Mn to VA

[DPellegrin]

Anyone ever made that long of a trek without stopping except for fuel and food? According to mapquest it is 1205 miles from Minneapolis to Richmond. Let me know I wanna know if im gonna have to stop I dont want to 75MPH all the way.

 

[fest3er]

Anyone ever made that long of a trek without stopping except for fuel and food? According to mapquest it is 1205 miles from Minneapolis to Richmond. Let me know I wanna know if im gonna have to stop I dont want to 75MPH all the way.

If you're rested and still young, you should be able to make it at least most of the way stopping only for fuel. I often drive from Roanoke to Elgin (710 mi. ) in 11 hours or so, stopping once for fuel and a snack. But of late, I find myself tired and stopping to rest for an hour or so at one pickle park or another.



Let's say you're 4 hours from Chicago. If you time your drive to hit Chicago about 10AM, you should be able to get through fairly easily. But beware, there is no way to get through Chicago without hitting construction if you are towing and don't want to hit side-streets. 80-90 is under construction; you *really* want to avoid that road. 90-94 is under construction, but it isn't *too* bad. If you got off 90-94 at I-55 (I-57?) and took Lake Shore Drive (highway 41) to the IN border, you would miss the 90-94 construction and the Skyway. It's a little slower for a few miles, but it's not too bad - real easy if you aren't towing. From there, it's:

I-90E (good road, no construction)

I-65S (might be a pocket of construction, nothing major)

I-465E/S (congested, but good road)

I-70E (worn, but it moves well enough)

OH-49S (50MPH, but moves along - watch for cops 'til east of Dayton)

US-35S (4-lane, nice, empty to Gallipolis, then 60MPH for 28 mi. 2 lane)

WV-34S (a few miles of 55MPH 2 lane)

I-64E (some construction west of Charleston, but traffic moves nicely)

to Richmond.



Outside of urban areas, you can easily do about 70 the whole way. It should take you perhaps 18 hours at most.



Fuel stops? I-65 and IN-28 has a decent BP I usually stop at. That should be about 450 miles for you. Then there's the Tamarack stop north of the I-64/I-77 split south of Charleston. If you need fuel more often, wait until you get to IN if you can; fuel is somewhat cheaper there. Next short fuel stop would be near US-27 and I-65 in IN. After that, there's a truck stop on US-35 south of Jackson, OH. Diesel will be a bit difficult to find after Tamarack, so you might want to top off there.



Back when I was young, I used to drive 18 hours a day, stopping only for gas. Used to make PBJs whilst driving 70 and steering with my knee. Can't do that any more.



N

 

[klenger]

See https://www.turbodieselregister.com/forums/showthread.php?t=127380



Be safe.

 

[jcarey]

I don't think you could make that trip in a day. It shows 18 hours on MapQuest. Depending on how many rush hours you (Chicago, Pittsburgh, Cumberland, Frederick, DC - I don't know what others), it could take longer.



We've gone from Baltimore, MD to close to St Paul MN on a Friday. We left about 5:30 AM and hit Chicago about 3:30 PM :{ . Traffic was gross. Got near St Paul between 9 PM & 10 PM.



The DC beltway is a horror in rush hour (starts building between 2:30 - 3:00 PM and tapers by about 7 PM). RT 270 is also very slow during rush hours. RT 95 South is also very heavy, very slow during that period.



Traveling on a weekend is best, but it would still take two days. IMHO.



Jim

 

[TRAMPLINEMAN]

Drove from North Eastern MN to Phoenix, AZ-about 1900 miles straight thru. Many cans of Coke and a bottle of Effedrine helped out otherwise would have never made it. Long hauls are always possible, but I wouldn't recomend it, too hard on the body!

 

[JoshPeters]

I just ran from Winson-Salem North Carolina to Two Harbors. I would recommend staying away from Chicago... run 39south and around. The Roads were clear and good down to TN. Both major roads that run North South through TN have construction. (dont' remember Innerstate numbers now) We took 2 days. On the way down we made it from my house in Ramsey to Champaign ILL in about 7 hours. The next day we ran from Champaign to Winston-Salem and that took us about 10. We generally ran about 5 over the posted limit.



Josh

 

[dberry]

Just make sure you have some 20 oz. bottles to get rid of the beverages you consume ! And make sure you dispose of them correctly!

Running that straight should not be a problem. But be safe, if you are tired sleep!