Snowbirding from Canada

[Patricia D.]

I would be very interested to hear from others from Canada or the upper midwest about just how you go about getting to the warm south, especially the southwest.
I realize that it would be best to leave in the late fall but that is not in the cards for this year so I am looking at January. I would certainly wait for a week or so with clear weather.
Being completely new to traveling with a trailer, I am curious how experienced snowbirds do it. Do you stay in motels on the way? Is this a concern with a trailer?
My first thought is to go straight south to avoid driving through mountains, and then head west.

[John Linck]

Originally Posted by Patricia D.

I would be very interested to hear from others from Canada or the upper midwest about just how you go about getting to the warm south, especially the southwest.
I realize that it would be best to leave in the late fall but that is not in the cards for this year so I am looking at January. I would certainly wait for a week or so with clear weather.
Being completely new to traveling with a trailer, I am curious how experienced snowbirds do it. Do you stay in motels on the way? Is this a concern with a trailer?
My first thought is to go straight south to avoid driving through mountains, and then head west.

When we head West or SW from Wisconsin in late January we tow the winterized Scamp and camp dry for the first 3+ days. We flush the toilet with RV antifreeze and watch the radar to avoid storms. Last trip the first wet pavement was a few miles out of Seattle. One night we stayed in a motel when the temps were below zero in Nebraska. We tend to drive on interstate highways for long days as there is not much fun in stopping on the windy plains in Winter. The pavements are dry and safe unless you meet a storm. We don't do that. The Weatherbug app really helps.

We use the propane furnace to keep warm, though a thick down quilt helps lots. All the miles keep the battery topped off.

Safe travels and Happy Trails, john

[LyleB]

Not terribly experienced, went from Michigan to Florida for about 6 weeks last year. I found that most of the State and County parks, starting in Ohio, even a few in Michigan, are open year-round. I had no problem finding a place to stay until I got to Florida, then places without a reservation were a bit scarce.

I used the Allstays app to find a couple of places, State Highway maps for the others. I took 5 days to make the drive, so four stays on the way down, three on the way back - no problems without reservations.

[John in Michigan]

Last January we snowbirded by driving from SE Michigan to west Texas. First night stop was at the Percival Springs Airport and RV Park(!!) in southern Illinois. This tiny park has electrical hookups and showers. Glad we did this because it was windy and about 32 degrees with a couple of inches of snow and ice on the ground. The next stop was a municipal campground (with hookups and showers) in North Little Rock, Arkansas right on the river. At this point, didn't actually need hookups because the temps were well above freezing.

That's what we did. For the first night on the drive down temps are usually freezing. All we have is a Mr Heater Buddy which we prefer not to use if we can find a facility with electric on that first night.

So before we travel south, we spend a few hours checking Allstays and other info sources to find suitable stops with hookups for the first night or two. In addition we identify campgrounds/parks where we would like to stay at our destination. We copy down in a spreadsheet the name, address, phone, hookup info, etc of all facilities.

The alternative is to wing it and just stay at Walmarts, etc on the way down. We have done this but pretty uncomfortable in below freezing temps.

Also, on a previous trip south we got stuck in a campground in Kentucky when 6 inches of snow fell overnight. The campground was several feet below the road level... So now we try to stop at facilities that are close as possible to the travel route.

[steve dunham]

We traveled South from NW Wisconsin in the Winter for 3 or 4 years.
We left our trailer winterized until we were out of freezing weather then winterized before we headed home
We drove through freezing rain and snow ,and camped in below zero temperatures , to then reach sunny Florida where temps were in the upper 20's. There were days during our trip where it was warmer in NW Wisconsin then it was in Florida.
Most of the time when we were down South it was hot and humid or there were torential rains and flooding making it was just plain miserable.
For us the trip wasn't worth the time , effort or cost.
We decided to just stay home in the Winter , going South just didn't do it for us.
YMMV

[panhead_mike]

Originally Posted by Patricia D.

I would be very interested to hear from others from Canada or the upper midwest about just how you go about getting to the warm south, especially the southwest.
I realize that it would be best to leave in the late fall but that is not in the cards for this year so I am looking at January. I would certainly wait for a week or so with clear weather.
Being completely new to traveling with a trailer, I am curious how experienced snowbirds do it. Do you stay in motels on the way? Is this a concern with a trailer?
My first thought is to go straight south to avoid driving through mountains, and then head west.

We leave every year just after Christmas. Watch the weather and leave in an opening after a storm. You don't want to drive into a storm. Your objective is to drive hard to the 10 the easiest route and turn left when you get to it..lol
You can sleep in with suitable sleeping bags..you won't be sleeping before 10 pm and you'll be up early for tea and a drive...the weather WILL get better. If you have a propane heater, it will be better, but I wouldn't sleep with it on all night. It won't make much difference in the temps anyway..lol
Never needed a motel yet...'Yet' being the key word here!

[Wayne Collins]

As a former Saskatchewanian, winter travel does not bother us ... much.
But, we did not have a trailer until we moved to Dubuque,
As others have said, keep your RV antifreeze in until you get well below the freezing weather.
From Manitoba (Winnipeg) - depending on the weather patterns - I would head staight south on I-29 to Sioux City, then take whatever roads would go in the direction I want to get to my destination.
Stay in hotels, until it is warm enough to camp. Then de-winterize.