Key West or Out West

We went to CO last year at the last minute. Granby CO. 20 minutes south of RMNP. Nothing was closed, but we needed to get passes for RMNP for a certain time to get in. IDE say you'll be better off with a western trip, lots of options to do at the last second.

Ditch Key West and Go West Young Man!!!

I try to make reservation at National Parks or at BLM/NFS campground 6 months out. I need reservation for my large 5er. That is July 26 now. Otherwise I dry camp without reservations.

Not much to do in Key West except get drunk and see the sunset. Try the 5 NP in south Utah for something to really do.

I am leaving from TN mid-May for YS, Canada Rockies (????) and WA/OR. Return mid-August. 10,000 miles and 14 weeks round trip.

Just FYI, many places out West will still have snow in May -- it depends on the year and how much snow we get. June is great -- all of the waterfalls are running.

So once you get to Key West then what? So much more to do traveling west, touring the west. Not sure how much time you have, but we took a month to go see Grand Canyon, monument valley, Rushmore just to mention a few. I’d say we need 2-3 months at least to see it all. Of course we only travelled 200-250 miles a day to prevent burn out.

I’d love to head out in may sometime

Make each kid find a place they want to visit. Use that as the outline.

Frankly, Key West is more interest to adults than kids in my opinion - and better beaches at Panama City, Fort Myers, even Daytona.

We made a three month trip last summer from TX to AZ. (We have a granddaughter who lives with her mother in a north Phoenix suburb. Messy angry divorce. Our choices to visit her were limited.)

NM is a big question mark for 2021 IMHO - we had them cancel several state park reservations - and cost me $70 in lost reservation service fees.

Folks on another forum taking about current CA RV quarantine. You can go through the state, staying 1 or 2 nights in a CG, but to explore, you need to stay 14 days in self-quarantine in the first camping location in the state that you visit.

I would not plan to go to that state in 2021. Maybe not AZ, and it was HOT. And at 114 degrees, I don't care if it is dry heat - it is an oven.

Joke in Texas is that if you want to camp where Texans do in the summer - go to Colorado - over 5,000 ft elevation.

We NEVER book in advanced unless it is a National Park or somesuch. If we want to stay at a commercial camp we call and hour or so before we get there to get a spot. That failed once during our 7500 mile trip and that was right outside West Yellowstone. And we got our second call there.

But with three weeks and leaving from VA your choices are limited if you really only have three weeks. I suggest CO, meaning the Rocky Mountain NP and Great Sand Dunes with an outside possibility of Mesa Verde. You just don't have time for more unless you plan to spend two weeks driving and one week doing.

As for temperature, remember that north and altitude equals cooler summer temps. AZ and southern UT equal HOT with some high altitude exceptions. CO, MT, ID and the Dakotas are cooler.

woodtrucker wrote:
So do I need to pre book the trip? That’s really only thing west worries me about.
Other than that, I think we can burn 3 weeks but that’s about all the time we’ve got.

When are you going? If it's summertime then I'd say no to Key West unless you like the heat. We've gone out west multiple times and that would be my vote. If you are going during peak I would definitely book in advance. When all of us animals get uncaged finding places to stay could quickly become problematic. Keep in mind "out west" is a long drive from VA. It is doable to hit a lot of places just to see them but it's much more relaxing and fun to spend more time at fewer spots. I've done both-you "see" but don't "SEE" much.

Are the kids up for a big bunch of driving before you get out West? Distances are great. And remember it can get hot in the Southwest in the Summer. The Rockies, Colorado and north, will be enjoyable in the Summer.