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Texas/New Mexico/Colorado Road Trip - July/Aug 2016
cmsamo
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Calling all Texans/New Mexicans/Colorado natives!
So, a bunch of us have booked flights into Houston from Vancouver,BC in late July 2016, with the aim of visiting Houston, Austin, Dallas, taking buses to get between them, then renting a van from Dallas and driving up through New Mexico via Albuquerque, Santa Fe, and in Colorado Springs, before hitting Denver. We are allowing a week for the drive from Dallas to Denver.
Besides the obvious questions (what are the *must do* things in Houston, Austin, Dallas, Roswell, Lincoln, Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Colorado Springs, and Denver) are there any pitfalls to such a road trip that might not be obvious when looking at the route on Google Maps? It shows as a 19 hour drive which should be fine in a week? Is it as simple as renting a mini van, loading up with supplies, and hoping to get hotels/motels along the route? We're looking to book hotel rooms at our stop off locations way ahead of time, but I'm more concerned about what we need to take care of on the road trip side (provisions, emergency plans etc?) A quick look at Google maps seems to suggest that anything not highway is likely pretty sparsely populated..? I could of course be completely wrong, and we will be one car of many hundreds that does this drive all the time
TIA
So, a bunch of us have booked flights into Houston from Vancouver,BC in late July 2016, with the aim of visiting Houston, Austin, Dallas, taking buses to get between them, then renting a van from Dallas and driving up through New Mexico via Albuquerque, Santa Fe, and in Colorado Springs, before hitting Denver. We are allowing a week for the drive from Dallas to Denver.
Besides the obvious questions (what are the *must do* things in Houston, Austin, Dallas, Roswell, Lincoln, Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Colorado Springs, and Denver) are there any pitfalls to such a road trip that might not be obvious when looking at the route on Google Maps? It shows as a 19 hour drive which should be fine in a week? Is it as simple as renting a mini van, loading up with supplies, and hoping to get hotels/motels along the route? We're looking to book hotel rooms at our stop off locations way ahead of time, but I'm more concerned about what we need to take care of on the road trip side (provisions, emergency plans etc?) A quick look at Google maps seems to suggest that anything not highway is likely pretty sparsely populated..? I could of course be completely wrong, and we will be one car of many hundreds that does this drive all the time
TIA
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Since you won't have the van, for Houston and Dallas you should know what you want to do and have a plan on how to get around. Probably the same for Austin but less so. Houston especially is extremely spread out and at certain times traffic is a pain to navigate. Oh, and it is going to be very hot and very humid in July.
I highly recommend you stop here while in Colorado Springs.
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None of what you're looking at should be dangerously isolated though, just have a cell phone and some water for everyone in case you have to wait for a tow, and, yeah, keep the gas at a level where you could comfortably go another hour or so in case the tiny town you come up on next doesn't have a station.
I will also echo that Houston and DFW are very spread out (to the point where you may want to consider renting a car for the day depending on the places you want to visit). (Austin is somewhat sprawly as well but I think most of the places I'd want to show a tourist are all reasonably centered on downtown).
As far as recs (these are all super museum-heavy): In Houston, NASA is well worth the visit and I've always liked the natural history and art museums there. In Austin, check out a concert or see if anything cool is happening at the original Alamo Drafthouse, or just go hang out on 6th St, maybe see the capitol building or wander the UT campus, check out Book People or Waterloo Records, get some Amy's or Kerbey Lane or Magnolia Cafe if you're out late, and get some breakfast tacos if you're out early. In CO Springs, definitely Garden of the Gods, and Pike's Peak is neat too. Denver has another capitol building, the Mint, and another good science museum and an excellent zoo next to each other, and, y'know, all the mountains and whatnot nearby (oh, and microbreweries, if you're into that sort of thing). In Texas at some point, you should probably go get a Whataburger, get some good generic Tex-Mex (and in NM, go get some good generic NM-Mex, because they're different things), and hit up one of those DQs in the tiny towns. And get some BBQ (brisket) if you can, though I think a lot of the really well-known places for that are either a) far outside of cities or b) crazy busy (eg Franklin in Austin). There's a chain called Rudy's that isn't bad (they also do pretty decent breakfast tacos in the morning).
Also if you're doing night driving, be advised that many gas stations on not-interstates will be closed.
And while in NM, get a green chili cheeseburger.
I think the San Miguel Mission (oldest church in US) in Sante Fe is cool, and Sante Fe is a cool city to drive around in. Adobe buildings and fake Adobe buildings everywhere.
For a trip that long make sure the spare is in working order, it might be advantageous to get a road side assistance plan (AAA). I think it is an up sell with some car rentals.
Never personally drive more than a couple hours without a break or switching. And my personal preference is to hit up a gas station whenever I go under a half tank.
Colorado Springs is near Cripple Creek. They have casinos there, my dad loves to go there because he likes the old west feel of some of them. I'm not sure if that is your bag, but it's about an hour away if that is your thing.
Check your route and see where you've got long stretches between towns, you'll want to make sure to fill the tank before you hit those stretches. There should be plenty of rest stops along the way if you need to pull over and stretch or change drivers, but gas stations might not be in such good supply and that's not a place you want to run out of gas. Probably not advice you need since you're from Canada, but it's advice I'm used to giving to anyone who's from out of the country planning on taking a road trip.
If you're visiting someone who lives in Colorado, expect to be invited to Casa Bonita for dinner. Calling this place a restaurant is the greatest trick the Colorado Tourism Board has ever played on the tourists of the world. The food is bad (at least it was the last time I went), but then, nobody goes there for the food. It's got an interesting atmosphere, and it's an experience you won't soon forget. Just don't go expecting top notch Mexican food (or even good Mexican food. To be honest, calling it food may be a bit generous).
This.
Also, you can't beat Chuy's for Austin Tex-Mex.
Eat all the BBQ
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@seasleepy Thank you in particular for your post, this was exactly what I was hoping for! The general consensus of our gang seems to be "oh god, we are going to be eating our way through the States for 2 weeks!"... Can't wait!
Elitch Gardens is very far from the best amusement park in the states, but I bet it would be a nice break with your itinerary.
Lots of neat driving/hiking in the Rockies west of Denver of course, some neat hot spring resorts and whatnot abounds.
I also second catching a concert at Red Rocks if there's something playing when you're there, it's a cool venue. The Rockies also have quite a few home games on the week of the 18th if catching a baseball game sounds fun to you guys.
Take it easy on the edibles at first if you want to try cannabis in Denver as well, I hear of lots of visitors going in too hard without knowing much about it. Don't plan on trying to bring some back home, they have sniffing doggies and everything at DIA.
I hope you guys have fun!
Not that you're likely to need to write it down while you're travelling through, but it's spelled 'chile' in New Mexico. : ) 'Chili' refers to the dish that's served in a bowl that may or may not contain beans depending on your beliefs, whereas 'chile' refers to the New Mexico Hatch green or red chiles that are either eaten on their own or turned into red or green sauce.
If you get asked 'red or green?" when ordering something in New Mexico, they're asking what color chile sauce you want. Ask for 'Christmas' so you get to try both. If you don't have a high spice tolerance, you may also want to ask for it on the side so you can control the heat level.
I live in Albuquerque, so if you're still looking for more New Mexico food or activity ideas just give a holler!
TO DO IN AUSTIN, TEXAS:
- Eat at Hopdoddy's (and try the prickly pear soda)
- Get coffee from La Tazza Fresca
- Get your BBQ from the Salt Lick (to properly consume brisket, get the lean cut, add bbq sauce to white bread, pickles, and - optionally - onions, stack the brisket on that and eat it like a sandwich)
-Get your Tex-Mex from Torchie's Tacos, or Chuy's, or some random place by the side of the road. Breakfast tacos and Migas are great Tex Mex things to eat.
-SEE A LIVE SHOW. This is the live music capitol of the world! Figure out what's playing at Spider House, Cheer Up Charlie's, The Mohawk, or any of the other great places downtown. If you see a late show, don't forget to get midnight breakfast at 24 (fancy) or Kirby Lane (traditionally greasy spoon)
-See 6th street at night! Crazy shit be going on down there.
-Go to Barton Springs. You'll be there during the summer! It's going to be Fucking Hot! Hit up our natural swimming hole
-AMY'S ICE CREAM is a must!
-The Bob Bullock Texas History Museum, the Harry Ransom Center, and the Blanton Museum of Modern Art are all great museums to go to if you're interested in that
-Totally take a tour of the Capitol building, it's gorgeous and super rad and you can get extra-Texas-y souvenirs in the gift shop
-If you see Whittington's Jerky (probably in a gas station in a small town you drive through), buy that, eat it. You'll thank me later.
TIPS FOR SURVIVING TEXAS WEATHER:
Guess what it's fucking hot as balls in Texas in the summer. Hoo boy.
>STAY SUPER HYDRATED. Always be drinking water.
>WEAR SUNSCREEN. I'm dead fucking serious, slather that shit on if you think you're going to spend any time outside.
>IT'S GOING TO RAIN AND THE THUNDER WILL BE VERY LOUD. I don't know what the weather's like where you're from, but in Texas we have huge summer thunderstorms periodically. It will be loud and torrentially rainy but it won't last very long. The lightning will be wicked cool. I've heard of people who've moved to town being kind of freaked out by this so thought I'd warn you.
>Get one of those reflective things that you unfold against your windshield inside your car if you're going to be renting one. You want to be able to, y'know, touch the steering wheel if you've left it alone for a while.
TIPS FOR SURVIVING TEXAS WILDLIFE:
I don't know how much time you plan on spending outside, but here are some general rules
1. DO NOT pick up rocks or sticks from the ground with your hands! Kick them first, then turn them over with your foot.
2. Tall grass is dangerous! If you can't easily see the ground through the grass, don't go in it.
3. The spiders really aren't all that scary! We have widows and recluses like everyone else but whatever spider you've found probably isn't that, don't worry about it.
4. WEAR BUG SPRAY and TRY NOT TO BE OUTSIDE AT DUSK. You will be eaten alive by mosquitoes. If you are ravaged by mosquitoes, calamine lotion or cortizol cream will help, and you can find that stuff at any CVS or Walgreens and probably some gas stations.
5. Wear close toed shoes! Things can't bite your feet if they don't have access to them.
6. IDK if you have fire ants up there but we have Fire Ants and they are Not Nice. See some ants? Don't fuck with them. See some dark colored mounds of dirt? Don't fuck with those either. Treat ant bites like you'd treat mosquito ones.
7. If you're taking your shoes off somewhere outdoors, make sure to set them somewhere high up, and always shake them out before putting them back on. Scorpion + toes is a bad combination.
Last thing, I've done the drive from Austin - Denver before and I gotta say, make sure you have a pretty good idea of where you're getting your gas from when you're passing through underpopulated areas. If it's after 6pm, little towns often close their gas stations. Also, bring along a physical map because the GPS will probably freak out somewhere in there.
I'd love it if you took a look at my art and my PATREON!
It's been like 20 years since I've been there but it was a fun time. Grab a saucer sled, shit is like winter snow meets beach sand.
Definitely check out the Dallas Museum of Art (it's free!), and the Nasher Sculpture Museum, which is walking distance. Across from the DMA there's an awesome Park that was built right over the highway, and on the weekends there's food trucks. One of my favorite places in the city.
Deep Ellum and Greenville areas are the two of the best areas for quality craft beer bars. Deep Ellum is a really cool neighborhood as well.
Bishop Arts District is a really neat place to walk around and check out the stores. Emporium Pies have fantastic, amazing pies and Wild Detectives is a personal favorite coffee shop.
Also, tons of breweries!
@cmsamo
Austin - Had a great time on 6th street at a duelling pianos bar, went to Coopers Old Time BBQ which was something I don't think me or my colon will ever forget! We ended up staying on the outskirts of Austin but met some great people in some of the local/non tourist bars, and also one of the funniest cab drivers I've ever met. He was driving us into downtown and decided to go on a full (free of charge) tourist diversion and told us all the great spots. 6th Street was definitely a blast, and it was a fun town.
Dallas - Well, Dallas was a bit different... We were at the Sheraton downtown and it didn't really have much going on. The local people said we should have stayed in Fort Worth. We still had a good time in the city. Visited the site of the JFK assassination, went to a Rangers game, and met a guy after our MLS game who worked for the Dallas Cowboys, so he hooked us up with VIP free tour of AT&T Stadium and got us free stuff from the pro store, which was awesome. The one negative thing about Dallas was the visit to the MLS game to watch Vancouver play FC Dallas up in Fresno. It was something like 38 degrees, and the stadium staff confiscated our sunscreen. The stadium was uncovered and they told us we had to sit in our seats with no shade. We ended up arguing a bit with the stewards to let us stand against a wall in the shade. Security is security and rules are rules I guess, but it wasn't fun standing in the sunlight feeling yourself burn :surprised:
We took the Greyhound between Houston->Austin->Dallas, which was cheap, and actually OK despite people often saying the Greyhound is a bad idea. We hired a car in Dallas and did the drive up to Denver. I really loved New Mexico - Roswell... What an interesting place. Again, we met some great locals. Tried some Green Chile there and it wrecked us
By the time we got to Colorado Springs we were pretty much partied out, but the scenery there was great.
Overall, it was a great trip and drive. I'll definitely go back to any one of those states!