I gotta say, once you leave Las Cruces, it's pretty awful until Austin. Pack food for that leg of the trip, just in case — the trucks mostly take I-40 across the southwest, not I-10, so food availability is pretty minimal compared to what I am usually used to on my road trips. (If you travel, as I do, under the impression that you will just take the next exit when you start to get hungry, you will be very unhappy in western Texas. It was not an easy place to be a vegetarian, either.) Driving I-10 across west Texas is something you ought to do exactly once, and then you can take I-40 every time from then on.
I camped at the gorgeous Aguierre Springs campground in the Organ Mountains outside of Las Cruces. I am pretty sure it would be much too cold to happily camp at that altitude this time of year, but we saw White Sands from our campsite instead of having to make the very out-of-the-way drive.
Things you might want to see off of I-10: Kartchner Caverns State Park is only about ten miles off the freeway, and it's a relatively new park (<10 years old) that has some beautifully kept caves, well worth the tour. I'd also recommend cutting down from I-10 on AZ Hwy. 85 and hooking up with I-8 before meeting back up with I-10, too. It cuts through the Sonoran Desert National Monument AND you miss Phoenix entirely! Win!
Actually, I have a ton more recommendations for stuff to see and do in southern Arizona, but it depends on how leisurely of a drive you're taking. But Kartchner Caverns is close to 10, and the Sonoran Desert is one of those things you can just drive on through without losing too much time. The road trip you are taking is one I've done about four times now. Hooray!
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I camped at the gorgeous Aguierre Springs campground in the Organ Mountains outside of Las Cruces. I am pretty sure it would be much too cold to happily camp at that altitude this time of year, but we saw White Sands from our campsite instead of having to make the very out-of-the-way drive.
Things you might want to see off of I-10: Kartchner Caverns State Park is only about ten miles off the freeway, and it's a relatively new park (<10 years old) that has some beautifully kept caves, well worth the tour. I'd also recommend cutting down from I-10 on AZ Hwy. 85 and hooking up with I-8 before meeting back up with I-10, too. It cuts through the Sonoran Desert National Monument AND you miss Phoenix entirely! Win!
Actually, I have a ton more recommendations for stuff to see and do in southern Arizona, but it depends on how leisurely of a drive you're taking. But Kartchner Caverns is close to 10, and the Sonoran Desert is one of those things you can just drive on through without losing too much time. The road trip you are taking is one I've done about four times now. Hooray!