Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Hi there,
I will be driving from Columbus Ohio down to Raleigh NC. I am a little anxious about the drive on the I-77 and I would like to make sure all goes smoothly. I can't leave early in the morning because of work in the morning (I am leaving Friday around 5 or 6pm). I would like to drive as much as I can on the safe not so curvy roads during the day time (say until 8:30 pm). Where would be a good spot to stop and spend the night so that on Saturday afternoon (around 2:30 3ish) we can drive down to Raleigh safely.
Thank you so very much for all your tips and safety advices. I've been driving for over 10 years but I'm not use to drive on mountain roads (though, I did drive from huntsville alabama to Ohio through Tennesse and Kentucky, I don't know if it's kind of the same curvy roads or not...?)
You should be able to make it down to Ripley or even Charleston by 8:30. Ripley is a much smaller town than Charleston, but it has a cool little downtown and plenty of hotels and places to eat right off the interstate. If you can make it another 40 minutes south to Charleston, you will have an abundance of hotels and restaurants to choose from. It all depends on your schedule and tastes I suppose.
If you plan on stopping at about 8:30 then your best bet is Huntington WV. It is about 2 hours and 45 min from Columbus. That is assuming that you are leaving at 6pm. If you leave earlier then u might be able to push it and stay in Charleston, which is right before I-77 begins. You could easily stay anywhere in between Huntington and Charleston as the roads are quite straight there as well.
If you plan on stopping at about 8:30 then your best bet is Huntington WV. It is about 2 hours and 45 min from Columbus. That is assuming that you are leaving at 6pm. If you leave earlier then u might be able to push it and stay in Charleston, which is right before I-77 begins. You could easily stay anywhere in between Huntington and Charleston as the roads are quite straight there as well.
Oh this is if you are taking 23. If not then just listen to what Silkdashocker said above.
I guess the next question should be, what route to I-77 will you be taking. I was assuming you will be connecting to I77 somewhere in Ohio? Or will you be coming south east on route 33 or even route 35?
The concerns about driving south through the mountains are brought up here quite a bit. As noted in every one of those threads this is a safe and easy drive today. If you can drive around Columbus everyday a trip through the mountains will be a breeze for you.
Driving to Charleston is no different that driving say from Columbus to Zanesville but generally with less traffic. From there just after Charleston the traffic can be a little heavy but again, nothing compared to Columbus. Before long it thins out and the roads are wide and in great condition.
It would likely be easier to stay in Ripley as everything is within site of Rt77. As noted though, we would need to know what route exactly you intend to take.
This is my obligatory I-77 post that i used a few times for people traveling on thru to Va/N.C.. You shouldn't have any issues driving wise in WV, it's when you get to the East River Mtn. tunnel/WV/Va stateline thru Virginia to N.C:
It's a very scenic drive, you pass thru East River Mtn tunnel from WV into Va, be careful between Bland County to Wytheville, it is somewhat of a speed trap(not somewhat but IS!). You pass thru Big Walker Mtn Tunnel before you get to Wytheville. Then from Galax to NC line, you will travel down Fancy Gap/6 Mile Mtn. to the NC line, it can be very foggy in the morning. There are several rest areas and scenic overlooks. Wytheville has numerous truck stops and restaurants.
At the end of March was the 95 car pile up on I-77 on Fancy Gap/6 Mile Mtn caused by fog and unsafe driving. WV part of I-77 is ok, but Va side is notorious for speed traps between the tunnels and around Wytheville. If traveling early morning thru this area be careful for fog. Have a safe trip.
As far as Hotels goes, I'd stay at Beckley, Princeton, or Wytheville,Va.
Nice, informative post Curse. But the OP stated that they are getting a late start out if C-bus and would like to stop early in the evening to get a hotel. It's not likely the OP will make it south of Charleston, if they make it that far in the time frame given.
Nice, informative post Curse. But the OP stated that they are getting a late start out if C-bus and would like to stop early in the evening to get a hotel. It's not likely the OP will make it south of Charleston, if they make it that far in the time frame given.
Yeah I see the time departure now, looks like Charleston would be the best option for a hotel stop, safe travels out there.
The Holiday Inn Express at Ripley is a very nice facility and is right off I-77. It is much cleaner than many of the "right off I-77" Charleston hotels. The Quality Inn at that exit should also be fairly decent as it was originally built as a Holiday Inn Express before the new HIE was built.
As previously mentioned, you will have no problems driving I-77 WV if you follow the posted speed limits. People have misconceptions that WV = bad curvy roads. Many, many WV roads are much better driving than Ohio roads from my experiences.
I agree about the I-77 speed traps after the tunnels down to Wytheville.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
