trip to west

[mont]

planning a trip to mt rushmore,yellowstone,arches,grand canyon,mesa verte and back to fl wife is concern that the roads are steep and full of curves never been out there can you help me if I don't have a good answer for her we don't go Thanks

[padredw]

quote:mt rushmore

We stayed at Custer, SD in September (Custer's Gulch RV Park) We came up across Texas, NM, and Colorado. No trouble at all with the roads. Raton Pass is an easy pass with wide Interstate 25. That's about the steepest we had. Of course there are some of the most "winding" roads (and most enjoyable) around Custer and Mt. Rushmore, but we reserved driving on those without the trailer.

Some Photos: http://dwilliamson.com/W12/W12.html

quote:yellowstone

We've been there several times with our fifth-wheel. Stayed on the most recent trip at Colter Bay in the Grand Tetons. I've never considered the roads a problem [and I'm 80 years old!]

Here are some photos of a trip several years ago:
http://dwilliamson.com/Parks.html

quote:arches,grand canyon,mesa verte

If you make Arches, Grand Canyon and Mesa Verde you might consider going to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon rather than the much more crowded South Rim. On a recent trip we did come from Arches to Mesa Verde. These are all places not to be missed.

We take several RV trips each year. Almost always one of them to Florida, and almost always another out to the West.

I hope your wife will enjoy the great places you have mentioned. The thing is just to take your time. Coming down the passes requires a really good tow vehicle and keeping the speed slow. We have a Duramax/Allison Chevrolet with the tow/haul mode, which gives us great security coming down the passes. With a little planning you can avoid some of the steeper passes and still include the places you want to visit.

Let me know if I can help. For sure I know the routes you would be taking to include those highlights.

[HamRad]

Mont,
I'm sure if you drive long enough and look hard enough you can find some really steep and windy roads in the area you are thinking of visiting. But you will find the vast majority of roads are really easy drives. In some of the parks the roads are very narrow but there are no problems with them other than folks slowing down to look at the animals or other great scenery.

Make sure you give yourself plenty of time. Yellowstone by itself can easily take a week or more to see everything. It is a huge park. Remember that there is a lot of distance between the places you are thinking of visiting. Just going from one side of the Grand Canyon to the other is at least a half day's drive.

Take a chance and take the trip. Enjoy! HamRad

[scductman]

Mont we went in 2011. First time out west driving last time was in 1966 payed for by the USAF. we did 23 states in 5 months a bucket trip!!. I agree with David the north rim of the GC is really something and Arches is also. that being said I was worryed that my old truck would have problems with the mountains out west. What I found out is alot of the places you want to go are near interstates and very easy to get to plus the smaller roads are not bad at all any where we went. We went to montana to glacier nat park no trouble any where. Go and have a ball its a beautiful country and you will allways wonder if you don't go. BTW if you have been to the mountains on I-26 saluda mountain to me is worst than any place I went out west "don't know just sayin". I am by no means a expert but we went to the places you want to see so if I can be of any help just ask.
Bobby

[mont]

thanks all for info on my trip to west wife said we are going

[Champ_49]

A trip you will never forget, well worth it!!

Dave

[pineranch]

When you get in the Durango area, give us a shout up in Vallecito.
Mike

[sreigle]

If you travel to or from Mesa Verde NP to/from the Yellowstone area or other areas north of there, I would not recommend you try to tow on US 550 between Durango, CO and Ouray, CO. It's a gorgeous drive and I recommend it but not towing. You could technically do it but the curves will have you over the center line at times to avoid scraping your rig on the mountain on the side of the road. But I highly recommend you drive that road in sightseeing mode. Take your camera and prepare for many stops.

Otherwise, there are not a lot of roads that will pose a problem. If you want to post the particular routes you are considering, there are many here who can tell you what problems you might face.

[twindman]

Did someone already mention the Mountain West Directory book? A definite requirement for driving out west. (Also one for the east, but being biased, I always say there aren't any real mountains in the east)
This small book has every major highway road that has steep slopes and/or curves. My favorite, is the 'Oh, my God' hill in the Big Horns of Wyoming. A 10 per cent slope for 10 miles, then another 8 miles of 8 percent. Fun stuff!!! Oh, my wife won't let me pull over that route any more!!!
This is definitely useful when planning ahead. You know, you look at a map and it is a US highway, how bad could it be, right? This will keep you off that road.
Have fun.

[BusyCarol]

Well Mont I can understand your wife's concerns. My husband has a more laid back attitude about towing our rig so I am always the one wanting the lowdown on the route we plan on taking. I am glad she got enough information to bless your trip out west!

As for our feedback on the places... we live in Billings, Montana and we took our brand new Monty on her maiden voyage to Yellowstone. We even went up Sylvan Pass, with an elevation of 8,524ft (and quite the grade) in the pitch black, and our rig handled fine. There are plenty of pull outs if you do need to take a break or check things out. We wanted to enjoy the drive up so we pulled over a few times to let the cars behind us pass us. At one point there was a bison on the road right near the top of the pass. Let's just say he was a little ways away from the herd and there was NO way he used the mountain to climb there (way too steep)....he definitely had walked the road all the way up! The views are spectacular and the animals are incredible. We are fairly lucky in that we don't live that far away so we visit fairly regularly. We stayed at Fishing Bridge. If you choose to stay there please note it is more of a parking lot than an RV park and spaces are kind of tight. Make sure you get a spot that is big enough for your rig because the trees and such can block entrances to spots if you are too long. We like Fishing Bridge because it is very central to all of the different sections of Yellowstone.

As for South Dakota we stayed at the Mount Rushmore KOA, which is an EXCELLENT location, and is central to everything. I was not concerned about any of the roads there and we pulled our rig all the way from Montana and back. The roads in South Dakota (highways) can be noisy because of how they grade them I guess but other than that I was not concerned at all.

I hope that helps! Enjoy your trip west! If you go through Billings, MT give us a holler!

[mont]

Thanks for all the info on roads you gave me I will plan my route and show it on this form maybe someone will have a better suggestion Thanks Dave