Driving to Outer Banks, NC from Philadelphia, PA

We will be driving down to Nags Head, NC from Philadelphia on Sunday, June
28th. It looks like the most direct route will be straight down through the
Delmarva Peninsula and then along the coasts of Virginia and North Carolina.
MapQuest estimates a driving time of about 6.5 hours, although I know we
will be stopping occasionally for breaks and I'm sure there will be some
traffic delays as well.

Does anyone have experience with this route? Even though it is the most
direct, is it the most efficient? As an alternate, I can see going down
I-95 to Richmond and then heading southeast from there. Even though it is a
few more miles, does the traffic move better on I-95 as opposed to the
Delmarva/coastal route? What is the traffic like on Sundays on both routes?


Any information is appeciated.

Thanks,
Ray



Remove NO and SPAM to reply

On Wed, 17 Jun 2009 19:00:47 GMT, "Ray" wrote:

We will be driving down to Nags Head, NC from Philadelphia on Sunday, June
28th. It looks like the most direct route will be straight down through the
Delmarva Peninsula and then along the coasts of Virginia and North Carolina.
MapQuest estimates a driving time of about 6.5 hours, although I know we
will be stopping occasionally for breaks and I'm sure there will be some
traffic delays as well.

Does anyone have experience with this route? Even though it is the most
direct, is it the most efficient? As an alternate, I can see going down
I-95 to Richmond and then heading southeast from there. Even though it is a
few more miles, does the traffic move better on I-95 as opposed to the
Delmarva/coastal route? What is the traffic like on Sundays on both routes?

Efficient in terms of what? It's more than a few miles; I'd guess the scenic
rouite is going to take ~50% longer. Think US Route 1 pace.

Headed south on Sunday, traffic will be better on both routes than any other day
of the week. It's a straight trade-off of time vs. scenic qualities.

IMO, the DelMarVa route is definitely worth doing once.

-- Larry

On Wed, 17 Jun 2009 19:00:47 GMT, "Ray"
wrote:

We will be driving down to Nags Head, NC from Philadelphia on Sunday, June
28th. It looks like the most direct route will be straight down through the
Delmarva Peninsula and then along the coasts of Virginia and North Carolina.
MapQuest estimates a driving time of about 6.5 hours, although I know we
will be stopping occasionally for breaks and I'm sure there will be some
traffic delays as well.

Does anyone have experience with this route? Even though it is the most
direct, is it the most efficient? As an alternate, I can see going down
I-95 to Richmond and then heading southeast from there. Even though it is a
few more miles, does the traffic move better on I-95 as opposed to the
Delmarva/coastal route? What is the traffic like on Sundays on both routes?


Any information is appeciated.

Thanks,
Ray

Taking 95 wills make you go through DC and northern VA which can get
quite congested.

I've never been to Nag's Head but have been from Norfolk to
Wilmington, DE. You would be going against traffic by taking the route
through Delmarva. Unless there is some major problem with it like an
accident that closes the road, I can't see not taking it. There are
long stretches where there are no lights and it's quite rural.

Let us know how it is - my sister-in-law will be joining us at the OBX in
Aug and driving down from the Boston area. Mapquest has her going that
route as well.

We drive down from OH and I've wanted to head east and go down that route my
self as a change of pace!

If it is your 1st trip to OBX, be sure to take a day and drive down to
Hatteras Island. In the National Seashore, you can pull off at any of the
parking turn-outs after you go across the Bonner Bridge and you'll find
miles of deserted beaches! The small towns are a pleasant change from the
more touristy Nags Head area.


"Ray" wrote in message
...
We will be driving down to Nags Head, NC from Philadelphia on Sunday, June
28th. It looks like the most direct route will be straight down through
the Delmarva Peninsula and then along the coasts of Virginia and North
Carolina. MapQuest estimates a driving time of about 6.5 hours, although I
know we will be stopping occasionally for breaks and I'm sure there will
be some traffic delays as well.

Does anyone have experience with this route? Even though it is the most
direct, is it the most efficient? As an alternate, I can see going down
I-95 to Richmond and then heading southeast from there. Even though it is
a few more miles, does the traffic move better on I-95 as opposed to the
Delmarva/coastal route? What is the traffic like on Sundays on both
routes?


Any information is appeciated.

Thanks,
Ray



Remove NO and SPAM to reply

In "Ray"
wrote:

Does anyone have experience with this route? Even though it is the
most direct, is it the most efficient? As an alternate, I can see
going down I-95 to Richmond and then heading southeast from there.
Even though it is a few more miles, does the traffic move better on
I-95 as opposed to the Delmarva/coastal route?

My sister drives down to OBX from Baltimore for our family get-together
each fall and always takes I-95 around DC as far as Richmond and then picks
up I-64 to Norfolk and then VA/US 168/US 158 to the Wright Bridge.

Some years ago my I flew out to Baltimore and drove down with her and
convinced her to cross the Bay Bridge and take your proposed route. It was
non-eventful but probably took a little longer.

Still, when I'm not along to look at the scenery, she always takes I-95.

--
Bert Hyman St. Paul, MN

On Jun 22, 1:03*pm, Bert Hyman wrote:
"Ra y"

wrote:
Does anyone have experience with this route? *Even though it is the
most direct, is it the most efficient? *As an alternate, I can see
going down I-95 to Richmond and then heading southeast from there.
Even though it is a few more miles, does the traffic move better on
I-95 as opposed to the Delmarva/coastal route?
[...]
Some years ago my I flew out to Baltimore and drove down with her and
convinced her to cross the Bay Bridge and take your proposed route. It was
non-eventful but probably took a little longer.

[...]

Last year (July 3rd), I drove from Baltimore to Virginia Beach, VA via
I-97, U.S. 50,
and south on U.S. 13. It took me about five hours of driving time with
two stops.
The only problem I ran into was an accident along the U.S. 50/U.S. 13
Salisbury
bypass which slowed down traffic for a number of miles. Otherwise,
most of the
route can range from 50 to 65 mph in speed with light traffic south of
Salisbury and
periodic traffic lights thrown in. Prepare to seal your car around the
Purdue
poultry plant (you'll smell the place before seeing it).

Because of vast tracts of farmland, traveling through the northern
portion of MD via U.S. 301
prior to the U.S. 50 merge is almost interstate-like in speed
excepting the occasional
traffic light.

So - how was your "tour" ?

"Ray" wrote in message
...
We will be driving down to Nags Head, NC from Philadelphia on Sunday, June
28th. It looks like the most direct route will be straight down through
the Delmarva Peninsula and then along the coasts of Virginia and North
Carolina. MapQuest estimates a driving time of about 6.5 hours, although I
know we will be stopping occasionally for breaks and I'm sure there will
be some traffic delays as well.

Does anyone have experience with this route? Even though it is the most
direct, is it the most efficient? As an alternate, I can see going down
I-95 to Richmond and then heading southeast from there. Even though it is
a few more miles, does the traffic move better on I-95 as opposed to the
Delmarva/coastal route? What is the traffic like on Sundays on both
routes?


Any information is appeciated.

Thanks,
Ray



Remove NO and SPAM to reply

"Ray" wrote:
We will be driving down to Nags Head, NC from Philadelphia on Sunday, June
28th. *It looks like the most direct route will be straight down through the
Delmarva Peninsula and then along the coasts of Virginia and North Carolina.
MapQuest estimates a driving time of about 6.5 hours, although I know we
will be stopping occasionally for breaks and I'm sure there will be some
traffic delays as well.

Does anyone have experience with this route? *Even though it is the most
direct, is it the most efficient? *As an alternate, I can see going down
I-95 to Richmond and then heading southeast from there. *Even though it is a
few more miles, does the traffic move better on I-95 as opposed to the
Delmarva/coastal route? *What is the traffic like on Sundays on both routes?

Any information is appeciated.


Its been several years since I've done the whole route down across the
Bay Bridge, but I do drive to through Philly to Sussex County in DE
fairly frequently, which happened to have included Rt 13 down to as
far as Harrington just this past weekend.

In general, the problem with taking the Interstates through Baltimore
- DC - Richmond ... is traffic congestion. If you can manage your
departure time from Philly to avoid congestion around DC (and to a
lesser extent, Baltimore, Richmond & Norfolk), I'd expect a higher
average speed and probably lean towards taking the Interstate route.
The problem is that there's a lot of cities now along this corridor,
so it can be a challenge to find a good time to slip by all of
them...I'd bet on an EARLY sunday morning departu out of Philly by
6AM means into DC at around 8AM...etc. You'll need to be similarly
cautious on your return.

The advantage of heading down the Eastern Shore is less traffic ...
assuming that you avoid the typical summer (mostly weekend) DE shore
traffic, which again comes down to schedule(s). The route has pretty
frequent stoplights along Rt13 and there's also often some local
"speed enforcement" in small towns en route to watch out for as well.
If schedule permits, the limited access toll road of DE Route 1 is
worth the cost ($2-$4) for the time savings it offers in getting
through northern DE.

As you cross into VA, the road (Rt 13) ... used to be ... quite open &
quiet. Being depopulated is a good thing for making time, but if
you're looking for gas, food or a restroom (particularly at odd
hours), you might have to drive another 20-40 minutes for the next
choice, so plan your stops accordingly.

You also have the $12 (toll) bonus of the somewhat interesting Bay
Bridge - - check to see what the hours of the restaurant on the bridge
are ... an interesting stop - - do make a good note of its location
(southernmost of the 4 islands (2nd tunnel), because it can be an easy
turn-off to miss and there's no place to U-Turn if you miss it.

On the south side, expect to pick up traffic again in Norfolk & south.

For time, Google Maps says that the Eastern Shore route is roughly 7.5
hours, and via Rt 95S is going to be 7.75 hours (an extra 15
minutes).

My suggestion would be to consider the Eastern Shore drive for one of
the two drives (down or back) and let your day-of-week and expected
departure time determine which direction would probably be more
"unfriendly" on the Rt 95 route and consider trying that one for the
BayBridge.


....of course, if it were my Dad doing the driving, the answer would be
pretty simple: we would get loaded into the car at around
3am ... ;-)


-hh

" We will be driving down to Nags Head, NC from Philadelphia on Sunday, June
28th."

history


"-hh" wrote in message
...
"Ray" wrote:
We will be driving down to Nags Head, NC from Philadelphia on Sunday, June
28th. It looks like the most direct route will be straight down through
the
Delmarva Peninsula and then along the coasts of Virginia and North
Carolina.
MapQuest estimates a driving time of about 6.5 hours, although I know we
will be stopping occasionally for breaks and I'm sure there will be some
traffic delays as well.

Does anyone have experience with this route? Even though it is the most
direct, is it the most efficient? As an alternate, I can see going down
I-95 to Richmond and then heading southeast from there. Even though it is
a
few more miles, does the traffic move better on I-95 as opposed to the
Delmarva/coastal route? What is the traffic like on Sundays on both
routes?

Any information is appeciated.


Its been several years since I've done the whole route down across the
Bay Bridge, but I do drive to through Philly to Sussex County in DE
fairly frequently, which happened to have included Rt 13 down to as
far as Harrington just this past weekend.

In general, the problem with taking the Interstates through Baltimore
- DC - Richmond ... is traffic congestion. If you can manage your
departure time from Philly to avoid congestion around DC (and to a
lesser extent, Baltimore, Richmond & Norfolk), I'd expect a higher
average speed and probably lean towards taking the Interstate route.
The problem is that there's a lot of cities now along this corridor,
so it can be a challenge to find a good time to slip by all of
them...I'd bet on an EARLY sunday morning departu out of Philly by
6AM means into DC at around 8AM...etc. You'll need to be similarly
cautious on your return.

The advantage of heading down the Eastern Shore is less traffic ...
assuming that you avoid the typical summer (mostly weekend) DE shore
traffic, which again comes down to schedule(s). The route has pretty
frequent stoplights along Rt13 and there's also often some local
"speed enforcement" in small towns en route to watch out for as well.
If schedule permits, the limited access toll road of DE Route 1 is
worth the cost ($2-$4) for the time savings it offers in getting
through northern DE.

As you cross into VA, the road (Rt 13) ... used to be ... quite open &
quiet. Being depopulated is a good thing for making time, but if
you're looking for gas, food or a restroom (particularly at odd
hours), you might have to drive another 20-40 minutes for the next
choice, so plan your stops accordingly.

You also have the $12 (toll) bonus of the somewhat interesting Bay
Bridge - - check to see what the hours of the restaurant on the bridge
are ... an interesting stop - - do make a good note of its location
(southernmost of the 4 islands (2nd tunnel), because it can be an easy
turn-off to miss and there's no place to U-Turn if you miss it.

On the south side, expect to pick up traffic again in Norfolk & south.

For time, Google Maps says that the Eastern Shore route is roughly 7.5
hours, and via Rt 95S is going to be 7.75 hours (an extra 15
minutes).

My suggestion would be to consider the Eastern Shore drive for one of
the two drives (down or back) and let your day-of-week and expected
departure time determine which direction would probably be more
"unfriendly" on the Rt 95 route and consider trying that one for the
BayBridge.


....of course, if it were my Dad doing the driving, the answer would be
pretty simple: we would get loaded into the car at around
3am ... ;-)


-hh

"- Bobb -" wrote:
" We will be driving down to Nags Head, NC from Philadelphia on Sunday, June
28th."

history

Such it is. Misread it as July 28th.


-hh