From S. California, come up on the back side of the Sierra, through Donner Pass to Winnemucca NV (good stop, with barbecue), then east until you can come up the EAST side of the central mountains of Oregon, through the TriCities to Spokane. We did this to San Diego with a stay in Winnemucca and a real long drive to San Diego, back via San Francisco: we found the back highway down the Sierras, part of the way in Nevada, a less congested route, but this may vary seasonally.
From Dallas—take the route to Amarillo, then to Clayton, then to Raton. Good stop at the Motel 6, then take I-25 north to Buffalo WY, Motel 6; then on to Spokane.
From OKC or Tulsa: head out I-40 to Raton and then the same {Buffalo, then Spokane) , or up to Wichita, then Limon CO, then overnight in Billings, if you like that route better…never done that one but once.
From anywhere in WA west: I-5 to I-90. I-90 runs through Spokane.
From anywhere in Oregon eastside: go up to the TriCities, then to Ritzville, then Spokane via I-90. On the west, you’ve got a choice at Portland: go up I-5 and take the White’s Pass route; or through Seattle to I-90; OR take the scenic route along the Columbia River past Multnomah Falls and cross at the TriCities, then to Ritzville, etc.
St. Louis: get up to I-80, then take it to Cheyenne WY, up to Billings MT then west on I-90.
If you are on this list, you can do it in 2 nights on the road. If you are farther, and traveling solo, it would be cheaper to fly.
On California routes:
The Eastern Sierra route via 395 is far more interesting than the I5 route through the Central Valley but longer in time. I5 is a high speed raceway with an average speed for all traffic of 75mph. I was once stuck by the side of the road with a flat-on a motorcycle on a 100 degree day-and the CHP officer who helped me admitted they try to keep it under 75 but don’t always succeed. 395 is slower and more agreeable.
If the journey is the thing stay off the Interstates and stick to the 2 lanes.
I agree. I was born and raised in LA. 😉 My first though would be 14 through Lancaster and up 395 through the Owens Valley along the east scarp of the Sierra’s. If not 395, I’d stay on I5 through California, joining the “Bay Area” route, to Mt Shasta then get on 97 through Bend, Oregon to the Columbia, then Tricities. In any event, I don’t think it’d occur to me to take the Donner Pass route.
I prefer 99 to I-5. It’s about the same distance (actually, it’s about ten miles shorter from Wheeler Ridge to Sacramento) and has a lot better scenery. And far more places you can stop for a break.
“Donner, party of eighty-one?”
US 395 is very interesting, but quite twisty from about Bishop north. At night, an okay plan is to follow another car and watch their taillights so they warn you when the road curves; however, know what kind of car you’re following! If you want to take your time, 395 offers a huge number of interesting side trips.
“Donner, party of eighty?”
Going up I-5 is good, but can be hot. An alternative is US 101, though it goes straight through SF which slows you down. But, going north over the Golden Gate is free, so I kind of favor 101 north and 5 south. North of SF, if you stay along the coast, you get to see the Sequoia sempervirens forests. One can make a side trip to wine country. Eureka is an interesting place to stop, but it might be too far, depending on your start point.
“Donner, party of seventy-nine?”
This jaunt sounds interesting, but I can’t plan it this early.
“Donner, party of seventy-eight?”
[California busy-restaurant humor.]
I don’t think 101 is a good route to Spokane. It’s a long way from the coast to Spokane.
BTW, my Aunt Charlotte lived in Spokane for many years.
You do have to cut east at some point, true; but I would be thinking of scenery, for photography, and business, since that makes the the mileage deductible. Might want to stop by Redmond for the two bit tour. From what I understand (I’m neither a lawyer nor a tax accountant), if you brought a donation for the church that has helped CJ, the mileage would be deductible as a charity contribution.
Oh my goodness! US 395 goes directly to Spokane. Have you done this from SoCal, CJ? It looks convoluted, but for the return, when I don’t have a deadline…. And I have very much neglected NE California.
Busses and trains might work, too. Oddly, busses more than trains, being more competitive. A friend arranged a bus trip for some friends from SF to LA that was very inexpensive. And, of course, we could car pool. What do you see as an upper limit on numbers, CJ?
Oh, yes, 395 is that road from Tricities (Pasco, Kennewick, Richland, that I was recommending. It’s divided highway, very nice—no gas between Kennewick and Ritzville, but once you know that, you’re good.
Because we’re thinking about a motel, there’s no likely size cap. Long as we can fit. If we ended up totalling a small regular convention, heck, we could manage. The pond area’s smallish, but we just open the back gate and spill onto the driveway…and go to hotdogs, which cook faster. We are nothing if not can-do.
Thank you, CJ!
Donner party…. So was Blitzen the first to go? Or perhaps he was smarter and got away while the gettin’ was good….
Ahem. Sorry. :blush: 😉
He didn’t take the ‘short cut’ through the thorn-bushes and crossed the pass three weeks earlier. *g*
We saw a lot of restricted military bases in Nevada before we switched over to California. But remember you need to get across that volcanic field in central Oregon and if you go further north than Winnemucca, you pretty well can’t cross it til you reach the Columbia River. That was one great honking volcanic field, sort of like a mini-version of the Siberian Traps: Crater Lake is up there, ditto the John Day Fossil Beds, etc, and the tail end of the Cascades including Mt. Hood. Then there’s the Columbia, which went from a wee little stream to a huge river when the glacial ice all melted and headed overland from a broken ice dam in Missoula MT. You may imagine—it was not the day to be trout-fishing on Columbia Creek, eh?
I dunno, depending on how much airfare would cost from Dayton, OH to Spokane……then of course, I’m not all that enamored of flying, anyway.
We DO have a downtown train station/bus depot. I have no idea how passenger service is.
Eepp — I just pulled up Amtrak schedules, which include bus service. You can get a train or a bus from, say, Seattle to Spokane. It will likely arrive after dark, up to almost midnight, take 7 or 8 hours to get there, and cost anywhere from $46 to $115. Carpooling is lookin’ like a good option for people not flying in, coming from the West Coast.
I have looked up Amtrack service from Chicago. It’s 30 hours and arrives in Spokane something like 2am. Coach. I was thinking in terms of a Spokane worldcon. Plus a 6 hour bus ride to get to Chicago. Dislike flying. I am a bad traveler.
We may be able to hook people up for a carpool…but it takes planning: how many people, how much luggage, whose car is going the long distance, who’s driving, and where (for flatlands folk, we do have some mountain passes, in Idaho, and in Montana, and in Washington. They’re superhighway and tame as your typical interstate all the way up, but if you come out of the climb and then let yourself build up too much speed on the descent, not paying attention to the signs warning you there’s a bend ahead, there are a couple of places that this would be bad.)
If your own car has some age on it, it might be a good thing to rent a car and carpool…if you can pare it down to a couple of drivers for the sake of the rental company: they have to have drivers’ licenses and fill out their paperwork.
Mountain driving and I are old acquaintances, both the up and down part, and the squiggly road part. The question will be if I can make it to the mainland…
LOL, Chondite: Try going Reno to Mammoth, in the dark of night, when you’re driving an ordinary car, and you don’t have a clue the car you’re using as a pathfinder is a Lotus Europa!
Some places, I would have had nearly ten seconds in zero gee to regret my chutzpah. OTOH, 395 may be the most spectacular route in California, next to PCH.
CJ: Humbly suggest you let us work out our own carpooling. Go write! 😆
Lol.
And for those of you EAST of the Mississippi, Jane and I are coming to Libertycon this next year. WE should arrange a get-together of all the folk for whom Spokane is a really major trip. WE’ll be driving, but we love driving—
I’ve forming a weird idea. Does anyone know of a good bike route from So. Cal to the Northwest? The missus and I have been talking up the idea of doing some unsupported bike touring and we’re getting to the point where all we need is an excuse and an arbitary goal.
I’d say #1 all the way. It’s pretty narrow in spots, but the traffic moves slower and there are no outrageous hill climbs.
Heck yeah! I was thinking direct, but, if things go right that summer, I’ll be killing time between the end of my contract and reentry into grad school. I’ll have the time for something awesome like this. If not, four wheeled road trips with fun gatherings on the other end are always good.
Well, there’s certainly one from Spokane downtown to Coeur d’Alene ID, 20 miles away…But you’d sure get muscles going through Oregon: that’s a climb.
Going by Nietzsche’s aphorism, I’m thinking we’ll either die or become indestructible making it out of the LA Basin. IIRC, it’s a steep grade getting out of the Northern end of LA County any which way you slice it. Going to have to spend lots of time with a map. A roomate of mine did this once, but he was nineteen. The two of us are in our forties, but what the heck? Mid-life crisis. It’s overdue.
Sure if you take I5! But you can you can take Highway 1 from Santa Monica through Malibu, Port Hueneme, Ventura, Santa Barbara, SLO, Morro Bay, San Simeon, Big Sur, Montrey, skirting the ocean all the way. North of Frisco you can take it again from say Petaluma, Sea Ranch, Fort Bragg, up to Leggett, then 101 to Astoria. Antbody in California should do Highway 1 at least once–one can’t say one knows California until one does. 😉
It’s not a road to make time on, but it is scenic! Love the lighthouses and the view!
Dagoski wants to do a “bike route“. Motorized “bike” or “pedal-power”? He seems concerned about Fort Tejon Summit and the Grapevine Grade. Seems like he’s talking pedal-power. That suggests the flattest route with cooling ocean breezes, and slow isn’t a consideration. (I would not consider either I5 or 99 on a bicycle! No way.)
OTOH, LA to Spokane by bicycle? That’s a heck of a road-trip!!! 😉 And one would certainly have an “up-close and personal” experience with the California/Oregon Coast! 🙂
Yep, human powered alternating with gravity powered where possible. Dunno why I didn’t think of the coast route. It would be a legendary bike tour with lots of places to eat and stay when I get tired of a tent and sleeping bag. Thanks for pointing out the obvious to me, y’all.
Now to find time and money for this adventure.
Ooooh! Gravity assist? The climb to Tejon Summit is (in comparison) fairly gentle. Should be doable. But the ride down the Grapevine on a bicycle would be (what’s the word I want?) sporty! Not im my wildest!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grapevine,_California
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tejon_Pass
I’m with Paul, if I still lived in California. Going up Highway 1 is definitely the scenic way to go! Lovely drive and add at least a week to the trip to enjoy it! And as far as I know, you’re not allowed to do bikes on I-5. And that Fort Tejon grade would be nasty! The Grapevine could be fun downhill but I can remember seeing a small pickup that got sucked into a semi once. Winds in that area can be interesting — at least in the summer/fall you avoid all the fog.
Oh! And if one is on I5 and they close the road, one can duck out down a little known road at “Six Flags” (I presume it’s still there) and go through Fillmore and Santa Paula to Ventura and north on 101! Needed to do that one holiday season myself.
There are several, actually. You’re going to CA-126 (AKA Telegraph Road).
Oh, I would do love too! Helps that we have family north of Kettle Falls. If we manage it would probably be 15 Upton Salt Lake, over to Boise and then on to Spokane. We have friends there too. I’ve done lots of road trips before but found 395 thus Nevada screamingly bleak. If we hadn’t seen wild burrow I would have sworn nothing lives out there but the scrub. We didn’t even have bugs on the windshield!
I hate auto-correct. Sigh
Jane reminds me this is an extraordinarily mild summer and that we need to dodge both Libertycon (July) and Spocon, (early August) because we have to do some work on this, that maybe late August, early September would still dodge the snows in the high country. That puts us in conflict with Worldcon. I don’t know how many that would affect. Not us.
Unless my rich uncle dies and leaves me $$$ or I win the lottery, I won’t be there in body. Waaaaaaah!
I was considering I5/CA-99 to Redding, then CA-299 (scenic route) northeast to Alturas and 395. You don’t get the spectacular view of the east side of the Sierra around Lone Pine on that route, but you can take the other way home.
That’s a forgotten corner of California. Well worth visiting.
I’ve done the cross-country trip from Milwaukee three times — twice to Spokane, once to Missoula — twice via Greyhound (ShejiCon 1 and MisCon 30) and once via carpool (ShejiCon 3). I kind of prefer the I-94 variant that passing through WI makes available (it converges with I-90 at Billing MT), and I *almost* prefer the 40-hour Greyhound run (~150USD if you book early), because I can sleep along the way (most of the trip, frankly) and not have to purchase accomodations. One caveat, if you Greyhound and have any choice in routing AVOID combinations that include Jefferson Lines (JLI), because JLI has a short-haul mindset and they don’t believe in break times. Not bad if you’re actually ON a short haul, but hitting that on the back side of long haul, not being able to stretch, etc. is a real annoyance. Also, if you can, arrange to pass through Livingston, MT during the day — they have a really nice little coffee shop at the bus stop there, if you can hit it while it’s open…
Coming to this post very late in the day, but would love to come. I’ve been a reader and fan for many years, but have only lurked on your website all this time – although I’ve been registered a long time, too! But this post inspired me to write.
Would love to be a part of this. Live in the UK and will be at LonCon3 14-18 August in London, but would love to be part of your gathering if it is after that.
I’ve also never been west of the Appalachians (!) so am a n00b on that front too!
We don’t know the date yet, but there WILL be an sf con in Spokane in July SpoCon—-I will definitely be there.
It’s a pretty area, evergreens the dominant trees, mountains, etc. I don’t know our date but it may be after Spocon: this is a real ‘full’ year for us…notice will be up here when we have more notion. And I know we have to do it soon for people to make plans and arrangements.
Many thanks for this – but I notice from their website that the date for SpoCon is 15-17 August (I’ll be in LonCon3 then), so can’t go to SpoCon which is a real shame, but would be able to come over either side of that, so will keep an eye out for your announcement.
Good, good.