Big Trip Planning Ohio to NE, SD, MT, WY, ID, UT, CO, KS, MO back to OH.

[Steven@147]

After further planning we decided not to visit Monument Valley on this trip. We wanted to change our camping to a KOA in Moab UT to get water,50amp and sewer and also to get closer to Arches, Canyonlands and Dead Horse and that area.

We have friends that will be moving to the desert southwest near the Albuquerque area in the next year or so. That can be another trip from our home base in southern Texas to Big Bend - Albuquerque - Flagstaff - Monument Valley. We don't have to try to see everything in one trip.

[Canyonlight]

Steve and Tami @Steven@147 - sounds like a well thought through and planned trip.......good for you to do this ! Curious as to where your closest overnight stop to Sioux Falls (SFSD) will be ?.......SFSD is our home.

@ajg617 - SFSD for a May wedding, that s/b enjoyable and a special event for sure. We have a number of new "barns" venues in the area which have hosted many weddings in recent years for folks who do not choose a church (or do not belong to a church) for weddings. Carol and I have been to most. Curious where you will be parking the new 310 while in the area ?

Steve and Tami - Relative to Des Moines, as our daughter/SIL/Grandson live in Johnston (a NW suburb if you will) we have stayed at Prairie Flower campground at Salorville Lake a few times and it is very nice and 1/2 price for we 65 and older folks. Cement pads, well taken care of large open sites. And the Sams Club in Ankeny just a few miles away has diesel at the lowest price in the area. We have filled there a number of times.

Enjoy your trip !

Dan

[ajg617]

SFSD for a May wedding, that s/b enjoyable and a special event for sure. We have a number of new "barns" venues in the area which have hosted many weddings in recent years for folks who do not choose a church (or do not belong to a church) for weddings. Carol and I have been to most. Curious where you will be parking the new 310 while in the area ?

Dan

Getting late in the game maybe, but we don't know exactly where the wedding will be held. We also haven't closed on the trailer yet (weren't even sure it would arrive at dealer this year) - next week maybe as everyone of the finance folks in the dealership is in FL for meetings. I'll get the better half talking with her sister on where the venue is and where they are staying and for how long - not sure if there's been an issue on venues or not - sure has where we live - backed up for a year and a half.

The PDI is in discussion as the dealer says they do it and I said fine but, I will be there throughout. You can't because of OSHA. NOT. So a little negotiating needs to happen and nobody is around. Signing up for Trip Wizard and other memberships once we close on it.

[Chief T]

Sounds like a wonderful trip you have planned. Colorado is our favorite state to visit. Rifle Gap SP is a nice CG tucked away in the foothills. From there you can visit Rifle Falls SP then soak in the hot springs in Glenwood Springs. Personally I would avoid driving in and around Denver. To get to Colo Springs, I'd recommended coming in from the west on Rt. 24. I25 between Castle Rock and Monument is utter madness. South of Cheyenne Mt. SP is a real nice private CG Mountaindale RV Resort. A bit isolated, but very quiet with lots of wildlife, including bears strolling through.

Safe and happy travels.

[Steven@147]

Steve and Tami @Steven@147 - sounds like a well thought through and planned trip.......good for you to do this ! Curious as to where your closest overnight stop to Sioux Falls (SFSD) will be ?.......SFSD is our home.

cut
Enjoy your trip !

Dan

Thanks Dan, the way the mileage worked out, trying not to travel more than 350 miles in a day (not always hit it), we'll be staying over night just outside of Omaha, and the next day a stop at the Pioneer Auto Museum in Murdo SD, then on to Hermosa SD for our first long stop, so we will have to say howdy as we drive through Sioux Falls.

[Steven@147]

All the planning and the sites and places we will see along the way has us excited and looking forward to the big trip next year. Heck we haven't even made it back to Texas for Jan-Apr 2022 yet, then back up to Ohio for our Grandson's graduation in May.

You know, of our travels so far fulltiming, one of the things we really enjoy is just meeting people, getting to know the history of a specific area, experiencing the area where people lived. What geographic circumstances made them how they are. From our home state Texas - Austin area, to tiny places like Bull's Gap TN where my wife's grandfather grew up and it was a hub of passenger train service. The hotel / diner from the 1920s at the passengers train switching now stands abandoned and is a ghostly reminder of good times past. Well then how did Tami's Grandfather get form Bull's Gap hills of Tennessee to Kokomo Indiana and the Continental Steel factory?

Then Knoxville and the Tennessee mountain people, mid-western Dayton OH, Northern Indiana, If you ever get up to northern Indiana the Auburn / Cord / Duesenberg Museum and manufacturing plant is great, on and on, it has been one of the highlights of our traveling lives!

Example, we are in Richmond Indiana right now and toured the Wayne County Museum. Back in the day this place was jumping! Its where all the Garr-Scott farm steam engines, tractors and threshing machines were made. 28 trains a day came through this area bringing in parts and taking out new steam engines destined for all parts of the county. Is also where the first bladed lawn mowers were made and where some of the first music records LPs were made, and noted for Jazz music.

Also some of the first automobiles ,steam, gas and electric (yes electric - WHAT we had electric vehicles back in the 1900s? YUP) powered automobiles were made. Now its struggling like a lot of cities and towns, what happened? Its just fascinating to visit these areas and learn about the people. Sorry got off on a tangent.

[Scott'n'Wendy]

I'll recomend going through Cody and taking in the Triple 'C' Cowboys dinner show and then taking in a rodeo next door. Maybe check out Buffalo Bill's hotel the 'Irma' while there. Cody is just before the Yellowstone east entrance. There's a nice campground on shore of the Shoshone river reservoir.

There's an NRA Firearms museum there too if that's your kinda thing.

[Spartacus]

First thanks to everyone that has posted their trip information out west, routing, places to stay, sites to see etc. It has really helped us in our planning. We were going to do this last year but put it off, we just decided not to put it off any longer. Time frame May-August 2022. about 4500 miles in 4 months. The wife and I have been spending a lot of time on the computer and with trip wizard the last few days!

Using RV Trip Wizard leaving from Ohio through Indy going west (avoiding Chicago) over I74 - I80 Des Moines, Omaha, I29 Sioux City, Sioux Falls in route to I90 Rapid City / Hermosa SD spending 14 days here 1880 Train, Badlands, Rushmore, Deadwood, Crazy Horse, Custer and maybe an ICBM site. Then Devils Tower and the Little Big Horn.

From there I90 Billings - Belgrade MT then south to hwy 85/84/287/87 into West Yellowstone staying in Island Park ID for 15 days. Then using Grand Loop Road and hwy 89 down to Colter Bay Grand Tetons for 7 days.
From the Tetons down hwy 26/89 and back up 26 going around Teton Pass to Idaho Falls and I15 down through Salt Lake on the way to Nephi UT and down toward Hatch UT and Bryce Canyon for 14 days.

From there back up hwy 89 to I70 and down 191 to Blanding UT Canyon Lands, Arches, Monument Valley and Glen Canyon staying 14 days. From there I70 eastward to I25 to Colorado Springs and Cheyenne Mountain, Garden of the Gods for 3 days. On the way back east I25 to hwy 50 to Dodge City KS 3 days resting up. Then up toward I70 then east stopping over for 3 days in St Louis to rest up, back when we lived in Southern Indiana we used to visit St Louis zoo, botanical gardens and union station a lot.

Then back where we started from in Ohio. There are some over nighters mixed in just to get us where we are going. Traveling not more than 350 miles in a day, some much shorter.

We'll be staying at Private, State Parks, Harvest Hosts or National Park campgrounds. We have some reservations already confirmed up to the Tetons, the wife is working on the rest. We are really looking forward to this trip. I spent a few hours looking through past posts about routes, roads and campgrounds. Thanks again for Ya'lls postings on the forum. Of course any advice is welcome.

Wow, not that sound like funny we have a trip plan also cross country, leaving WA going to NC.

[hartcentr]

Arches and Canyonlands are great, but as far as Arches goes, think CROWDED. Same with Zions.

FWIW, having been to all of the Utah National Parks multiple times (we live here), if I was from out of state and could visit only one, it would be Bryce Canyon.

[Mark O]

Be sure to see Zion National Park while you're in Southern Utah. Spectacular!

I currently live very close to Island Park, Idaho, and seeing recommend seeing Mesa Falls near there.