Planning a trip Yellowstone, Mt Rushmore, Deadwood Etc.

[Gundog]

This summer I plan to pick up my Mother (85) and my step Dad in our MH to make it easy for Mom to travel. Mom lives in N. Idaho so we will be traveling through Montana. What time of year is best? What should we plan to see other than what I listed? Do I need advanced reservations at RV parks I am guessing yes? I plan to pull our Chevy Tahoe to sight see.

In 2014 I traveled through this area in early June and we hit a lot of rain I would really like to go with better weather but I am thinking middle June or August I have other trips planned between those dates.

We live in SW Washington State about 7 hours from Mom.

Thanks for any info.
Mike

[1macleay]

My wife and I got married in Deadwood the first week of June. The weather there and back was great.
We are i Oregon.

[2manytoyz]

Went in May, many years ago. Stayed at the Mt. Rushmore KOA: https://koa.com/campgrounds/mount-rushmore/

What we weren't expecting was freezing weather and snow in May! The week prior to our trip was much worse. The snow plowed off the main roads was higher than our full sized van.

Snow was starting to melt during the day, and still hovering around freezing at night. Campground was almost empty. We had a popup. I used the heatstrip in the A/C, and a space heater to stay "comfortable".



June or later would likely be better. This was a decent campground if you find camping at the parks full.

[LindaAnn]

Gundog wrote:
It has dawned on me I have never planned a trip like this before and I am almost 60. All our RV trips have been short with a single destination camping, Disneyland to the coast Etc. Do you use a trip planner to plan your stops? We plan to do more of this in the future so I am curious when some of you plan trips across the Country how do you plan it or do you just take off and look for a place to stay when you are tired?

We are planners! We start out by deciding what places we want to see along the way. I do some internet research of places we want to see. Then we reserve RV parks ahead of time at or near those places. We've taken several long trips and almost everything has worked out. My husband is a retired trucker, so he knows most every highway in the country. I put our itinerary on the computer and print it to keep in the loose-leaf notebook I take with me and write in along the way--things we have seen or done.

I also go to a website (thefitrv.com) Do a search for 'checklists' and you can print lists for everything you might need to take for the trip.

Yellowstone is awesome..we stayed at Grizzly RV, in W Yellowstone, which is just a couple of miles from the entrance to the park...and near that entrance is a Ranger station where you can get info and maps.

Deadwood is a neat town...lots of old Western history...and if you go to Devil's Tower, there is a KOA RV park RIGHT at the entrance.

For Mt Rushmore, we stayed at the KOA in nearby Hill City. There is beautiful scenery in Custer State Park, with lots of buffalo...and a Bear Country park you can drive through and see bears, wolves, etc.

I have probably written too much, but long trips can be as fun as they are challenging. I know many folks like to "wing" it, but I'm always afraid I will miss something if I don't do a little planning ahead.

Enjoy your trip!

[Chuck___]

I live in Salem, Oregon and retired two years ago. Like a lot of RV'ers we are find out that it is a must to do your homework before heading out. I do not like staying over night at Wal-Mart type parking lots or some named RV Park that is one step above a home-less camp. It is getting were you need to start planning and making reservations 6 to 9 months in advanceto insure that you have a spot to stay. For example, the Oregon coast State Parks you need to book 6 months or more in advance or you will probably not get a RV site all summer long into October.

I try to make RV trips in mid September. Good weather and hopefully trying to miss the crowds.

We have been planing a trip to Utah, New Mexico, Arizona in May for a month to adviod the heat and crowds. Started planning in December of 2019 for a trip in May of 2020. Remember, every Man, Women,dog and child likes to go during the summer months because that is the only time they can take off for vacation. I hear Yellow Stone traffic in the summer months is like go through Portland,Oregon or LA during rush hour.

[Gundog]

Some good info here thanks I never thought about the Sturgis rally and the impact it would have we will plan around that time period.

[Iraqvet05]

We went to that area last year. I back-tracked to the Bad Lands and I'm glad we didn't stay the night near Wall. We stayed in Custer (Peacock Meadows CG) and the drive back to the Badlands wasn't that bad. We stayed an hour and a half tops in the Badlands and 2 hours in Wall...the kids just didn't seem to get into either place so we had plenty of time to go get dinner in Rapid City before heading back to Custer.

[Jim2007]

Hi. Yellowstone is a very popular national park.. so make reservations a couple of months ahead.. we like June to visit yellowstone.. Jim2007

[rgatijnet1]

After the Sturgis rally, as I mentioned, the rates drop dramatically at the RV parks. The downtown RV park charged us $100 for a 7 day week, full hook up, 50 amp service, and it was not crowded. The prices may have gone up since our last trip there. The park closes at the end of September and they spend that month closing things down. It was a great place to venture out from to see the sights in our toad as just about everything was with a few hour drive.

[BUB1988]

For an easy to use planner we use RVparky. You can plan your stops and then each stop shoes you the camping opportunities, reviews, ratings, and cost. You can also add in your vehicle for average fuel mileage. So you get an idea of total miles your trip is and fuel cost estimate.

[GTO66]

Sturgis will be larger this year as it's the 80th year. I waited to long to make my reservation so unless a cancellation comes it will be another year for me. If I didn't ride I would avoid that time of the year....

[Bob___Ann]

Mike
We like to head out that way in as early spring as possible. One time we got to Colter Bay in the Tetons on Memorial day which is when they open. Yes you can get into snow but it melts pretty quickly that time of year. We had three inches Memorial day and several other nights but the roads were in great shape by 10 AM. It is best if you can do your trip before the schools in that area get out for the summer which is typically late June. You can see more, get around faster and enjoy more wildlife not to mention it being cheaper. As stated above you don't want to do South Dakota in August especially this August. It is some big Sturgis anniversary and they are expecting even bigger crowds. Definitely would not be an enjoyable time to go. We do make reservations for out destination locations but not for the overnight travel sites. You need to be making your reservations as we speak as things fill up fast.You will be glad that you made the trip. We took my 90 year old Mom through New England for a one month trip. She had a blast and we will remember it forever. Take it from me, do it while you and they can, you will be glad you did. Enjoy

[Lwiddis]

Too much planning, Gun, cuts down on the fun for me.

[Bill_Satellite]

You will want to add Devil's Tower to that trip as well.
I don't recommend Yellowstone during the Summer. If you can go before or after you will have a much better experience. If you want to join the other 1,000,000 visitors who will find all the animals have retreated to the hills, make your reservations NOW!

[rgatijnet1]

The Sturgis South Dakota motorcycle rally is August 7-16. Things start getting crowded on the roads around that area 2 weeks before and about a week after the rally.
It is not just motorcycles. There are many RV's and other vehicles going there and there will be crowds around Rushmore, Deadwood, Devil's Tower, Badlands, etc.
We usually got in to that area about 7-10 days after the rally and found plenty of room at the RV parks and no big crowds at the various sights. In fact we found some great prices at the downtown Sturgis RV park(Closes the end of September), which was a good place for us to use as a parking place and use the toad to travel to Deadwood, Rushmore, Devil's Tower, Badlands, Needles, etc.