keith_h 420 Posted October 3, 2014 Report Share Posted October 3, 2014 We are coming up on two weeks till departure so my engineering genes are kicking in with the need for excessive planning for every contingency. The last time I was in Orlando was over ten years ago and I flew down and drove back. Having only the car and this being the south where NASCAR rules it was flat out as fast as other traffic on I-95 would allow. This time around we have a trailer necessitating the need for more reasonable speeds so I would like to get an idea of the travel time from the Raleigh area of NC to The Fort. I know I have the potential to hit traffic in Jacksonville, Fl and Orlando but I'm not sure if it is enough to be concerned with. It is roughly 600 miles, according MapQuest, which would make for an eleven hour trip assuming I stick around 60 mph and accounting for gas stops (no kids). Is this a reasonable time to expect these days? I like to be able to have time to relax and not rush setting up or making dinner so I would like to arrive between 3-4 PM and will adjust my departure time accordingly. Thanks .... :thtray: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
DinDavie 37 Posted October 3, 2014 Report Share Posted October 3, 2014 If this helps, I just drove from Myrtle Beach SC and made it to Jacksonville in 6 hours. The slowest part was us 17. I drive a gas motor home and keep it between 55-62 MPH with stops every two hours for streching my legs. I stopped and then got started the next day at 9:30 AM and arrived at the fort at exactly 1 PM. Traffic through Jacksonville was not busy at all but I recommend that when you get just north of Jacksonville you stay in the middle lane. Don't bother with I295 as it will add 20-30 minutes to your trip. I4 west of Orlando is busy but at Noon it was moving at normal speed which is 50 mph. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ependydad...Doug 176 Posted October 4, 2014 Report Share Posted October 4, 2014 Your trailer tires are likely only rated for 65mph, so that is going to be your top end for what you should be doing. When I plan trips, I expect to travel at about 45-50mph overall once we account for stops. We do have 2 little ones and there is no eating in the vehicle so our stops are a little longer than others. We would do 600 miles in about 13 hours. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Momoffive aka Loretta 34 Posted October 4, 2014 Report Share Posted October 4, 2014 We drive down a few times a year. Leaving from Greensboro area thru Charlotte then cut over on 26. We adverage about 10 hours at 630 miles. We do quick stops usually. Driver change and gas stop x 1. We never take the beltways around Jacksonville either, adds too much time. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
CCIntrigue...aka Gwen 547 Posted October 4, 2014 Report Share Posted October 4, 2014 We travel from near Winston-Salem. 619.7 miles to the Fort. Takes us 12 hours, but we stop for breakfast at Cracker Barrel (usually there an hour), stop for fuel, and stop a couple of times to take the dog out. Traveling in a moho. What are your dates? Will you be there for the Halloween potluck? I'll add you to the list here: http://www.fortfiends.net/forum/topic/10515-halloween-2014/ Quote Link to post Share on other sites
keith_h 420 Posted October 4, 2014 Author Report Share Posted October 4, 2014 We drive down a few times a year. Leaving from Greensboro area thru Charlotte then cut over on 26. We adverage about 10 hours at 630 miles. We do quick stops usually. Driver change and gas stop x 1. We never take the beltways around Jacksonville either, adds too much time. It's a short stay. We check in 10/19 and out 10/23. While I'm retired my wife hasn't reached that point and a week off is about all she can manage. We also want to stop and see Savannah since we've never been there before so the plan is to spend Friday there and return home on Saturday. This gives us Sunday to relax before Rene goes back to work. Have I mentioned I like to have time to relax? :oregonian_winesmiley: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
HappyRedhead......Betsy 16 Posted October 4, 2014 Report Share Posted October 4, 2014 We travel from just north of the Raleigh area and it takes us a little over 11 hours. This is with stops for fuel and a sit down lunch to get us out of the truck for a while. The last trip in March, we hit traffic in Orlando that added about 45 minutes. The trip there usually seems pretty quick.....the trip home..not so much. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
keith_h 420 Posted October 4, 2014 Author Report Share Posted October 4, 2014 We travel from just north of the Raleigh area and it takes us a little over 11 hours. This is with stops for fuel and a sit down lunch to get us out of the truck for a while. The last trip in March, we hit traffic in Orlando that added about 45 minutes.The trip there usually seems pretty quick.....the trip home..not so much. We're on the opposite end of Wake County between Holly Springs and Fuquay-Varina. I'm glad to hear my estimate is close. This means we should be able to leave around 4AM and still arrive at The Fort early enough to have some downtime. My thanks to everyone who responded. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mouseketab.....Carol 1,261 Posted October 4, 2014 Report Share Posted October 4, 2014 We're on the opposite end of Wake County between Holly Springs and Fuquay-Varina. I'm glad to hear my estimate is close. This means we should be able to leave around 4AM and still arrive at The Fort early enough to have some downtime. My thanks to everyone who responded.Instead of leaving at the crack of dawn that morning, why not leave in the evening the night before and get a few hours driving time under your belt?? That works so much better for us. I tend to sleep better knowing I have a work day ahead of me, then leaving later. If I think I have to get up extra early in the morning, I take forever to fall asleep worrying if I will get up on time, then I oversleep. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
CCIntrigue...aka Gwen 547 Posted October 4, 2014 Report Share Posted October 4, 2014 We leave at 4:30 am and stop at the Flying J in St. Augustine around 2:30 pm. Have an early dinner, sleep, and leave St. Augustine at 4:30 am the next morning. This schedule gets us through Charlotte, Columbia, Jacksonville, and Orlando quicker. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
DaveInTN 3,247 Posted October 4, 2014 Report Share Posted October 4, 2014 Instead of leaving at the crack of dawn that morning, why not leave in the evening the night before and get a few hours driving time under your belt?? That works so much better for us. I tend to sleep better knowing I have a work day ahead of me, then leaving later. If I think I have to get up extra early in the morning, I take forever to fall asleep worrying if I will get up on time, then I oversleep. That's exactly what we do and for the same reason. I don't sleep if we are leaving early in the morning. But once we get some road behind us and stop for the night I sleep fine. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
HappyRedhead......Betsy 16 Posted October 5, 2014 Report Share Posted October 5, 2014 Instead of leaving at the crack of dawn that morning, why not leave in the evening the night before and get a few hours driving time under your belt?? That works so much better for us. I tend to sleep better knowing I have a work day ahead of me, then leaving later. If I think I have to get up extra early in the morning, I take forever to fall asleep worrying if I will get up on time, then I oversleep.When we had the pop-up, we would stop in Jacksonville and stay in a hotel because set up was time consuming and we liked doing that in the daylight. With the hybrid, we went straight to the Fort because set up was simpler. We considered overnighting somewhere, but it meant we would have to unhook and make beds then undo everything in the morning. Now that we have a TT, we'll probably overnight at a campground near Jacksonville and head to the fort early the next day. I need to plan a trip to test this theory.... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mouseketab.....Carol 1,261 Posted October 5, 2014 Report Share Posted October 5, 2014 When we had the pop-up, we would stop in Jacksonville and stay in a hotel because set up was time consuming and we liked doing that in the daylight. With the hybrid, we went straight to the Fort because set up was simpler. We considered overnighting somewhere, but it meant we would have to unhook and make beds then undo everything in the morning. Now that we have a TT, we'll probably overnight at a campground near Jacksonville and head to the fort early the next day. I need to plan a trip to test this theory....We actually overnight at a hotel. Just have a small bag packed and grab that bag to go inside. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
keith_h 420 Posted October 5, 2014 Author Report Share Posted October 5, 2014 I usually don't have any problems going to sleep a earlier than normal to wake up early. Before I retired I could work any hours I wanted and usually started my day around 6AM being more of a morning person. While 4AM is early it is tolerable given the destination. I've always been one of those that prefers to make a marathon drive to get to where I'm going. I found it actually had advantages when our kids were young. When we lived in the Bay Area we frequently made trips to Southern CA to visit family. The girls learned early on the trip went faster if they slept most of the way and became conditioned to sleep on most long trips. The unintended consequence was any trip over 10-15 minutes also resulted in them falling asleep about the time we arrived at our destination but that's a different story. Thanks again for the suggestions. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
HappyRedhead......Betsy 16 Posted October 5, 2014 Report Share Posted October 5, 2014 We actually overnight at a hotel. Just have a small bag packed and grab that bag to go inside.We considered that with the Hybrid, but truthfully we got such an early start and were making such good time, we just drove on through. Fortunately we could add a night at the beginning of our reservation. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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