[inlifeindeath]

Hello all, me and my lady are moving up to omaha next month from albuquerque, nm. i was wondering if anybody had made this journey already, as i'm trying to decide if i want to go the northern route through denver, or the eastern route through kansas. we'll have a gas guzzeling diesel rental truck so gas and time are the top priorities. anything helps! thanks!

[tpabes]

Well according to mapquest, the eastern route through Kansas is the fastest way. It would probably also be the best for gas mileage as going north to Denver on I-25 you have to go over Raton Pass and the Palmer Divide. Some good news is that you are coming "downhill" (elevation) so that will help the gas mileage a little. I know when I head out to Colorado I always get better mileage on the way back to the Nebraska than on the way to Colorado.

[Go Ne]

You should probably go the route with the most towns so you can fill up when you need too, so I think that would be the eastern route. Have a good and safe trip.

[Gunluvver2]

Just from memory I would say take I-40 East to Hwy 54 then go Northeast up into Kansas to I-70 East to Hwy 77 then North into Lincoln, Nebraska where you can hook up with I-80 to Omaha. I should qualify this advice by stating that it has been almost 19 years since I retired from trucking. With a rental truck you will want to keep the miles as short as possible. On this route in September you should have nice weather and fuel stops are close enough together that running out of fuel should not be a concern.

GL2

[Chris19]

I would think that the eastern route is the better way to go with I-40 and I-35 being busy enough freeways with a number of truck stops to stop in.

When I went to Kansas, US 75 was a nice short cut between Omaha and the Kansas Turnpike. Then you bypass Kansas City area and its traffic and there are a number of towns such as Sabetha, KS and Auburn, NE that have several gas stations and a few more that are not coming to mind at this point.

There are several options, some of which were mentioned in prior posts, that are good when going east. One would be to take I-35 up into Kansas and take it to Topeka and take US 75, which leads right up to Omaha. Another would be to get off of Wichita and take I-135 (becoming a 4-laned US 81 up to York, NE and taking I-80 to Omaha). Find the shortest route that would afford you a reasonable amount of towns that allows you to stop and fill up when needed.

If one decides to go up on I-25 through Colorado, I recommend taking E-470 around Denver up to I-76 and going northeast on I-76 (which hooks up to I-80 near the Colorado/Nebraska line). E-470 bypasses most of Denver and does not have near the traffic as I-25 and other Denver area interstate. Even though it is a toll road, it is worth paying the toll to avoid the traffic and drive on well-maintained roads.

[CaliBoy]

Originally Posted by inlifeindeath

Hello all, me and my lady are moving up to omaha next month from albuquerque, nm. i was wondering if anybody had made this journey already, as i'm trying to decide if i want to go the northern route through denver, or the eastern route through kansas. we'll have a gas guzzeling diesel rental truck so gas and time are the top priorities. anything helps! thanks!

I like using GoogleMaps, myself, since they have a terrain feature that can help you determine which routes are the flattest versus mountain drives. GoogleEarth may even be better with that. Nonetheless, I pulled up some different routes based on your planned journey:

Option #1: Albuquerque north thru Colorado then east thru Nebraska to Omaha, NE.

Option #2: Albuquerque east thru Oklahoma City then north thru Kansas to Omaha, NE.

Option #3: Albuquerque east thru Oklahoma City then Tulsa then north along the Kansas/Missouri border to Omaha, NE.

Note: With each link, you can switch to map or satellite at any time without losing the routes. Also, if you have a gmail account, you can save each option for when you are on the road.


Option Number One appears the shortest and hugs the base of the Rockies. You'll have a bit of terrain to navigate, but I'm sure if you start your drive early in the morning, then you'll see some magnificent and not so boring views. When you get to the flat lands, you'll be approaching nightfall and not miss anything incredibly interesting (though this is a subjective comment).

Option Number Two adds about fifty miles but you stay relatively level throughout. Me, I can drive all night and that's best for me as I drive through prairie lands. It seems like the endless flat lands are less dull at night because I cannot see how long it takes me to reach the horizon point. I just become a driving fool and just drive, drive, drive. However, if you cannot pull all nighters, best to leave at the crack of dawn.

Option Number Three is like two except that's the longest. However, you run through some much bigger cities that allow you to stay a night somewhere and break up the trip in two days if you so choose.

Me, I'd choose option one and start bright and early after a good night's rest. Then, I'd plan a beeline non-stop all the way to Omaha. We drove 1250 miles non-stop from Durham to Omaha (well, almost... we slept at a rest stop for two hours and stopped and toured the St. Louis Arch to help break up the monotony). It was manageable for me. But still tough. I'm used to driving across country. Break it up in two days, and you should be fine (unless you are well versed at cross country drives).

Many other options of course. If you plan to break up the trip in two or three days, you can actually veer off course a bit and sight see making the trip 'feel' a lot shorter. However, it sounds like you are concerned about time and distance (gasoline costs especially). Maybe option two is best. I'd still opt for Option one.

Good luck no matter what you do and have fun. It's a great experience and privilege to move across country. It's not something we get to do all the time, make the best of it. And, of course, be safe! ;)

[tpabes]

Here is the mapquest route I talked about:
Driving Directions from Albuquerque, NM to Omaha, NE
Plenty of good places to stop in Kansas for gas and eats: Liberal, Dodge City, Great Bend, Salina and Concorida. In Nebraska, there is a nice truck stop in Hebron, otherwise there is York and Lincoln before you get to Omaha.

If you wanted to break it up into 2 days, I would suggest getting to Salina, then on to to Omaha the next day. Alot of this route will be two lane highway, which should be good on the gas due to the reduced speed and the reason its faster than interstate is because of all the miles it cuts out. However, if you would like to travel the interstate the whole way, then I would suggest you do go through O.K. City then north to Salina, then onto York (Hwy 81 is not an interstate but as Chris19 stated it is 4 lane), then I-80 into Omaha. Its a few miles more that going through Denver, but you'll probably get better mileage.