If you are picking the car up in LA, return it in LA. That one day drive from the Sacramento (or more if you wish to sight-see) will save you the drop-off fee at a different location. But given that fuel is approaching $5 a gallon, you might want to check with www.viaMichelin.com the cost of such a trip.

We've not had much snow in California, all the storms passed well to the north. This may mean limited access to National Parks such as Glacier and the ones around Banff.

Again, for car rentals - I always start with www.carrentals.com, and then check out other options such as drop off fees, etc. And Michael makes a good point about the price of gas vis a vis drop off charges, not to mention the use of your time, etc.

As I think of it, it still would be cheaper to drive back to LA; otherwise one has to add in the cost of alternative transportation between Sacramento and LA. As to time, one day in six weeks is insignificant.

Michael - one can calculate that for sure. These days - airfares have gone up - but it used to be fairly inexpensive to fly from SF/Sacto to LA ($49 and up if you catch the bargin fairs far enough ahead) - on say Southwest Air - but who knows for sure anymore. For round numbers - it's about 400 miles from Sacto or SF to LA - and assuming the car gets 20 miles to the gallon - that would require 25 gallons of gas - and at say $5 per - that's about $100, plus whatever is the daily cost of the rental.

And I keep thinking about driving all the way back to SD - so from SF-LA it's not as long as I was initially envisioning - and can be done in six hours plus or so if you don't stop very often/for very long.

Thanks again to all. This is what we have refined to at the moment.( and could change again). Drive leasurely from LA to say Crescent City (lot to see on this drive) and them make our way across to Grand Teaton & Yellowstone via Idaho Falls and Jackson then onto Cody, Rapid City Mt Rushmore and back west through SLC to Sacramento then on to Yosemite and then finish in S.F. We have F/F tickets from S.F. to L.A. so the flight is not a problem. I have worked it out at apx 7000 km we do km in Aus and we did 5000 last year in 3 weeks and didnt have a problem. Have decided to not worry about the Canada part. One way drop off not a problem in same state, I have checked this out with Rental company. More advice appreciated.

Sounds great. If you get to Idaho Falls - you might want to consider spending a night in beautiful Sun Valley - about 2 hours or so from there. It was the original ski resort in the West and the founder was railroad magnate - Averell Harriman. You might also run into the likes of Clint Eastwood - who just walked over to visit his neighbor - when a friend of mine was visiting up there :) The Pioneer Inn is a classic watering hole and they have good steaks, plus tons of mounts on the walls, from Buffalo to huge Steelhead. http://www.pioneersaloon.com/

Have friends who live in Ketchum/Sun Valley - and also love it for not only the skiing - but also the beautiful summers. If you have the time, the drive from there up through Salmon, Idaho - and over/through the Big Hole, Montana, area is beautiful and the history of the Big Hole Battlefield is most interesting. http://tinyurl.com/8xmgktj

The Big Hole creek area - is one of the sites where the US Cavalry was finally able to catch up to Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce (the Army General pursuing the Nez Perce was nick-named by them "General Day after Tomorrow" - as the Indians were always that far ahead :) - before the Indians foiled his surprise attack and also for the first time in Cavalry history - captured two of the Army's portable cannon. They are on display at the Visitor's center.

After the battle - the Nez Perce lead the cavalry - (who were accompanied by the women and children of the tribe which they had to move at a slower pace than just the warriors would normally) hundreds more miles before they were finally defeated.

That is when Chief Joseph gave his classic surrender speech: From Where the Sun Now Stands - I Will Fight No More Forever. http://www.nezperce.com/npedu11.html I had an incredible poster on my wall the whole time I lived in San Francisco (70's) which had a picture of Chief Joseph - in full war bonnet on his horse - and the speech was underneath it. http://www2.gsu.edu/~eslmlm/chiefjoseph.html
Bought it at a "head" shop in North Beach. :)

Another great story was that early in the campaign, the Indians doubled back and stole a thousand or so horses from the Cavalry - adding to the tribe's mobility and the Soldiers had to wait for more horses to be shipped to them before they could continue chasing the Indians :) And the pursuit of the tribe captured the attention of the American Public - with daily stories in the major newspapers. It all started with continued encroachment on the Indian's treaty land - and the inevitable fight between a young brave and some cowboy and then the Nez Perce decided to leave and hook up with their friendly brothers in Montana - where they used to peacefully hunt Buffalo.


Hey - they even made a movie about it - which I will have to find somewhere to rent: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0073138/

We studied this "forced retreat" at the AF Academy - and it's considered by military experts as one of the greatest tactical retreats in history, especially as Chief Joseph had to move the full tribe with them. Oveall it's one of the greatest stories of the "Taming of the West".

Incidentally - prior to that - when Lewis & Clark traveled all the way from St. Louis out to Astoria, Oregon - they encountered many, many Indian tribes, and said the Nez Perce were like "Royalty". Very impressive stature and they actually had a democratic/tribal council that elected their chiefs, and continued to meet even after the Chief was "in office". :)

You could drive from Sun Valley - up through Salmon/Big Hole and back down to Yellowstone in a day.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Hol...al_Battlefield

Here is also some history on that and also the founding of Sun Valley:

The first destination winter resort in the U.S. was developed by W. Averell Harriman, the chairman of the Union Pacific Railroad, primarily to increase ridership on U.P. passenger trains in the West. The success of the 1932 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York, spurred an increase in participation in winter sports (and alpine skiing in particular). A lifelong skier, Harriman determined that America would embrace a destination mountain resort, similar to those he enjoyed in the Swiss Alps, such as St. Moritz and Davos. During the winter of 1935–36, Harriman enlisted the services of an Austrian count, Felix Schaffgotsch, to travel across the western U.S. to locate an ideal site for a winter resort. The Count toured Mount Rainier, Mount Hood, Yosemite, the San Bernardino Mountains, Zion, Rocky Mountain National Park, the Wasatch Mountains, Pocatello, Jackson Hole, and Grand Targhee areas. Late in his trip and on the verge of abandoning his search for an ideal location for a mountain resort development, he backtracked toward the Ketchum area in central Idaho. A U.P. employee in Boise had casually mentioned that the rail spur to Ketchum cost the company more money for snow removal than any other branch line and the Count went to explore.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun_Valley,_Idaho

And here are some pics of the rugged Bittertooth Mountains - seen from the Salmon, Idaho side and also the Big Hole, Montana side, which is just across the border.

The drive from Sun Valley up through Salmon and over to Big Hole is one of the most pristine/beautiful I have ever taken - and I have pretty much driven all of the Westrn US. http://tinyurl.com/8xmgktj

Here is the webpage with the great pics of the Bitterroots Mtns - from both sides. http://www.forwolves.org/ralph/wpages/wbighole.htm

Hey - I can still remember the neat machine that sorted coins - (yes - it was that long ago)

That machine <i>cleaned</i> the coins! They may still have it.

As for getting to the airport in SF, a taxi from Union Square will cost about $45 (including tip) USD, and BART is $8.10 per person.

Approaching Yellowstone via the Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge is a nice alternative.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mksfca/...57623117942088 and the next three in the set.

saf7 - are you about a soph in high school or what?
And janis is your frosh understudy? :)

Thanks again for the info. We will certainly try to see as much as possible. Tomsd you certainly know a lot about your history and it is all so interesting. As you have driven so much in the USA and know what it is like to drive distances maybe you should think about coming to Aus to see some of this great country.

OBI - definitely want to get to "The Land Down Under". :)

Considering your current plan, I'm wondering if you might enjoy an alternate way to get to Yosemite from Salt Lake City (rather than going to Sacramento). Taking I-80 (or whichever highway) over to Highway 395 near Reno, head South on 395 to Lee Vining. Lee Vining is where you take the entrance into Yosemite that goes over Tioga Pass. We love Highway 395 because that side of the Sierra Mountain range is so steep and dramatic, yet you are driving a relatively level road parallel to the mountain range. It's a beautiful drive with great scenery and picnic areas; it has a short turnoff to one of the best-preserved ghost towns in the West (the town of Bodie, which is now a California State Park), and it passes by Mono Lake, a very unique and geologically dramatic place.

PS. Love Australia. Lots of relies in Brisbane and Mackay. :)

Oops. Just noticed your trip is mid-May. The opening for Tioga Pass Road into Yosemite each year is dependent on weather and snow levels. But it's most likely to be open if you are going to Yosemite toward the end of your trip.

This year it's been a light winter in No Cal - so Yo's Tioga Pass could be open by Mid May - but only time will tell. And going down 395 from Tahoe is a great way to go - and hopefully the very unique Mono Lake is filling up again.

Fiddely Foo: Forgot to post this: http://www.monolake.org/about/story

OP is arriving in mid-May and staying for 6 weeks, they are planning on saving Yosemite for the end of their trip. Roads to Yosemite will be open by mid-June.

Ahhhhhh. Light go on. :)