Monday, December 19, 2011

Driving from Myrtle Beach, SC to Los Angeles to san fransisco to anchorage to fairbanks. Ballpark driving time?

Hi, for during my holidays, my family are driving from myrtle beach (northern) south carolina. We're going to los angeles, from there to san fran, from there to anchorage, and from there to fairbanks. Using the default 'google maps directions', and driving from 8 in the morning to 12 at night, how long will it take (ballpark) between each place? Also, what are the conditions when driving through rural places (like will we need to carry petrol in the car because of no petrol stations (petrol=gas)... that kind of thing) THANKS IN ADVANCE|||Man when are you planning on doing this trip?


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Man I was kinda hoping that you wouldn't say that


The basics :


When driving across America in winter you have to always be prepared to comfortably spend a night or two living out of your vehicle


You can do everything right and then a semi or two gets sideways and flips over on a snowy /icy stretch of interstate and you're stranded until they can clean up the mess


I can and have done many 3 day coast to coast trips :Until you get used to the cumulative of effects of doing 800 mile -1000 mile days back to back to back you won't be able to %26gt;Allow 4-5 days


I completely disagree with your 8:00AM to 12:00 AM driving schedule


A far safer schedule is to hit the road at 5:00AM stop for breakfast at 8:00AM


drive until 8:00 PM


While they don't get the publicity and the funding that drunk drivers do ,tired drivers can and do kill a lot of people including themselves


Between Amarillo and Barstow you will be driving in a high speed environment where good hospitals can be over 100 miles away


So don't frogg it up


As far as gas goes ;As long as you


don't let it go below 3/8 of a tank you should be OK


Get gas on AZ I-40 exit 48 [ Kingman ] before you head across the Mojave to Barstow


Also gas in AZ is always cheaper than it is in Cali


As far as LA to SFO goes I would take the 101 N to San Luis Obisbo and the find Rt 1 aka the PCH north to San Francisco


Since winter is the rainy season in Cali a mud slide will occassionaly close parts of the PCH


From SFO to Sacramento to Seattle the only bad part of that stretch is Siskyou Summit on I-5 %26gt;Check with CalTrans for conditions


Once you get into Vancouver you're own as far as routing it up to Dawson Creek and then the Al-Can Hwy to AK


I would go to Travel%26gt;Canada%26gt;Vancouver and ask the locals how rt 97 is .


My best guess would that you would be up to your eyballls in snow and that a 4x4 vehicle with snow tires and snow chains would be needed


Safe trip|||go to the airport we have planes|||If you are already aware of the Google Maps driving directions why do you want us to do this for you? Seems like you could and should probably do that yourself - that way you know for sure.





If you will tell us when you are planning this adventure we can advise on possible poor weather conditions.





As usual, Mr. Danger, has covered it about as well as it gets. I would only add that the Alaska part of your journey is going to be very, very cold so be prepared! It will only be daylight for a few hours a day. In other words the sun will rise about 10:30am and set about 3:30pm. Realistically you only have about 3 hours of actual daylight at that time of the year. Also, the average high in Anchorage in January is about 25 degrees F and the low about 5. However, it gets much colder than that on occasion and the snowfall can be significant. You will also probably have to plug your car in at night to keep the engine from freezing. Make sure your car has an engine heater and you have the necessary cords, etc. As Mr. Danger mentioned, snow tires are a must and I would also carry some chains in your trunk b/c you will probably need them. Seriously, if I were you I would see the lower half this time and Alaska in the summer. I lived in Alaska for a while and it is one of the most beautiful places on earth - but you won't see any of it in January!!





Have a good time and drive safely. Oh, Mr. Dangers driving times are much better than yours for the reason he points out!!|||OK the only part I really know about is Fairbanks to Anchorage. And Here's what I got for you:





Cars in Alaskan get winterized, special weight motor oil, battery heater, oil block heater, and adjusted fluids. The heaters get plugged in at night so you can actually start your car again in the morning. If the car your driving isn't plug-inable then you'll be getting up every 4-6 hours (depending on temp) to start and run your car for awhile so it doesn't freeze up.





I always carry extra gear ([parka boots, mitts and heavy sleeping bag) in my truck all winter. If you go off the road or have car trouble it may be quite some time till the next car comes by.


Also personally I would not drive the Parks (highway from Anchorage to Fairbanks) without four wheel drive. Roads and weather conditions can be bad and change fast.





Also as a side note, the term 'highway' is used a little loosely up here. For instance the Parks highway is a 2 lane road in most places. The Denali Highway is a dirt road that isn't plowed in winter. And neither have exists leading to convenience stores.





There will be small towns, service stations and roadhouses along the way.





The best source for planning a driving vacation in Alaska is, hands down, The Milepost:


http://www.themilepost.com/


with up to date info, it also has contact information for businesses along the way so you can check about rooms and if things are even open in some places. (many places for tourists shut down in the winter)





Also if you make it all the way to Fairbanks, you might as well drive a little farther to Chena Hot Springs,


http://www.chenahotsprings.com/


you earned it

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