Heading west from central NC

The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an RV or an interest in RVing!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.

larrypowellnc

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 21, 2013
Posts
306
Location
Central NC
We are heading to the southwest (TX, NM and AZ) from central NC in a few months and need input.  We?ve made this trip a few times and our only options are I-40 or I-85/20.  I prefer the I-85/20 route except for Atlanta.  I admit that I have been hitting Atlanta during week days and usually take I-285 to avoid downtown but that can be a nightmare.  What is Atlanta like on weekends?  Also, can anyone recommend an overnight RV park east of Atlanta?  I have been overnighting west of the city which makes for a long drive.  Any help will be greatly appreciated.  Happy RVing everyone.
 
Atlanta can be a a pain on the weekends too, but probably more variable.  Road work often gets done then to avoid weekday work traffic, and special events can mess it up too.  Those are often downtown, but FYI, the Braves are now on the NW of town, right at I-75 and I-285.  At least, check the GADOT site for weekend work.

My first thought seeing your question was ?how bad can I-40 be??  Then I remembered my last trip through Asheville (probably just made worse by my lesser familiarity). 

Don?t have a good recommendation on a RV park, but staying east of town on I-20 on a weekday (best not Friday), passing though town 10-12 in the a.m. might be a good bet.  Coming down I-85 from the NE, staying somewhere up there, less so; I-85 gets more traffic.  Good luck. 
 
Larry, we made a trip to Albuquerque last fall. We went from Apex to  Greensboro on US64 then down I85 to just north of Atlanta.  We left the interstate there and went west from there. I don't remember the exact route and I don't have a map to look it up right now. But we got on US82 somewhere inside  Alabama and took it all the way to Wichita Falls,  TX. We then  went up to Amarillo and took I40 to Albuquerque.  We enjoyed being off the interstate highways . We are retired and seldom in a hurry. And we usually spend 2 o r more nights at each stopover. 

Our first stop was the KOA  in Gaffney SC.  2nd stop was at what apparently used to be a KOA  northwest of Atlanta. I hope this of some help. But if you're in a hurry,  good luck avoiding Atlanta.
 
As an update, about 11 am today, Thurs 3/15, it took me 45 minutes to go 8 miles S on I-85 (inside I-285, NE part of town).  Reports of an accident, that I never saw.  So maybe the most helpful thing I can say is to repeat, Good Luck.
 
We live outside Charlotte, NC and have found going south toward Columbia, SC and getting on 20W thru Atlanta to be the best way.
 
there is not "Easy way" to get around Atlanta, or through.
However, if you don't mind wandering a bit, check out SR 20, and SR 120.
They can get you around the metro area with fewer headaches, but not quickly.

Since we have family in Forsyth County, we usually run one of those.
SR 20 is decent once you get past the Mall of Georgia, and will take you across to I-75 at Cartersville.

SR 120 runs from I-85 just north of Norcross, to Dallas, in Cobb County, where you can drop down and pick up I-20 near Villa Rica, or Waco
Also in Dallas, you can pick up US-278 across to Culman, Alabama.
Not bad drives unless you want to stay on interstate and go fast until something stops traffic.
we are never in a hurry, and avoid the big roads whenever possible.



 
Back
Top Bottom