Hwy 59 north of Houston

[BWSchultz]

I am making my first long distance drive out of Houston and Texas soon. When I moved, I took a one-way flight. But now I'm driving home for my wedding in Madison, WI.

My question is... what's the best way to get out of Texas (no jokes there). I'm coming from near 288/B8 in Pearland. Some of the mapping sites suggest taking 59 north through Cleveland, Lufkin, Texarkana, Little Rock, Memphis. Others say head east to Baton Rouge and head north to Memphis through Jackson, MS.

I've never been north of IAH on 59 so I don't know what the road is like from there on through Texarkana. It seems to be a shorter distance than going through Mississippi but I've never driven it. Any suggestions?

[gnu]

I am making my first long distance drive out of Houston and Texas soon. When I moved, I took a one-way flight. But now I'm driving home for my wedding in Madison, WI.

My question is... what's the best way to get out of Texas (no jokes there). I'm coming from near 288/B8 in Pearland. Some of the mapping sites suggest taking 59 north through Cleveland, Lufkin, Texarkana, Little Rock, Memphis. Others say head east to Baton Rouge and head north to Memphis through Jackson, MS.

I've never been north of IAH on 59 so I don't know what the road is like from there on through Texarkana. It seems to be a shorter distance than going through Mississippi but I've never driven it. Any suggestions?

59 is a limited access 4 lane divided highway for most of the way. think 45 between houston and dallas but with crossovers and a few traffic lights. there are loops around the major cities. corrigan is probably the only bottleneck but shouldn't be too bad. you could probably do it in 5 hours

I used to drive this route regularly. It's really no big deal. just slightly slower than an interstate would be.

Edited July 28, 2006 by gnu

[MaxConcrete]

I've never been north of IAH on 59 so I don't know what the road is like from there on through Texarkana. It seems to be a shorter distance than going through Mississippi but I've never driven it. Any suggestions?

I recently drove to Lufkin and there are frequent urban speed zones and lights between Livingston and Lufkin. It is annoying but it really does not slow you down very much. North of Lufkin/Nacogdoches it is probably similar. If US 59 is most direct, I would take it.

[BWSchultz]

59 is a limited access 4 lane divided highway for most of the way. think 45 between houston and dallas but with crossovers. there are loops around the major cities. corrigan is probably the only bottleneck but shouldn't be too bad. you could probably do it in 5 hours

Great, that's all I really wanted to know. So long as there are no major slowdowns expected. And I'm always up for seeing new areas of Texas!

[ahhbree]

Have a safe trip and congrats on your wedding >

[ssullivan]

I've done it many times. I think 59 is four lanes all the way up to Texarkana now so you shouldn't have any issues. There are a few slow downs in some small towns without a loop or bypass like Corrigan and Diboll, but they don't slow you down that much. There are also a few lights on 59 in Lufkin on the south side of town before 59 turns onto the loop there. But it's not a bad drive at all, and what little those towns and traffic lights slow you down will still be made up by having a much more direct route.

[KinkaidAlum]

I'd take 59. It's not a bad drive at all and much more direct. Additionally, I-10 in Louisiana is perpetually a crappy road. Always seems to be some sort of major construction going on. Additionally, Baton Rouge has horrible traffic. Once you cross the Mississippi River, it's almost guaranteed you'll come to a complete stop in downtown!

[escapee]

I agreet that the 59N route is not bad. HOWEVER, please be advised that the frequent speed limit changes are to be heeded. Little towns like Splendora seem to depend on speeding fines to line their coffers. I use cruise control and change the speed with each slowdown/speed up. We came back home (to NE Texas) from Houston last weekend and saw officers all along the way.

And best wishes on your marriage.

[Kirzania]

In all seriousness, congrats on the wedding.

I would never recommend to anyone to ever take 59. The good places to stop are few and far between, the sudden increase and decrease of the speed limit for every. single. little town is infuriating. The frustration you save taking 45 to Dallas and 30 to Texarkana instead of 59 straight to Texarkana is well worth the extra 30 minutes. 59 also makes several switches, so you'll stop for lights after you hit Livingston.

If you do decide to go this route, don't plan on stopping. There is no place that I would suggest (except the Wal-Mart in Livingston.) I've made the trip from Lexington, KY to Houston four times every year for the past four years. Every time, I go by Dallas instead of 59. I have only taken 59 to prove to my husband and my father that it is NOT worth anything until the TransTexas project goes into effect.

Once you get just west of Memphis, I recommend taking 55 towards St. Louis and then 57 to Chicago. There's little traffic on 55 and you'll bypass Memphis construction and traffic and a terrific headache. As for the headache of Chicago traffic, I'd go 57 to ChamBana. I-74 over to 51 north is a nice drive and a straight shot to Madison. (I went up to Wisconsin for some skiing - at Devil's Head - from UIUC.)

Edited July 28, 2006 by Kirzania

[BWSchultz]

I should have clarified in my initital post that my fiancee is making the drive by herself (actually "made") with my dog. She left Sunday morning and ... I sent her up 59 per all the online direction sites. She likes to follow along with mapquest's directions. Now she hates me.

There are, in fact, no places to stop. There are stoplights galore. Speed traps. Multiple turns to find 59 N again in the small cities. For a direct route, it wasn't very direct at all. She was not happy at all with me after this debacle. Yes, debacle. But, the wedding is still on.

I'm still here in Houston. I'm flying up one-way in three weeks and then we're driving (dog included) back to Houston after the honeymoon. So when we drive back, 59 will NOT be part of the equation at all.

Here are the NEW options:

1) Memphis to Little Rock to Texarkana to Dallas to Houston

2) Memphis to Jackson to Baton Rouge to Houston

Votes? My guess is that after this terrible Texas experience, she's going to vote for the Mississippi/Louisiana route.

For the northern leg, I planned on taking 39/90/hwy51 to Rockford, 39/hwy51 to Bloomington/Normal, 55 to St. Louis, 55 to Memphis.

[gonzo1976]

Here are the NEW options:

1) Memphis to Little Rock to Texarkana to Dallas to Houston

2) Memphis to Jackson to Baton Rouge to Houston

Votes?

I'd vote for #1. The less states you have to travel through, the better. Personally, I hate driving through Louisiana, especially west of Baton Rouge, because of the swamps you have to drive over. Plus, it's long and boring, unless you want to stop at the casinos!

Also, and this was 10 years ago so I'm not sure this is much of an issue nowadays, but Louisiana authorities used to target drivers with out-of-state license plates because they felt the drivers would be more likely to be running drugs. I seem to recall a few news articles about it at the time.

[Kirzania]

That's a second for choice #1. Don't stop in Arkansas! There's one nice hotel that I've found over the years at the airport exit in Little Rock. And now I forget the name. Use it only as a last resort. (Mostly because it's next to the parking garage for TSA employees, and security makes rounds there every hour.)

Edited July 31, 2006 by Kirzania

[BWSchultz]

That's a second for choice #1. Don't stop in Arkansas! There's one nice hotel that I've found over the years at the airport exit in Little Rock. And now I forget the name. Use it only as a last resort. (Mostly because it's next to the parking garage for TSA employees, and security makes rounds there every hour.)

She stayed in a Best Western about 30 miles west of Memphis last night. It was just kind of how it ended up. Also, the feeder roads there messed her up big time after being used to Houston feeders. They are two way feeders on both sides of the freeway. Now picture this:

The interstate runs north/south. You are on the east side feeder traveling south so you are in the inside feeder lane. Car on interstate traveling north would like to exit the main lanes to the feeder. Where will he be exiting to?

Can you see it??

Yes, it's a head-on collision waiting to happen at every single exit. So what they do is, they have Yield signs so you allow the 65 mph exiting vehicles to clear before you can continue on the feeder. That is messed up. Take a look...

Arkansas feeder example

Remember those feeder roads are TWO-WAY! Maybe it's just me, but they couldn't make that more confusing if they had you driving on the left hand side of the road.

Enough about that. As for the two routes, it's a little hard to determine, but it looks like the MS/LA route is about 45 miles shorter. I've driven to NOLA once before and do remember I-10 being not so good in LA. And the bugs. And the swamps.

[Kirzania]

Hahahaha. Yeah, that's a bit freaky mostly at night. All of a sudden, high beams come from over the hill on the feeder to your right. That happens on 45 too though. Around Huntington, as I recall.

Of course, if I ever exit in Arkansas, I like to think I'm just playing Gran Turismo.

[ssullivan]

Two-way feeders are common all over Texas in rural areas as well.

Sorry taking 59 was a bad experience for her. I grew up in East Texas and don't find it to be bad at all, but I know the route pretty well.

As for places to stop, what kind of places was she looking for? Just curious, because there are a lot of decent-sized towns between here and Texarkana, so it's not like you drive through miles and miles of absolutely nothing.

[CDeb]

Here are the NEW options:

1) Memphis to Little Rock to Texarkana to Dallas to Houston

2) Memphis to Jackson to Baton Rouge to Houston

If you are traveling on a heavy traffic weekend (like a holiday), I'd avoid I-10. It's pretty much totally under construction from Lake Charles to Beaumont (about a 60-mile stretch). And like someone else said, Baton Rouge in the afternoon is a nightmare. However, I rather enjoy the swamp section between Red Stick and Lafayette.

[BWSchultz]

If you are traveling on a heavy traffic weekend (like a holiday), I'd avoid I-10. It's pretty much totally under construction from Lake Charles to Beaumont (about a 60-mile stretch). And like someone else said, Baton Rouge in the afternoon is a nightmare. However, I rather enjoy the swamp section between Red Stick and Lafayette.

We'll be doing Wisconsin to Memphis (roughly) on September 8 and then Memphis to Houston on September 9 (Saturday).

[gnu]

Sorry taking 59 was a bad experience for her. I grew up in East Texas and don't find it to be bad at all, but I know the route pretty well.

As for places to stop, what kind of places was she looking for? Just curious, because there are a lot of decent-sized towns between here and Texarkana, so it's not like you drive through miles and miles of absolutely nothing.

Yeah..sorry about the experience but I don't really see what the problem could have been.

It has big green signs for the turns. The only turns should have been at Lufkin (loop), Nacodoches (loop), Tenaha (cosigned US84 - goes straight), and Carthage (loop). and they are more like merging exit ramps - than 90 degree turns.

I am curious what places she wanted to stop for as well??

Lufkin, Nacodoches, and Marshall have all the typical retail/restaurants you would expect. Most of the other towns have modern gas and fast food establishments.

How about this route option?

One summer I drove home from Minneapolis (near wisconsin - of course!). We took I-35 all the way to Dallas. Looks like you could pick up I-35 in Des Moines by doing a sw jog from Madison on US151 and I-80, then it would be the same interstate all the way to dallas. no confusion, stop lights, etc.

you'd go through Kansas City and Oklahoma City. I don't remember any problems.

This doesnt do you any good if you want to go to Memphis, though.

Edited July 31, 2006 by gnu

[BWSchultz]

Yeah..sorry about the experience but I don't really see what the problem could have been.

It has big green signs for the turns. The only turns should have been at Lufkin (loop), Nacodoches (loop), Tenaha (cosigned US84 - goes straight), and Carthage (loop). and they are more like merging exit ramps - than 90 degree turns.

I am curious what places she wanted to stop for as well??

Lufkin, Nacodoches, and Marshall have all the typical retail/restaurants you would expect. Most of the other towns have modern gas and fast food establishments.

How about this route option?

One summer I drove home from Minneapolis (near wisconsin - of course!). We took I-35 all the way to Dallas. Looks like you could pick up I-35 in Des Moines by doing a sw jog from Madison on US151 and I-80, then it would be the same interstate all the way to dallas. no confusion, stop lights, etc.

you'd go through Kansas City and Oklahoma City. I don't remember any problems.

This doesnt do you any good if you want to go to Memphis, though.

Gnu, I've thought about that way, too. It's considerably longer and the main thing I'm looking for is how quickly I can do it. That way probably does make sense from Minneapolis seeing as Houston is about directly south from the Minnesota-Dakota border. And it's not that I WANT to go to Memphis; it just seems to be the quickest way.

I think she was just frustrated by the stoplights in the small towns and then having to constantly look for 59 N signs to make sure she was still on the correct road. And of course, whenever you go through a small town, the name changes to main street or first street or temple road or whatever else. With a dog in the car, she was looking for some places where she could take him for a walk and have lunch (she brought her own). I guess compared to an interstate, it took a lot more watching of signs. For instance, if you do a google search of pearland to texarkana and it lists 61 steps! Wow. Now, I know many of those are superflous but for someone dealing with a hyper dog in the back seat on unfamiliar roads, that can be a lot to handle. Would I have had the same trouble? Maybe, maybe not. Easier would have been the better choice here, even if 59 did end up being quicker than going through Dallas.

[gnu]

I think she was just frustrated by the stoplights in the small towns and then having to constantly look for 59 N signs to make sure she was still on the correct road. And of course, whenever you go through a small town, the name changes to main street or first street or temple road or whatever else. With a dog in the car, she was looking for some places where she could take him for a walk and have lunch (she brought her own). I guess compared to an interstate, it took a lot more watching of signs. For instance, if you do a google search of pearland to texarkana and it lists 61 steps! Wow. Now, I know many of those are superflous but for someone dealing with a hyper dog in the back seat on unfamiliar roads, that can be a lot to handle. Would I have had the same trouble? Maybe, maybe not. Easier would have been the better choice here, even if 59 did end up being quicker than going through Dallas.

yeah. i guess i can see that. if you have no clue where you are and aren't sure if you are still on the right road for 5 hours. and then having to worry about a dog too.

At least the Rest Area on I-45 near huntsville has a Doggie Rest Area too!