Western US travel tips?

[kbmwrs]

Just check ahead with the NPs....not all are open for camping.

[n2916s]

The National parks are getting whipsawed — some are in multiple states (Yellowstone i.e.) which at different times had different rules. Some are in places with no restrictions but have to follow NPS rules set in Washington.

Some are in places that have had to go back to more restrictive rules after the parks opened for the season, leaving both Federal and concessionaire staffs little to do.

Really looking forward to either an effective vaccine or treatment...

[debbietaylor]

Originally Posted by calp360

Can anyone recommend roads, campgrounds, sites etc to see in the western US? We will be traveling from end of September through October.
So far all we have are reservations in Yosemite for 3 nights (9/23) then we will go to Lake Tahoe, but after that there are so many choices!
Can someone give suggestions?
There are 2 adults, 1 teenage son and a dog.

We were thinking Colorado - the aspens are supposed to be wonderful, or Utah, or Oregon and Washington, Wyoming???? So many choices...

Home is Raleigh, NC so any suggestions on these areas are really appreciated!

We live in California but also do a lot of traveling in Utah. Utah has 5 national parks and several really awesome state parks such as Dead Horse Point State Park, Kodachrome Basin State Park and Snow Canyon State Park. Have fun!!

[finchbird]

If your in the Moab Utah area we love Lower Onion Creek at that time of year. Ensure you fill up with water and empty your waste tanks as the BLM campground is dry. A google map link is below.


https://www.google.com/maps/place/Lo...4d-109.3593585

[suncoasteng]

US 191 between Utah & Wyoming is a superb drive. And stop in Rock Springs WY to see the wild horse corrals.

[Julie-Bob]

Originally Posted by calp360

Can anyone recommend roads, campgrounds, sites etc to see in the western US? We will be traveling from end of September through October.

So far all we have are reservations in Yosemite for 3 nights (9/23) then we will go to Lake Tahoe, but after that there are so many choices!

Can someone give suggestions?

There are 2 adults, 1 teenage son and a dog.



We were thinking Colorado - the aspens are supposed to be wonderful, or Utah, or Oregon and Washington, Wyoming???? So many choices...



Home is Raleigh, NC so any suggestions on these areas are really appreciated!

You could look into sitting your RV in Kanab Utah. Then day trips to North Rim of the Grand Canyon, day trip to Zion NP, day trip to Bryce Canyon NP, day trip to Capital Reef NP, day trip to Grand Staircase N Monument. We have stayed in the Kanab Corral RV. It has a swimming pool and in town. In Kanab see where a lot of the old western movies were made.

[calp360]

THANK YOU ALL! These are great suggestions!
I know Covid19 might change these plans, but we are formulating a trip based on all of your ideas.
Funny thing is, the original purpose of the trip is to transport my 90 year old mother from NC to CA (she refuses to fly because of Covid19). Then, on the way back we will enjoy the beautiful scenery of the west coast.
This will be our first trip (other than a quick trip to Myrtle Beach State Park) in our 1976 Land Yacht. (I have to mention Bill Dodson at Creston RV in TN who is brilliant with Airstreams and did an amazing job restoring our trailer!!)
Thanks for making the planning so much easier everyone!

[John & Roberta]

BWS—Big Wonderful Shock today.

Heading for McMinnville OR on Highway 5 our iPhone app gave us option of 15-minute longer off-highway route. Take Corvallis exit off 5 into Corvallis, then swing north on 99W.

Roberta and I have never seen such BEAUTIFUL farm country, anywhere. You hit McMinnville very near the site where Howard Hughes’ Spruce Goose is housed and exhibited, with much else besides—check Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum on the internet.

We’re staying at Olde Stone Village RV Park right next door. We can walk to the Spruce Goose hanger from our Flying Cloud launch pad!

[robostu]

We have just got back from our "great western tour" and i'm happy to share!! Left Los Angeles went upto via Arizona/Utah/Wyoming to Yellowstone, then across via Montana, Idaho, Oregan, Nevada then back down into California. Total of 9 states and approx 3500 miles.

I have alot of info to share on places we went but also practical logistical info aswell. It is probably too much to write here so feel to PM me.

Hilights were Grand Canyon south Rim, and Horseshoe Bend. Utah was stunning, Monument Valley incredible but we Loved Moab (3 boys in our party). Went water rafting its a 4x4 meca there highly recommended. Aside from the 'lads' stuff there are ancient rock paintings and wonderful hikes rivers stream and creeks. Other hilights include 'Moose' at the base of the Grand Tetons. See pic. We did stayed at a mix of BLM land and RV Campsites. That worked well. Loved the Tetons and stayed at Colter Bay - wonderful. Yellowstone was incredible aswell as busy and expensive and you have to know that there are huge distances involved. I drove 222 miles in one day inside yellowstone just sightseeing! Planning is the key. Heavy covid restrictions inside the park atm many facilities closed. My advice would be to stay at West Yellowstone a town at the gates of the park on the west side obviously! Where you can get power, water, cell signal and pizza and cheaper than inside the park. Facilties, power, cell signal restaurant inside park are very limited atm. We drove through craters of the moon that was interesting in Idaho and stayed at the KAO in Arco which was a great wind down. From there we visited Grandview, then onto Lakeview in Oregon which was special. We pushed onto Cali and another highlight was June Lake in Tahoe absolutely amazing. We like to fish so stayed at alot of lakes.

I would use 'my maps' which is a dedicated site for google maps and you can list your route as stops a,b,c,d,e,f, etc etc then send this to your sat nav or bring up on google maps. It was very good and worked even with cell or wifi as it satellite tracks your position. Excellent saved me a few times deep in the mountains.

We drove on average 350 miles on drive days. This was about right with time for gas, lunch and brief pit stops. So an 8 hour drive day in total. We watched 'changing lanes' channel on youtube which is a great resource also and where I learn the 350 rule above !

https://freecampsites.net/
is an excellent resource once you have your map/route set check on here for BLM land campsites. There are pics of most sites. Thats how I found the one pictured at Tetons (Moose)

We were well prepared, with gas, water, generator, wood, dry food, tools, extra breakers you name it ....etc I even took silicone caulking that I ended up using!

9 states and 3500 miles we completed in 3.5 weeks. We would drive a day stay for two days then move on. Staying longer in Yellowstone and some places only overnight if they were transit/midway points.

I learnt alot happy to share. We stayed off the main big freeways as much as possible and took to smaller highways like the old route 66 and took our time.

Let me know if theres anything I can help with or just give me a call!

best

Stu

[Suza]

Originally Posted by 21Airstream

I don’t know how crowded the campgrounds are but the Oregon coast is a beautiful place to visit. We really enjoy the Lincoln City area, but I’m not aware of a place that isn’t nice on the Oregon coast.

We live on the Oregon coast. The last I heard, coastal state parks are reservation only. Even in a normal summer, it is next to impossible to get a spot in the more popular state parks without a reservation months in advance. With the situation now, I'm sure it is the same or worse. In addition, many state park campgrounds are not opening at all because they don't have the extra staffing to comply with Covid restrictions.

In addition, I have hear Oregon is raising the nightly fee in its state parks for out of state campers. I think Oregonians have complained because they couldn't find a place to camp in their own parks.

Oregon has many USFS, BLM, and COE campgrounds, though most don't have hookups, and numerous places where you can boondock. We have made a couple of trips to Central Oregon and, for the most part, were able to find open campsites.

[Suza]

Originally Posted by Oreg52

Sequoia/Kings Canyon National Park south of Yosemite. Largest (not tallest) trees on earth.
Drive through the Sierra foothills in the Gold rush country on your way to Tahoe.

Route of the volcanoes takes you to Mt Lassen, Mt Shasta, (both still active) and Crater Lake in Oregon.
Go north on Highway 89 from Tahoe to Lake Almanor in the northern Sierras. East to Susanville on 36 and then back west on highway 44 to meet up again with 89 between Shasta and Lassen.
Normally if traveling without a trailer, Highway 89 drives through Lassen National Park but the road is narrow, climbing within 1500 feet of the 11,000 foot summit. Thus the detour around the mountain.
There's a hiking trail to the summit of Lassen if you wish to leave the trailer at Lake Almanor and take a day trip through the south end of the park to the summit.

Crater Lake is a must see in Southern Oregon. Easy drive to and around the crater rim.

And check the websites of each National Park for Covid updates.

In addition to checking Covid updates, be sure to check on fire danger restrictions and wildfire closures. This Summer is expected to be a bad fire season.

A good resource is to call Forest Service ranger stations in the area you want to explore. They can fill you in on road conditions, fire restrictions, which campgrounds are open and what facilities are available. We asked about whether one campground had water. It did not because the water source was from hand pumps that did not comply with Covid regulations. However, the ranger station told us we could get water at their office.

[dcohen461]

Hello All:
We are newbies and are planning on doing the Grand Circle Tour in May. We will be traveling out from New York and are having a hard time figuring out hard dates when we will arrive out West. Is there a rule of thumb? 300 miles per day? Are there places those of you who have done this route can recommend on the drive out West? How about favorite campgrounds or NPs ? Thanks so much!

[CruizinDux]

Ex of Eugene and before that Sonoma Coast, reflects my bias.

I80 to vallejo then 37 to 116 to Petaluma over to bodega bay and up hwy1 up the coast to ft bragg. Jenner to Mendo is simply (imo) the best. 20 gets you to willits and you're getting into the big redwoods if you head N. Ave of the giants...wow the redwoods are big. If you have time continue up to OR. Someone mentioned Or sp's and the difficulty getting in and he is right. We used to book beachside every year in Sept ot oct and always booked the allowed 9 months in advance. However there are a lot of privates and county parks like Harbor Vista in florence, or.

If OR is too much time go north to eureja, take 299 past redding to burney and catch 89 to 44 to susanville (past awesome views of shasta/lassen) to reno and hwy 50 EB.

Word of caution, carry chains. Most folks don't want to chain up the tv/tt, but tickets for not carrying chains when needed are very expensive in Or/ca. You need to consider weather for getting over the Rockies at this time if the year. Maybe 395 or 95 s to las vegas to eventually I40 EB. Fyi, Flagstaff is 7100' elevation.

Edit, there are a couple of threads the last few years about getting from mono lake/yosemite to lake tahoe that doesn't include going thru reno. ( via 89 to meyers, to the pioneer trail??? ) By tahoe, i mean SLT (south lake tahoe). If you need them and can't find them, pm me.

[kscherzi]

Originally Posted by dcohen461

Hello All:
We are newbies and are planning on doing the Grand Circle Tour in May. We will be traveling out from New York and are having a hard time figuring out hard dates when we will arrive out West. Is there a rule of thumb? 300 miles per day? Are there places those of you who have done this route can recommend on the drive out West? How about favorite campgrounds or NPs ? Thanks so much!

Are you pulling a trailer? For me, a 300 mile day is a lot, especially in heavy traffic. But I'm 60. I'd add in some two day stays for rest. There's almost always somthing you'll discover wherever you stay that'll catch your attention for more time.

[pmclemore]

We don't think so much in terms of miles, but time. We like to get up without suffering, pack gently and then drive until we find a camp and can be set up before cocktail hour.

Pat

[OTRA15]

Originally Posted by calp360

THANK YOU ALL! These are great suggestions!
I know Covid19 might change these plans, but we are formulating a trip based on all of your ideas.
. . .

After your 8/10/20 Post #27 above, did you [the OP of this thread] take the trip and how did it go? This appears to be the last [of only 4] posts that you have made here. Thanks for any updates and photos.

Travel safe . . . and . . .

[calp360]

Hello all, especially OTRA15 who asked if we completed the trip from NC to CA and back.
Yes we completed the trip and it was amazing!
Our trip included 20 states in 6 weeks of travel. The first week was getting my 90 year old mother to CA. This was made easier because of RV Parks like Tom Sawyer RV Park - which is on the Mississippi River (see the sunrise photo), Sallisaw/Fort Smith Ark KOA, Oasis RV Park Amarillo, and Rancho Sedona RV Park (wonderful location).
Then the adventures began! Our favorite campgrounds were Sunset campground in Bryce, Fruita campground in Capitol Reef, Mountain View RV Resort in Park City, Colter Bay in Grand Tetons/Yellowstone (we stayed there 7 nights), Lewis & Clark State Park in Iowa, and Wayne Fitzgerral State Park.
My favorite road was Scenic Byway 12 between Bryce and Capitol Reef.
We left Colter Bay the day the park closed for the season, and it was fun to see the line of Airstreams leaving at the same time (see photo).
We will have to make more trips to see the other recommended areas, including Utah (Moab, etc) Oregon (many great suggestions), Idaho (especially Craters of the Moon), and CA (Lassen, Tahoe, Yosemite etc). We had to cancel all of the CA reservations due to wildfires.
Thanks everyone for recommendations!

[OTRA15]

Thanks for the detailed update and great photos . . . glad it worked out!

[mythbuster88]

Best thread award.

[dcohen461]

Sounds like a beautiful trip. Thanks for the pictures.