rat

Being a texan, and a Houstonian, I'd have to say take the northern route. Several reasons:

1) I-10 absolutely sucks anytime you're near a Texas city (San Antonio and Houston both) it runs through. Traffic, though not as bad as say the DC area, bogs down EVERY day on the western side of Houston around Katy, and it may still be under construction, as it had been for teh 6 months prior to my departure to College Station.

2) Had a buddy of mine take the Tampa-Houston trip several times in a year by car as he lived with his dad in Tampa but visited his mom in my hometown. I-10 is a bitch at night, southern Lousiana tends to be foggy, and New Orleans is WAY too tempting to stop and spend money in. Have a friend who goes to Tulane in the Big Easy, and the town has far too many distractions to divert your attention from your goal.

3) West Texas is ugly, barren, and most of Texas is dreary as hell in the winter. However, if you're strapped for cash and gas, you may want to skirt the mountains of Arkansas to the south to avoid time delays and then return to the northern route.

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