Road trip from California to Chicago in late December. Are we crazy?

I would take the southern route. I've lived through one very memorable Wyoming Winter in which I-80 was frequently closed due to bad driving conditions. Like, they close the highway and nobody moves for days. It's a nightmare. I think that's one of the few reasons people move TO Wyoming: they try to drive across it in the winter and just get stuck there. Beware!!!!

I've driven from Northern California to Madison, Wisconsin via the southern route in late December, and it was lovely. I didn't need chains. But when I say the southern route I really mean the southern route, I-10 through Tucson, El Paso, and Houston, not I-40.

Mr. erst and I have driven from Southern California to Chicago several times in December and January. We only chanced it on I-70 once, and narrowly missed getting snowed out of our route twice on that trip (hooray for snowplows going through an hour before we did). A family member of mine once tried the I-80 route in December (in a 4WD SUV) and wound up snow/icebound on the side of a Wyoming freeway overnight, and then stuck in a small town for three days until the weather improved. There are very, very long stretches of I-80 with nothing at all nearby; I'd be extremely hesitant to take that route in winter if I didn't absolutely have to. We've taken the southern route (I-40 to I-44 to I-55) the rest of the times we've gone and only had a problem once (had to drop down to I-10 in New Mexico due to a snowstorm shutting down I-40 and we had to get home).

The snow can be every bit as http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/06/new-mexico-storm-snow_n_1130993.html in December/January in New Mexico and Oklahoma as it is further north (and at 7000-8000 feet elevation in Wyoming, the snow can get bad there indeed). I personally wouldn't plan on a December road trip between Northern CA and Chicago, regardless of the route (and I say this as someone who spent most of my life in the Mountain West/Midwest, so am not unaccustomed to heavy winter driving in the region). It's just too unpredictable.

So...I have done I80 and I90 in the winter months and I am going to say that it is madness. I80 wasn't quite as bad, but it can get very bad, and it's unpredictable. The times I have done this were horribly anxiety producing and I vowed never again. It will not be fun, it will be dangerous, and, especially in a compact car, it is no recommended. Snow driving in Wyoming is not the same as getting to the grocery store in a Midwestern winter, as I discovered.

I don't have much to add to what's been said, other than to point out that while 80 is seldom closed in CA, NV, UT, IA and IL, it is frequently closed in WY and NE. You will no doubt recall, from your own trips, seeing the permanent gates at intervals in both of those states for closing the road in bad conditions. I've driven that route at least three times in the winter, at times when the forecasts were favorable, and still managed to get delayed by closed roads a couple of times. The worst part of being on that road in bad conditions, though, is the other drivers, many of whom have either never driven in snow before (no, Dick, you can't go 60 with chains on) or think that AWD means they can't lose traction.

I think you can avoid having to put on chains on I-80 over the Sierras in California if you have some leeway in your departure time so you can account for weather. But Interstate 80 reaches over 8,000 feet elevation in Wyoming where it seems that snow would also be a definite possibility and driving conditions could get http://forum.dvdtalk.com/5666487-post4.html and of course it also crosses mountains in Utah and Colorado. More discussion http://www.city-data.com/forum/colorado-springs/517156-driving-salt-lake-city-better-through.html. Since you want to avoid major snow driving and don't have tons of extra time to wait out the weather, you might want to go around to the south. Also, see http://ask.metafilter.com/167906/Im-Driving-Across-The-Country-in-November.

I have gone from Arizona to Michigan and back in late December a few times and I agree with PercussivePaul, watch the weather and stay flexible. More Southern routes may be the most clear but you can't know. Take the major freeways that look good at the time. Have a smartphone (and/or US Atlas and an Exit Guide) ready and keep in mind that the trip may take longer than expected.

Snow driving may be a piece of cake for you but for nearly every other driver in the Sierras on the road with you, it's not. In my experience as a native midwesterner living in Northern California, everyone FREAKS OUT so it doesn't matter if you're comfortable with the conditions, everybody around you will be moving at a snail's pace or sliding off the road in misplaced self-confidence. It's a total disaster. And they do make you put on chains even if you explain that you've driven in snow all your life without chains and never had a problem. Everyone I know from the Midwest who moves out here is totally baffled by the obsession with chains here.