We are in the planning stage of our west coast. We want to visit the following: Great Basin NP, Kings/Sequoia NP, Yosemite NP, Lassen Volcanic NP, Redwood NP, Crater NP, Olympic NP, Mt. Ranier NP, Cascades NP, West Glacier NP, Theodore Roosevelt NP.. We enjoy sight seeing, hiking, canoeing, horseback riding, have no time table but would like to start at the first park around late May 2017. We will be coming from NY on I-90 west to I-80, to I-76. One of my questions is, are we going to get tired of all the Redwood/Sequoia trees, are these NP's going to start to look alike after awhile? Any NP's we should skip? How much time to spend at each park? Things not to miss?I am looking forward to seeing these beautiful trees and the surrounding area, looking forward to West Glacier and TR NP.We will be traveling with our truck camper.

"are we going to get tired of all the Redwood/Sequoia trees, are these NP's going to start to look alike after awhile?"======================================================Nope, you'll see Redwoods in Redwoods NP and Sequoias in Yosemite (in a few places) and Sequoia/King's Canyon. None of the others have any that I know of. And no those parks won't start looking alike. The only parks that fall into that category for use are the Indian Ruins parks which start with Gila Cliffs and finish at Mesa Verde. The cliff dwellings start to blur together. But you aren't going to any of those.As for Parks to skip, unless you are using US 50, Great Basin is far away from anything else. It does have the caves that are worth seeing and some nice hiking trails. Hwy 50 is a good drive tho but not close to the west coast. We have not been to Cascades, the only one on your list that we still have to visit. But I don't recall very many posts about it here, meaning that it isn't that popular. But that may not be a bad thing. We weren't all that impressed with Theodore Roosevelt but that probably was our fault as we just did a drive thru.As for time, I cannot think of a park that we left feeling that we spent too much time there. This is especially true if you get out of your car and go hiking. I'd say 2 or 3 days at each park minimum, with the option to extend a stay if you want to do so. I'm not sure why you are taking I-76 unless you want to go to Denver. If you stay on I-80 you will pass within 30-45 minutes of Devil's Tower which is worth a hike around the base of the tower. Probably 3 hours total to and from I-80. interesting than I expected. Maybe 90 minutes total to see it. I'm not sure how you plan to get to North Dakota on that route tho.

National Parks are extremely popular.I suppose one could read that as crowded.Unless you have reservations for a campsite well in advance, the likelihood of finding one is bleak at best.Once reservation windows open up on website portals, there are people who make those reservations the minute they do open.....months in advance of their arrival times.I would strongly suggest you concentrate your efforts on making any campsite reservations NOW and figure out your routes later.

You might consider making a big loop. I would add Mt Rushmore and Yellowstone on my way to the West. Don't forget the Oregon State Parks which are some of the best in the country and far better than most NP's - if it were me I would rather spend time on Oregon Coast than Lassen or Olympia NP's - if you can do both great. On the way home you should consider adding grand canyon and maybe zion/bryce nps - monument valley would also be a nice addition.

Maybe plan a month on Oregon. Coast alone can take two weeks. Then you have Oregon trail heratige sites, the Oregon Alps, Central Oregon with its calderas, lava flows white water rafting, caving and at least one great museum. Yes, I said calderas. CRATER lake is only one. Newberry Caldera is another one.

My Rainier NP has 3 CGs WHITE RIVER, COUGAR ROCK, AND OHANAPECOSH. White is first come first serve. Great CG, perfect for TCs. If you like big trees GROVE OF THE PATRIOTS in Mt Rainier NP is great. Got to visit Oregon Coast from North to South. Best CGs in the US. WASHINGTON coast has great CGs also. Long Beach, WA Is great. Westport,, Wa is great fishing town for fresh Crab and Salmon. Olympic NP at Kalalock is great for beautiful ocean views. In Oregon check out Trillium Lake and Timothy lake CGs near Mt Hood. Very clean CGs for Forrest Service CGs. In central Oregon great CGs in the Cascade Lakes Highyway loop, near Bend Or. Also Newberry National Volcanic Monument is must see also Crater lake NP. HOWEVER CRATER LAKE NP opens mid Summer. If you plan thing right there is RAZOR clamming in Washington coast in late winter to early Spring. Need to check WSDFW for opening dates.

Planning the Great West Coast trip | Good Sam Community

22 Replies

clarkster
Explorer
Jan 09, 2017
National Parks are extremely popular.

I suppose one could read that as crowded.

Unless you have reservations for a campsite well in advance, the likelihood of finding one is bleak at best.

Once reservation windows open up on website portals, there are people who make those reservations the minute they do open.....months in advance of their arrival times.

I would strongly suggest you concentrate your efforts on making any campsite reservations NOW and figure out your routes later.
agesilaus
Explorer III
Jan 09, 2017
"are we going to get tired of all the Redwood/Sequoia trees, are these NP's going to start to look alike after awhile?"
======================================================
Nope, you'll see Redwoods in Redwoods NP and Sequoias in Yosemite (in a few places) and Sequoia/King's Canyon. None of the others have any that I know of. And no those parks won't start looking alike. The only parks that fall into that category for use are the Indian Ruins parks which start with Gila Cliffs and finish at Mesa Verde. The cliff dwellings start to blur together. But you aren't going to any of those.

As for Parks to skip, unless you are using US 50, Great Basin is far away from anything else. It does have the caves that are worth seeing and some nice hiking trails. Hwy 50 is a good drive tho but not close to the west coast.

We have not been to Cascades, the only one on your list that we still have to visit. But I don't recall very many posts about it here, meaning that it isn't that popular. But that may not be a bad thing. We weren't all that impressed with Theodore Roosevelt but that probably was our fault as we just did a drive thru.

As for time, I cannot think of a park that we left feeling that we spent too much time there. This is especially true if you get out of your car and go hiking. I'd say 2 or 3 days at each park minimum, with the option to extend a stay if you want to do so. I'm not sure why you are taking I-76 unless you want to go to Denver. If you stay on I-80 you will pass within 30-45 minutes of Devil's Tower which is worth a hike around the base of the tower. Probably 3 hours total to and from I-80. interesting than I expected. Maybe 90 minutes total to see it.

I'm not sure how you plan to get to North Dakota on that route tho.

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Planning the Great West Coast trip

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