Midwest - Wanting travel advice for road trip across the northern Midwest States

We are planning a road trip with another couple looking to add more visited States to our US map. We are wanting to travel in April next year. What sort of temperatures can we expect. Road conditions are important. Cool but not cold is not a problem. Looking at starting from Chicago across Wis and Min and the Dakotas then down through Nebraska and across to Cheyenne and finish in Denver. Must see sites and places also sought.

Thanks

little more about your interests would help with responses,

do you like the outdoors, do you hike/are you mobile, are you more interested in tourist sites, are you planning on spending time in the larger cities along your route?

In regards to the weather, you are still in April, if early April you could have a snowstorm to deal with. More than likely you will have ~mid 50's F for highs, and ~mid 30's F for lows, of course this will vary due to your long route.

We are planning a road trip with another couple looking to add more visited States to our US map. We are wanting to travel in April next year. What sort of temperatures can we expect. Road conditions are important. Cool but not cold is not a problem. Looking at starting from Chicago across Wis and Min and the Dakotas then down through Nebraska and across to Cheyenne and finish in Denver. Must see sites and places also sought.

Thanks

I recommend getting a good travel book, such as the Moon books for each of the states you are planning on visiting, particularly if you're planning on doing anything outside.

If you come that time of the year, bring winter clothes (boots, gloves, hat, parka).... and expect to have to use them ... and expect some roads to be closed at times, particularly in places like Rocky Mt. Natl. Park.

If you could delay your trip by say a month, you'll find the weather more likely to be much better and the leaves might actually be out.

Bob H

little more about your interests would help with responses,

do you like the outdoors, do you hike/are you mobile, are you more interested in tourist sites, are you planning on spending time in the larger cities along your route?

In regards to the weather, you are still in April, if early April you could have a snowstorm to deal with. More than likely you will have ~mid 50's F for highs, and ~mid 30's F for lows, of course this will vary due to your long route.

We are all well on the wrong side of 50 so not into too much strenuous activity but we are not in our walking frames yet. We are happy to experience the different lifestyles and culture of an area including known landmarks and museums and what makes each state a little different from the other.

We are happy to experience the different lifestyles and culture of an area including known landmarks and museums and what makes each state a little different from the other.

If you want a glimpse into the life of a smaller Midwestern city, take in a minor league baseball game. There are a handful of teams in the Class A Midwest League (http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/index.jsp?sid=l118) that play along the route you describe. The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers play in Appleton, WI; the Beloit Snappers play in Beloit, WI; the Kane County Cougars play in Geneva, IL; and there are three teams on the Iowa side of the Mississippi River (Clinton, Quad Cities and Burlington). Their April 2010 schedules won't be released for some time yet, so you'll have to check the website closer to your departure date to see which teams will be playing at home as you're passing through. You don't need to be a baseball fan or even familiar with the game to enjoy the experience (I'm sure the local fans will be happy to explain what's going on) -- just buy your tickets (they're relatively cheap), get a hot dog and a beer and enjoy the atmosphere.

DEN weather is very iffy at that time of year. This year, there was a snow storm about April 17 or so that resulted in about 48 hours of heavy wet snow. My flight was canceled, so beware. Spring snow in Wyoming and Colorado is commonplace, although it does melt quickly.

I might be able to offer some insight between Chicago and MSP. Some of these take you off of the fastest route.

The fastest route out of Chicago is I-90 toward Madison, but it might be worth it to detour up I-94 (or Lake Shore Drive, Sheridan Road, and Hwy 41) toward Milwaukee and then jog back over to the main route. I don't recommend going west toward Geneva and Iowa.

Chicago's north shore suburbs contain a number of interesting areas. For example, Evanston has a nice downtown, parks, and homes near the lake. A current thread in the Chicago forum raves about the Chicago Botanic Garden (http://www.chicago-botanic.org/). In terms of landmarks, there's the beautiful Bahai Temple (http://www.bahai.us/bahai-temple).

Milwaukee is somewhat underappreciated IMO. It's basically a mini-Chicago. The lakefront downtown and north of downtown is beautiful. Calatrava's extension to the Milwaukee Art Museum is one of the top buildings in the country. The city's German heritage is reflected in a number of brewery tours and German restaurants. Harley-Davidson and Jelly Belly also have a strong presence in the area. If you're there in April, you probably can catch a baseball game at Miller Park, which has a retractable dome.

If you decide to skip Milwaukee and take I-90, there's a fantastic railroad museum (http://www.irm.org/) in Union, IL.

Both I-90 and I-94 eventually take you to Madison. Visit the university, the state capital, and the scores of stores, bars, and restaurants between the two. Spend some time on one of the lovely lakes, perhaps enjoying an ice cream cone from the U of W dairy. You can't leave Wisconsin without enjoying some dairy products.

Just north of Madison, you'll find the Wisconsin Dells, an extremely touristy and somewhat kitchy area with a lot of hotels.

Continuing north, you again have to choose between I-90 and I-94. The fastest route is I-94, which also takes you near the Leinenkugel Brewery in Chippewa Falls, WI. Alternatively, you can take I-90 west to LaCrosse, a cute river town with bluffs towering high over the city. From there, you can cross the river and take the extremely scenic Hwy 61 along the Mississippi River on the Minnesota side, through Winona and Red Wing.

I hope this information is helpful.

....between April 1 and April 30 in Minnesota, even in the southern part of the state. April 1 will likely be cold and wet (rain or snow likely). April 30 is about when spring BEGINS. Just to give you an idea......I have learned over the years to never plant anything in the ground earlier than Mother's Day weekend. Too many chances for frost before then!

If you wait until May, your chances of touristy things being open in small towns increases a lot over April. Some of the MN state historic sites are only open on weekends until Memorial Day rolls around, for example.

As a Minnesotan, I agree that you'd be better off postponing your trip for a month.

Big Mo has offered some great suggestions. Personally, I like the drive up the Mississippi River from LaCrosse to Red Wing. It's one of the few areas of the Upper Midwest that wasn't glaciated during the Ice Age, so its scenery is distinctive.

If you're willing to take a detour and you're traveling in May or June instead of April, take a fast freeway up to Duluth, the gateway to Lake Superior. The drive between Two Harbors and the Canadian border is wonderful, with pretty little towns and state parks.

Nebraska may have some nice people, but it's mostly just vast and empty. If you were Europeans, I'd recommend it for the novelty, but as Australians, you are familiar with that kind of thing.

Crossing South Dakota, more vast emptiness, except for the Badlands National Monument, until you reach the Black Hills.

Cut down through Wyoming to reach Colorado. The eastern part is more prairie than anything else, but once you're near Denver, you begin to see the mountains. Rocky Mountain National Park is spectacular, but may not be accessible in April.

In all of these places, April blizzards are not unknown. About 25 years ago, we had significant snowfall in Minneapolis on April 30.

Being located in a continental climate belt, we can experience both Arctic cold and tropical heat, sometimes in the same year.