Cross Country trip: which way better?? (apartment, safer, moving van)

[FeinMess]

I will be driving from Ohio to Los Angeles to move my daughter into an apartment in June. We will be taking 70 to 44 to 40 into Phoenix to see some friends and then taking 10 into the city. I have no problems with that route. But on the way back I would rather take the central route of 15 through Vegas to 70 into Utah and on into Denver through the Rocky Mountains. I am a little hesistant to take that way due to a few factors: I will be drivng a large moving van - 15-20 mpg if that, and I forsee an extremely hilly trip, also long barren stretches of land in between cities. I have never driven either route but assume the 40-44-70 route is safer overall. Am I over exaggerating the dangers of taking the more northern route? I would love to see Utah, Colorado and the Rocky Mountains. Thanks

[jtur88]

Rul.e Number One:

"Thanks to the Interstate Highway System, it is now possible to travel from coast to coast without seeing anything."
---Charles Kuralt

In the mountain time zone, there is almost no advantage trafic-wise, to driving on interstates instead of two-lane highways, except very close to big cities.