Roads within Yellowstone okay for towing travel trailer

Wishin wrote:

CloudDriver wrote:
Just curious, what route were you planning to get from Grand Teton to the Badlands?

We were spending the next night at Devils Tower, had not planned out that route yet exactly.

If you are heading east, you'll hit Devils Tower before you hit badlands. We did Grand Teton, Devils Tower then Badlands on our last trip after having done Mt. Rushmore on the way out.

Just saw your post above my previous.

DW and I stopped at the Ingalls Homestead near DeSmet a few trips back. Your daughter will love it. The Surveyor's House is in DeSmet and several of the Ingalls family members as well as the Boasts are buried in the cemetery. Not sure whether that would be appropriate for a 10 year old though.

CloudDriver wrote:
Just curious, what route were you planning to get from Grand Teton to the Badlands?

We were spending the next night at Devils Tower, had not planned out that route yet exactly.

X2 on a number of points made above.

IMO you do not want to tow a 29 ft trailer over the Duraven Pass between Tower and Canyon. Steep and curvy.

The easiest way to Fishing Bridge from Glacier is route 191 from I90 to West Yellowstone. From the West Entrance go to Madison, up to Norris, across to Canyon and down to Fishing Bridge.

From Fishing Bridge south to West Thumb and on through the South Entrance to Grand Teton will be no problem. All the roads in grand Teton are in the Jackson Hole Valley between the mountains, so are an easy drive.

Many folks do the Badlands as a 1/2 day drive through. In the summer the Badlands are hot and there is no shade. Also, the Badlands will seem tame after seeing Glacier, Yellowstone and Grand Teton. An extra day at Yellowstone would be much better than an extra day in the Badlands.

Just curious, what route were you planning to get from Grand Teton to the Badlands?

cubmaster252 wrote:

Wishin wrote:
Our initial thoughts were to come in the north entrance and go thru Tower Falls then to Canyon and see what we can along the way with the trailer if possible. Maybe it would make more sense after your comments to do that route the next day without the trailer. We only have 2 nights here, at least that is the current plan. We plan to leave out the south entrance.

Will we at least be able to use some of the pull-outs that I assume will be along the roads with the trailer?

4 nights at Glacier, 2 at Yellowstone, 3 in the Tetons, 2 at the badlands, and many other nights along the way. 17 days total.

There is no way to spend enough time at all places, but we'll have a great time I'm sure. Glad to hear we can take all the main roads in Yellowstone with the trailer. Hoping to see stuff on the way in, and on the way out, as we might as well enjoy the drive since it sounds like it will be slow going anyway with all the traffic.

Thanks for all the advice so far.

We did a similar trip last summer, Cleveland to Yellowstone, down to Grand Teton and back through the Badlands. If you are doing the Badlands last, take that down to just one night and add a night in Yellowstone if you can. You can enter the Badlands from the Wall Drug exit, drive all the way through and stay at the Badlands KOA on near the East Entrance. You will regret doing two nights there and short changing Yellowstone.

Are you doing Mt Rushmore on the way out? The Mount Rushmore KOA is top notch as well. Tons for the kids to do, really close to the monument.

Since we are starting at Glacier, we're going thru Minnesota to visit family for part of a day and traveling thru North Dakota and spending a night at Theodore Roosevelt NP. We'll be doing Mt Rushmore on the way back then get to the Badlands late in the day and will leave very early 2 mornings later so we'll really only be in the Badlands for 1 day where we can do anything. My daughter is 10 and has been reading all the Little House books, so we're making a little time to hit some of that stuff on the way back too, which messes up the timing a little and why we ended up with 2 nights at the Badlands. Otherwise I'd probably add a night to Yellowstone. Each family has their preferences on what they like to do, and talking to others that have been there, I think we'll enjoy Glacier and the Grand Tetons more than Yellowstone which is why they are getting more nights. No matter what, we won't be able to see everything. We've done other trips where we only got a glimpse of something really neat that we did not expect, and it requires another trip at a later date. It would be nice to make it a 3 week trip, but it isn't feasible.

Like all above mentioned the roads are just fine. When you get to the gate you can check on the construction areas to avoid. The side roads that restrict large vehicles are well marked. That said. If you really want to enjoy Yellowstone and have access to many of the areas with very small turnouts, try leaving the rig in West Yellowstone and renting a car from Big Sky Rentals just across from the Yellowstone museum. We rented a van for our two rig party and had a blast. They also have an attached mechanic shop which saved my vacation when the a/c compressor gave out on the Adventurer. Nice people. Back to your trip, the street in that area is exceptionally wide, there is a dirt lot next door that we parked the rig in waiting for service. I would think you could just leave it there for the day and rent a car and have a lot more fun touring. JMHO, Happy Trails.

Wishin wrote:
Our initial thoughts were to come in the north entrance and go thru Tower Falls then to Canyon and see what we can along the way with the trailer if possible. Maybe it would make more sense after your comments to do that route the next day without the trailer. We only have 2 nights here, at least that is the current plan. We plan to leave out the south entrance.

Will we at least be able to use some of the pull-outs that I assume will be along the roads with the trailer?

4 nights at Glacier, 2 at Yellowstone, 3 in the Tetons, 2 at the badlands, and many other nights along the way. 17 days total.

There is no way to spend enough time at all places, but we'll have a great time I'm sure. Glad to hear we can take all the main roads in Yellowstone with the trailer. Hoping to see stuff on the way in, and on the way out, as we might as well enjoy the drive since it sounds like it will be slow going anyway with all the traffic.

Thanks for all the advice so far.

We did a similar trip last summer, Cleveland to Yellowstone, down to Grand Teton and back through the Badlands. If you are doing the Badlands last, take that down to just one night and add a night in Yellowstone if you can. You can enter the Badlands from the Wall Drug exit, drive all the way through and stay at the Badlands KOA on near the East Entrance. You will regret doing two nights there and short changing Yellowstone.

Are you doing Mt Rushmore on the way out? The Mount Rushmore KOA is top notch as well. Tons for the kids to do, really close to the monument.

I would recommend you enter YNP through West Yellowstone, MT and cross the center of the park to reach Fishing Bridge. As stated I would avoid Dunraven Pass. All of the Grand Loop Road is doable, some areas just better than others. Pull outs are available in the park. They are of all different sizes. Some paved some not. With only two days you will be busy trying to get it all in. But using your tow vehicle you should be able to hit the high spots.

Our initial thoughts were to come in the north entrance and go thru Tower Falls then to Canyon and see what we can along the way with the trailer if possible. Maybe it would make more sense after your comments to do that route the next day without the trailer. We only have 2 nights here, at least that is the current plan. We plan to leave out the south entrance.

Will we at least be able to use some of the pull-outs that I assume will be along the roads with the trailer?

4 nights at Glacier, 2 at Yellowstone, 3 in the Tetons, 2 at the badlands, and many other nights along the way. 17 days total.

There is no way to spend enough time at all places, but we'll have a great time I'm sure. Glad to hear we can take all the main roads in Yellowstone with the trailer. Hoping to see stuff on the way in, and on the way out, as we might as well enjoy the drive since it sounds like it will be slow going anyway with all the traffic.

Thanks for all the advice so far.

Stay out of Glacier with the trailer, which shouldn't be a problem, since there is at least one lovely campground very close by. Use the shuttle bus in Glacier.

Yellowstone and Grand Teton, on the other hand, shouldn't be a problem, as long as you leave the trailer in the campground. The main roads are great, side roads, as mentioned, not so much.

You are going to love all three parks. They are beautiful. So much to see, be sure to take your time, and I hope you have the time to explore them thoroughly.