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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.
I often drive through Virginia up I-81. The first time I drove it, the drive was MUCH longer than I thought it would be. I'm sure there are other states that have a longer trek, but this was the one that was the biggest surprise for me.
I-70 across Kansas. Lots of flat, open prairie, a bunch of abandoned Stuckey's that have been closed for 30ish years, and not much else - especially between Salina and Goodland.
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.
Those stretches of highway draaaaggggged on seemingly forever despite not being a huge distance. For me (early 2010) it was the combination of countless dreadful, sharp-edged, raised cracks across the road + the extremely heavy traffic volume + the crazy drivers tailgating more recklessly than any other state I’ve driven in. After that trip, I vowed to never drive there again.
The horrible broken surface of I-10 magically turned to flawless smooth asphalt right as I crossed the state line into MS. I guess Stennis’s being there there had something to do with the difference.
Indiana on I-65 from the Kentucky border to Indy, then I-69 from Indy to the Michigan border. Longest 6 hours I’ve ever driven. Indiana is a small state, but the roads angle to make it a much longer drive than it appears.
Washington State on I-90 seems long, but in truth is only 277 miles from Seattle to Spokane, due to the topography changing from mountains to flat at about near George, WA, in central WA. At 70 MPH, this works out to about 4.5 hours.
Montana has a similar biography with the same freeway, combined with I-94. I-90 is mountainous from the western border with Idaho to about 30 miles west of Billings, then is mostly flat for the final stretch on 94 to the North Dakota border. The entire route is north of 700 miles, and is a 9-10 hour drive within itself, even with mostly an 80 MPH speed.
"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.
I10 from San Antonio to El Paso........ I thought we were going to be stranded, and there's only a few gas stations with restaurants attached in between. It's literally eons before you hit any sort of civilization. Perhaps this is why I have a better then average perception of El Paso.
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