Atlanta to SD to Yellowstone to Aspen to Denver and return to Atlanta

[atlgal]

Hi everyone! My husband and I are planning a trip from Atlanta out west and return. We're looking for some sites that we shouldn't miss if time allows. We're leaving Atlanta on Sept. 4 and plan to stay a little over two weeks later, so we're looking at about a 15-day trip.

Here's our rough itinerary:

- Atlanta to Badlands, SD
- Badlands to Mt. Rushmore
- Mt. Rushmore to Yellowstone
- Yellowstone to Grand Tetons
- Grand Tetons to Aspen (to visit a friend in Aspen for a night)
- Aspen to Denver (to visit family for two nights)

We're pretty adventurous and like to see off-the-beaten path sites. We realize this is a lot of driving, but we're fine with that. We typically make our hotel reservations on the fly depending on where we are. We are also open to camping along the way.

Does anyone have suggestions for routes to take or sites not to miss? We hear that the SD state fair will be going on at this time so are considering visiting that on our way through SD.

Any suggestions or insights would be appreciated! Thanks for any help you may be able to provide.

[Midwest Michael]

Welcome to the RTA forum!

I know you say you're fine with the "lot of driving" but I'd be more concerned with the "little seeing." By the time you factor in just the minimum of safe drive times and the couple of days you've already got set aside for visiting friends and family, you'll really have to be rushing to see the things you've already listed. You've basically got about 4 or 5 days to see the badlands, mt. rushmore, yellowstone, and the Tetons. That's not horrible by any means, but I wouldn't really want any less time.

The SD State Fair would be going on, at least it would be the last day of the fair by the time you get there. But Huron's a bit of a detour off I-90, so its hard to make that just a quick stop. If you had more time to work with, I could see it being a fun addition, but I personally wouldn't add it with the things you're already including.