Trip to Yellowstone

We drove from Maryland and back this summer basically doing your trip in reverse in 3 1/2 weeks. Three months would have been a cake walk. Our trip found us traveling 6,395 miles through 17 states, visiting 10 national parks/monuments, and 2 Native American Tribal Park. We did have some long driving days, but the parks in southern Utah all quite close together. We stayed in the same campground for Arches and Canyonlands.

We are not hikers so our visits to the various parks did not involve time for hiking. The trip is documented in the blog Arches, Geysers, and Canyons in my signature.

We did not visit a number of places on trailertraveler's list as we have been to those in the past.

Wandering rambler wrote:
...I am planning on a three months for this trip, with My D/W and me. Is this doable, in this amount of time, without being rushed. This would my first trip longer than one week. I am welcome to any suggestions...

Wandering rambler wrote:
...Just have to plan my route now...

The loop you are considering is about 6,000 miles without counting the in and around driving to sight see. At 300 miles per travel day, that would mean about 20 days of driving if all your stops were evenly spaced which they will not be. We have found that we prefer to keep day trips to under 60 miles one way so we often stop at locations less than 150 miles apart. We also don't plan on doing much in the way of sight seeing on a travel day. On short travel days we may catch up on laundry or stock up on groceries. If there is something in the area that we want to see, we will stay at least 2 nights. We don't like to travel more than 3 or 4 days in a row.

Have fun planning your trip and hope you have a Great Time!!!

msmith1199 wrote:
...I've only been there twice, once was in May and once was in August. In May we saw all kinds of wildlife. There was something to see around almost every corner. In August we saw almost no wildlife other than buffalo, and we didn't see as much of them. I'm speculating that as the weather got warmer the animals did not come out as much during the daylight hours. It also may have had something to do with more people being in the park in August and the animals shying away from the roads during that time of year.

The same with any outdoor area. When it gets warm during the day the critters shade up and take afternoon siestas. (bears follow the food and head to the high country mid to late summer) And getting away from the tourist hordes is also a part. So drive the few-off-the-beaten-track side loops early in the morning or late evening -- dawn and right after, or at sundown. If the want the good camera shots you must be adventurous and disciplined. Set your alarm for pre-dawn, dress warm (camo or earth tones preferred), and park near one of the large meadows while still dark. Get out of the car and walk to the opposite treeline away from the road. Plant yourself in a secluded location (clump of trees or brush, for example, and wait without moving or talking. Just a mile or so on a hiking trail also may also yield results -- just get away from roads and people and afternoons.

Three months is a lot of time, you should be able to see a lot. I've never taken anything longer than a two week trip in my RV. Here's my limited advice for Yellowstone. I've only been there twice, once was in May and once was in August. In May we saw all kinds of wildlife. There was something to see around almost every corner. In August we saw almost no wildlife other than buffalo, and we didn't see as much of them. I'm speculating that as the weather got warmer the animals did not come out as much during the daylight hours. It also may have had something to do with more people being in the park in August and the animals shying away from the roads during that time of year.

2gypsies wrote:
Leaving mid-April go to Arizona first and work your way north toward Yellowstone and you'll be just fine for traveling.

For the Grand Canyon plan on staying in the park itself at Trailer Village for the best experience. The free shuttle bus picks you up at the campground and you can ride all day long getting on and off whenever.

In Arizona you might consider Canyon de Chelly Nat'l Park and Monument Valley Tribal Park.

Then head into Utah for these national parks. May is a great time. Zion, Bryce, Capitol Reef, Canyonlands, Arches. Then head further north to Grand Teton Nat'l Park and Yellowstone. Then toward South Dakota.


Three months is a perfect timeframe. Have a good one!

X2

Thank you all for the great suggestions. There is a lot more to see than I expected. Just have to plan my route now.

Wandering rambler wrote:
...I am planning on a three months for this trip, with My D/W and me. Is this doable, in this amount of time, without being rushed...

Three months may seem like a long time and will be enough time for the loop you are contemplating. However, you will not have enough time to visit all the places that have been mentioned so far and have time to really see them. We have been travelling from the East Coast to the mountain states for the past ten years. We have found that 200-250 miles per day is a nice pace for us. We generally travel from 10AM-2/3PM. We generally decide where we are going to stop about noon. We always check the brochure rack at the camprounds and visitor/welcome centers and ask the folks at the campground about local attractions. We have ended up staying a week when we thought it would be an overnight.

As mentioned, much of Route 66 is now taken up by I-40 in New Mexico and Arizona. That does not mean that there is still not a lot to see. In Amarillo, there is Palo Duro Canyon State Park and the Big Texan on Old Route 66. In New Mexico, Tucumcari still has dinners along Historic Route 66 and numerous murals painted on buildings plus other attractions. Santa Rosa is another Route 66 town and has the The Blue Hole and Santa Rosa Lake State Park which has a nice campground. In Albuquerque, the Pueblo Cultural Center and Petroglyph National Monument are worth visiting in my opinion. In Grants, there is the Mining Museum. Just South of I-40 going West from Grants are El Malpais National Monument, El Moro National Monument and the Ice Cave and Bandera Volcano. Acoma Sky City is said to be the longest occuppied location in the U.S. They give tours of the pueblo and there is an RV park next to the casino.

On the way to Flagstaff along I-40 are Petrified Forest National Park, Meteor Crater and Homolovi Ruins State Park. You can stand on the corner in Winslow Arizona.

In the Flagstaff area are Sunset Crater National Monument, Wupatki National Monument, and Walnut Canyon National Monument. Sedona/Camp Verde/Cottonwood are about an hour South of Flagstaff with Montezuma Castle and Montezuma Well National Monuments, Tuzigoot National Monument, Palatki and Honaki Ruins, V-Bar-V Heritage Site, Verde Canyon Railroad, Fort Verde State Park, Cathedral Rock, Gold King Mine, Jerome State Historic Park in the area.

All this before you even get to the Grand Canyon.

We love Utah and have spent several months there over the years and still not seen it all. We have spent a couple of weeks just along the UT-12 Scenic Byway . Some of the attractions in Utah worth seeing are: Goosenecks State Park, Hovenweep National Monument, Natural Bridges National Monument, Bluff Fort, South Fork of Mule Canyon and House on Fire, Cedar Breaks National Monument, Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park, Goblin Valley State Park, Escalante Petrified Forest State Park, Kodachrome Basin State Park, Anasazi State Park, Dead Horse Point State Park, The Valley of The Gods, Edge of the Cedars State Park, Dinosaur Museum, Utah Field House State Park, Dinosaur National Monument, Sago Canyon, Monument Valley, Arches National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Needles District, Newspaper Rock, Capitol Reef National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, and Zion National Park.

As I said, even with three months, you will have to pick and choose what you will have time to see.

In my opinion you will have plenty of time with three months and you are leaving at a good time. We have made two loops from NJ to the southwest and then up to Yellowstone and Grand Teton before heading for home. We never seem to be able to get away until the second week of May and the heat in NM and AZ is too much for our comfort by the time we get there a week or so later. We like to get to Yellowstone and Grand Teton by the beginning of June to beat the crowds that show up after school gets out. We have been snowed on up there a couple of times in early June, but it melts quickly and doesn't delay driving around.

You might want to add Carlsbad Caverns in southern MN. It's a bit out of the way, but well worth the extra miles. In AZ along I40 are Petrified Forest and Meteor Crater and along route 89 north of Flagstaff, Sunset Crater volcano plus Wupatki National Monument on the way to the South Rim.

Agree with the suggestion to spend time at the Parks in UT. Bryce Canyon, Arches and Canyonlands are our favorites (so far). UT route 12 between Bryce and Torrey is one of the most spectacular drives in the west.

Leaving mid-April go to Arizona first and work your way north toward Yellowstone and you'll be just fine for traveling.

For the Grand Canyon plan on staying in the park itself at Trailer Village for the best experience. The free shuttle bus picks you up at the campground and you can ride all day long getting on and off whenever.

In Arizona you might consider Canyon de Chelly Nat'l Park and Monument Valley Tribal Park.

Then head into Utah for these national parks. May is a great time. Zion, Bryce, Capitol Reef, Canyonlands, Arches. Then head further north to Grand Teton Nat'l Park and Yellowstone. Then toward South Dakota.

Three months is a perfect timeframe. Have a good one!

You would be driving right by some of the major parks going from the south rim to Tetons. Zion, Bryce, and Arches to mention a few.

Weather may be a factor since you are starting in April, Yellowstone does get snowed in and may not be clear that early. Ditto on the SD sites.