Looking for advice Iowa City IA to Sierra Vista AZ

[Skidlm]

Looking for good RV friendly route from Iowa City IA to Sierra Vista AZ. Have driven via car thru KS, TX, NM to AZ. Route is boring and I recall significant elevation near White Sands NM. Is there an alternative RV friendly route someone can recommend? A little longer is ok. Thanks in advance.

[uwskier]

Looking for good RV friendly route from Iowa City IA to Sierra Vista AZ. Have driven via car thru KS, TX, NM to AZ. Route is boring and I recall significant elevation near White Sands NM. Is there an alternative RV friendly route someone can recommend? A little longer is ok. Thanks in advance.

I just did I-80 from Iowa to I-76 to I-25 near Denver, then down to Albuquerque before shooting across on I-40. It didn't add much time for us vs going through KS. You wouldn't take 40 probably since we went to Flagstaff before returning home to Chandler. I can't comment on the elevation of southern NM, but the Raton Pass is pretty high. Nothing terrible though. I held 60 MPH over it with my GM 5.3L and 8 speed towing a fairly loaded up 2600RB. Lots of RPM but no heat or control issues.

[DougW9876]

My mapping software says to head to Wichita, then take US54 all the way to Tucumcari NM, then I40 to Albuquerque, then I25 to Hatch, cut over the Deming and take I10 from there to Benson and 90 to Sierra Vista.

It looks like US54 is not an interstate and is probably a pretty boring drive but I have not yet found a scenic route across that section of the country. With this route being almost all interstate once you get close to the mountains it should be no problem, I have not been across that section of I40 since 1978 so I don’t recall just what it was like.

We crossed from Las Cruces to White Sands in 2019 and while it is a bit of a climb, we have crossed many passes that were longer and steeper with no problems, just plan to go slow for sections like that.

[Second Chance]

As a native New Mexican, I'm not going to take offense at anything said above. However, as long as you don't choose a route that uses US 82 through Cloudcroft, there aren't any other routes in that part of NM I haven't/wouldn't tow on. I-40 through Albuquerque is fine. If you're concerned about mountains, I highly recommend purchasing and downloading a copy of the Mountain Directory. I use it constantly (combined version on my laptop):

https://mountaindirectory.com/

Rob

[FlyStar]

The drive from Santa Rosa to Las Cruces offers spectacular scenery. The highway has improved over the last couple of years. I love this drive, especially going south. Highlights include the scenic decent into the Tularosa Basin, White Sands, and the Organ Pipe mountain pass. No real steep stuff but beautiful. The KOA, Boot Hill, and White Sands Community campgrounds in Alamogordo are all very nice. If you stay over in Alamogordo, the space museum is worth a visit. And of course White Sands. Even the zoo in Alamogordo is really nice. Don’t miss DH Lesombes for dinner. If you manage to hit a Sunday in Alamogordo, check out the Sunday Service at Christ Community Church on Scenic Drive, Fantastic.

[uwskier]

The drive south from Denver to ABQ is gorgeous too. Lots of scenery everywhere in CO, NM, and AZ.

[Silverbeard]

We traveled from Benson AZ to Wi a couple of years ago and we took I-10 to Las Cruces, then picked up US 70 over to US 54 at Alamogordo. Stayed on US 54 up to US 400 over to Wichita, then I-35 to Des Moines. Going the direction you are going, at Benson taking 90 to Sierra Vista is the way to go. As for 54, it’s generally a good road, with occasional somewhat rough sections.
We left Butterfield RV Resort in Benson, AZ then stayed at Boot Hill in Alamogordo, Corral RV Park in Dalhart, TX, Air Capital RV Park in Wichita and Lakeside Hotel Casino/ Campground at Osceola, IA.