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Toppdogger's avatar
Toppdogger
Explorer
Aug 14, 2016

Route from Florida to Yellowstone last week in Sept

We are planning our 1st big trip from FL to Yellowstone, the last week in Sept with our 40ft coach, and towing a jeep. We will be staying a Madison campground. Which is the best route to go, trying to avoid the stress of narrow roads, sharp turns and steep inclines?

How many hours a day do you drive when you are going cross country?

Will we have to winterize our RV for a week?

Thank you in advance for sharing your experiences!
  • Get yourself a Motor Carrier's Atlas to find which roads are approved for the 18-wheelers. I would stick to the Interstate as much as possible. In your case, after checking Google Maps, it appears you can do your entire trip on the Interstate.

    Can't speak of the entire Yellowstone area but when we were there the end of Sept we learned that the town of West Yellowstone closes up shop the first of Oct. Nice thing is most shops will have their stock on sale before closing up for the winter.

    You won't be winterizing as your MH will be in use. Be prepared for the park's water pipes to freeze during the night so you'll have to use your on-board water. As I recall we had low temps around 28*. And drain the water out of your hose to prevent it from freezing. Once the sun comes up things should law out.

    How far we drive each day depends on if we are racing the clock to get somewhere. We went from Tucson to Tampa in four days doing over 500 miles each day. Some days we might only do two or three hundred miles. Depends on what we're doing.
  • Hi! We have the same set up, and we have been traveling back and forth from AZ & IN to Yellowstone for 4 years. We work here during the summers! So, while we haven't traveled here from the SE, I would still recommend either coming from I 10 through Nevada and up I 15 all the way through UT & ID, and then take HWY 20 at exit 19 in Idaho Falls all the way to the west gate of the park in West Yellowstone. Madison CG is about 14 miles from the west gate.
    If you go north before NV, I would get up to I 80 at least in NE, and take it all the way through Wyoming to get to I 15 in Utah and then up from there.
    These aren't the quickest ways, but they keep you near diesel truck stops and off of winding mountain roads.
    I 40 is another possibility, if you choose this, I would recommend taking it through Kingman and then going over the Hoover Dam and connecting up with I 15 that way.
    The more travel time you allow yourself, the less stressful the trip!
    The weather out west is still mild in September unless you're at high elevation. The Park averages 8000 feet elev. and we can have snow any day of the year. (we don't usually, but the opportunity is there) You won't need to winterize, but I would recommend an electric water hose like pirit or heat tape for the water hose. If it does get into freezing temps at night, just don't connect the sewer, and pull the hose out to dump as needed. Madison doesn't have hookups, so you won't have to worry about that there.

    Hope this helps. - Lori