National Forest campgrounds are cheaper than state parks or national park campgrounds.

Most state parks or national parks will cost between $10 and $30 per day.

You are going that close to Denali and only going as far as Anchorage?

I think you really need to whittle down what you are actually going to see/do instead of randomly driving around. What are your plans in Alaska, for instance?

I would probably just tackle on or two states at a time.

You need to look at ExpeditionPortal.com. It is where people publish questions and reports about trips like you are planning, especially when you have 4x4 interests and the desire to boondock. There are a fair number of trips over the ground you want to cover, even winter ones.

I am working on a trip now that would cover a lot of the ground between the Mexican border and the Canadian border on secondary roads -- no Interstates at all -- and have found a lot of good material there. Their forums are especially good for checklists of equipment and supplies.

My only question about your trip from fairly heavy study of the different ways to get through Colorado is that you are swinging a long way out of your way to go to Denver, and you know, Denver isn't really that great.

I think there are a few issues that you will need to consider if you are going out to the wide open spaces for the first time. The first is that there are still quite a lot of places where you can't get a reliable cell phone or internet signal. How will you stay in touch? What will you use for a GPS if your phone/iPad isn't going to work? Second, you need to know that you will need a special card from your insurance to drive in Canada. Third, is your vehicle in top shape, can you carry extra water, food and fuel safely on your tires or will you need to upgrade? Fourth, a lot of people in the boonies have firearms for protection against critters. You can carry licensed rifles and shotguns into Canada but you can't take in a pistol, licensed or not, without going through a lot of trouble. And there is no place in a vehicle you can stash one that the border authorities do not know about. So even if you have a license to carry, leave it at home.

This leads me to a final point. You use the word "pothead" in your query in a funny way. I am sure there are plenty of potheads and ex potheads on this list, but believe me it is not a word you ever want to use anywhere near a border nor do you want to do anything that suggests you are a doper and might be carrying dope. Skip the reggae caps and dope decals. You don't want to get turned down at the border, and even more you don't want some Customs or DEA guy on either side of the border making you empty everything out of your vehicle so they can tear it down. Again, there is nowhere you can stash that they won't find. I am not a smoker so I don't know how long a drug dog can smell it in your vehicle, but I wouldn't allow any dope or pipes or anything in the vehicle itself for a long time before I was crossing in either direction, even if that inhibits your recreational life. Remember, you have no right to enter another country, and in practice, you can be turned back for any reason including the border authority not liking the way you look.

Just check out the Expedition Portal and use some common sense, and you will be fine.

I would get a good map of the area you are planning to travel through and look at where the places you most want to see are, then plan a route so you don't backtrack if possible. Then go to one of the mapping sites like googlemaps or mapquest and put in locations so you can plan the trip with reasonable days on the road. I find that if a National Park is a destination the mapping sites work faster if you just put in a near by town rather than the NP.

If you plan on more than a couple NPs do get a park pass ($80 for a year for all parks or if you are over 65 $10 for a lifetime).

Go to www.nps.gov to find out what is available for camping on public areas. Bureau of Land Management also has sites where you can camp for free but some need a permit and most have no facilities.

If you are in Alaska before mid September, do go to Denali.

I know you mentioned the Million Dollar highway, and somewhat close by just outside of Almont (which is between Gunnison and Crested Butte) is the Taylor Park Reservoir. I know I've seen lots and lots of 4x4 up there.

Not sure of the size vehicle you will be driving, but the Going to the Sun Road (the scenic road which connects the west and east sides of the park) in Glacier National Park has size restrictions. If you are too large, you'll have to drive around the park via highway 2.

http://www.hikinginglacier.com/glacier-going-to-the-sun-road.htm

I would skip Death Valley in the summer. It will be miserably hot.

Lee Ann

Look at theconstantrambler.com

They did a road trip from Key West to Dead Horse Alaska, starting in November. Somewhat similar route there and back, it should go give you some ideas. You can search for the thread they have on here about planning. I don't remember their profile name but I think it was Lauren_bassert or similar. If you search for Dead Horse or the constant rambler it should show up in the results.

Oregon awaits you. Pot, boondocking, and 4x4 central.
Camping on BLM land is free, usually primitive campgrounds,
but lots of lakes, big volcanoes, and plenty of space to 4x4.
Come visit us in Ashland. Top of the green triangle.
If I was as far west as Grand Junction, I wouldn't head clear back to Denver, as another poster also said. You want to be IN the mountains, not driving along I25 up the front range looking
at them.

Thanks so much everybody for all of your info..... Lots to consider, Denver may be out of the question but ill be sure to keep you posted!!!

Here's a blog you may enjoy that explains the allure of boondocking in the West.
http://wheelingit.wordpress.com/2013/02/03/why-boondocking-rocks-in-the-west-and-why-this-land-is-still-yours/

This trip sounds ambitious but so much territory covered, i.e., driving time. We moved recently from Missouri as oldsters and over many years did much sightseeing, often with tent, camper or trailer. I don't see mention of your gear. I dubious about the idea of just boondocking most of the way. We did camp in many a state park, national park or other inexpensive locale. Maybe you are OK with pitching a tent and grubbing it.

In a longer post Ackislander has pointed out a few concerns. I am wondering who the "we" is in your group and who is planing this...any youngsters? Point being what exactly do you want to see which makes more sense than marking out a route.

Bill in Boston

The first point to cover is the vehicle. You will be driving a minimum of 5,000 miles so you need a vehivle with lots of life left in it. We drove a Ford Exploder from Seattle to Ft Lauderdale towing a trailer and ended up buying a used Jimmy in Childress Texas when the Ford did what Fords are known for.

Kaatzgar, not the FoundOnRoadDead thing?

What have you budgeted for this trip? Gasoline around $1200. Campsites even if you only pay about 1/3 of the time another $500. Food and drink even if you live on just 10 bucks a day per person will start around $1200 for two. Toll roads, park admissions etc, extreme lowball starting estimate would be $5000.

no no, the rebuilt dodge one