Forum Discussion

MudChucker's avatar
MudChucker
Explorer
May 15, 2017

Trip Planning, Canada and USA

Planning a trip this august, not our usual month long adventuresonly 15 days on the road this time out.

Im pretty good with things to do with the Canadian portion of the trip, but this time we are planning to take the USA route home.

My Wife and I are in our late 40's and are traveling with a 10 year old...

comments / suggestions things to do regarding the route through the USA ?

Over night locations / camping suggestions as well.

We usually plan on about 8 hours of driving time per day - not necessarily all in a row. We usually like to spend the night wherever we stop for dinner.

Link to first draft of our route
Roads and Routes

8 Replies

  • MudChucker's avatar
    MudChucker
    Explorer
    May 16, 2017
    padredw wrote:
    DrewE wrote:
    One obvious place to consider is Yellowstone. Yes, it's popular and often crowded during the summer, but it's also a beautiful and geologically unique place. You would be well advised to make reservations as soon as possible for camping in or near Yellowstone.

    You're also passing pretty close to Glacier National Park and to Teddy Roosevelt National Park with your proposed itinerary.


    I had the same thought--plus the possibility of dropping down to the area around Rapid City, SD: Custer State Park, Iron Mountain Road, Needles Highway, Rushmore.

    We followed your route across North Dakota from West to East, coming up from South Dakota (as above). We stayed at Medora for a visit to the South Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, and at Mandan (Bismark) at the Fort Lincoln State Park for a visit to the Lewis and Clark sites in the area.

    The area of Minnesota around Detroit Lakes was one of our favorite stops on our trip, with its lakes and forests.


    Cheers, thanks for the your comments... didnt even think about Rushmore.
  • MudChucker's avatar
    MudChucker
    Explorer
    May 16, 2017
    Matt_Colie wrote:
    Mud,
    If any of you are interested in museums, the Museum of the Rockies in Boseman MT is a "Don't Miss". I grade attractions if miles of diversion that they should not be missed. MotR is about a 100 mile museum. Not just for the dinosaurs, but for every thing else as well.

    Matt



    LOL, my friends call me Mud, when I saw that I wondered if we knew each other personally.

    Museums, Railway and American History are top of the list. Thanks for your advice.
  • MudChucker's avatar
    MudChucker
    Explorer
    May 16, 2017
    Artum Snowbird wrote:
    Curious as to why you are visiting Bowser? I live near there, and if it's where you are going for good reason, I would strongly suggest you stay on Vancouver Island and then catch the Coho ferry off from Victoria. One real positive with this route is if you arrive about 30 minutes after the last ferry of the evening leaves Victoria, they will let you stay in their parking lot in downtown Victoria and camp for free until the morning ferry takes you to Port Angeles. The overall trip is quite ambitious for two weeks, lots of driving and not much time to relax and enjoy it.


    I have family in Bowser I havent seen in 20 years, figure its about time ;)

    thanks for the info regarding the ferry, we have been wondering about reservations etc. I dont recall a campground near horseshoe bay...
  • Matt_Colie's avatar
    Matt_Colie
    Explorer II
    May 16, 2017
    Mud,
    If any of you are interested in museums, the Museum of the Rockies in Boseman MT is a "Don't Miss". I grade attractions if miles of diversion that they should not be missed. MotR is about a 100 mile museum. Not just for the dinosaurs, but for every thing else as well.

    Matt
  • padredw's avatar
    padredw
    Nomad
    May 16, 2017
    DrewE wrote:
    One obvious place to consider is Yellowstone. Yes, it's popular and often crowded during the summer, but it's also a beautiful and geologically unique place. You would be well advised to make reservations as soon as possible for camping in or near Yellowstone.

    You're also passing pretty close to Glacier National Park and to Teddy Roosevelt National Park with your proposed itinerary.


    I had the same thought--plus the possibility of dropping down to the area around Rapid City, SD: Custer State Park, Iron Mountain Road, Needles Highway, Rushmore.

    We followed your route across North Dakota from West to East, coming up from South Dakota (as above). We stayed at Medora for a visit to the South Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, and at Mandan (Bismark) at the Fort Lincoln State Park for a visit to the Lewis and Clark sites in the area.

    The area of Minnesota around Detroit Lakes was one of our favorite stops on our trip, with its lakes and forests.
  • Artum_Snowbird's avatar
    Artum_Snowbird
    Explorer
    May 15, 2017
    Curious as to why you are visiting Bowser? I live near there, and if it's where you are going for good reason, I would strongly suggest you stay on Vancouver Island and then catch the Coho ferry off from Victoria. One real positive with this route is if you arrive about 30 minutes after the last ferry of the evening leaves Victoria, they will let you stay in their parking lot in downtown Victoria and camp for free until the morning ferry takes you to Port Angeles. The overall trip is quite ambitious for two weeks, lots of driving and not much time to relax and enjoy it.
  • DrewE's avatar
    DrewE
    Explorer III
    May 15, 2017
    One obvious place to consider is Yellowstone. Yes, it's popular and often crowded during the summer, but it's also a beautiful and geologically unique place. You would be well advised to make reservations as soon as possible for camping in or near Yellowstone.

    You're also passing pretty close to Glacier National Park and to Teddy Roosevelt National Park with your proposed itinerary.
  • MudChucker's avatar
    MudChucker
    Explorer
    May 15, 2017
    Worth noting, I am very flexible on the route through the USA - it was chosen by google maps. We will have 5 maybe 6 days to play with during the track back across the USA.

    the girls like Malls... I like shooting stuff and the odd campfire ;)

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