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Corndawg75's avatar
Corndawg75
Explorer
Jun 09, 2014

Mt. Rushmore to Yellowstone

My wife and I are in the process of planning our trip out west to Yellowstone. We are planning on stopping by Mt. Rushmore on the way out west. I looked up directions on google, and some of these roads have more twist and turns than last years Christmas lights. What is the easiest route. We will be pulling a 35' 5th wheel. We were planning on coming in the east entrance since our first stop is the fishing bridge rv park.

8 Replies

  • Have done 14 several times. Always during the day. Sign at the top of the pass says "Steep Grade Next 18 Miles". Got a picture of the sign twice. Just take it slow. Last two times was with a 34 and 33 ft. gas motorhome towing. The stop at Shell falls is a great break and terrific view. It did not drive as windy as it looks on Streets and Trips.
  • SNOPRO711X wrote:
    sclark wrote:
    I90 to Buffalo. Take rt 16 over Bighorn mountains. Head west to Cody. Enjoy the views.


    X2

    I have done this route several times, it has some twists and turns and some grades but is very do able. 16 is a much better choice than 14 to get over the Big Horns.


    While we stayed on I-90 longer and crossed over Bighorn mountains on 14 fine in our 32' non towing MH just fine I tend to agree 16 would be better for a rig as long as yours. We did it after dark so there was nothing visually to make 14 frightful and I think we only met three vehicles while on 14 so that was a plus and were not passed either. I remember not braking was required by gearing down. We slept at the WM in Cody.

    The roads in the park seemed more like interstates but we toured the park over two days doing a loop a day on park buses and that was an awesome experience for me the driver as well as for the kids.
  • SNOPRO711X wrote:
    sclark wrote:
    I90 to Buffalo. Take rt 16 over Bighorn mountains. Head west to Cody. Enjoy the views.


    X2

    I have done this route several times, it has some twists and turns and some grades but is very do able. 16 is a much better choice than 14 to get over the Big Horns.


    While we stayed on I-90 longer and crossed over Bighorn mountains on 14 fine in our 32' non towing MH just fine I tend to agree 16 would be better for a rig as long as yours. We did it after dark so there was nothing visually to make 14 frightful and I think we only met three vehicles while on 14 so that was a plus and were not passed either. I remember not braking was required by gearing down. We slept at the WM in Cody.

    The roads in the park seemed more like interstates but we toured the park over two days doing a loop a day on park buses and that was an awesome experience for me the driver as well as for the kids.
  • SNOPRO711X wrote:
    sclark wrote:
    I90 to Buffalo. Take rt 16 over Bighorn mountains. Head west to Cody. Enjoy the views.


    X2

    I have done this route several times, it has some twists and turns and some grades but is very do able. 16 is a much better choice than 14 to get over the Big Horns.


    X3 - We went over the Bighorn Mountains and through Shell Canyon years ago towing our then 29' TT with an F250 V10. DH did a wonderful job, up and back down. We stopped at the top at Burgess Junction, toured the visitor center and had lunch in the parking lot before heading down the other side.

    We would do it again with our current rig.
  • sclark wrote:
    I90 to Buffalo. Take rt 16 over Bighorn mountains. Head west to Cody. Enjoy the views.


    Yes, good route. Fuel up in Buffalo fuel station are far apart. Indian camp rv park Buffalo is a nice park. Best restaurant in Cody is the WY chop house.
  • sclark wrote:
    I90 to Buffalo. Take rt 16 over Bighorn mountains. Head west to Cody. Enjoy the views.


    X2

    I have done this route several times, it has some twists and turns and some grades but is very do able. 16 is a much better choice than 14 to get over the Big Horns.
  • I90 to Buffalo. Take rt 16 over Bighorn mountains. Head west to Cody. Enjoy the views.
  • Anything directly from the Black Hills to Yellowstone is going to have twists & turns because it's crossing the Bighorn mountain range. If you want to avoid that, stick to I-90. More miles, but much flatter. You WILL have some twists & turns going into Yellowstone from almost any entrance except the west, and once within the park there are some as well, though nothing as extreme as you'd encounter in the worst of mountain driving. (The Bighorns are worse than YNP, trust me.)

    You might consider doing a search on this forum about Yellowstone & Black Hills - there have been a ton of people asking about these routes, and just about as many answers! :)