Salt Lake City to Pacific NorthWest and back

obgraham wrote:
Seattle in an RV will just mess with your mind! If you want to do the Boeing tour anyway, though, drop your RV before you get into Seattle traffic and take the truck. Issaquah, if you come in from the East, before Tacoma if you use I-5.

Thanks. Yes, we would leave the trailer, probably in Portland. Unless we should spend two days in the Seattle area, then we'll be looking for an overnight spot. We'll want to see Mt. St. Helens. Anything else?

Seattle in an RV will just mess with your mind! If you want to do the Boeing tour anyway, though, drop your RV before you get into Seattle traffic and take the truck. Issaquah, if you come in from the East, before Tacoma if you use I-5.

From the posts so far, it looks like a good loop would be Salt Lake City to Portland, taking two nights to follow Hwy 26 to the Dalles and on through the gorge. Then a couple nights in Portland, then over to the coast for a couple nights, and then south to Northern California for a few days, and back to Salt Lake. There's an easy 10 day loop. From Northern California, back to Salt Lake City, would it be better to head back to I-84, or head towards I-80? That would probably determine whether or not we stuck Crater Lake in the mix.

Randy:

Redwood National and State Parks are in extreme North California. They are only an hour's drive South of Southern Oregon. Lots of scenic drives and short hiking trails among the spectacular trees. Your kids will enjoy it and none of the hikes are difficult. Have a safe trip!

How far north can we see Redwoods? Are there groves in Oregon, or would we have to travel south into California?

Personally I'd pick one and not try to do it all. Personally I would take I84 towards Portland and would get off at Ontario and pick up Hwy 26. I'd stop at John Day and check out the Chinese Museum and the fossil beds. I'd continue on 26 to Hwy 97 when I would go north to catch I 84 again and then west, making sure to stop at the dam and the falls. I'd continue on Hwy 30 to the coast for a Lewis and Clark history lesson. Next I'd drive down the coast to the Redwoods, stopping at any of the wonderful Oregon beaches. Id go east after that to Grants Pass and then take a slight detour to check out Crater Lake Its still a lot of travel for such a short time, and if you could possibly add 4 more days, you won't be sorry. I'd spend a full day exploring the John Day area, even going toward La Grande to pan for gold. I'd spend a full day on the Columbia, checking out the sites, I'd spend a full day in Astoria area just to see everything, and I'd spend at least one day at one of Oregons beautiful beaches. I'd also spend some time in the Redwoods and at Crater Lake. Happy travels.

Wow, 2400 miles is more like 50 hours of driving for us. I should have checked the mileage first, and I would have known that a full loop was a little ambitious. So, let's narrow it down to just the North West. We have been to San Fran before and visited Muir Woods, so the kids have had a taste of Redwoods, just not the ones you can drive through. I have a friend in Portland we will want to spend a few days with, and will probably see Seattle with him. I'll add the Boeing Plant to our list. We'll have a dually with a 30 foot 5vr.

I think you and the family will have a much enjoyable RV trip with your new adusted plan. We always go over to Seaside beach to spend a couple of weeks each year and only 2 hrs. west of Portland. Very accessible beaches. :)

Wow, 2400 miles is more like 50 hours of driving for us. I should have checked the mileage first, and I would have known that a full loop was a little ambitious. So, let's narrow it down to just the North West. We have been to San Fran before and visited Muir Woods, so the kids have had a taste of Redwoods, just not the ones you can drive through. I have a friend in Portland we will want to spend a few days with, and will probably see Seattle with him. I'll add the Boeing Plant to our list. We'll have a dually with a 30 foot 5vr.

Is this possible in a week? or 10 days? Highlights we don't want to miss are Columbia River locks and fish steps, Salmon fishing, Oregon coast, crater lake, redwoods. Please give me more ideas not to miss, best routes, etc. This is your chance to plan our trip. Probably in July. Kids are 14, 11, 7 and 4.

Hello Randy,
Your trip is very enthusiastic. I assume you are driving a RV of some kind as opposed to a car. The question you have to decide is "What kind of RV experience do I really want"? A marathon or a more leisurely enjoyable RV experience.! What do you want to do once you get to each of your points of interest?
Some food for thought:
1. In general, most RVers typically drive 4 to 5 hrs. per day, 6 to 7 hrs. per day is doable but will physically take a toll. You will be actually driving about 5 days for the round trip. 6 or more hrs. per day will also be hard on the kids as well.
2. You might consider just doing the Oregon part of your plan and do the San Francisco trip on another trip or vice versa. Personally, I live 4 hrs. from S.F. and would not tow my RV there, too much traffic and limited RV parks. Another alternative would be to do all your Oregon plans, then take a plane from Portland to S.F., rent a car, find a hotel, then explore S.F.
Just some thoughts, let us know what you end up doing:)

Google maps says 2.405 miles, 35 hours of driving. It's certainly possible, but probably a lot of actual driving for a week, better with 10 days. Highlights might be a blur?