re: Is the drive from East Texas to Gulf Shores the shi*#iest drive in America?

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If you’ve never driven I59 from Slidell to Gadsden, you don’t know what you’re missing—and that’s a good thing.

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There are far more boring stretches of interstate some of which have been mentioned already. The stretch of I 20/59 from Tuscaloosa to Gadsden is far away the "prettiest" stretch of that entire drive. The most boring stretch by far in Alabama is the roughly 115 mile stretch of I-65 from about 20 miles south of Montgomery to about mile marker 30 before you cross the Dolly Parton bridge.into Mobile County. Honorable mention goes to the stretch of I-20 from the Alabama/Mississippi line to Tuscaloosa.

The prettiest interstate drives in Alabama are:

1) I-20 between Birmingham and the Alabama/Georgia state line - very underrated stretch especially between Birmingam and Anniston.

2) I-65 between Birmingham and Nashville

3) The stretch of I-22 (B'ham to Memphis) between Birmingham and Jasper. Coal country with rolling hills and rock outcroppings

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Drove back from Panama City yesterday. I know bad move because of the beginning of Memorial weekend, but figured everybody was heading East, not West. Wrong! Florida wins best part of I-10 with Alabama/Mississippi about second with La., last. I bet Buccees in Alabama made 100,000.00 yesterday. Unbelievable. Didn't want to stop but ate Mexican at Guadalahara's Thursday night, bad move, and it hit me around that intersection. Again, unbelievable. Traffic was backed up miles coming from the West to get in there. Took almost an hour to park and use the facilities and get back on the road. And Mobile is about like B.R. as far as getting though there in less than a half hour or more. And the poor souls heading East on I-10, I feel for you. Took 10 hours to get home and 2 hours were from stalled traffic to the snarl of the beaver. If I go again, it will be thru central La., Ms., and Ala., then down to the Emerald coast. The U.S. has outgrown our interstates.

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Another option that isn't utilized enough that makes a huge difference for those heading east on I-10 out of Mississippi into Alabama is bypassing Mobile via the Dauphin Island ferry service. When heading east on I-10 from MS to ALA you get off on Exit 4 (Grand Bay) in Alabama then from Grand Bay you head down to Bayou La Batre then to Dauphin Island. Take the ferry from Dauphin Island to Fort Morgan, AL. The ferry runs every 45 minutes and cost anywhere from about $15 to $30 one way but you literally avoid all I-10 traffic thru the Alabama portion of that drive. Ferry drops you off in Fort Morgan which is an easy 15 minute drive to Gulf Shores. You have to plan ahead to ensure you catch the ferry but it's well worth the money to avoid the aggravation of the Mobile Bay tunnel traffic. The same works in reverse heading west from the FL panhandle on I-10 where you can detour I-10 in Pensacola and take Blue Angel Parkway from I-10 to Perdido Key thru Orange Beach and Gulf Shores to the ferry at Fort Morgan to Dauphin Island. The drive from Dauphin Island back to I-10 puts you back on I-10 at Grand Bay just 4 miles from the Alabama/Mississippi line

Plus the ferry ride across the bay between Dauphin Island and Fort Morgan is a quite relaxing and pleasant when the weather is nice.

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TOO MANY DAMN PEOPLE

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Like I said, spoken like someone who has never driven US-56 between I-25 and Dodge City or north-south through the middle of Nebraska.

I’ve made that trip from Alamosa to Raton to Dalhart back in 2009. That stretch of highway by the volcano was awesome.

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I'd say Shreveport to Lafayette. That lone stretch of I-10 crossing the Atchafalaya basin between Lafayette and the MS River entering Baton Rouge might be the only redeeming part of any interstate drive thru the state of Louisiana

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I was talking about 190

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Amarillo to Albuquerque makes the drive you describe a stroll through Central Park in Springtime.

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try Las Vegas to Area 51, or Houston to El Paso

Still beats driving in Kabul Afghanistan

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You ever drive across Kansas? It gets worse

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I don't know why, but I love driving through rural farmland.

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I don't know why, but I love driving through rural farmland.

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I enjoy the prairie land between Lethbridge and Edmonton AB. Its flat, but has a beauty all its own. When you catch a glimpse of the Rockies near Calgary, its gorgeous.