Our DD and I are going to drive to Oregon over Thansgiving.I have checked out two routes - one being I 40 to Bakersfield, CA and then turn right, the other one is via Salt Lake City, which is 6 hours less driving. We are driving a Corolla. What are the chances that we get hit by snow driving the northern route? How tricky is it? We have 4 days at the most to get there. TIA

Update:
Drove there, it was great. We were very lucky that the weather played along. I flew back home and now I really miss my baby (she's in school in Corvallis now).

I am not familiar with the conditions out west, but I would suggest checking the DOT site for each state. I did see that a road has already closed for the winter. Some roads also require snow tires or chains. Here is the site for Utah Utah Department of Transportation
I also found this site that looks pretty good. They even have a forum about traveling in the winter. The Great American RoadTrip Forum

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