Eugene, OR to Las Vegas road Help!

[apm]

I hope you guys can help me out!

We are planning on heading to Las Vegas next week via Eugene, OR.

So we have 2 routes that we can choose from:

1) Oregon I-5 to Cali then Vegas(Grants Pass, Redding, Sac town), L.A. 1048 miles(16 hrs)

2) Eugene, OR to I-58, to I-97, to I-139 To Reno, Nevada and then Las Vegas. Estimated Time: 14 hours 30 minutes Estimated Distance: 887.12 miles

Is option number 2 a good road for us? Is it shorter and safer with no snows or high altitudes?

How's the cities along the way? Any problems with gasoline stations? I want to go for option number 2 because I don't want to cross Mount Shasta as much as possible coz of snow.

And I've never been on road number 2, so I don't know what the road will give me.

I will appreciate any inputs!!

[gwb72tii]

i-5 is fucking mind-numbing BORING once you hit cal
if the weathers ok i'd take the route across cal that goes near Mt. Lassen, a very scenic drive and you also wind up on the eastern flank of the sierra nevada's, which is an awe inspiring sight in and of itself
if you flyfish, there is very good water along the eastern nevada's too!

[Van Westervelt]

Its all weather based. Keep an eye on storms etc. The roads in and out of Reno can get nasty in a matter of hours. LA route is a lil longer and boring, but less possible weather issues.

I have driven both several times. Going through Reno, the roads listed above are pretty good scenic wise.

[atomic]

Also when are you going to be in Vegas? I ask as they shut down the entire vegas strip to car traffic for the New Years party and all hotels will only let registered guests inside (and they will actually put up temp fencing around the hotel/casinos to help monitor this). They do this because of the people who come in to do the New Years party in the streets will be somewhere estimated around 5 million...

[devonjordan]

Also when are you going to be in Vegas? I ask as they shut down the entire vegas strip to car traffic for the New Years party and all hotels will only let registered guests inside (and they will actually put up temp fencing around the hotel/casinos to help monitor this). They do this because of the people who come in to do the New Years party in the streets will be somewhere estimated around 5 million...

His post says next week...

[atomic]

His post says next week...

:eeek: I overlooked that


NM my OP then

[StereoInstaller1]

Having done so many road trips in my life, and considering the predicted snowy weather, I would take the route most traveled...unless traction is no issue.

Either way I would assume anyone traveling in the winter to be prepared with appropriate blankets/food/TP/cold weather survival shit. You never know what can happen in the wilds of Orygun!

[VacMan]

As mentioned, the 5 south gets quite boring after Redding. I'd cut over and take the 395 all the way down. There's a lot of awesome scenery and elevation changes. Cut over at Lone Pine and you can even drive through Death Valley. :)

[KenC]

HAHA, Darin (CorvallisBMW) and I did this trip about 3 weeks ago to head down for the UFC fights.

Best route = I-5 to Shasta, then cut over to Reno, then down to Vegas. Not a bad drive at all. We made it from Corvallis to Vegas in a little over 14 hours.

PM me if you want to discuss it further.

[gwb72tii]

As mentioned, the 5 south gets quite boring after Redding. I'd cut over and take the 395 all the way down. There's a lot of awesome scenery and elevation changes. Cut over at Lone Pine and you can even drive through Death Valley. :)

death valley is really shocking, and a neat drive if you have the time. we went thru it on the way north from phoenix once driving home a e36 325ic i bot off ebay. it looks like hell on earth, but cool in its own way.

[CorvallisBMW]

HAHA, Darin (CorvallisBMW) and I did this trip about 3 weeks ago to head down for the UFC fights.

Best route = I-5 to Shasta, then cut over to Reno, then down to Vegas. Not a bad drive at all. We made it from Corvallis to Vegas in a little over 14 hours.

PM me if you want to discuss it further.

Ahh! you beat me to it :)

EDIT: When driving through Lassen Volcanic park, watch out for cops. They are sneaky and like to take down e30s. Ask me how I know...

[E30Idea]

Ahh! you beat me to it :)

EDIT: When driving through Lassen Volcanic park, watch out for cops. They are sneaky and like to take down e30s. Ask me how I know...

Also watch out for radar by plane, that is the way I got nailed.

+1 on the route. I live in Eugene and that is how I went.

[accident]

16 hours? jesus christ. I'm glad it's only 6 from here.

[apm]

hey thanks a lot guys! looks like I'm not the only beavs fans here lol.

My e30 m3 and 190E 16V is still in beaver city in case you guys want to meet up. I'm just off 9th St TJ Maxx.

Tomorrow the car shipping guys will take them cars for a grueling 10 day trip out of state!! I was hoping it will be in an enclosed carrier.

I thought the road from Eugene, OR to Reno/Vegas via I-58/etc will be mostly flat? Are there any rough terrain out there?

I don't really care about the scenic route at this point, just whatever road is the safest especially with snow and rain. I will not drive a big truck but just a van, so traction is an issue.

So I'll take it that my best bet is to go Eugene-then I-5 south to Mount Shasta and cross to Cali border this time of the year? I will be leaving next weekend.

[ethirtydavid]

here is my advice - go to http://ridewithgps.com
make an account there plot both routes..

this site is like google maps, only it also incorporates USGS data so you can see elevation changes. very useful tool when mapping anything on a road