in the Southeast:
- I-40 from Nashville to Memphis
- I-16 from Macon to Savannah
- I-10 from Jacksonville to New Orleans
- I-85 from Atlanta to Mobile
- I-75 from Macon to Gainesville, FL
- I-55 from Memphis to Slidell, LA
- I-20 from Atlanta to Augusta
Uninteresting topography combined with lack of urban diversions conspire to make these stretches intolerably dull; an hour on any of these roads feels more like two.
Very few billboards from Augusta to Atlanta. I dread this stretch of road. 2 hrs feel like 3-4.
aren't there some parts of states on a road trip that, even if the route isn't objectively that long, it feels like it drags on forever? Some in state drives are reasonably long. Longest i've done is the distance between miami, fl to perdido key, fl at the alabama line. Thats a long haul but it makes sense cuz you gotta traverse the long peninsula and then the equally long panhandle. But then i've been on some in state drives that look short on a map, and maybe are short in reality, but by god do they feel like an eterinity!
An example for me is i-35 in kansas. Its really an average drive, but feels so much longer. And i enjoy the drive, i don't mind the flat plains but it is kinda tiring. By the time you get to overland park (northbound at least) its such a breath of fresh air. Also, the i-20 in stretch in louisiana. Not very long but always feels it to me. Maybe cuz i hate driving in louisiana lol. I-49 between shreveport area down to lafayette is also a nightmare, as is i-10 til mississippi. When i went down that way in 2015 the road construction made me wanna drive off the pontchartain bridge lol.
Iowa i-35 and georgia i-75 also really drag. Surprisingly, i've never been in a border to border drive in texas that felt too long. Longest drive i've done from anywhere in texas that was to a state line was from abilene east bound on i-20. But it was broken up with places like ranger hill, dfw and the piney woods so it didn't feel too long.
nothing like hearing when you turn on to route 80 "next turn 300 miles" and you're going through nothing - no cities just wilderness. And i like being in the wilderness hiking, camping, but i hate driving through it for 4-5 hours.
I bet it does. I feel like much of Illinois looks like what people imagine Iowa to look like. At least Iowa's got more hills.
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