Our USA Rocky Roadtrip

[queenie82]

Ok...just gotten onto this...
I may be lazy PrincessinOz but I wasn't in the country when your little 'comment' was made. I'll get to it....eventually...

On first glance I'm not sure that's enough time in Yellowstone...and I'm not sure you need that much time around Custer.
However, there are some places on your list I'm not sure of how much time you need in so I'm disinclined to tell you where to 'decrease' time.
Nor have I studied distances.

Otherwise it looks as insane as ours did.
As official driver I will tell you day after day of driving is tiring. I did days up to 9 hours.
I was also without a toddler :
But the roads are generally pretty good so as long as you get a good sleep and breakfast it does afford you seeing lots of places.

Best of luck and I'll have a bit more look at a map when I can...

 

[queenie82]

Just something I thought I'd mention. When we went to Yellowstone we stayed in West Yellowstone for a couple nights. Deciding where to base yourself is a tough thing. As romantic and idyllic as it sounds in theory, staying at old faithful inn just wasn't happening. In the oldest part you have wafer thin walls and no private bathroom. The newer parts you don't get the 'magic' but pay a hefty price for tiny rooms.

In West Yellowstone we stayed at 3 bear lodge. In the newly rebuilt lodge part. Not the motel. It was lovely. One of my favourites. One of the great things was they have a room with 3 queen beds. So there was SPACE!!! Oh so welcome. It is 2 stories so if you are on the upper floor you need to carry your bags upstairs but we managed and it was well worth the effort.
The other great thing is their restaurant!!! I highly recommend this. We ate there for dinner and breakfast. Staying at the lodge you get a discount coupon for breakfast. Great food. You can get game if you want such as a Bison burger. I had the beautiful pork chop for dinner and breakfast ;-)

Hope all your planning is going well. Just was remembering this place so I thought I'd mention it.

 

[skiingfast]

Any recommendations?

Happy for comments, suggestions, warnings, etc...

Sep 22 Salt Lake City. Arrive around 1pm
Sep 23 Jackson
Sep 24 Yellowstone NP
Sep 25 Yellowstone NP
Sep 26 Missoula
Sep 27 Missoula
Sep 28 Glacier NP
Sep 29 Glacier NP
Sep 30 Helena
Oct 1 Bozeman
Oct 2 Sheridan
Oct 3 Custer NP
Oct 4 Custer NP (go via Badlands NP to Hot Springs)
Oct 5 Hot Springs
Oct 6 Cheyenne
Oct 7 Steamboat Springs
Oct 8 Steamboat Springs
Oct 9 Vernal
Oct 10 Fly to Los Angeles around 8pm

Why stay in Helena, Bozeman and Sheridan
I don't know how much you like to drive in a day, but the speed limit is going to be 75mph most of the way and you can make it from Glacier to the Black Hills in a day. Although it depends on where you want to stop along the way to see things that will increase the daily travel time.

Missoula? Do you have relatives there? A better stop if you need one between Glacier either coming or going is Butte, which is a historical mining town.

On first glance I'm not sure that's enough time in Yellowstone...and I'm not sure you need that much time around Custer.

I would echo these comments a bit.

Remember Yellowstone is huge and there is a lot to take in. I could easily make a list of must sees and should tries that is quite long. And if you want to hike there are some short walks that I like and long hikes to be had too. It's a really nice thing to do in the parks because most visitors only go 100 meters from their car when they visit.

Similarily there can be a lot to do around Jackson Hole and in Grand Teton National Park. So that can be a good place to spend an extra night. Also lots of guest ranches as the fancy ones like to call themselves and dude ranches as the rustic ones call themselves.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Shushh...Just noticed this thread on the CB...might be of interest to you.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2627415

 

[shushh]

PIO thank you for the link!

Skiingfast and Queenie thanks for the comments. We've jiggled the itinerary somewhat. Cutting down one day in Missoula and adding an extra day at Yellowstone. We looked at driving from Glacier straight to Custer but I think it will be a long stretch for the kiddies. We've found a ranch near Great falls and from there we'll drive straight to either Sheridan or Buffalo, and so skipping Helena and Bozeman. We've booked accomodation right up to the ranch and are now looking into the second half of the trip in more detail. It was a relief to get accommodation for Yellowstone and Glacier.

Thanks again all! You've made the planning just that much easier.

 

[skiingfast]

I'm going to throw a little kink into your plan. If you need to break up the drive from Glacier to Custer. Just south of Interstate 90 on the stretch between Butte and Bozeman, if you go about 5 miles south of the Freeway on I think it would be Montana Highway 2 which follows the Jefferson River.

There is a great place for kids. It's called Lewis and Clark Cavern State Park. I went when I was about 10-12 years old. Fully a walking tour the cavern has some really fun features in it.

http://fwp.mt.gov/parks/visit/lewisAndClarkCaverns/

Also Butte, MT where I-15 and I-90 meet is a nice historical mining town. Granted Oz has lots of mining so it may not be unique for you.

Still you can see these sites going a little less direct but effectively faster so similar drive time going from Great Falls to Sheridan.

Just some fun things to get you out of the car.

 

[shushh]

Thank you once again! We are always on the lookout for places to stop along the drive.

I take it that Lewis and Clark caves is not the same as (ie not within) Lewis and clark National Forest which is just below Great Falls? We were thinking of going towards Sheridan via 87 or the road that goes through Lewis and Clark National Forest rather than I-15 and I-90. Do you think this is a bad move? On google maps (yes highly reliable source I know...) this route saves us about 1 hour and 40 minutes of driving.

Also do you have any preferences or thoughts with regards to Billings, Sheridan and Buffalo? We will just be stopping for the night and then moving on towards Custer. My personal preference is to get as close to Custer as possible ie Buffalo, but I am very open to suggestions!

 

[skiingfast]

Thank you once again! We are always on the lookout for places to stop along the drive.

I take it that Lewis and Clark caves is not the same as (ie not within) Lewis and clark National Forest which is just below Great Falls? We were thinking of going towards Sheridan via 87 or the road that goes through Lewis and Clark National Forest rather than I-15 and I-90. Do you think this is a bad move? On google maps (yes highly reliable source I know...) this route saves us about 1 hour and 40 minutes of driving.

Also do you have any preferences or thoughts with regards to Billings, Sheridan and Buffalo? We will just be stopping for the night and then moving on towards Custer. My personal preference is to get as close to Custer as possible ie Buffalo, but I am very open to suggestions!

I understand that your intent is to take US87 near Lewis and Clark National Forest at an angle across Montana from Great Falls into Wyoming. But I will say in Montana the speed on that route won't be much slower than Freeway(Interstate speed). So it is like a half day drive.

So if you go South on I-15 and across on I-90 you will add a couple hours. But you can take a couple more hours to see the cavern which will be great to break up the drive. You could even stop in the historical mining town of Butte, Mt, but you may of see a place like this in Oz. It will make for a full day but you will feel like you saw something. If you take the shorter way you will see nothing great. A bit of a toss up. Probably depends if you want to get up, get going or spend time at the guest ranch.


As far as Billings, Sheridan and Buffalo, you might find this funny. The water in Buffalo sucks. Billings is kind of a industrial town. It has oil refining there so that might take away from the experience. Sheridan though is quite nice. pleasantly sized. Kind of small town with amenities. I once considered moving there because of a job opportunity. It has a nice city park along a creek and a Walmart. I had dinner a long time ago. Great restarant. Maybe the name is Olives or Olvia's tried to search for it but not sure. They had plates like hub caps. If you stay there you might ask about this.

 

[skiingfast]

Seperate post because it's for a slightly seperate topic.

From Sheridan(?) to Hotsprings.

You might want to take a 2 hours side trip to Devils Tower National Monument. You can see it from the freeway so might feel guilty passing it by.

Also Wall Drug near the Badlands. You will see hundreds of signs for it so might feel guilty if you pass it up. It's the ultimate tourist trap with souvenires galour, might add 1 or 2 hours.

But adding these to the Badlands will make for a long day, with a mix of heavy stops at sights and lots of driving. Worthwhile though because you might feel bad if you pass these up.

 

[shushh]

It is time to resurrect this thread! DISNEYaddict4evr and skiingfast, your input would be greatly appreciated here.

We are spending 2 nights around Custer National Park. So the obvious things we'll be doing include Mt Rushmore, Needles Highway, wildlife loop and windcave NP if we have time. When we leave, we will detour to Badlands before heading for Hot Springs.

Quick question re accomodation:
What are the lodges like in Custer National Park, the reviews seem pretty average. The one we were considering was creekside Lodge. Was also thinking about staying at Keystone. Do you think that this would be too far?

Also do you that any of the chuck wagon dinner type places stay open until October? Unfortunately, most of the ones we've looked at so far which are recommended only operate until September.

 

[DISNEYaddict4evr]

It is time to resurrect this thread! DISNEYaddict4evr and skiingfast, your input would be greatly appreciated here.

We are spending 2 nights around Custer National Park. So the obvious things we'll be doing include Mt Rushmore, Needles Highway, wildlife loop and windcave NP if we have time. When we leave, we will detour to Badlands before heading for Hot Springs.

Quick question re accomodation:
What are the lodges like in Custer National Park, the reviews seem pretty average. The one we were considering was creekside Lodge. Was also thinking about staying at Keystone. Do you think that this would be too far?

Also do you that any of the chuck wagon dinner type places stay open until October? Unfortunately, most of the ones we've looked at so far which are recommended only operate until September.

Lets see where to begin...

First on your way to the Black Hills I would recommend stopping at Devils Tower (Close Encounters of the Third Kind Movie), it is a bit of a drive off the interstate at Sundance, but worth the drive.

Second, Creekside Lodge is the newest lodge in Custer State Park, very very nice. Plus the remolded Game Lodge is right next to it with great dinning, not the best but a good value.

Third, I would look at going to Jewel Cave of Wind Cave. THe elevators have been under repair as of late so you will want to check that before you make your decision. Jewel is the second longest cave in the world and has much larger rooms than Wind Cave, plus much larger and wetter formations, plus lots and lots of calcite crystal

Keystone, is a quaint town, but I don't know If I would stay there. VERY touristy. HIll City is much more artsy I would stay there. But really if you Want to hit up the Badlands I would stay a night in Rapid City and leave from there. the Badlands in an hour and a half drive just from Rapid City, and Hot Springs will be another hour drive. I will worn you you are cramming quite a lot into two days. There is TONs to see here, you may be wishing for more time.

As per the chuckwagon places, I'm not sure to be honest. I have never been Fort Hays would be the best bet I think, but you might be out of luck.

I have alo spent much time in Yellowstone, Glacier and the Tetons. So feel to to fire an other question my way. I am actually heading to WY for a long weekend to check out Yellowstone again myself.

If you type up your itinerary for the Black Hills and be specific I can tell you if it is doable and how crunched for time you will be

I have actually done the drive form Utah many times so if you like I can look at your whole schedule and give my two cents. what can I say I like adventure and travel

 

[DVCAustralia]

It is important to remember that the time allocated by Australians often has to be different from that locals may recommend as we are travelling a much longer distance to get there and spending much more time and money to do so.

Having done this area in the same month last year as part of a drive from Chicago to Salt Lake City, I think you have allocated your time well. We spent two nights in Rapid City and we managed to fit everything in that we wanted to do.
Custer State Park was a major highlight of the trip. I would highly recommend the Wildlife Loop Road, early morning is wonderful as there were no other cars and the wildlife were abundant, particularly the buffalo. Also the Needles Highway and Iron Mountain Road drives were well worth it, and you can use them to transit the park anyway. Mt Rushmore is a must do obviously, and you can see Crazy Horse as you drive along the road without having to pay the ridiculous charges.
Badlands National Park was also a highlight, and doing it in the afternoon meant that we were able to enjoy a wonderful sunset towards the end. We did a loop by driving along I-90, turning right into the park near Wall, driving through the park, and then exiting the 'main entrance' back onto I-90 to get back to Rapid City (as this drive back along I-90 can be done in the dark).
I must say that I would recommend that the caves be given the lowest priority, particularly with younger children, as we have caves like those at Jenolan Caves so close to Sydney and they are much more spectacular. In relation to Wind Cave we rushed to do the tour and found it very disappointing. In relation to Jewel Cave, due to being given incorrect information when we arrived we could not do the tour (whilst this wasted some time we much preferred doing Badlands NP that afternoon instead).

 

[shushh]

Thank you DISNEYaddict4evr and DVCAustralia for your input. All the various points have been duly noted into my spreadsheet...I will post my itinerary up again for comment! At the moment things are fairly loose. It is a balance between seeing all the major "must-sees" and playing it by ear so we can relax and enjoy the road trip. Touring time, unfortunately, can't be helped as we couldn't take the children out from school for any longer without feeling guilty!

 

[shushh]

So here's the rough plan:
22-Sep-11 Arrive into Salt Lake City, UT. Whirlwind sightseeing and crash at 6pm.
23-Sep-11 Leave for Jackson, WY. Explore GT NP. If time permits and not too tired Fossil Butte NP.
24-Sep-11 Yellow Stone NP. We'll be based at West Yellowstone, MT for the next 3 nights.
25-Sep-11
26-Sep-11
27-Sep-11 Drive to Missoula, MT. Afternoon to explore town.
28-Sep-11 Head towards Glacier NP. We will be at St Mary, MT for the next 2 nights.
29-Sep-11
30-Sep-11 We have a ranch stay booked at Ulm, MT. Still not sure how early we would like to leave for the ranch. Will depend on how much more of Glacier NP we got/didn't get to see!
1-Oct-11
2-Oct-11 Heading to Sheriden/Buffalo. Route as yet undetermined! Little Big Horn
3-Oct-11 Leave for Custer early in the morning. Will have the rest of the day and the next to explore Custer NP and the region
4-Oct-11
5-Oct-11 Will head towards Badlands NP and then onto Hot Springs for the night
6-Oct-11 Cheyenne
7-Oct-11 Steamboat Springs
8-Oct-11
9-Oct-11 Vernal
10-Oct-11 Drive towards SLC for our flight into LA

 

[DISNEYaddict4evr]

So here's the rough plan:
22-Sep-11 Arrive into Salt Lake City, UT. Whirlwind sightseeing and crash at 6pm.
23-Sep-11 Leave for Jackson, WY. Explore GT NP. If time permits and not too tired Fossil Butte NP.
24-Sep-11 Yellow Stone NP. We'll be based at West Yellowstone, MT for the next 3 nights.
25-Sep-11
26-Sep-11
27-Sep-11 Drive to Missoula, MT. Afternoon to explore town.
28-Sep-11 Head towards Glacier NP. We will be at St Mary, MT for the next 2 nights.
29-Sep-11
30-Sep-11 We have a ranch stay booked at Ulm, MT. Still not sure how early we would like to leave for the ranch. Will depend on how much more of Glacier NP we got/didn't get to see!
1-Oct-11
2-Oct-11 Heading to Sheriden/Buffalo. Route as yet undetermined! Little Big Horn
3-Oct-11 Leave for Custer early in the morning. Will have the rest of the day and the next to explore Custer NP and the region
4-Oct-11
5-Oct-11 Will head towards Badlands NP and then onto Hot Springs for the night
6-Oct-11 Cheyenne
7-Oct-11 Steamboat Springs
8-Oct-11
9-Oct-11 Vernal
10-Oct-11 Drive towards SLC for our flight into LA

I think your plan looks great! You will have a fantastic time. GNP is my absolute fav NP I have visited. Be prepared the day you leave and drive to Sheridan will be a long day ad well as the drive from Sheridan to Custer. can't wait to hear about your trip. Are you going to do a TR?

 

[shushh]

I'd like to thank everyone again for their help and input with this trip. We're a little disappointed in that we seem to have missed all the round ups by about a week, but we're still very excited about exploring the region. I just hope that the snow doesn't decide to arrive early while we're in the mountains!

Most things are sorted I think...but things are still crazy. Disney store, Land's End and Amazon purchases made. US phones and internet sorted. However, my to do list is still so long! Will be leaving very shortly for Canberra for the next 2 days, and then away for the weekend for a church camp. 3 more work days and then we fly out! Hurray!

Ok, Miss Shuttergirl see you in a few hours!

 

[Aussie Wendy]

Have a FANTASTIC trip-and I eagerly await the TR/blog and pics. This is a trip I would love to take one day- it looks like you will have done most of the planning for me!!

 

[Mum from oz]

I have to admit, I'm pretty jealous cause that trip sounds amazing. You will be seeing sooo much! You better keep us updated with blog posts!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Have a great trip!

How did the meet with shuttergirl go?

 

[shushh]

Thank you girls for the well wishes! But we need to stop giving each other travel envy! I was rather jealous reading about everyone's TRs. It appears that there are always things that you didn't get to do, or places you haven't been or places that you want to visit again! Mum from Oz I was especially envious of your cruise.

It was lovely meeting up with Ms Shuttergirl. She was wonderful bubbly and bright and so vibrant! The hour just went by so quickly. Yes I am still kicking myself for not taking a photo....

I am rather glad that I am not on a bus on the way home to Sydney. It means that I can't do anything else but sit down. THe mind though is racing. I have to pack tonight for the weekend away and then unpack and pack again for our departure on Thursday. Then add in all the other little things on my to do list. Ok going to shut the eyes now and try to relax...