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OT: Western US Travel

teeroy_b

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Nov 23, 2015
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My clan (Myself, Wife, two teenagers) are planning to do a western US vacation this summer (pending states open). From Nevada, up (by some route) to Montana, over to Seattle and down the Pacific coast. Has anyone on here made a similar trip and have any must do suggestions? We are already planning to hit Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks.
 
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How many days will you have for this trip? Any camping/rving involved, or staying in hotels the whole time?
 
My clan (Myself, Wife, two teenagers) are planning to do a western US vacation this summer (pending states open). From Nevada, up (by some route) to Montana, over to Seattle and down the Pacific coast. Has anyone on here made a similar trip and have any must do suggestions? We are already planning to hit Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks.
Congrats...you'll love it. A lot of the driving is scenic.
Make your reservations now for W. Yellowstone. When you drive up past SLC (I-15) into WY, you can see the Grand Tetons as well (Jackson WY).
Get to the park early....stay on EST....Yellowstone gets real crowded.
Buy the annual park pass....hit Mt. Rainier, Mt. St Helens, Crater Lake, Redwoods,
Avoid Seattle in the rush hour. It is horrible. Ride the LINK up from SEATAC....parking is a headache. You can see most of the typical sites from the light rail stops. You can ride the monorail up the the Space Needle.


Take Google map and do your homework. It's worth it to have some kind of itinerary.
 
My clan (Myself, Wife, two teenagers) are planning to do a western US vacation this summer (pending states open). From Nevada, up (by some route) to Montana, over to Seattle and down the Pacific coast. Has anyone on here made a similar trip and have any must do suggestions? We are already planning to hit Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks.
Go to Olympic National Park when in Washington. It's the most beautiful place I've ever been. It's like walking in a Bob Ross painting.
 
My clan (Myself, Wife, two teenagers) are planning to do a western US vacation this summer (pending states open). From Nevada, up (by some route) to Montana, over to Seattle and down the Pacific coast. Has anyone on here made a similar trip and have any must do suggestions? We are already planning to hit Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks.

Back in January 2021, we went to Grand Canyon, Brice Canyon and Zion Canyor. We flew into Las Vegas and drove to Arizona, Utah , and hiked areas out West like South Kaibab Trail to Ooo Aah Point, The Paria Queens Garden Trail, Navajo Loop Trail, Mossy Cave Trail, Zion Canyon Overlook Trail and West Rim Trail-Walters Wiggles Riverside Trail all in 5 days. A lot of places were closed, expect for the National Parks.
 
Congrats...you'll love it. A lot of the driving is scenic.
Make your reservations now for W. Yellowstone. When you drive up past SLC (I-15) into WY, you can see the Grand Tetons as well (Jackson WY).
Get to the park early....stay on EST....Yellowstone gets real crowded.
Buy the annual park pass....hit Mt. Rainier, Mt. St Helens, Crater Lake, Redwoods,
Avoid Seattle in the rush hour. It is horrible. Ride the LINK up from SEATAC....parking is a headache. You can see most of the typical sites from the light rail stops. You can ride the monorail up the the Space Needle.


Take Google map and do your homework. It's worth it to have some kind of itinerary.
My wife is in the process of creatingthe itinerary, but we're trying to get all the opinions we can before we finalize our route.
 
My clan (Myself, Wife, two teenagers) are planning to do a western US vacation this summer (pending states open). From Nevada, up (by some route) to Montana, over to Seattle and down the Pacific coast. Has anyone on here made a similar trip and have any must do suggestions? We are already planning to hit Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks.
Don’t pass up a chance to stop for a meal in Winnemucca, Nevada.
 
South Dakota is beautiful if that is on your route. Wind Cave NP is cool.

The parks will be crowded this summer. Zion is cool but will be crowded. As someone else said, the Hoh Rainforest is beautiful in Olympic. Take the ferry from Seattle. Have fun.
 
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Roughly 10-14 days and, due to teenage girls, very little "roughing it"
As you may have gathered from all the great suggestions so far, be realistic about what you will be abele to see in 2 weeks. That preliminary route is a LOT of ground to cover. Utah alone has 5 national parks, so resist the urge to see "everything" and build a list of things you'll want to see and explore on return trip(s). Since you mentioned that Yellowstone and Glacier are already on your list, I'll focus my advice on those. I also happen to be most familiar with those two parks since I live about 2hrs north of Yellowstone.

First, time your trip correctly for Glacier. You don't want to plan a first-time trip to Glacier without driving the Going-To-The-Sun Road. For 90% of tourists, the GTTSR is 90% of Glacier. The snow-clearing process for the GTTSR road each spring is a herculean effort that often is not completed until late June or even early July. Don't arrive in Glacier in mid-June expecting the road to be fully open. I hate visiting the western national parks around July 4th, but for Glacier, that's really the earliest you can visit and be virtually guaranteed the road will be open.

Normally, you want to drive the GTTSR from west (Columbia Falls/West Glacier) to east (St. Mary). But be aware that last year, the Blackfoot Nation never agreed to open the east side entrances to the park for covid reasons. Everybody had to enter and leave the park from the West Glacier entrance, so that meant making a U-turn on the east side of the park at Rising Sun and doubling back. It wasn't a huge inconvenience, but you don't want to enter the eastern side of the park needing gas and/or food. Nobody knows yet what entrances will be open on the east side of the park for 2021.

For Yellowstone, don't make the mistake of seeing Yellowstone but skipping Grand Teton National Park. Grand Teton doesn't require a huge time commitment to experience "most" of it's grandeur and it is spectacular. Personally, instead of picking West Yellowstone, Jackson, or one of the other "gateway" cities as a base of operation, given your limited time, I would plan my trip so that I spent a night in one of the gateway towns with the next night in a different gateway town so that I could spend the next day slowly making my way to our destination that night without having to double-back at some point.

So, for example, if you had two full days in the Yellowstone area, I would suggest something like this: arriving your first night in Jackson, setting out early the next day to see Grand Teton NP, making your way up to West Thumb, Old Faithful, Grand Prismatic Springs and the Firehole River, spending the next night in West Yellowstone. For Day 2, hit Gibbon Falls, Norris, Canyon Village/Yellowstone Falls, Lamar River Valley, and make your way out of the park through the northeast gate near Cooke City and drive the Beartooth Highway up to Red Lodge, MT where you'd spend the third night. DO NOT go to Yellowstone and fail to drive the Beartooth Highway from Cooke City to Red Lodge. It will be one of the highlights of the trip. If you have a 3rd full day to spend in the Yellowstone area, consider spending it in Gardiner, MT at the north entrance and use the day to see the Mammoth Hot Springs and Yellowstone Lake portions of the park.

When you make your way from the Yellowstone area to the Glacier area, go via Missoula. The headquarters of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation right off the interstate in Missoula makes for a convenient rest stop with some pretty impressive displays and a gift shop. It's also right beside a Cracker Barrel in case you need a states of the South at that point. On your way from Missoula to Glacier on Highway 93, the National Bison Range near Ravalli is worth-while detour for a couple of hours, if it is open (it never opened for vehicles in 2020 due to covid). It's a scenic one-way gravel road that offers some great views, and lots of wildlife (bison, bighorn sheep, elk, mule deer, and some black bears).

As somebody mentioned above, getting up early each day is highly recommended in the national parks. I know that might be tough with two teenage girls, but the West Yellowstone entrance to Yellowstone, especially, can get pretty crowded by about 8:30am. If you can avoid the crowds between the West Yellowstone and Madison Junction choke-point, you will have more fun that day.

Lastly, as far as timing, be aware that August is the fire season in the west. For 3 out of the last 5 years, wildfires and smoke have had a pretty significant impact on the outdoors experience out here in August. That can mean August can vary from rather hazy to downright smoke-filled, depending on how close the closest wildfires are to you. Or, it might not be smoky at all, but it's something worth thinking for planning purposes.

Oh, and I assume you are flying in somewhere, maybe Vegas, and renting a car? If so, it's worth a stop at Walmart on day one and picking up one of those styrofoam coolers and sandwich materials, snacks, etc. Given the places you are going, there will be times when stopping at a pullout and eating sandwiches will be much more pleasant and efficient than finding a restaurant where you all can eat. This is especially true in the national parks where dining options were very limited last year with the covid restrictions. Even if things are back at 100%, the picnic lunches are convenient ways to avoid the crowds.
 
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We used an app called GYPSY for touring Grand Teton/Yellowstone (one app) and GTTSR in Glacier. It was fantastic. Runs off satellite so you don't have to worry about spotty cell coverage in the parks. Knows where you are and tells you most of the cool stops and back stories.

The advise on timing Glacier is spot on. We went in late May and had no clue about the snow clearing. We could only go for 15 miles from the east entrance.
 
As you may have gathered from all the great suggestions so far, be realistic about what you will be abele to see in 2 weeks. That preliminary route is a LOT of ground to cover. Utah alone has 5 national parks, so resist the urge to see "everything" and build a list of things you'll want to see and explore on return trip(s). Since you mentioned that Yellowstone and Glacier are already on your list, I'll focus my advice on those. I also happen to be most familiar with those two parks since I live about 2hrs north of Yellowstone.

First, time your trip correctly for Glacier. You don't want to plan a first-time trip to Glacier without driving the Going-To-The-Sun Road. For 90% of tourists, the GTTSR is 90% of Glacier. The snow-clearing process for the GTTSR road each spring is a herculean effort that often is not completed until late June or even early July. Don't arrive in Glacier in mid-June expecting the road to be fully open. I hate visiting the western national parks around July 4th, but for Glacier, that's really the earliest you can visit and be virtually guaranteed the road will be open.

Normally, you want to drive the GTTSR from west (Columbia Falls/West Glacier) to east (St. Mary). But be aware that last year, the Blackfoot Nation never agreed to open the east side entrances to the park for covid reasons. Everybody had to enter and leave the park from the West Glacier entrance, so that meant making a U-turn on the east side of the park at Rising Sun and doubling back. It wasn't a huge inconvenience, but you don't want to enter the eastern side of the park needing gas and/or food. Nobody knows yet what entrances will be open on the east side of the park for 2021.

For Yellowstone, don't make the mistake of seeing Yellowstone but skipping Grand Teton National Park. Grand Teton doesn't require a huge time commitment to experience "most" of it's grandeur and it is spectacular. Personally, instead of picking West Yellowstone, Jackson, or one of the other "gateway" cities as a base of operation, given your limited time, I would plan my trip so that I spent a night in one of the gateway towns with the next night in a different gateway town so that I could spend the next day slowly making my way to our destination that night without having to double-back at some point.

So, for example, if you had two full days in the Yellowstone area, I would suggest something like this: arriving your first night in Jackson, setting out early the next day to see Grand Teton NP, making your way up to West Thumb, Old Faithful, Grand Prismatic Springs and the Firehole River, spending the next night in West Yellowstone. For Day 2, hit Gibbon Falls, Norris, Canyon Village/Yellowstone Falls, Lamar River Valley, and make your way out of the park through the northeast gate near Cooke City and drive the Beartooth Highway up to Red Lodge, MT where you'd spend the third night. DO NOT go to Yellowstone and fail to drive the Beartooth Highway from Cooke City to Red Lodge. It will be one of the highlights of the trip. If you have a 3rd full day to spend in the Yellowstone area, consider spending it in Gardiner, MT at the north entrance and use the day to see the Mammoth Hot Springs and Yellowstone Lake portions of the park.

When you make your way from the Yellowstone area to the Glacier area, go via Missoula. The headquarters of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation right off the interstate in Missoula makes for a convenient rest stop with some pretty impressive displays and a gift shop. It's also right beside a Cracker Barrel in case you need a states of the South at that point. On your way from Missoula to Glacier on Highway 93, the National Bison Range near Ravalli is worth-while detour for a couple of hours, if it is open (it never opened for vehicles in 2020 due to covid). It's a scenic one-way gravel road that offers some great views, and lots of wildlife (bison, bighorn sheep, elk, mule deer, and some black bears).

As somebody mentioned above, getting up early each day is highly recommended in the national parks. I know that might be tough with two teenage girls, but the West Yellowstone entrance to Yellowstone, especially, can get pretty crowded by about 8:30am. If you can avoid the crowds between the West Yellowstone and Madison Junction choke-point, you will have more fun that day.

Lastly, as far as timing, be aware that August is the fire season in the west. For 3 out of the last 5 years, wildfires and smoke have had a pretty significant impact on the outdoors experience out here in August. That can mean August can vary from rather hazy to downright smoke-filled, depending on how close the closest wildfires are to you. Or, it might not be smoky at all, but it's something worth thinking for planning purposes.

Oh, and I assume you are flying in somewhere, maybe Vegas, and renting a car? If so, it's worth a stop at Walmart on day one and picking up one of those styrofoam coolers and sandwich materials, snacks, etc. Given the places you are going, there will be times when stopping at a pullout and eating sandwiches will be much more pleasant and efficient than finding a restaurant where you all can eat. This is especially true in the national parks where dining options were very limited last year with the covid restrictions. Even if things are back at 100%, the picnic lunches are convenient ways to avoid the crowds.
Man, thanks for the detailed info! I was reading your response and my wife was hitting all the info down. She said to tell you THANK YOU!!
 
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We used an app called GYPSY for touring Grand Teton/Yellowstone (one app) and GTTSR in Glacier. It was fantastic. Runs off satellite so you don't have to worry about spotty cell coverage in the parks. Knows where you are and tells you most of the cool stops and back stories.

The advise on timing Glacier is spot on. We went in late May and had no clue about the snow clearing. We could only go for 15 miles from the east entrance.
Thanks! I'll download these!
 
My clan (Myself, Wife, two teenagers) are planning to do a western US vacation this summer (pending states open). From Nevada, up (by some route) to Montana, over to Seattle and down the Pacific coast. Has anyone on here made a similar trip and have any must do suggestions? We are already planning to hit Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks.
Seaside in Oregon is nice, Haystack rock is pretty iconic.
 
As you may have gathered from all the great suggestions so far, be realistic about what you will be abele to see in 2 weeks. That preliminary route is a LOT of ground to cover. Utah alone has 5 national parks, so resist the urge to see "everything" and build a list of things you'll want to see and explore on return trip(s). Since you mentioned that Yellowstone and Glacier are already on your list, I'll focus my advice on those. I also happen to be most familiar with those two parks since I live about 2hrs north of Yellowstone.

First, time your trip correctly for Glacier. You don't want to plan a first-time trip to Glacier without driving the Going-To-The-Sun Road. For 90% of tourists, the GTTSR is 90% of Glacier. The snow-clearing process for the GTTSR road each spring is a herculean effort that often is not completed until late June or even early July. Don't arrive in Glacier in mid-June expecting the road to be fully open. I hate visiting the western national parks around July 4th, but for Glacier, that's really the earliest you can visit and be virtually guaranteed the road will be open.

Normally, you want to drive the GTTSR from west (Columbia Falls/West Glacier) to east (St. Mary). But be aware that last year, the Blackfoot Nation never agreed to open the east side entrances to the park for covid reasons. Everybody had to enter and leave the park from the West Glacier entrance, so that meant making a U-turn on the east side of the park at Rising Sun and doubling back. It wasn't a huge inconvenience, but you don't want to enter the eastern side of the park needing gas and/or food. Nobody knows yet what entrances will be open on the east side of the park for 2021.

For Yellowstone, don't make the mistake of seeing Yellowstone but skipping Grand Teton National Park. Grand Teton doesn't require a huge time commitment to experience "most" of it's grandeur and it is spectacular. Personally, instead of picking West Yellowstone, Jackson, or one of the other "gateway" cities as a base of operation, given your limited time, I would plan my trip so that I spent a night in one of the gateway towns with the next night in a different gateway town so that I could spend the next day slowly making my way to our destination that night without having to double-back at some point.

So, for example, if you had two full days in the Yellowstone area, I would suggest something like this: arriving your first night in Jackson, setting out early the next day to see Grand Teton NP, making your way up to West Thumb, Old Faithful, Grand Prismatic Springs and the Firehole River, spending the next night in West Yellowstone. For Day 2, hit Gibbon Falls, Norris, Canyon Village/Yellowstone Falls, Lamar River Valley, and make your way out of the park through the northeast gate near Cooke City and drive the Beartooth Highway up to Red Lodge, MT where you'd spend the third night. DO NOT go to Yellowstone and fail to drive the Beartooth Highway from Cooke City to Red Lodge. It will be one of the highlights of the trip. If you have a 3rd full day to spend in the Yellowstone area, consider spending it in Gardiner, MT at the north entrance and use the day to see the Mammoth Hot Springs and Yellowstone Lake portions of the park.

When you make your way from the Yellowstone area to the Glacier area, go via Missoula. The headquarters of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation right off the interstate in Missoula makes for a convenient rest stop with some pretty impressive displays and a gift shop. It's also right beside a Cracker Barrel in case you need a states of the South at that point. On your way from Missoula to Glacier on Highway 93, the National Bison Range near Ravalli is worth-while detour for a couple of hours, if it is open (it never opened for vehicles in 2020 due to covid). It's a scenic one-way gravel road that offers some great views, and lots of wildlife (bison, bighorn sheep, elk, mule deer, and some black bears).

As somebody mentioned above, getting up early each day is highly recommended in the national parks. I know that might be tough with two teenage girls, but the West Yellowstone entrance to Yellowstone, especially, can get pretty crowded by about 8:30am. If you can avoid the crowds between the West Yellowstone and Madison Junction choke-point, you will have more fun that day.

Lastly, as far as timing, be aware that August is the fire season in the west. For 3 out of the last 5 years, wildfires and smoke have had a pretty significant impact on the outdoors experience out here in August. That can mean August can vary from rather hazy to downright smoke-filled, depending on how close the closest wildfires are to you. Or, it might not be smoky at all, but it's something worth thinking for planning purposes.

Oh, and I assume you are flying in somewhere, maybe Vegas, and renting a car? If so, it's worth a stop at Walmart on day one and picking up one of those styrofoam coolers and sandwich materials, snacks, etc. Given the places you are going, there will be times when stopping at a pullout and eating sandwiches will be much more pleasant and efficient than finding a restaurant where you all can eat. This is especially true in the national parks where dining options were very limited last year with the covid restrictions. Even if things are back at 100%, the picnic lunches are convenient ways to avoid the crowds.
Dude...you killed it. The Beartooth HW was closed when I went through in '17. :(
I also recommend hitting the Miracle of America Museum in Polson, MT on the way up to W Glacier. It is the campiest/cheesiest museum....they have collections of all kinds of stuff.....outboard motors, vintage tractor seats, vintage motorcycles, etc.
I will be doing a summer trip in somewhat reverse of the OP. I'll spend 2 weeks in Missoula in Aug and likely hit Glacier again. I got some great vid & pics from '19 when I was there.

Don't know if you mentioned it, but I thought the upper and lower Yellowstone falls were the highlight of the park.

 
As you may have gathered from all the great suggestions so far, be realistic about what you will be abele to see in 2 weeks. That preliminary route is a LOT of ground to cover. Utah alone has 5 national parks, so resist the urge to see "everything" and build a list of things you'll want to see and explore on return trip(s). Since you mentioned that Yellowstone and Glacier are already on your list, I'll focus my advice on those. I also happen to be most familiar with those two parks since I live about 2hrs north of Yellowstone.

First, time your trip correctly for Glacier. You don't want to plan a first-time trip to Glacier without driving the Going-To-The-Sun Road. For 90% of tourists, the GTTSR is 90% of Glacier. The snow-clearing process for the GTTSR road each spring is a herculean effort that often is not completed until late June or even early July. Don't arrive in Glacier in mid-June expecting the road to be fully open. I hate visiting the western national parks around July 4th, but for Glacier, that's really the earliest you can visit and be virtually guaranteed the road will be open.

Normally, you want to drive the GTTSR from west (Columbia Falls/West Glacier) to east (St. Mary). But be aware that last year, the Blackfoot Nation never agreed to open the east side entrances to the park for covid reasons. Everybody had to enter and leave the park from the West Glacier entrance, so that meant making a U-turn on the east side of the park at Rising Sun and doubling back. It wasn't a huge inconvenience, but you don't want to enter the eastern side of the park needing gas and/or food. Nobody knows yet what entrances will be open on the east side of the park for 2021.

For Yellowstone, don't make the mistake of seeing Yellowstone but skipping Grand Teton National Park. Grand Teton doesn't require a huge time commitment to experience "most" of it's grandeur and it is spectacular. Personally, instead of picking West Yellowstone, Jackson, or one of the other "gateway" cities as a base of operation, given your limited time, I would plan my trip so that I spent a night in one of the gateway towns with the next night in a different gateway town so that I could spend the next day slowly making my way to our destination that night without having to double-back at some point.

So, for example, if you had two full days in the Yellowstone area, I would suggest something like this: arriving your first night in Jackson, setting out early the next day to see Grand Teton NP, making your way up to West Thumb, Old Faithful, Grand Prismatic Springs and the Firehole River, spending the next night in West Yellowstone. For Day 2, hit Gibbon Falls, Norris, Canyon Village/Yellowstone Falls, Lamar River Valley, and make your way out of the park through the northeast gate near Cooke City and drive the Beartooth Highway up to Red Lodge, MT where you'd spend the third night. DO NOT go to Yellowstone and fail to drive the Beartooth Highway from Cooke City to Red Lodge. It will be one of the highlights of the trip. If you have a 3rd full day to spend in the Yellowstone area, consider spending it in Gardiner, MT at the north entrance and use the day to see the Mammoth Hot Springs and Yellowstone Lake portions of the park.

When you make your way from the Yellowstone area to the Glacier area, go via Missoula. The headquarters of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation right off the interstate in Missoula makes for a convenient rest stop with some pretty impressive displays and a gift shop. It's also right beside a Cracker Barrel in case you need a states of the South at that point. On your way from Missoula to Glacier on Highway 93, the National Bison Range near Ravalli is worth-while detour for a couple of hours, if it is open (it never opened for vehicles in 2020 due to covid). It's a scenic one-way gravel road that offers some great views, and lots of wildlife (bison, bighorn sheep, elk, mule deer, and some black bears).

As somebody mentioned above, getting up early each day is highly recommended in the national parks. I know that might be tough with two teenage girls, but the West Yellowstone entrance to Yellowstone, especially, can get pretty crowded by about 8:30am. If you can avoid the crowds between the West Yellowstone and Madison Junction choke-point, you will have more fun that day.

Lastly, as far as timing, be aware that August is the fire season in the west. For 3 out of the last 5 years, wildfires and smoke have had a pretty significant impact on the outdoors experience out here in August. That can mean August can vary from rather hazy to downright smoke-filled, depending on how close the closest wildfires are to you. Or, it might not be smoky at all, but it's something worth thinking for planning purposes.

Oh, and I assume you are flying in somewhere, maybe Vegas, and renting a car? If so, it's worth a stop at Walmart on day one and picking up one of those styrofoam coolers and sandwich materials, snacks, etc. Given the places you are going, there will be times when stopping at a pullout and eating sandwiches will be much more pleasant and efficient than finding a restaurant where you all can eat. This is especially true in the national parks where dining options were very limited last year with the covid restrictions. Even if things are back at 100%, the picnic lunches are convenient ways to avoid the crowds.
Awesome detail in your recommendations. I don’t have experience with those parks, but in the summer of 19 we flew out west to Anaheim (Disney fans with a brief stint at Disneyland) and then spent the bulk of our trip heading up to Sequoia National Park and Yosemite National Park.

I was tempted to say “check out Yosemite too” to the OP...but it is hard to describe just how much driving the OP is talking about doing on this trip. Simply “adding Yosemite” or any other park mentioned in the thread might be a great idea - but you really need to plan how long this stuff takes.

For my money, Yosemite is the most amazing place I’ve ever seen. I still daydream about it on nice days here in the Upstate of SC. And you will see some amazing places along the way, too. But don’t try it all. Resist the urge to over-schedule.
 
Awesome detail in your recommendations. I don’t have experience with those parks, but in the summer of 19 we flew out west to Anaheim (Disney fans with a brief stint at Disneyland) and then spent the bulk of our trip heading up to Sequoia National Park and Yosemite National Park.

I was tempted to say “check out Yosemite too” to the OP...but it is hard to describe just how much driving the OP is talking about doing on this trip. Simply “adding Yosemite” or any other park mentioned in the thread might be a great idea - but you really need to plan how long this stuff takes.

For my money, Yosemite is the most amazing place I’ve ever seen. I still daydream about it on nice days here in the Upstate of SC. And you will see some amazing places along the way, too. But don’t try it all. Resist the urge to over-schedule.
Yes, we want to see a much as possible.... without having to rush through places. That'll be a delicate balancing act. We are putting together lists of "must see" items for all of us, then we'll finalize everything.
My wife is so thankful for all the suggestions thus far!!
 
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Yes, we want to see a much as possible.... without having to rush through places. That'll be a delicate balancing act. We are putting together lists of "must see" items for all of us, then we'll finalize everything.
My wife is so thankful for all the suggestions thus far!!
No matter where you choose - I’m jealous! It will be an awesome trip. Good luck, have fun, and resurrect this post when you get back and let us know much fun you had!
 
South Dakota is beautiful if that is on your route. Wind Cave NP is cool.

The parks will be crowded this summer. Zion is cool but will be crowded. As someone else said, the Hoh Rainforest is beautiful in Olympic. Take the ferry from Seattle. Have fun.

This. You might as well make it a 14 day trip and add Windcave, Custer, Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse and Devils Tower. Those would be about a day and you could eat in Deadwood.
 
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Yes, we want to see a much as possible.... without having to rush through places. That'll be a delicate balancing act. We are putting together lists of "must see" items for all of us, then we'll finalize everything.
My wife is so thankful for all the suggestions thus far!!
Yes, that is a very delicate balancing act. Just understand that the route you are tentatively planning is like like saying you want to see Charleston, DC, Philly, NYC, and maybe Chicago in the same two-week trip. haha.

It's true that the drive itself out here is amazing as the scenery will be incredible and ever-changing every 100 miles or so. But it's also true that checking a box that says you "saw" Old Faithful, Yellowstone, Glacier, Bryce Canyon, etc. is very different from actually "seeing" them. Whatever route you choose, my most important advice is to build in enough time to do one or two short hikes at each of the major tourist sites you plan to see. These are, after all, great outdoors attractions, so part of truly experiencing them means getting away from all the other tourists crowded around the boardwalk or overlook. You won't have time for a lot of hikes or any really long ones, but build in some time to get in one or two 1-3 mile hikes each day. You won't regret slowing down and really taking in the locales and will get to see them from angles 90% of tourists never see.
 
Good for you ... I have made two of these "west" vacations with family and they have been simply wonderful. First year we hit: SD, WY, MT, ID. SD: Badlands is awesome ... Mt. Rushmore ... eh, but it is so well known so something to consider. MT: Battle of Little Bighorn was good. Driving into WY on the Beartooth Highway is a must ... hopefully you can do so ... we stayed in tepee's just 6 miles out of Yellowstone (in MT) ... a blast. So much to do in Yellowstone .... can't go wrong. Another summer we hit the SW trail: AZ, UT, CO, and NM. Sedona and Grand Canyon in AZ (I also stopped in Winslow, AZ, because, it is such a fine sight to see) ... UT was the best ... if you get the opportunity to go to Zion NP, do it ... incredible. I hiked Angels Landing (dangerous in spots and with your young ones, likely not able to do this). The Narrows is a water hike .. if you do this, rent the walking sticks, boots, and neoprene socks .. well worth it. Brice was very nice ... the Arches was cool ... especially if you take an off road vehicle tour as you are allowed to scaled actual arches. It sounds as if you will not have time for much of UT but wanted to share that. Others have shared Olympic and Mt. Ranier ... beautiful. There is also Crater Lake NP in Oregon ... stunning beauty ... with you heading up to Glacier NP, it sounds like many of these things you may not be able to do but I would google it so you can have a visual ... by some Bear spray .. better safe than sorry ... enjoy, friend .. make the time with family priority ...

Life is good, Peace!
 
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Good for you ... I have made two of these "west" vacations with family and they have been simply wonderful. First year we hit: SD, WY, MT, ID. SD: Badlands is awesome ... Mt. Rushmore ... eh, but it is so well known so something to consider. MT: Battle of Little Bighorn was good. Driving into WY on the Beartooth Highway is a must ... hopefully you can do so ... we stayed in tepee's just 6 miles out of Yellowstone (in MT) ... a blast. So much to do in Yellowstone .... can't go wrong. Another summer we hit the SW trail: AZ, UT, CO, and NM. Sedona and Grand Canyon in AZ (I also stopped in Winslow, AZ, because, it is such a fine sight to see) ... UT was the best ... if you get the opportunity to go to Zion NP, do it ... incredible. I hiked Angels Landing (dangerous in spots and with your young ones, likely not able to do this). The Narrows is a water hike .. if you do this, rent the walking sticks, boots, and neoprene socks .. well worth it. Brice was very nice ... the Arches was cool ... especially if you take an off road vehicle tour as you are allowed to scaled actual arches. It sounds as if you will not have time for much of UT but wanted to share that. Others have shared Olympic and Mt. Ranier ... beautiful. There is also Crater Lake NP in Oregon ... stunning beauty ... with you heading up to Glacier NP, it sounds like many of these things you may not be able to do but I would google it so you can have a visual ... by some Bear spray .. better safe than sorry ... enjoy, friend .. make the time with family priority ...

Life is good, Peace!
Crater Lake is definitely a must see.
 
Also...travel out W during the summer = long days. I plan for 12 hr days when out having fun. The further N you go, the longer the daylight hrs. It doesn't get dark in MT until after 9:30 in most of July. Seattle is about the same.

 
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My clan (Myself, Wife, two teenagers) are planning to do a western US vacation this summer (pending states open). From Nevada, up (by some route) to Montana, over to Seattle and down the Pacific coast. Has anyone on here made a similar trip and have any must do suggestions? We are already planning to hit Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks.
Hells Canyon in Idaho is nice
 
Update: we did about 4500 miles of driving, saw Redwoods, Glacier, Yellowstone and Teton National parks. In addition, we listened to 48 albums, and made lots of memories! Thanks for all the suggestions!
Hey man, keep it coming!! There are those of us in the burbs of Charlotte that would enjoy reading your posts!
 
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Hey man, keep it coming!! There are those of us in the burbs of Charlotte that would enjoy reading your posts!
I will say my wife did a GREAT job planning this trip. We got plane tickets, a rental van for two weeks and nights of lodging for the same price as we did for 4 days in Disney last year (pre pandemic).
Our full route was we flew into Vegas, then drive from there to Los Angeles , Hollywood and Santa Monica on day one. Day two was San Francisco. Day 3 was the Redwoods. They were amazing. Day 4 was a trek through Oregon. Day 5 was Seattle. Day 6 was traveling from outside Seattle to Kila, Montana (where we stayed in an isolated cabin in the woods). Day 6 was Glacier. Day 7 was traveling to Red Lodge, Montana. Days 7 and 8 were Yellowstone. Day 9 was Grand Teton. Day 10 was traveling back to Vegas and days 10 and 11 were Vegas.
Hmmm, typing that makes me think I'm forgetting a day. Anyway, that was the crux of it and I would recommend EVERYONE go to Glacier. It is the most beautiful place I've ever seen.
If I knew how to post pictures on here, I could show you better than tell you 😄
 
I will say my wife did a GREAT job planning this trip. We got plane tickets, a rental van for two weeks and nights of lodging for the same price as we did for 4 days in Disney last year (pre pandemic).
Our full route was we flew into Vegas, then drive from there to Los Angeles , Hollywood and Santa Monica on day one. Day two was San Francisco. Day 3 was the Redwoods. They were amazing. Day 4 was a trek through Oregon. Day 5 was Seattle. Day 6 was traveling from outside Seattle to Kila, Montana (where we stayed in an isolated cabin in the woods). Day 6 was Glacier. Day 7 was traveling to Red Lodge, Montana. Days 7 and 8 were Yellowstone. Day 9 was Grand Teton. Day 10 was traveling back to Vegas and days 10 and 11 were Vegas.
Hmmm, typing that makes me think I'm forgetting a day. Anyway, that was the crux of it and I would recommend EVERYONE go to Glacier. It is the most beautiful place I've ever seen.
If I knew how to post pictures on here, I could show you better than tell you 😄
Nice! I'm following a similar path, but started in Phoenix. Currently in Berkeley. I will eventually wind up in Denver late Aug, then eventually drift back towards AZ. Of course, I have the privilege of staying longer/seeing more, but you'll get that when you retire.
The cool thing is you now know your way around and can make your next trip even better!
 
If I knew how to post pictures on here, I could show you better than tell you 😄

Dude, YOU CAN DO IT!!!!

I mean you’ve got some of us SERIOUSLY INTERESTED!! You CAN post a few photos now!!! =;-p
 
Day 7 was traveling to Red Lodge, Montana.

Did you ride the Bear Tooth Pass from Red lodge to Cooke City?

as a side note....... just returned from Utah/Colorado trip and some of the NPs are requiring a pass/permit to enter....was told that they are not yet fully staffed so they are limiting entries to parks........ a work around is get to entry gate before the ranger goes on duty, did this at Bryce, Arches,and several others
 
I will say my wife did a GREAT job planning this trip. We got plane tickets, a rental van for two weeks and nights of lodging for the same price as we did for 4 days in Disney last year (pre pandemic).
Our full route was we flew into Vegas, then drive from there to Los Angeles , Hollywood and Santa Monica on day one. Day two was San Francisco. Day 3 was the Redwoods. They were amazing. Day 4 was a trek through Oregon. Day 5 was Seattle. Day 6 was traveling from outside Seattle to Kila, Montana (where we stayed in an isolated cabin in the woods). Day 6 was Glacier. Day 7 was traveling to Red Lodge, Montana. Days 7 and 8 were Yellowstone. Day 9 was Grand Teton. Day 10 was traveling back to Vegas and days 10 and 11 were Vegas.
Hmmm, typing that makes me think I'm forgetting a day. Anyway, that was the crux of it and I would recommend EVERYONE go to Glacier. It is the most beautiful place I've ever seen.
If I knew how to post pictures on here, I could show you better than tell you 😄
Sounds like a great trip and one your family will never forget. Hopefully, you discovered a few places along your trip that you'd like to come back and explore for a week or more. It also sounds like your timing was perfect, at least for the Montana portion. For the past week, we have had highs in the 90s (sometimes upper 90s) and the forecast is for much of the same this week, although there are a couple of random days with highs in the 80s. Also, in the past few days, a hazy/smoky overcast has settled in which has me worried the smoke and fire season has already begun. It's unusually dry and hot out here, so hopefully the 4th of July campers were all responsible with the campfires this weekend.
 
Day 7 was traveling to Red Lodge, Montana.

Did you ride the Bear Tooth Pass from Red lodge to Cooke City?

as a side note....... just returned from Utah/Colorado trip and some of the NPs are requiring a pass/permit to enter....was told that they are not yet fully staffed so they are limiting entries to parks........ a work around is get to entry gate before the ranger goes on duty, did this at Bryce, Arches,and several others
Yes, we did the beartooth! It was awesome! Still about a 12 foot snow wall in some areas.
We had to have a separate pass to do the Highway to the Sun Road in Glacier, but other than that, the national park pass was all we needed
 
Sounds like a great trip and one your family will never forget. Hopefully, you discovered a few places along your trip that you'd like to come back and explore for a week or more. It also sounds like your timing was perfect, at least for the Montana portion. For the past week, we have had highs in the 90s (sometimes upper 90s) and the forecast is for much of the same this week, although there are a couple of random days with highs in the 80s. Also, in the past few days, a hazy/smoky overcast has settled in which has me worried the smoke and fire season has already begun. It's unusually dry and hot out here, so hopefully the 4th of July campers were all responsible with the campfires this weekend.
We were very blessed with the weather. When we were there it was still in the 40s/50s in the morning with highs in the upper 70s. PERFECT!
 
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My clan (Myself, Wife, two teenagers) are planning to do a western US vacation this summer (pending states open). From Nevada, up (by some route) to Montana, over to Seattle and down the Pacific coast. Has anyone on here made a similar trip and have any must do suggestions? We are already planning to hit Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks.

i used to live out there and traveled the western states,I lived in Denver. That is one heck of a trip by car. Looks like about three weeks. Is that what you are planning? You are 800 to 900 miles from Las Vegas, Nevada to Montana and that would be to Yellowstone. Then 600 or 700 miles to Seattle. Not sure how far you want to go on the PCH, but it is very slow going, but beautiful.. it took me a while living out there to appreciate the distances for town to town.
 
i used to live out there and traveled the western states,I lived in Denver. That is one heck of a trip by car. Looks like about three weeks. Is that what you are planning? You are 800 to 900 miles from Las Vegas, Nevada to Montana and that would be to Yellowstone. Then 600 or 700 miles to Seattle. Not sure how far you want to go on the PCH, but it is very slow going, but beautiful.. it took me a while living out there to appreciate the distances for town to town.
We did it on two weeks. Aggressive, but SOOO much fun!
 
Some old friends of ours are leaving in a week for a Great Western Road Trip. They'll be in our neck of the woods in 2 weeks and will stay a couple of nights with us. I'm busy planning a couple of hikes now. It's already smoky here from wildfires near and far, so I think we'll forego the hikes with "vista" payoffs and do a couple of hikes with "up close" payoffs. "Up close" payoffs like these alpine lakes in the Tobacco Root Mountains aren't diminished much by a smoky haze in the air.

Hollow Top Lake
Hollow-Top-Lake_Tobaccot-Root-Mountains_Montana-1.jpg


Louise Lake
748108c20e4c8206d19f252ea89403a5.jpg
 
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