Road Trip!! Massachusetts to Wyoming
Hello All !! Ive scanned through many of the posts already about Yellowstone, Grand Tetons, Mt.Rushmore and Glacier National becuase those are the places we all want to visit this coming June 07.
6 of us will be going on a road trip in June from Massachusetts to Wyoming and back, for 14-16 days. We obviously want to see it all, but im not sure on what we can actually get done with out rushing from place to place. Is two weeks enough time to drive out to WY and possibly Montana (Glacier NP) and back with out rushing?? Our goal is to hike ALOT and stay cheap (we were thinking at KOA sites along the way) We are all new to a road trip of this caliber so any and all advice would be GREATLY appreciated. Thank You for any help !! |
Greetings! I made a trip out from Massachusetts to Cheyenne, Wyoming (in the southeastern corner of the state) in my RV last June, though I returned in July. I mostly took I-80 west and I-70 coming back east. Total mileage was over 4,000 miles: If you make this trip in just 14 days, that's 300 miles per day, every day; adding in side-trips like Yellowstone, Montana and/or Mt. Rushmore will of course add to the drive time. So, unless 6 hours a day on the road is your idea of fun, you might want to adjust either your timeframe or your locations.
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I guess I would blast through the first 2 days and the last 2-3 days at 5-600 each. If indeed the trip is 4000, that would take care of 2000 plus of it and leave 2000 for 10-12 days. I say it is doable.
It probably does mean that you can't dilly dally around Chicago or similar places along the way. Get where you are going, explore it, get back. That being said, surely there will be time for the Black Hills, Devils Tower and some others along the way. Stop at a tourist center when entering SD and pick up their tape program and listen to it all the way across the state...outstanding! I love these type of trips...can I go? |
I also love road trips! On this trip I would skip Glacier and plan on 2 nights Grand Teton, 4-5 nights Yellowstone and 2 nights in the Mount Rushmore area. This leaves you with 2 to 3 traveling days on each side.
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Try to swing through Cody (for the museum and drive through east Yellowstone entrance) and drive the Beartooth Hwy (northeast entrance). You should be able to include both since they're on your way there/back anyway.
Have fun! :) |
It's a long way but with 6 people sharing the driving you can get farther if someone keeps driving while the others sleep. Just for getting there and the return. Then relax an enjoy the destinations. We just did a 4 wk road trip thru SD/WY/MT/Alberta Canada...glorious places Enjoy!
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I agree about skipping Glacier on this trip. The Black Hills, Yellowstone and Tetons will more than fill your time. If you are planning for this coming June, now is not too early to be checking on reservations, even for camping.
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I will third on planning the Glacier trip for another day. You are better sticking to a short stay in the Black Hills and on to Yellowstone and the Tetons.. Make plans to go over the Bear Tooth Highway, US-212 out of Red Lodge to Cooke City MT...You will be going at a good time, the busy season for both parks does not start until July.. Expect some cool wet weather. If you are planning on camping in the Black Hills our favorite CG is Cnterlake in Custer State park, for Yellowstone we like Pebble Creek in the upper Lamar Valley or even the NF CG Soda Butte just east of Cooke City.
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Thank You Everyone for your help!! Like i said earlier there are 6 of us and we are renting one of those 12 person vans. So people will definitly be able to sleep if they want to.
We are thinking of staying at the KOA campgrounds in the lodges or kottages. They are fairly inexpensive and splitting them by 6 people will help out. Anyone have any advice on KOA's?? I hear everyone on skipping Glacier, but we are sooooo close, compared to MA ;-) The pictures look BEAUTIFUL !!! but i understand how it may just be a little to much for us in just two weeks. We cant wait for this trip and we want to make the best of our time so thanks for all the advice!! |
A big thumbs up for KOA Kamping Kottages. We (2 adults and 2 kids) stayed in them on alternate nights. We loved them. One step up from camping - pool for the kids - and economical. The 1 bedroom KK have a double bed and 2 bunk beds with mattresses. You bring sleeping bags or sheets and blankets.
The lodges are newer and have bathrooms in them I think, The Kamping Kabins don't have bathrooms - you use the community campground bathroom. Heck, for safety and fast coverage of ground in my younger days, we'd pull in a KOA and sleep in the car without getting the tent out. Also took another trip through Canada and alternated KOAs with the gorgeous railroad hotels (Empress in Victoria, Chateau Lake Louise, etc.) If you don't mind simple and rustic, KOAs fill the bill. We loved the one at Durango North. Gorgeous setting. Pancake breakfasts. Ice cream shop. Many even have internet access now. Have a great trip! |
Simple, Rustic & Cheap are great!! I've never stayed at a KOA but i love that they have them all throughout the country. We are going mid-june, does anyone know if i should try and plan out what states we will be staying in along the way now and reserve kottages. . or just see where we land and find a place then. Ill have a laptop so checking the website will be conveinent (sp?)
What did you think about the community bathrooms?? Because i think we will be staying in the kottages where it sleeps 6 but there are no bathrooms included. Thanks again for the help. This is what we consider " a trip of a lifetime" !!! |
Go to their website, koa.com and you can plan your trip. Book ahead for the Kottages - they do fill up. Join their club or frequent stay program for discounts.
I didn't mind the community bathrooms - felt a little bit like camp to me. Take flip flops to wear in the shower. I take a little bucket with all of my toiletries. I also take a washcloth I keep in a ziploc. Use freezer ziplocs so you can write names on the bag - or use different colored washcloths/towels for each person. They have laundry facilities so you can wash clothes "at camp" every couple of nights or so. I don't like sleeping bags in summer so we just took sheets and a blanket - and our pillows of course. I just take an extra pillowcase and stuff the sheets in the pillowcase. One of my favorite pics is of the kids trying to toast marshmallows for s'mores over an ELECTRIC hotplate. Believe it or not, it worked. We have even taken a little TV/VCR combo along and plugged it in at the picnic table for "movie night". If we are really trying to cover ground, we just unload the cooler on the picnic table, plug in a one-eye hotplate and heat up dinner. |
In mid-June, you'll be glad you have reservations. Since the trip out and back is going to be covering a lot of ground and you'll have fresh drivers, there's no harm in making firm plans for those nights.
Since KOAs are franchises and can vary a lot in quality and features, you might want to double-check the web sites that give campground reviews (comparable to the hotel-review web sites that we talk about so much on Fodors). For instance, you might want to make sure that they have WiFi access at the cabin, not just at the main office, and factor-in the fee (if any) into their total price. Some of the budget chain hotels are well-represented along America's highways, so don't overlook the possibility of a real room or two costing about the same as a cabin. |
well i'm going to buck all the advice about skipping glacier. it is magnificient, and if this is your trip of a lifetime i say go for it! so to facilitate this my advice is to go as planned, drive up to glacier and then return home through canada by taking 89/2 north out of the park into canada. then get on 2 east to medicine hat where you pick up rte 1. you could take 1 through saskatchewan and manitoba to the town of sudbury in ontario. then head south on 69 which becomes 400 to hamilton then into buffalo/niagara falls. then take 90 across new york and into mass and poof your home.
i have not been able to figure out when we will need passports to travel in and out of canada - but i bet somebody on here will know. i did a similiar drive a couple years ago. we stopped for about 7 hrs each night and it took us 31/2 days to reach portland maine driving I80. when i did the canadian rte many years ago the roads were very good all the way so assume they are still. |
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