Driving thru in April (Cheyenne, Laramie: hotel, house, neighborhood)

[RaeComplex]

Hi Everyone,

I’ll be driving thru Wyoming late April taking I-80. I’ll be in a VW station wagon and towing a small trailer. I’ll keep an eye on weather on my journey. What’s your experience on I80 in late April? Looks like there may be chances for snow and elevation. Should I change my route (cross country move from VA to WA)? Thanks!

[WyoNewk]

Late April in Wyoming can be pretty wintery sometimes, particularly in the higher elevations, and that includes I-80. "Wintery" in this case includes cold, snow and high winds. I-80 across southern Wyoming has a fairly high elevation. (I-70 across Colorado is even worse.) Oftentimes I-90 across Wyoming, with a lower elevation, will have lower winds and less snow and cold, even though it's further north. It's worth consideration.

You can leave I-80 for I-90 at Chicago to save some miles; otherwise consider I-35 from I-80 to I-90 at DesMoines (central Iowa), I-29 in western Iowa from I-80 to I-90 or I-25 from I-80 in Cheyenne, WY to I-90 at Buffalo, WY. There's also I-15 at Salt Lake, but I wouldn't advise waiting that long unless necessary. If you need to slip up to I-90, the sooner you do it the better.

Keep in mind, I-90 is not always the best route; it just seems to be better sometimes, probably more often than not.

You'll want to check ahead on the weather all the way, especially if you're on I-80 with the option to move north to I-90. If there's a winter storm you'll be dealing with, the weather forecasts will keep you informed if you'll let them.

I wouldn't advise driving on much snow and ice if towing with a light vehicle -- or any vehicle for that matter. Whatever you do, don't load it heavy in the rear. It's best to have it just slightly (like a couple hundred pounds) heavier in the front than the rear. One-hundred pounds on the hitch is about perfect for a light load. Tail heavy is a recipe for disaster on snow and ice.

[Brian_M]

Impossible to say for certain as Anytime in Wyoming during April it can be under several feet of snow, or blue-bell 50* days... sometimes those happen in the same week. Your best bet will be to just pay attention to the road conditions and make your plans on the fly:


WYDOT Travel Information Service (Laramie)
https://mdt.mt.gov/travinfo/


I'm sure other states have similar. Don't worry about your VW and a trailer, those are a non-issue with basic common sense (starting with having good tires, if they're all seasons then I hope they're closer to new). While this is in Denver, I drove there from GA just after Christmas with lots of snow across MO and NE.

[RaeComplex]

Originally Posted by WyoNewk

You can leave I-80 for I-90 at Chicago to save some miles; otherwise consider I-35 from I-80 to I-90 at DesMoines (central Iowa), I-29 in western Iowa from I-80 to I-90 or I-25 from I-80 in Cheyenne, WY to I-90 at Buffalo, WY. There's also I-15 at Salt Lake, but I wouldn't advise waiting that long unless necessary. If you need to slip up to I-90, the sooner you do it the better.

Thank you so much for your suggestions!! We might plan going a bit further north in Wyoming then and see how it goes. April is somewhat warm and just rainy in Northern VA so I’m clueless on this type of weather!

[branDcalf]

A relative who has to travel from So Cal to Northeast Wyoming every April for work laughed and suggests, "Give yourself a couple days cushion. And have extra on your budget for a decent hotel." And added, "If you end up not needing it - great. If you do, having those cushions makes a lot of difference in your experience."

[NDak15]

Originally Posted by RaeComplex

Hi Everyone,

I’ll be driving thru Wyoming late April taking I-80. I’ll be in a VW station wagon and towing a small trailer. I’ll keep an eye on weather on my journey. What’s your experience on I80 in late April? Looks like there may be chances for snow and elevation. Should I change my route (cross country move from VA to WA)? Thanks!

You're usually in the clear late April but snow isn't unusual then. Bring chains and a winter surviva kit just in case. Check this site out before you go: Road & Travel Information

[WyoNewk]

Originally Posted by branDcalf

A relative who has to travel from So Cal to Northeast Wyoming every April for work laughed and suggests, "Give yourself a couple days cushion. And have extra on your budget for a decent hotel." And added, "If you end up not needing it - great. If you do, having those cushions makes a lot of difference in your experience."

Good points here, especially the "couple days cushion." It seems that April weather moves quickly. We can have nasty weather move in from the NW, but it almost always moves out within two days.

Several years ago I used to fly my plane to a place just outside of Wichita, KS for it's annual inspections. One year I barely got out ahead of a storm blowing in. I mean, it was so close that I needed to turn east on departure rather than turn west, the normal traffic pattern exit. My wife called me a few hours later asking if she should have my staff close down our store due to the snow storm. I kinda chuckled at the idea. (It was a beautiful day in Kansas.) But I said that had to be her decision since I was hundreds of miles away. So she told them to close it up, but she stayed at the bank where she worked to get some work done. (The bank closed early too.)

When she left work an hour later, she got our 4x4 stuck a block or two from home, blocking one of the two entrances to our neighborhood. The car was there for two full days. The drift in our driveway was higher than our garage door openings. We had a patio in the center of our house with access to the front of the house. It had snow packed in above the eves. My teenage son tunneled out. (I think the back door was free from much snow, but teenagers like to do things the hard way sometimes.)

I believe the actual snowfall was about 2 feet, but strong winds made for some crazy high drifts. I think it was the most snow we've had in a single snowstorm since I moved here nearly 50 years ago. (I regret missing it!) When I returned home a week later, all the snow was gone. All of it!


All this to say, if you drive into a snow storm in Wyoming in April, find a place where you can hunker down. It won't last long, and chances are you'll be back on the road in a day or two at the most. Obviously, this is even more important when you're towing a trailer. Pay close attention to the weather forecast, and if it sounds bad, try to find a motel where you can wait it out before all the rooms are rented.

[nm9stheham]

Originally Posted by RaeComplex

Thank you so much for your suggestions!! We might plan going a bit further north in Wyoming then and see how it goes. April is somewhat warm and just rainy in Northern VA so I’m clueless on this type of weather!

I would stay down along I 80 and head through Salt Lake City. Going further up and into MT gets into the wetter and more snowy areas in western MT and northern ID. Plus I'd much rather be going up from SLC to Boise and on into WA; lower average elevation once you get into ID.



Keeping on I70 to Denver to say further south and then cutting up to WY and I-80 just keeps you in a bit warmer temps.

[Dangerous Dave]

I'd advise taking 90. The only area you'd hit any trouble that time of year is Lookout Pass on the Montana/ID border, and that's just a few miles worth. Usually by April it's pretty good. That time of the year is very windy on 80.