California/Idaho/Wyoming and back in 2 weeks?

[Stephanie4670]

I have been trying to map out the best route for this trip and feeling overwhelmed. It just seems like a lot of driving and not enought "fun" time. Vacation time is 2 weeks in September 2015 (16 days)

We are starting in Cambria, CA, heading north to Lassen Volcanic National Park, up and over to Riggins Idaho and then over to Yellowstone. On our way back, we will leave Yellowstone, head south to Salt Lake City then to Reno, and then back home to Cambria.

Its 44 hours of driving and 2700 miles round trip. Our main stop is Yellowstone. We will need to stop several times on the way there so the above route is what we decided on. We would like to stay 3 nights minimum in Yellowstone area camping and 1 night at the other locations above. I still feel like its a lot of driving every time we get in the truck. 500 -600 each day.

Is this reasonable in 2 weeks? We will be towing a travel trailer and have our 3 big dogs. Any other ideas or suggestions would be helpful!
We are also huge campers so if you know of any other place in this area worth visiting please let me know .Thanks Stephanie

[Midwest Michael]

Welcome to the RTA Forum!

I really think I'd leave Lassen out of this trip. It's a nice park, but most of the most interesting features you'll be seeing on a much larger scale at Yellowstone. It just doesn't seem worth the detour to me.

500-600 miles a day in a car isn't bad, but if you're going to be in a truck, pulling a trailer, and dealing with dogs, that might be a bit too much for you. Keep in mind, travel time estimates by online mapping programs aren't close to accurate, and you'll need more time in the real world. Those 500-600 miles will likely be at least 10-12 hours each day.

3 nights is a good choice for Yellowstone, but also add some time for the Grand Tetons. Although, note for both (in fact, nearly all) National Parks, you will be fairly limited on where you can go with the dogs.

An alternative for route - which would actually be a shorter route than you're planning now - could be to head out to Barstow and then up I-15. That would take you past Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks.