Snow avoidance from the Pacific NW?

[beken]

Hi.

I'm registered for AMVIV but have never driven to Las Vegas before. Actually, I've never even been to Las Vegas.

It recently occurred to me that being mid March, I might need to drive to LV and back on snowtires. The shortest route I found is a 20 hour drive through Idaho. However, I noticed some 7000+ ft elevation, which means possibly snow. Is there a route of comparable distance from the Canada US border at Blaine Washington that definitely will not involve a requirement for snow tires?

Any help would be appreciated. Thx.

[GoMiniGo]

I drove down last year from WA state without much issues. I only saw snow on the side of the roads. I went down thru Salt Lake City last year which seemed to be the long way...

This year a group of us are traveling from WA state (meeting near Olympia) and going down I-5 to Portland then acroos I-84 to Twin Falls, ID. From there we will drop down highway 93 and spend the night in Jackpot, NV.

The next day is a straight shot down thru NV to LV on 93. We will take a small road called highway 318 outside of Ely, NV to trim an hour of the drive. I have a friend in Twin Falls who say that this is the way to go.

You are welcome to join the pack anywhere along the route. We leave WA on the 21st and get to LV on the 22nd.

If you go by yourself, the only areas you need to watch are Snoqualmie pass (WA), which we are not crossing, and Deadman's Pass (OR). Both have trafic cams on them so they are easy to monitor. The area around Snowville, UT had snow in the fields but the road was really clear. However, the end of March should be fine.

[Keith4499]

Hi Beken,

What are your travel plans?

I'm in Portland and will be going down to Vegas on the 21st of March. I'll be taking 5 all the way to the Bay Area to hook up with NorCal MINIs "MINIcarevan to Vegas" Thrusday morning, picking up MINIs along the way. It's fun to motor with a bunch of MINIs. Pretty Cool!!

If you don't want to carry your snow tires to Vegas, you can leave them here and pick them up on the way back home. Just a idea.

Wait, Did I hear someone said something about Beer ??

Keith

[beken]

Hi Keith and GoMINIgo (aka Alan?)

My plans have changed. I have a wedding to attend on the 17th (Saturday) of which I am taking pictures at. Then I will start south on the 18th. As I didn't like the looks of the elevation when I hit Idaho and Utah (6000 ft?), I have decided to take I-5 to about Bakersfield, Ca and turn left for Las Vegas with a quick stop to say Hi to somebody. The game changer was the relatives from overseas saying they will be in Las Vegas that week also. My wife would like to spend some time with them so we will go there a couple of days early.

Also, I am all excited about joining the Oatman and Route 66 run on Thursday so I would like to be in LV for that for sure. If my wife decides to hang out with her family, I'll be a single driver unless my 10 yr old daughter wants to come for the ride (highly likely as she's turning into a bit of a gearhead too). It's spring break for the kids here in the BC so my family is coming.

So where's a good place to stop (5 or 6 hours south of Portland?) to spend the night?

Also, I'm not taking the snowtires with me. I'm going to gamble that the snow will be gone by then. In fact, I'm taking my snowtires off this weekend if the temps hold up, which looks like it will.

I look forward to seeing you all there. Looks like I'm the only one going from North of the border.

[ChrisW]

Originally Posted by beken

Hi Keith and GoMINIgo (aka Alan?)

My plans have changed. I have a wedding to attend on the 17th (Saturday) of which I am taking pictures at. Then I will start south on the 18th. As I didn't like the looks of the elevation when I hit Idaho and Utah (6000 ft?), I have decided to take I-5 to about Bakersfield, Ca and turn left for Las Vegas with a quick stop to say Hi to somebody. The game changer was the relatives from overseas saying they will be in Las Vegas that week also. My wife would like to spend some time with them so we will go there a couple of days early.

Also, I am all excited about joining the Oatman and Route 66 run on Thursday so I would like to be in LV for that for sure. If my wife decides to hang out with her family, I'll be a single driver unless my 10 yr old daughter wants to come for the ride (highly likely as she's turning into a bit of a gearhead too). It's spring break for the kids here in the BC so my family is coming.

So where's a good place to stop (5 or 6 hours south of Portland?) to spend the night?

Also, I'm not taking the snowtires with me. I'm going to gamble that the snow will be gone by then. In fact, I'm taking my snowtires off this weekend if the temps hold up, which looks like it will.

I look forward to seeing you all there. Looks like I'm the only one going from North of the border.

If your going to be in the fresno area the night of the 21st or the morning of the 22nd. Meet up with us and we will go out and have a good time and you can drive with us over to Vegas. PM if you have any questions about where to stay in Central or northern cal.

[beken]

...so upon hearing that the inland route (as opposed to I-5) was bare, I went through Arizona, Utah, Idaho, Oregon and Washington route to get home. There was snow on the Snoqualmie (spelling??) Pass but the road was bare.


Thanks all for the weather reports.

[Agro]

Glad you made it home safely.
See you next year.