Montgomery, Alabama to Green Bay, Wisconsin
Posted by Ryan
A little family travel to the shores of Lake Michigan, perhaps? The drive will be almost two full days, and really isn't that challenging. I have done a Minneapolis-Montgomery drive before, and it was easy over two days. Of course the weather over this 955 mile trek may be a little dicey. We will average 61.3MPH, which means the goal on Tuesday is 490 miles
DAY ONE
We will wake up in Montgomery to some clouds, with rain not far behind. The early morning will be drizzly, but should be dry soon after we bypass Birmingham. The clouds will break apart by the time we arrive in Huntsville, but don't expect too long a respite. By the time we hit Nashville, and throughout the drive in Kentucky, the chance for thunderstorms will be with us. After we cross the Ohio River from Louisville into southern Indiana, the rain will be torrential and constant. We will end the day in Austin, Indiana, which is about half an hour into the state, north of Louisville.
DAY TWO
Wednesday will be an adventure in mixing precipitation. It will remain rainy, though intermittently so for the rest of our drive in Indiana. The precipitation will begin to change to a rain/snow mix in Chicago, but the precipitation will nearly be at it's end when we cross the state line into Milwaukee. They have barely seen a flake in that part of the world, so the drive north into Green Bay should go off without a hitch.
Los Angeles, California to Jackson, Mississippi
Posted by Ryan
My first road trip in some time, and it will take three days and change to cover it. It's 1842 miles between LA and Jackson, and we will set a pace of 67.3mph. If you don't want to do the math, that means our 8 hour days will allow us to over 538 miles. Lots of space covered in empty country. Hope you brought an iPod.
DAY ONE
There is a petulant little low parked off the northern Coast of the Baja Peninsula, but it absolutely refuses to do anything. Sure, an easterly flow may continue to blow into the San Bernadino Mountains, and I GUESS we could get a stray shower around Palm Springs and Cathedral City, but not much more than that. The day will end in St. David, Arizona (east of Tucson) with very little by way of interesting weather.
DAY TWO
The low off the coast will begin its move inland, and rain over Arizona will pick up. It may be raining by the time we leave St. David, and could continue until we reach the New Mexico border. New Mexico shouldn't give us too many problems when we cross the border, but a little bit of moisture may also trickle into west Texas. Before we arrive in West Odessa, Texas, we may see another spit of rain in Pecos or Monahans, Texas.
DAY THREE
That low is chasing us down, and will catch up to us in West Odessa over night. We will be driving through rain and some thunderstorms across the route during the day Monday. The worst part is, the heaviest rain and thunderstorms are expected to be the biggest problem while we are in the Metroplex. The leading edge of storms will probably be right with us between Dallas and Fort Worth, and we may have to fight a few showers the rest of the way through Texas. We will end the day in Shreveport, Louisiana.
DAY FOUR
The front will now be on top of us as we rest in Shreveport, and will continue eastward through Louisiana. It's only about 3 1/2 hours to Jackson, and we will overtake the leading edge of the storm around Monroe, Louisiana, only to have the storms, which will be stronger again by this time, slam into us in Jackson. That was a lot of action for a road trip over this course, wasn't it?
Ann Arbor, Michigan to Victoria, Texas
Posted by Ryan
It's time for my first road trip in... quite a while. We are heading south over the course of three days and covering 1427 miles. That will put us at a pace of only 62.4mph, which translates to 499 miles a day. This is exactly what will drag the trip out into three full days. It's the rare three day north-south trip, so we had better enjoy it.
DAY ONE
I don't know that we could have picked a better time to take this trip. After what has been an abysmal week for most of the eastern half of the country, high pressure is finally building in from the west. Our day will likely be cloudy, and there may be a stray snow flake depending upon the intensity of flow off Lake Michigan, but even that is tremendously unlikely. Our day ends, with the moon peeking from behind the clouds, in Ina, Illinois.
DAY TWO
Overnight flurries are a possibility across central Illinois overnight Thursday, and there might be a flake for us in Ina before we leave town. There isn't much reason for the snow, except Mother Nature is hateful and cruel this time of year. The rest of our drive to Mandeville, Arkansas, which is near Texarkana, should be fine. Well, the whole trip, because the snow will be done by the time we leave. Whatevs.
DAY THREE
It's strange, because the return flow will pick up and import moisture off the Gulf... but only into Mexico. Victoria looks like it will be in good shape through the day Saturday, except maybe some clouds, especially during the morning. But we will arrive at night, and the whole road in should be pretty clear, if you don't talk about traffic near Houston.
Omaha, Nebraska to Columbus, Indiana
Posted by Anthony
Today we embark on a 654-mile trip through every state in the US that starts with an I that doesn't touch another country! I know, that's a bit of a stretch, but hey, going through 3 "I" states in one day is still impressive! I wonder if Sesame Street would like to sponsor today's road trip... Oh well, off we go! Let's try and get this done in one day, shall we?
As stated in our my forecast for Columbus, a cold front will be making its way through Illinois and Indiana throughout the day today, kicking up some rather heady winds in its' wake. Luckily, the wind will be coming from the northwest as we travel east from Omaha to the Quad Cities, so that will help us along some. Also, outside of some light scattered showers on the backside of the system, it should be dry as we make our way into Illinois. Shortly after we pass the Quad Cities, however, we'll finally catch up to the rain and it will slow us down a bit. While the rain could be briefly heavy at times, the total width of the rainfall shouldn't be too terribly wide, and should only take us a couple hours to make it through the heaviest of the activity. As we emerge into Eastern Illinois by mid-afternoon, we should be out of the woods and while it will remain cloudy, it will at least be dry. Southwesterly winds will be found ahead of the front and be a good 20 degrees warmer than when we were in Iowa, so that will be slightly more pleasant. The rest of our jaunt past Indianapolis into Columbus will be rather uneventful.
Terre Haute, Indiana to Hanford, California
Posted by Anthony
Quite the haul we have today! A 2,095-mile marathon from Western IN to the Central Valley of California. Better get a move on!
DAY ONE
Starting off our trip in Terre Haute, an area of high pressure has taken hold of the Central US. A front draped across the East Coast will continue bringing some precip to the Eastern US, but everything will be well off to the East of our starting point, so it should make for a rather easy start to the day as we make our way towards St. Louis. In fact, all of today should be smooth sailing as we drive towards the heart of the high pressure dome, so not much to worry about as we make our way past Joplin and eventually into Tulsa for our night.
DAY TWO
Hey look! More high pressure! Okay well maybe not quite so much today. The main chunk of high pressure continues to mosey on off towards the east, and with a system pushing through the Northern US is going to kick up some pretty strong southwesterly flow over the Southern Plains. It will continue to be fairly sunny throughout the day as we drive through Oklahoma and the TX Panhandle, however keep both hands on the wheel as it's going to be pretty blustery all day. We'll finish our day in Eastern NM in the small city of Tucumcari.
DAY THREE
As an area of low pressure is ejecting out into the Central Plains, the associated precip with it should remain north of it over the Central Rockies and into the Northern Plains. Winds may still be an issue as we make our way through the rugged landscape of western New Mexico and into Northern Arizona, but dry weather is expected throughout the day as well. A deck of high clouds is anticipated as the aforementioned system continue developing, so while keeping the sun at bay at times, we shouldn't have to turn on the windshield wipers. We'll finish our day in Flagstaff, AZ, just one more day to go!
DAY FOUR
We continue our lovely trip on I-40 through Western AZ and past Spring Break hotspot Lake Havasu. High pressure is controlling much of the Intermountain West today, with an area of low pressure expected to cutoff and drop southward along the CA coastline throughout the day. Luckily, most of the precip associated with it looks to remain offshore or right along the coast. Meanwhile, our route keeps us inland as we pass through Barstow and by Edwards AFB. Conditions will probably be cloudy due to the low pressure, but the precip will remain out of the region. Eventually we make our way past Bakersfield and finally further into the Central Valley as we make it into Hanford.
Kingsport, Tennessee to Sandusky, Ohio
Posted by Ryan
Sorry about the missed forecast yesterday. I have a burgeoning case of narcolepsy. I have to say though, I am glad to be getting into the world of forecasting, after a terrible week in the sports world, it is nice to get away from the awful scandal involving Penn State, and take this little road trip to Sandusky. Oh crap!
Nevertheless, we will soldier on with an 8 1/2 hour drive that covers 520 miles. This mean that our pace will be a leisurely 61.6mph. Shall we be on our way?
High pressure has been te primary feature across the eastern two thurds of the nation for a few days now. The upper level pattern is very active, however, and will, in fact, be transitory. Most of the drive will be with the wind at our backs as high pressure moves off to sea. This will mean seasonably warm conditions, perhaps enough to crack a window through southern Ohio. At the very end of the day, around 6pm, we may start to see some clouds and drizzle seep into northwestern Ohio as a system moving through the upper Midwest will arrive in Sandusky about the same time we do.
Albany, New York to Killeen, Texas
Posted by Ryan
The drive from Albany to Killeen is a surprising (to me, anyways) 3 1/2 day drive covering 1825 miles. Part of the reason we will cover this ground over the course of half a week is our pace of 63.7mph, which means 510 miles a day. If we were driving out West, you better believe we would get this distance done in 3 days flat. But we aren't. It's time to go.
DAY ONE
There is another Nor'Easter headed along the Gulf Stream this week, though nowhere near as devastating as the one the region saw earlier in the week. In fact, it's nowhere close to devastating. There is a chance for some blustery winds and maybe some drizzle or light rain over the New York City area, but by the time we have passed through Allentown, Pennsylvania, we will be problem free to finish off the day. We will make it to Buchanan, Virginia, snuggled against the Appalachians by days end.
DAY TWO
We are going to cover Tennessee the long way, which means that we won't make it from Buchanan to Arkansas all in one day. Instead we will make it to Only, Tennessee. I mean, we will make it only to Tennessee. No, wait, I had it right the first time. And the second time. The weather will be far less confusing, with nothing significant to look forward to for the drive.
DAY THREE
It will be raining in Only when we awake to be on our way Thursday morning. There sill be a trough sweeping the nation, much like Disco in the 70s. A surface low will pass just north of the Ohio River, and rain in Only could be vigorous at times. Fortunately, the dry air behind the rain will meet us around Memphis, and our damp drive will be short lived. Any wind gusts will taper as we cross into Arkansas and we will have good weather all the way to Saltillo, Texas, between Mount Pleasant and Sulphur Springs.
DAY FOUR
Don't worry about the weather, just keep your eyes on the road. Weather should be good for almost a week in eastern Texas. Well, good if you don't like rain. Given the drought across the state, they could probably go for a drop or two. No smoking in Killeen!
Atlanta, Georgia to Albany, New York
Posted by Anthony
Today we venture from one A city to another, with 1003 miles separating Atlanta and Albany. Given that we traveled from Trenton to Atlanta yesterday, you'd think this family would have just gone from Trenton to Albany in the first place. Would have saved a ton of money on gas at least!
DAY ONE
As mentioned in the road trip forecast yesterday, high pressure is settling in over some of the East Coast. This will be pushed to the east somewhat over the next couple of days as an area of low pressure is developing off the Southeast coast. As we head out of Atlanta and take a less-scenic route through the central Carolinas today, clouds will be on the increase as that low pressure tries to get better organized. A few showers are possible as we make our way past Greensville-Spartanburg and Charlotte and continue northeastward into Virginia. No big thunderstorms are anticipated though, just some generally light showers if we do encounter anything. Dry conditons will greet us as we move in to Virginia and finish our 1st night in Tuckahoe.
DAY TWO
Today is going to be a lot more smooth sailing as the low pressure remains offshore. Cloudy skies are expected throughout the day, with perhaps some morning fog, but all of the rain showers are expected to remain off shore, for very slightly affect the Delmarva/NJ region and not penetrate further inland. The biggest issue will be negotiating the traffic as we move through DC, Philly and bypass NYC. Clouds will keep the sun at bay, but should be a dry day throughout. All in all, not too bad!
Trenton, New Jersey to Atlanta, Georgia
Posted by Anthony
Currently, the Northeast is getting pounded by a rare October snowstorm. Could you believe that Central Park had never recorded an inch of snow in the month of October? Me neither. We trek the 845 miles from Trenton to Atlanta covering 2 days, with an overnight stay in Roakoke. Will the weather be better for our trip down south?
DAY ONE
We awake in the morning with over 6" of fresh snow on the ground... but not a cloud in the sky! The snowstorm moving through on Saturday will depart overnight and by morning, high pressure will be moving over the region, giving people some pleasant conditions to shovel out in. We embark westward through PA upon freshly plowed roads and through Hagerstown before continuing into the high country of western Virginia. Prepared for some slow driving through the mountains as some areas got nearly a foot of snow, so don't be surprised if some areas are slow going. We pull into Roanoke in the late afternoon catch a breather.
DAY TWO
More sunny skies greet us as we depart back on the road, continuing to take the scenic route to Atlantia, slicing and dicing our way through western VA, into NC with a sidestop in Hickory as we bypass Charlotte, then onwards through the Greensville-Spartanburg area before our final leg into Atlanta. Clouds will be on the increase as well as we push through SC as an area of low pressure off the Southeast US coastline will start to intensify, but the rain showers should remain far enough to the east that we'll be unaffected. A fairly easy trip considering the storm that just moved through!
Altoona, Pennsylvania to Blacksburg, Virginia
Posted by Ryan
Such a short trip, only 5 and a half hours and 327 miles between the two loci on this trip. Somehow, it's a 4 state journey. It's a 58.2 mile an hour pace, but might be slower given the weather we are expecting. Let's pack up and head south.
It's going to be drizzly and fairly depressing as we start to head south from Altoona. We should be expecting some rain to be falling everywhere north of the Winchester area, where we will then be south of the Appalachians. After that, we should be making our drive on dry roads, though some high overcast will be possible the rest of the way from Winchester to Blacksburg, which is annoying. Maybe a spit of rain out those clouds, but not enough to seriously alter our plans. That time in Pennsylvania will be a nuisance though, that hasn't changed.
