Need RV trip recommendations

Hi. We have traveled to YNP and Grand Teton NP about 5 or 6 times, most recently in our 27 foot RV. If you are new to the national parks, especially YNP, keep in mind that you are traveling through the
WILDerness, and therefore the creatures are WILD, and not tame. To start, as noted by another, make your reservations ASAP, you are already kind of late. Yellowstone is huge, larger than a couple of New England states combined, so it will take some time to see it. Plan your trip so that you see one area completely before dashing off to another spot in the park. Plan for traffic jams when animals are close to or are on the road. If you see a bunch of cars pulled over and people looking at something, stop where you can safely pull completely off the road, and check it out. If you see a ranger pulled over with the others, they are probably watching a bear.

Speaking of bears, learn about bear safety before you go. Remember, bears can and will rip the doors off cars to get at something that smells good to them. So, when you check into a lodge, don't leave food, toothpaste, perfume, or anything smelly in the car. Be cautious of food crumbs in the car. If hiking, go in groups and make noise while on the trail. If you spot a bear stay well back and do not attempt to get in close for a camera shot. Use a zoom lens. If you are really hiking in the back woods, talk with a Ranger about bear siteings and consider taking some bear spray with you.

Other big animals can be dangerous too, especially if there are young amimals with them. Sometimes they can be very close to the walkways and trails. Avoid the urge to get too close.

Plan for cold weather even in June, so take some cold weather gear for all. We have been there one June and awakened to a big snow storm, so the Rangers kept us in-place until the roads were able to be cleared. In June of 2013 it dropped to freezing a couple of nights.

As noted by other posters, plan on interrupted cell phone service, and you may not have internet access.

If you have completed YNP and time permits, do drive a couple of hours south to the Grand Teton NP. The town of Jackson is immediately south of the park, and offers much to see and do as well. Do consider taking a raft trip down the Snake River, and you might see some wildlife on the banks of the river and nesting eagles in the trees or circling over head. Consider taking a boat across Jenny or Jackson Lake (can't remember which), and taking a moderate hike to hidden falls or higher up to a panoramic view of the lake. Check out the areas surrounding the Moose Visitors Center, to spot for (what else?) Moose.

If you have more time, consider driving out the East entrance of YNP and visit Cody. It is a true old western town with a fantastic museum, the Buffalo Bill Museum. It is actually several museums in one large building and it is affiliated with the Smithsonian. Check out the Irma hotel, and consider the rodeo.

Lastly, consider flying in and out of Salt Lake City. Rent you car there and in only a few hours you can drive to Jackson Wyoming via Idaho Falls.

Best wishes on your trip.

Completenoob wrote:
What an amazing forum! Thank you everyone for the extremely helpful advice!!

In light of all your feedback, we decided to fly to Yellowstone and rent a regular (non-RV) car. We've been wanting to visit there for the longest time, and are really into seeing some wildlife.

I realize it's now technically out of scope for this forum, but would love any recommendations for a 10-14 day trip with kids in the Yellowstone area (Non-RV). Ideally we'd love to combine wildlife with other kid-friendly activities.

I love Yellowstone (and most of the other NPs out west). While we did rent a trailer for our 5500 mile roadtrip loop last year so we wouldn't have deal with multiple tents being setup for a few days at a time both my wife and I grew up making similar trips with our families and knew what to expect.

You're doing yourself a service by taking a nice chunk of time out there. June can be wonderful sunny and warmish (upper 70's), or you can be snowed on 8 days in a row like we were last year, so pack a variety of clothing.

The Park is very large so you can save yourself some driving time by moving from one hotel/lodge to another every few days then focusing on the features of that area of the park. Driving between one or two junction points on the figure 8 road takes a lot less time then trying to make the whole loop on multiple days.

Bring good hiking shoes if you like to walk. Despite the chilly weather and some trails being closed by snow we still put in over 100 miles of hiking (with a 6 year old walking and a 2 year old on my back). Lots of great scenery, waterfalls, wildflowers, wild-life (be bear/bison safe), and solitude/tranquility available. Be careful, don't cross fences/walls and stay on trails in steep or hydrothermal areas. There are plenty of places where a trip or mistep could lead to a serious injury or death (we were present in visual distance when a woman fell to her death a few years ago).

Take advantage of the ranger programs. If your kids are young enough, they'll likely enjoy the junior ranger program. There are also a couple junior scientist programs at Yellowstone that may be of interest to slightly older kids. The regular day and evening ranger programs are almost always interesting and the ranger led hikes can be great as the information content is adapted to wildlife which come out and the questions of the hikers.

Other things to do near the park include visits to (or staying at) the Tetons just South of YNP, driving the Beartooth Highway, visiting Cody (excellent museum complex, and a Rodeo which I haven't attended but which also has generally positive reviews), horseback riding, rafting, boat rentals/fishing, chuckwagon dinners, etc.

If you want to stay in the park get those reservations in now, if available. My daughter & BF are headed there end of July/August & what they were after in the park is already booked. They are also doing 2 week Denver rtn Denver car trip.

What an amazing forum! Thank you everyone for the extremely helpful advice!!

In light of all your feedback, we decided to fly to Yellowstone and rent a regular (non-RV) car. We've been wanting to visit there for the longest time, and are really into seeing some wildlife.

I realize it's now technically out of scope for this forum, but would love any recommendations for a 10-14 day trip with kids in the Yellowstone area (Non-RV). Ideally we'd love to combine wildlife with other kid-friendly activities.

10,12 hr you can be in myrtle beach there are a bunch of ocean front campgrounds Pirate land,Lakewood are 2 with great stuff for the KIDS wildlife trips are cool however the KIDS will love floating in lazy rivers and pools and you can walk out your camper and be at the beach in 2 minutes and there is lots to do around the whole area you will never hear I'm bored 1 time except for the ride there and home here's some links http://www.pirateland.com/ and http://www.lakewoodcampground.com/ and http://www.oceanlakes.com/
also these places have rental cabins/travel trailers

Since you are looking at flying & renting try not to be too ambitious. Closest city with RV rentals is most likely Denver. It is not like getting a rental car & off you go. Figure on pretty much a whole day taking possession of the RV the heading off to a market to stock up & get whatever else you could not bring with you.

Our first RV experience, with early teen children, was out of Denver. Arrived the night before & only got as far as Colorado Springs first day after getting supplies.

Yellowstone/Grand Teton is at least a long day & a half from Denver. Distances out west tend to be huge.

Another thought, rather than rent an RV and take it somewhere, is to rent a trailer at an RV park. Most of those will be stocked with pretty much what you need. This will give you a good feel for what's needed without making a huge investment plus you will have a vehicle to drive places. Matt has some very valid points. There's a lot more too it than just driving somewhere. Gear, close quarters, ability to sight-see, age of kids, interests and abilities all come into play. The RV lifestyle is great-some on hear jumped in head first, and some started with tents and pop-ups before upgrading to a large unit. I admire your enthusiasm and wish you all the best but respectfully suggest you do some more review of your plans.

I hate to say that you are being unrealistic, but I am afraid that is the case. You say that this is your first RV trip even and you want to head out for two weeks? You may love it. You may also hate it. Find out first. There are some real and important things you have to understand. (Like how to dump a black tank.) Out in the west, it is easy to end up with no cell coverage and notice I haven't even mentioned data or TV coverage.

Please, save Yellowstone for next year. Rent an RV close to home and go to upper New York or there abouts. As a city person, you might be very uncomfortable in the wilds. When you get away from the east coast megapolis, a lot of things disappear. Like all night delies. Lots of things actually close in the evening. There is little or no public transportation.

In a days drive from NYC you can get to either Boston or DC. Get a big USA map and look at it. In a days drive from Yellowstone, you can get easily nowhere. Yes, there are settlements all over, but some towns on a map are little more than an gas station and a post office. (Just like northern NY or the back of Maine.)

What Do I Know? I am a refugee from that megapolis. DW and I both got our first bachelors in the east and then we left. We do go back. We even have taken the RV back there.

Matt

I doubt you will see much in the way of wildlife anywhere near the east coast. There are semi-wild horses at Assateague.

I beg to differ. Shennandoah National Park is loaded with wildlife. There are whale watching, puffin and seal cruises off the northeast coast. Deer abound in this area. Moose are often seen in ME, VT, AND NH. No wildlife? Pshaw. And then there's the Adirondacks right in NY.

To the OP-I agree with the line of thinking that you should rent locally and try it out for a weeken first. Another thing to consider, is how do you plan on sight-seeing or going places? A unit sized to your needs and comfort level wouldn't be easy to negotiate on many roads. There would also be the hassle of packing up every time you left to go anywhere. I also agree with how expensive it would be to fly the family out west, rent, and then fly back. If you've got the money, great, but I might rethink it from a financial standpoint.

There are RV parks right outside of Yellowstone that have sites for larger RVs. Make your reservations as soon as possible. There is a very large one in West Yellowstone. Yellowstone is an amazing place and well worth the trip. While you are there, you can see the Tetons.