Search the Community

My brother-in-law (who lives in Central Texas) made some strong suggestions for the drive to San Antonio. Background ... I have made the drive to San Antonio several times in the past few years. I-35 from a ways north of Dallas through to San Antonio can be a VERY busy and hectic drive. About the only respite is for a short time south of Dallas. LOTS of traffic and construction regularly otherwise. I can vouch for how stressful the drive and traffic can be, and traffic and congestion is not something that generally bothers me. All that being said, he recommended (instead of taking I-35 past Oklahoma City) taking I-44 southwest from Oklahoma City to Wichita Falls then taking US 281 the rest of the way. Otherwise he said we could stay on I-35W through Ft Worth and then take 174 south at Burleson to US 67 to 220 to US 281 on to San Antonio. He said at a very minimum to do this ... bypassing Waco, Austin, etc. He guaranteed me this would be quicker than staying on I-35 and I believe him given my experience in the past. He said I-35 is especially bad this time of year with the current construction and spring break traffic. If you choose to not do either of those suggestions, MAKE SURE and take the tollway around Austin. Out of state drivers do not have to pay to take it and the speed limit is 80 mph. Last time I was on it, it was SO MUCH faster than dealing with I-35 traffic through Austin. (If you go through Austin on the way check out The Salt Lick for BBQ) I visited some Dallas message boards and people almost unanimously were saying they take US 281 instead of I-35 when heading to San Antonio. What will I do? Taking I-44 to Wichita Falls feels a little bit extreme to me, but I might do it. My bro-in-law is generally dead on. Otherwise I will for sure be taking the second route I outlined jumping off I-35 at Burleson. Apparently the drive through Hill Country on 281 is very pretty (for Texas). Traffic is especially bad from North of Waco through to San Antonio ... I've never had it not be bad. Apparently there are some great places to eat and pick up pie along the 281 route as well. Stephenville - "The Hard 8 BBQ" (only would pass through here if you took I-44 south of OKC) Lampasas - "Firehouse BBQ" Blanco - "Blanco Bowling Club Cafe" (great pie) Marble Falls - "Blue Bonnet Cafe" (pie) Hico - "Koffee Kup Family Restaurant" (pie) People from Dallas were all talking about these places too. Just wanted to share what I had found out in some of my research ... See everyone in San Antonio! We are driving to Wichita tomorrow night and then on to San Antonio on Thursday. GO B1G RED!