Looking for some suggestions for places to camp out. I'll be heading out from Morehead City, NC on Thursday to head cross country. Essentially, I'm hit I-40 West. I'm taking leave to go visit my family in Arizona and then hit the west coast on the way home so I'm trying to make it out there in no more than 4 days. I should be overnighting around Knoxville area, Fort Smith AR, and Roswell NM. I'm looking to do this on the cheap and camp out at some nice areas preferably with a bath house to clean up for the next day. I guess I can always hit the truck stops but that just takes more time out of the day. The intent is to do about 6-700 miles per day. This is my first really long trip (greater then 1500 in a weekend) what advice does anyone have?

 

I-40 to AZ? Dare I guess Flagstaff? I drove I-40 from Flag to to Memphis this summer on my way to Ft. Benning and it was a mostly enjoyable experience. As far as road conditions the main areas I would say to be wary of are Oklahoma City and Albuquerque. The east side of OK City around Tinker AFB was incredibly crowded with poor road conditions. Also, on the east side of Albuquerque there is a lot of construction going on and the lanes get pretty cramped.

When I rode out I was trying to make as good of time as possible so sadly I can't really recommend any good places to pull off and camp, but I do have a couple of recommendations still for places to rest your head. Tucumcari, NM mainly consists of a stretch of road that parallels I-40 for about 10 miles but it is crowded with old 50's motels that really give you that Road Warrior feeling. It is a pretty neat "road side attraction" and a decent place to bed down for the night.

I don't know where you're going to be in AZ but if you're headed south of the 40 at all down in to Red Rock territory I know of some great camping spots that are pretty hush hush, so if you're interested just PM me and I'll tell you all about them!

Good luck on the road.

-Blake

 

That sounds like fun. We're trying to plan a trip from Ga to the Grand Canyon next summer. We will head out 40 too. I'll be watching this thread.

 

My brother and our wives went to the Grand Canyon last spring from Jackson MS. We road I-20 to I-10 and on in to AZ. We stayed in Tombstone 1 night and then took off north hitting Highway 60 and the Hwy 89 up through Jerome and Sedona. I highly recomend this area for riding. We left Sedona and went north to Flagstaff and on to the Grand Canyon. We took I-40 back home. Remember to look at all the Route 66 pathways that are on top of I-40 along the way. These may take you to some good camping sites off of the beaten path. Good luck and have fun. This is a great ride and we look forward to doing it again.

 

check out KOA Kabins.. you only have to bring a sleeping bag, no tent, and they have showers.. The Kabins are not as cheap as a tent site but you are off the ground and you don't have to pack as much gear..

 

Just be careful and try to stay awake. Superslab riding over that long of a distance can be tiring