Southern Road Trip Suggestions?

[MrFahrenheit99]

Hey fam!

As some of you know, I'm a fan of really long road trips. In 2021 I did 11,000 miles across the US and back through Canada. Next year I'm planning to take the southern route. I've never been through the south (except Lousiville a few times but nothing further south than that) and would love to hear some of your favorite towns, attractions, camping spots, and most definitely BBQ spots

I'm planning on taking I-10 from LA and catching some baseball games along the way, as I usually do, but I'm definitely not opposed to breaking away and catching cool stuff off the beaten path. Once I make it to Florida I plan on driving up the Eastern Seaboard into Nova Scotia and from there... I'll figure that out later.

Looking forward to learning about some of your favorite places!

 

[AverageAndy]

Sounds like a lot of fun! I assume you will be stopping in Phoenix metro area for a baseball game. If you plan on going south from there, to Tucson (and then across NM and TX), then you really should make the time to see Tombstone and/or Bisbee, Arizona. Both are small towns with a lot of history.

As for camping, one of my all-time favorite beach camping memories was a state park on the panhandle of Florida. White sand beaches, warm water, no crowds (at the end of a long peninsula) and bio luminescent organisms in the water causing glowing wave breaks and glowing footsteps in the sand. I am sure they have a long reservation system, so check it out to see if it fits your plans.

T.H. Stone Memorial St. Joseph Peninsula State Park

Stretching 20 miles into the blue waters of the Gulf of Mexico, St. Joseph Peninsula is a true wildlife haven. Its powdery beaches and bayside salt marshes are nesting grounds for sea turtles, shore birds and the endangered St. Andrews beach mouse.

www.floridastateparks.org

 

[MrFahrenheit99]

Those all sound incredible!! I will absolutely check those out . Thanks!

 

[CantWrite]

First, you long road trips sound amazing!!

Second, do you plan to stay on interstates due to time constraints? I’d recommend secondary highways and scenic byways and small towns as part of the fun. That’s my preference anyway, which I know is not my wife’s !! She just wants to get to the location instead of adventuring the journey.

 

[Bradm]

Jim’s pit BBQ off of I75 in reddick FL is some of the best bbq ive had, kind of a little hole-in-wall restaurant/gas station. after that probably Rudy’s in San Antonio TX

 

[MrFahrenheit99]

I mix it up a fair amount. Sometimes I have deadlines in other cities (live seeing family or a scheduled event) which necessitates the Interstate. Most of the time I’ll pick smaller destinations which force me off the beaten path.

I would imagine this upcoming trip will take ~8 weeks. It’s a very long way off so I’ve got time to plan

 

[AverageAndy]

Also, my favorite bbq in Phoenix is Little Miss BBQ -University (they have 2 locations), check them out at https://littlemissbbq.com

 

[MrFahrenheit99]

Jim’s pit BBQ off of I75 in reddick FL is some of the best bbq ive had, kind of a little hole-in-wall restaurant/gas station. after that probably Rudy’s in San Antonio TX

Perfect! This is going on my list

 

[jmodge]

Keeping an eye on this, I always like traveling off the interstate. Wish I could remember the exact location or name of the little bbq/diner between New Port Ritchie and Clearwater on Florida’s Gulf Coast. Got collards by mistake with my grouper. It was excellent

 

[jmodge]

Not a specific spot, because I don't recall, but somewhere above the Florida panhandle in Alabama. We stopped at a good sized produce stand. This was early in the month of May I believe. Fresh fruit and vegetables galore!! If you find one of these, don't make the same mistake I did, I ate one of those little Georgia Peaches first. It was so sweet and delicious, Everything I ate after that had absolutely no flavor, zero, until the next day.

 

[AndyBees]

Do not miss the Smoky Mountains National Park ........... and on the west end (route 129) the Tail of the Dragon and drive it.... over 300 curves in 11 miles!
In Pigeon Forge (just north of Gatlinburg/Smoky Mountains) there are all kinds of things to do and places to eat .. BBQ too.

 

[Ragdude]

If you have the time, 191 from I-10 up to I-40 in AZ is an awesome drive.
Foe great food; Erics Family BBQ on the west side of Phoenix metro is fantastic.

 

[BamaB4S]

Recommend visiting a couple historic southern national treasures - The Biltmore Estate in Ashville, NC and Monticello (Thomas Jefferson's home) in Charlottesville, VA.

 

[MrFahrenheit99]

Recommend visiting a couple historic southern national treasures - The Biltmore Estate in Ashville, NC and Monticello (Thomas Jefferson's home) in Charlottesville, VA.

Absolutely! Would love to check out both the Biltmore Estate in NC and Rhode Island as well. I visited Monticello in 8th grade but am definitely due for another trip. Thanks!

 

[benIV]

Blue Ridge Parkway

 

[jmodge]

Glebe House Museum & Gertrude Jekyll Garden

Information about the Glebe House Museum & Gertrude Jekyll Garden, located in Woodbury, Connecticut.

www.glebehousemuseum.org

This was a friend of mines wife’s family property. Her cousin’s are still over there but I don’t believe the mansion is any longer in the family. Stories she told make it worth checking out

 

[jmodge]

Her cousins still own it

 

[Ton]

Recommend visiting a couple historic southern national treasures - The Biltmore Estate in Ashville, NC and Monticello (Thomas Jefferson's home) in Charlottesville, VA.

I will second the recommendation on Monticello. I have not been to the biltmore estate yet.

 

[Lead_Sled]

Im from Louisiana. If you’d like suggestions on things to see or places to eat or anything else, I can suggest a few places. An LSU baseball game would be a good experience. Nothing like football games, but still good.

There are true and authentic Cajun restaurants. Swamp tours with alligators. Live music of the Cajun variety called zydeco.