Traveling Out West

Welcome, the answer to all your ?'s is in the search box at the top. Use the advance search and select the correct forum... Like roads and routes.

Another option is to go to Trip Advisor clicky and look up those areas for both campgrounds and sights to see. Once you decide which places you want to see, go to Mapquest clicky and insert your destinations. Mapquest lets you move the route around too if you want to go through a different area.

Flying J and other major truck stops have websites that will tell you where to find their plazas. Good Sams also has a trip planning section on their website http://www.goodsamclub.com/travel/

Get a copy of Mountain Directory West to help plan your route.

For fuel, diesel in my case, I use a combo of GasBuddy http://gasbuddy.com/ & Google Earth. Gas Buddy shows where the stations & prices are and Google Earth shows what the station layout is like so I can determine if I can access the station and how to access the station. Lots of fuel stations so not a big problem.

One of the surprises of RVers from the East is the grades. Nothing to worry about until you decide to head over the Rockies. Even then take your time & if you have an RV that heats up on Grades, try to time climbing the grade in early morning hours when it is the coldest.

For places to see, I do a search on Google with the input of "things to do with the name of the location". Brings up a ton of activities.

Good luck & enjoy.
rocmoc n AZ/Mexico

I just left Cherry Creek State Park in Aurora just south of Denver. Its kind of weird to have such a country feel to a park but as soon as you leave the gate you're in big city traffic.

Its right off the interstate so getting in and out isn't too bad. You only have to put up with the traffic for a few miles.

We did a similar route in August and September, though we chose Western Colorado. Never any problem finding diesel using Gas Buddy for best prices. (We do not tow, but others have covered good advice on that aspect.)

We usually go for state and National Parks. We overnighted at Badlands NP, CG on site now has electric...then based ourselves at Custer State Park's Game Lodge CG for five days and enjoyed it a lot. Bison herds came past the fence every day, and there are lots of things to do in the area, including Rushmore, Wind Cave, Jewel Cave etc.

We spent a night at the Devils Tower's CG, dry camping, loved it; two nights near the Little Big Horn battlefield; and three nights in Cody to enjoy the town and museums. From there, we entered Yellowstone via east entrance and stayed five nights in Fishing Bridge (book early) with hookups. Don't miss Grand Teton NP. We stayed in the park at Colter bay RV for three nights, pricey but hookups and services. Snake River raft trip is great fun.

Feel free to send me a private message if I can answer any questions about campgrounds etc.

If you are new to this site you may want to try the following apps to your smart phone:

GasBuddy
My pilot
allstays truck stops
rv parky
low clearance
allstays rest stops

Be VERY careful around Mt Rushmore, as there are multiple low clearance tunnels on the roads and the signs are NP brown on the side of the road and many tourist miss them. Have seen more than one RV blocking the whole road as they got to the tunnel and realized there was NO way they would fit. Other than that it is a beautiful area with lots to see. Enjoy your vacation.

Hi Linda, Welcome to the forum although some folks here have been less welcoming! Instead of telling you to do a "search" or use an "ap", the purpose of the forum is to help with specific questions. We've all asked them and most of us answer questions asked!

So...for starters, if you could tell us a little more about yourself by stating where in Michigan you're starting from what is your tow vehicle, if you want public or private parks, any children going, time of year you plan to go, etc. I'm sure we'd be able to help you in more detail. (You might consider adding a "Profile" of "signature" to your forum setup. It really helps if we know a little more about you...)

Ivylog wrote:
Welcome, the answer to all your ?'s is in the search box at the top. Use the advance search and select the correct forum... Like roads and routes.

As the not welcoming one... I,ve learned the hard way that too many first time posters are never heard from again after you spend a lot of time answering their broad questions. When they have several posts I,ll be more welcoming. If you check how many posts I,ve written in the last year you will see (like you) I,m very willing to answer people,s questions.
Posting apps for finding fuel prices is a good way of answering their question about fuel prices. IF they come back I,ll post my favorite RV sites