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My wife and I (no kids, but 1 small dog) will be moving from San Jose, CA to Dallas, TX in August. Neither of us are accustomed to long distance driving as adults, and we'll likely be in a 10' moving truck, which we're also not used to as I've been driving sedans all my life and I'll be the only one driving. So large changes in elevation especially in a big truck like that will be new to me.
I'm looking for a safe way to travel given our lack of experience and ensuring our personal safety as well as the safety of the stuff we're moving. Plus the weather and elevation of course. Also, we'd prefer it to be a more enjoyable drive in regards to scenery and places to stop. It's not necessary, but it'd be nice since we're thinking it'll be a 4-5 day trip. So, time and efficiency aren't as important as those things. Flying is pretty much out of the question, as my wife hates flying.
I'm considering the I-80 route because of the heat of the southern routes. My wife despises the heat, so I figured the northern route might be cooler, even though it's quite a bit longer. Plus it might be prettier, but that's simply an assumption. I know there are boring stretches no matter what. But from what I can tell the elevation is higher and more harsh of changes going this way.
I've done some reading about I-10 and I-40, and we're open to the idea of taking those routes, as long as they're really safe. I could be wrong, but I've only heard worse and worse things about being near the Mexican border, especially around El Paso.
What are your thoughts on a newbie long-distance traveler with a big truck taking I-80, or a different route? And what about finding a safe way to drive from SJC to DFW? Any help would be really appreciated!
My wife and I (no kids, but 1 small dog) will be moving from San Jose, CA to Dallas, TX in August.
What are your thoughts on a newbie long-distance traveler with a big truck...
Send your stuff to TX in a pod or something.
Drive a car and take an extra week en route to see a few things.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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Yes, Do this ^^^ and enjoy a scenic road trip through Utah National Parks and Northern NM (like Chama railroad)
I moved 3 other people + myself to TX from PNW (Portland and Seattle). We took multiple trips with BIG rental trucks. If you just have a little, ship it. MUCH cheaper. I use U-ship.com and have been very satisfied, but there are similar solutions for yourself. Fed Ex and UPS are getting into the Less-than-truckload (LTL) shipping and there are std freight companies that will bring you a pod.
Hm, that's quite an interesting idea! I haven't thought of just shipping our stuff via UPS or something. That's quite smart actually! And yea, likely a lot cheaper. The truck + gas was looking to be ~$3000 lol, which was painful for our small budget. I had heard of pods, but I've heard scary things from them. But I do trust shipping companies. Does it work well with bigger stuff? We don't have much of anything. We're just moving clothes and small stuff plus a rocking chair, antique lockers and a big wooden screen.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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Most any moving company can help you out nicely, if you give them the latitude to best meet THEIR schedule it will be cheaper (toss it on their next partial truck load). (They will be most expensive, but offer the best services and boxes, pickup, storage...)
If you are willing to pack yourself and take to a freight terminal, that will be the cheapest (you can rent a uhaul or Home Depot truck for $30 to do this delivery.) You have them drop it at a freight terminal in DFW and pick it up. You can get cheap insurance for this too.
The road trip through Utah parks, Mesa Verde, and NM will be delightful compared to freeway driving. Be sure to see Great Basin NP, I was really impressed with having it in the middle of 2 very unscenic rtes. (NV/UT). Don't miss Bryce, Arches, or Moab. Some folks really like Zion too. If it is hot, stop at community pools for a leisure break. IN NM there are NICE places to visit near Taos and Santa Fe, there are some Beautiful mtn valleys and ranches. Soak up the GOOD, as TX is VERY long. Good thing they have 80 mph speed limit. I prefer to drive deserts and TX at night. Looks nice under moonlight.
Does it work well with bigger stuff? We don't have much of anything.
We're just moving clothes and small stuff plus a rocking chair, antique lockers and a big wooden screen.
If it won't fit into a box... sell it.
If you still have a lot of stuff... have a yard sale.
Assess the mass of what's left over.
If it can be shipped for less than what it will cost to replace... ship it.
If not then replace it when you get to TX.
Yea, we've basically gotten rid of most of what we can. The only reason why we're holding onto the chair, lockers and screen is because they're antiques from her grandfather who recently passed away. Luckily, the rest are clothes, computers, and small stuff like that, some of which could fit in the rental car we're driving. That's a smart idea though to rent a truck for the day to get the big items to the freight terminal! I'll definitely remember that, because I saw that freight companies charge extra to come pick it up. Great idea!
And thanks for the insight about NV, UT and NM. I'm very grateful for the stops and town references. We both love the mountains and hiking and stuff, so that all sounds perfect And at least when we get to bland west Texas we'll be on the home stretch.
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And at least when we get to bland west Texas we'll be on the home stretch.
