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does anyone pull a medium size travel trailer from manitoba to arizona in january and come back in march or april?

I know someone that has

there are 1000's that do this. Is this the only question? Arizona is a meca of snow birds. I can think of 20 that I personally know that do this. One tried it with a fold up camper but most with 5th wheels or motor homes. You will want air in March and April

buy travel insurance before you go. I'm tired of seeing fund me pages when people don't plan ahead. travel insurance is cheaper than paying the alternative, none.  
same with house fires, unforeseen death..

Keep the plumbing full of anti freeze until you get there.  
 
People that I knew, who have done this, go straight south and then turn right.

Avoid Denver Colorado this late in the season if you can. Always the worst for bad weather!  
I agree with the above poster, keep it winterized and stay in hotels until you get there!  
 
Edited by Mamabear2, 2017-12-13 07:27:09

what highway do you use, and how many days does it take, approximately...thanks

Leaving this month on the 27th to Apache Junction.  
Not booked into the park until January 1 so we''ll average  
350 miles over 5 days.The highway we are taking will be 83 but going through the Boissevain border straight south until interstate 94 and catching 83 at Steele N.D. then south to Liberal Ks.Over from there to Tucumcari and 40 to Holbrook Az. South to Apache.And like mamabear2  
says don't go through Denver this time of year especially pulling a trailer.  
83 is a 2 lane highway but is relatively flat going through a lot small towns  
probably getting better deals on rooms for the night.  
 
Edited by BlueBear, 2017-12-14 08:13:22

thanks for all the good information...do we need winter tires, or chains?

need chains but GOOD tires will do.If we happen to get into a storm or whiteout conditions we'll just pull over and wait it out.

Just to expand on Blue Bear's post re Holbrook AZ and then south-you will want to take #377 just south of Holbrook towards Heber then #260 to Payson then #87 towards Mesa. Turn off #87 onto Bush Highway. This takes you to Usery Pass Road (which becomes Ellsworth) taking you into east Mesa and Apache Junction. First time driving down we were told to go south of Holbrook and stayed on #77 by mistake. Pretty scary drive with lots of switchback turns, bad enough with a car. Couple of years later a couple of friends, each pulling a large fifth wheel did the same thing, don't think it was fun. GPS will direct you in through Heber once you get south of Holbrook but until then will want you to go to Flagstaff then south which adds almost an hour to your drive if you are going somewhere in East Valley. Hope this helps.

The trip from Payson to Mesa is very hilly and hard on the vehicle pulling a trailer and my nerves! We turn off before Albuquerque And head south through Alamogordo NM and Las Cruces then on through Tuscon and come into Mesa via Eloy and Florence. Brings you up to 60 and easy access to Apache and Mesa without the hassle of all the ups and downs!

We pull a 38 foot 5th wheel trailer and are leaving on Dec. 27th for Mesa AZ.  
We travel highway 83 to North Platte the first day. We check the weather through the mountains and if it looks promising we’ll go through Denver, and Santa Fe to Albuquerque,  
the second day. (NOTE: It can get windy so be careful with that!!) If it’s stormy, we stay on 83 the second day and then travel through Liberal, Tucumcari, and Santa Rosa to Albuquerque. The next day (day 3) we travel through Holbrook, and Prescott to Mesa. This gets us to Mesa early on the 3rd afternoon!!

We turned west at North Platte to Brush, CO. Then turned South thru Limon and Rocky Ford ending up at Trinidad Co. Miss all of the hills of going thru Denver. Then as other posters said thru Santa Fe, Alberquerque, Holbrook, South thru Heber, Payson to Bush Hwy and into Mesa. We were given this route by a friend who had been travelling to Mesa for 35 years and had tried every way possible. She swore this was the best way and I think she was right. Took three days and we were pulling a 37 foot fifth wheel.

We go down 83 as well, This year when we get to Liberal KS, we will keep going south to Amarillo and Lubbock TX. Then we'll swing westerly through Carlsbad,Las Cruses NM and I10 to Tucson.  
 
We've gone the Albuquerque NM Flagstaff AZ way, but that's quite a bit in the mountains and the weather can be very unpredictable and windy.  
 
You will not need chains, but from Boisevain MB to North Platt NE it can be serious winter driving.  
 
Our overnight stops are Pierre SD, Garden City KS, Brownfield TX and Las Cruses NM. We could drive a bit harder each day and eliminate one overnight, but getting there is part of the fun. Right?  
 
Our ride is a 33ft motor home towing a Chevy car.