Next 7 departures
- TueOct 13
ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 57–82°F along the way.
Along the way
Checkpoint · arrival Weather · temperature Washington7 AM EDT Mostly sunny57°F Fredericksburg7:45 AM EDT Patchy fog57°F Richmond8:45 AM EDT Partly sunny57°F Virginia–North Carolina line10 AM EDT Mostly sunny62°F Fayetteville12 PM EDT Sunny75°F Lumberton12:30 PM EDT Sunny78°F North Carolina–South Carolina line12:45 PM EDT Sunny78°F Florence1:15 PM EDT Sunny80°F Santee2:15 PM EDT Sunny82°F Charleston3:15 PM EDT Sunny82°F - WedOct 14
ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 63–85°F along the way.
Along the way
Checkpoint · arrival Weather · temperature Washington7 AM EDT Sunny64°F Fredericksburg7:45 AM EDT Sunny63°F Richmond8:45 AM EDT Sunny65°F Virginia–North Carolina line10 AM EDT Sunny67°F Fayetteville12 PM EDT Sunny80°F Lumberton12:30 PM EDT Sunny80°F North Carolina–South Carolina line12:45 PM EDT Sunny79°F Florence1:15 PM EDT Sunny82°F Santee2:15 PM EDT Sunny85°F Charleston3:15 PM EDT Sunny84°F - ThuOct 15
ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 66–86°F along the way.
Along the way
Checkpoint · arrival Weather · temperature Washington7 AM EDT Slight chance of light rain showers66°F Fredericksburg7:45 AM EDT Slight chance of light rain showers66°F Richmond8:45 AM EDT Partly sunny67°F Virginia–North Carolina line10 AM EDT Mostly sunny69°F Fayetteville12 PM EDT Sunny80°F Lumberton12:30 PM EDT Sunny82°F North Carolina–South Carolina line12:45 PM EDT Sunny81°F Florence1:15 PM EDT Sunny84°F Santee2:15 PM EDT Sunny86°F Charleston3:15 PM EDT Sunny84°F - FriOct 16
ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 62–85°F along the way.
Along the way
Checkpoint · arrival Weather · temperature Washington7 AM EDT Chance of light rain showers62°F Fredericksburg7:45 AM EDT Slight chance of light rain showers62°F Richmond8:45 AM EDT Partly sunny65°F Virginia–North Carolina line10 AM EDT Partly sunny69°F Fayetteville12 PM EDT Mostly sunny78°F Lumberton12:30 PM EDT Mostly sunny81°F North Carolina–South Carolina line12:45 PM EDT Mostly sunny80°F Florence1:15 PM EDT Sunny82°F Santee2:15 PM EDT Sunny85°F Charleston3:15 PM EDT Sunny85°F - SatOct 17
ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 48–67°F along the way.
Along the way
Checkpoint · arrival Weather · temperature Washington7 AM EDT Mostly sunny48°F Fredericksburg7:45 AM EDT Mostly sunny48°F Richmond8:45 AM EDT Mostly sunny51°F Virginia–North Carolina line10 AM EDT Mostly sunny53°F Fayetteville12 PM EDT Mostly sunny61°F Lumberton12:30 PM EDT Mostly sunny62°F North Carolina–South Carolina line12:45 PM EDT Mostly sunny62°F Florence1:15 PM EDT Mostly sunny64°F Santee2:15 PM EDT Mostly sunny65°F Charleston3:15 PM EDT Mostly sunny67°F - SunOct 18
ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 38–67°F along the way.
Along the way
Checkpoint · arrival Weather · temperature Washington7 AM EDT Sunny39°F Fredericksburg7:45 AM EDT Sunny38°F Richmond8:45 AM EDT Sunny43°F Virginia–North Carolina line10 AM EDT Sunny45°F Fayetteville12 PM EDT Sunny55°F Lumberton12:30 PM EDT Sunny58°F North Carolina–South Carolina line12:45 PM EDT Sunny58°F Florence1:15 PM EDT Sunny60°F Santee2:15 PM EDT Sunny62°F Charleston3:15 PM EDT Mostly sunny67°F - MonOct 19
ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 41–73°F along the way.
Along the way
Checkpoint · arrival Weather · temperature Washington7 AM EDT Mostly sunny43°F Fredericksburg7:45 AM EDT Mostly sunny41°F Richmond8:45 AM EDT Mostly sunny45°F Virginia–North Carolina line10 AM EDT Mostly sunny47°F Fayetteville12 PM EDT Sunny61°F Lumberton12:30 PM EDT Mostly sunny65°F North Carolina–South Carolina line12:45 PM EDT Mostly sunny65°F Florence1:15 PM EDT Mostly sunny69°F Santee2:15 PM EDT Mostly sunny71°F Charleston3:15 PM EDT Partly sunny73°F
The worst conditions expected at any checkpoint, timed to when you would reach it driving without stops. Levels use Road Travel’s driving-risk scale.
The route, stop by stop
Checkpoints in order, with driving time from Washington (no stops) and elevation. The forecast above is timed to these.
- Washington, DCStart 23 ftelevation
- Fredericksburg, VAMile 51 · 52 min 39 ftelevation
- Richmond, VAMile 104 · 1 h 41 min 147 ftelevation
- Virginia–North Carolina lineState line · Mile 187 · 2 h 56 min 139 ftelevation
- Fayetteville, NCMile 317 · 4 h 57 min 101 ftelevation
- Lumberton, NCMile 349 · 5 h 28 min 129 ftelevation
- North Carolina–South Carolina lineState line · Mile 368 · 5 h 45 min 145 ftelevation
- Florence, SCMile 403 · 6 h 17 min 142 ftelevation
- Santee, SCMile 469 · 7 h 17 min 137 ftelevation
- Charleston, SCMile 535 · 8 h 21 min 10 ftelevation
Typical weather by month
Average daily highs and lows, and monthly rain, at Washington, Richmond and Charleston.
| Month | Washington Reagan National Airport station · 10 ft | Richmond 164 ft | Charleston 40 ft | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High / low °F | Precip (in) | High / low °F | Precip (in) | High / low °F | Precip (in) | |
| Jan | 45° / 30° | 2.9 | 48° / 29° | 3.2 | 60° / 39° | 3.4 |
| Feb | 48° / 32° | 2.6 | 52° / 30° | 2.6 | 64° / 42° | 3.0 |
| Mar | 57° / 39° | 3.5 | 60° / 37° | 4.0 | 70° / 47° | 3.4 |
| Apr | 68° / 48° | 3.2 | 70° / 46° | 3.2 | 77° / 55° | 3.3 |
| May | 77° / 58° | 3.9 | 78° / 56° | 4.0 | 84° / 63° | 3.3 |
| Jun | 85° / 68° | 4.2 | 86° / 65° | 4.6 | 89° / 70° | 6.2 |
| Jul | 90° / 72° | 4.3 | 90° / 69° | 4.4 | 91° / 74° | 6.6 |
| Aug | 88° / 71° | 3.2 | 88° / 68° | 4.9 | 90° / 73° | 7.0 |
| Sep | 81° / 64° | 3.9 | 81° / 61° | 4.6 | 85° / 68° | 6.0 |
| Oct | 69° / 52° | 3.7 | 71° / 49° | 3.4 | 78° / 58° | 4.3 |
| Nov | 58° / 42° | 2.9 | 60° / 39° | 3.1 | 69° / 47° | 2.7 |
| Dec | 49° / 35° | 3.4 | 52° / 32° | 3.5 | 63° / 42° | 3.4 |
NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020: WASHINGTON REAGAN AP (USW00013743, 10 ft); RICHMOND INTL AP (USW00013740, 164 ft); CHARLESTON INTL AP (USW00013880, 40 ft). Precipitation is the monthly total of rain and melted snow, in inches. “—” means the station does not publish that normal.
Road conditions
Closures and chain rules change by the hour, so we link to the official reports for District of Columbia, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina rather than repeat them.
- District of Columbia · DDOTDDOT traffic advisories and closures
- Virginia · VDOTVirginia 511 road conditions
- North Carolina · NCDOTDriveNC road conditions
- South Carolina · SCDOT511SC road conditions
Check the official National Weather Service forecast and each state's road report before you leave.
Get alerts timed to where you’ll be when you get there
Road Travel plans the drive from Washington to Charleston with the forecast at every stretch for the hour you’ll reach it, then warns you about weather ahead while you drive.
Questions about this drive
How long is the drive from Washington to Charleston?
535 miles, about 8½ hours of driving without stops, by way of I-95. Fuel, food and rest stops add to that.
What is the wettest month in Charleston?
August. Charleston averages 7.0 inches of rain and melted snow that month (1991–2020 normals).
How cold is Charleston in January?
Charleston averages a high of 60°F and a low of 39°F in January (1991–2020 normals).