travel by car from Wichita to concord ca (Sacramento, Bakersfield: hotels, motorhome)

[masters2830]

Hello,

This is my firt post on this forum. I am planning to drive from Wichita Kansas to concord ca very soon. I need some driving tips and the type of region that i will traversing. I have a Honda car and i am worried that my car will not take this extensive ride. I am planning to take a break at Fort colins and then the next day drive straight to Reno. But i need advice on what to expect.

Thanks

[Bulldogdad]

Lots of boring driving.

You could always stop in Winnemucca to try and change your lucka.

[jaijai]

Originally Posted by masters2830

Hello,

This is my firt post on this forum. I am planning to drive from Wichita Kansas to concord ca very soon. I need some driving tips and the type of region that i will traversing. I have a Honda car and i am worried that my car will not take this extensive ride. I am planning to take a break at Fort colins and then the next day drive straight to Reno. But i need advice on what to expect.

Thanks

Will you take HWY70 from Kansas to Denver and then head north to Fort Collins on 25?
If so, then you'll head a bit north from Fort Collins and get onto HWY80 in Wyoming and you'll be on 80 almost all of the way to Concord .... you'll be connecting onto 680 at the very last leg of your long, straight and very hot drive assuming you'll be doing this trip in the summer or early fall.
At times it's stunningly beautiful! but often it's extremely monotonous
You want to make sure to make the trip before the snow starts to fall which is relatively early in the Rockies and the Sierra range.
Just getting across the state of Nevada is about 7 hours (give or take depending on your speed) so to drive from Fort Collins all the way to Reno in one shot is a very long haul!
I'd reconsider especially since you're a bit nervous about your car as i'm thinking that you don't want to be driving in the dark?
I assume that you plan to get your car overhauled and make sure it's in good condition for such a long trip?
To not do so would be a mistake.
Travel with plenty of water for yourself and for your car (if needed ... which hopefully won't be the case.) and some extra oil.
Do you have AAA? It's not a bad idea if you can afford it and it will provide you with some peace of mind (in case you need help along the way) and it'll provide you with a little discount (10% i think) at various hotels / motels.
Will you have money to stay in rooms?
Holiday Inn Express is a safe bet but it's a bit more expensive than some of the other chains.
Once you get through Reno you'll then head up and over the Sierra and then down the pass and eventually into the Sacramento area. .
After a very long and relatively unpopulated trip, hitting the Sacramento area can be a bit daunting.
You might feel overwhelmed by the sudden and dramatic increase in population, traffic, hectic-ness, etc..
Another tip ... When you get close to the point when you have to get off of HYW80 to get down to Concord, pay very close attention to the exits.
You'll be traveling with a lot of traffic on 4 or more fast lanes and it's easy to miss your exit (which i've done often) so stay in next to far right lane and then move into the far right lane when you first see that your exit is approaching.
I blast over 680 quickly and without paying too much attention as it's part of a long drive i do often and don't know how exactly to get to Concord but it's another area that's quite hectic.
(I'm almost positive you get onto 680 but check to see if i'm right about that).
I assume you have good road maps?
Finally, if you're spending the night in Reno and traveling to Concord on a week day, leave Reno by noon so that you don't hit unbearable late afternoon / early evening commuter traffic in both the Sacramento area and then the Concord area.
Happy trails and good luck!

[humboldtrat]

Take the southern route. Take I-35 to Oklahoma City and I-40 west to Barstow, CA., Hwy 58 to north I-5 near Bakersfield and then west on I-580 and I-680 to Concord. It will be a LONG trip no matter which way you go. Have fun!

[Hawk J]

After we came by ship from Bremerhaven, Germany to New York Harbor, my dad drove us to Fort Ord, California, in a 1954 Ford station wagon.

[masters2830]

Originally Posted by jaijai

Will you take HWY70 from Kansas to Denver and then head north to Fort Collins on 25?
If so, then you'll head a bit north from Fort Collins and get onto HWY80 in Wyoming and you'll be on 80 almost all of the way to Concord .... you'll be connecting onto 680 at the very last leg of your long, straight and very hot drive assuming you'll be doing this trip in the summer or early fall.
At times it's stunningly beautiful! but often it's extremely monotonous
You want to make sure to make the trip before the snow starts to fall which is relatively early in the Rockies and the Sierra range.
Just getting across the state of Nevada is about 7 hours (give or take depending on your speed) so to drive from Fort Collins all the way to Reno in one shot is a very long haul!
I'd reconsider especially since you're a bit nervous about your car as i'm thinking that you don't want to be driving in the dark?
I assume that you plan to get your car overhauled and make sure it's in good condition for such a long trip?
To not do so would be a mistake.
Travel with plenty of water for yourself and for your car (if needed ... which hopefully won't be the case.) and some extra oil.
Do you have AAA? It's not a bad idea if you can afford it and it will provide you with some peace of mind (in case you need help along the way) and it'll provide you with a little discount (10% i think) at various hotels / motels.
Will you have money to stay in rooms?
Holiday Inn Express is a safe bet but it's a bit more expensive than some of the other chains.
Once you get through Reno you'll then head up and over the Sierra and then down the pass and eventually into the Sacramento area. .
After a very long and relatively unpopulated trip, hitting the Sacramento area can be a bit daunting.
You might feel overwhelmed by the sudden and dramatic increase in population, traffic, hectic-ness, etc..
Another tip ... When you get close to the point when you have to get off of HYW80 to get down to Concord, pay very close attention to the exits.
You'll be traveling with a lot of traffic on 4 or more fast lanes and it's easy to miss your exit (which i've done often) so stay in next to far right lane and then move into the far right lane when you first see that your exit is approaching.
I blast over 680 quickly and without paying too much attention as it's part of a long drive i do often and don't know how exactly to get to Concord but it's another area that's quite hectic.
(I'm almost positive you get onto 680 but check to see if i'm right about that).
I assume you have good road maps?
Finally, if you're spending the night in Reno and traveling to Concord on a week day, leave Reno by noon so that you don't hit unbearable late afternoon / early evening commuter traffic in both the Sacramento area and then the Concord area.
Happy trails and good luck!

So very nice for such a wonderful review. I really apprecaite you help and your details.Thankyou very much for this.

[jaijai]

Originally Posted by masters2830

So very nice for such a wonderful review. I really apprecaite you help and your details.Thankyou very much for this.

You're welcome.
Be safe.
And someone mentioned taking 40.
I wouldn't.
It's beautiful when you finally hit New Mexico and then Arizona is incredibly stunning but i wouldn't want to be in the southwest right now.
Also, if you have to go to Fort Collins it doesn't really make sense.
And i forgot to say ... i mentioned bringing water for yourself and for your car (if needed).
Now, i'm car / mechanically stupid and maybe you're not but if your car overheats, don't do something dumb like taking that cap off (i don't even know which cap) and blowing your face off!!!
Someone who knows cars can elaborate.
Again, AAA is a good thing.

[jaijai]

Originally Posted by Hawk J

After we came by ship from Bremerhaven, Germany to New York Harbor, my dad drove us to Fort Ord, California, in a 1954 Ford station wagon.

That's cool.
Good history.

[Capt. Dan]

Originally Posted by masters2830

So very nice for such a wonderful review. I really apprecaite you help and your details.Thankyou very much for this.

If you take I80 out of Reno/Truckee make sure you DONT stop on Donner Pass! I hear people have got eaten up there!

[Hawk J]

Last time we took I80 from Reno to Sacramento in our ol motorhome, the road surface had many potholes. It was a real rough freeway.

Also bad rough road from Red Bluff to Susanville. It shook the MH real bad.