Highway Information, Pathologies

By State:

Arizona - Arizona drivers are generally tame, though you'll meet your share of idiots and drunks in Phoenix, and in small towns having nearby military bases such as Sierra Vista (cerebrally-challenged driving habits tend to follow their hosts around). Have care on the crowded I-10 corridor between Phoenix and Tucson, as this is a high-accident (and high-fatality) area, due mainly to aggressive drivers. Consider taking Rt 79 to Rt 60; this adds quite a bit of time but is more scenic and much less dangerous.

Be advised that gas stations near I-10 in Tucson and south of Miracle Mile are a bit hard to find. There are good services at the Benson exit well east of Tucson.

Rt 89 between Flagstaff and Powell gets pretty desolate. There are gas stations scattered about, and most other services, but they are fewer and farther between than you might expect.

Utah - Rural Utah is a joy to drive through. Rt 89 from Lake Powell to Kingston tends to be lightly travelled, though with heavier traffic near the lake.

I-15 is in generally good repair and follows valleys most of the way through southern Utah. There is some modest elevation gain and loss, but no mountainous areas.

Salt Lake and environs along I-15 are horrifying. Drivers in this stretch are uniformly hostile, dangerous, unpredictable, rude, and much worse than the stereotype drivers of Los Angeles or Boston. The situation is exacerbated by the poor condition of the highway. Oddly, when they get out of their cars, drivers in the Salt Lake area turn into really nice people.

Idaho - The apparently excellent education available in Idaho shows wherever you go, including on the highway.

Rt. 15 through Idaho is in excellent shape south of Pocatello (though there was a 20-mile stretch of construction when I passed through). North of Idaho Falls the highway has some bumpy stretches. On the way back from our trip, I drove from Dillon, MT to Hamer, ID without seeing another car.

I stayed at a very nice Best Western in Idaho Falls on the way back. Highly recommend this town for educated, friendly people, and a nice park along the river in the center of town.

Montana - See Idaho for driver mentality. Rt 15 from the border to Butte is in pretty good shape and had very little traffic while I was there. Dillon has a grocery store near the highway (follow the signs to McDonald's).

Rt 30 from just west of Butte to Missoula had intermittent construction when I passed through, but was otherwise in good shape. There are sections that are hilly and with curves, but all of them are gentle and apparently properly banked.

In Missoula, the Holiday Inn Express has very nice rooms, free broadband internet access, and a nice exercise room. Across the street from here, and a half block to the west, is a good place to get a car wash, at an unattended gas station/car wash (and possibly laundry - I wasn't too sure). For information on 93 to Kalispell, see the kalispell page.

Rt. 89 between Browning and St. Mary has some sections that are curvy, and some that are curvy and hilly. RV drivers on this road are a menace, with more than half of them driving this road straddling the center line. Use caution if you decide to drive this stretch.

California - I didn't drive in California, but the driving habits of Californians outside of their state bears comment. If you see a California plate, exercise caution.

Pathology By Vehicle Type:

Semi Trucks - Truck drivers are the only safe drivers on the road. Over the course of 2500 miles of driving on this trip, we never saw a truck driver do something stupid or dangerous.

RV's - Every state that we drove through has a law requiring drivers to pull off and yield to faster moving traffic to the rear, when there are four or more vehicles behind them. I never witnessed an RV respect this law on this trip.