yeltrip

[triumphjt]

we are filipinos planning a road trip from san francisco to yellowstone park and mount rushmore, then back to sanfrancisco . when is the best time, what route to take, what place to stay within two weeks time. Any advice will be appreciated.

[Southwest Dave]

Hello and welcome to the RTA forums !

There is no single 'best' time or 'best' route other than those that you consider best based on your circumstances and interests. For that reason I would suggest you do a little more research and see where else appeals, but I will give you a few pointers to help with planning.

Yellowstone has a relatively short season compared to many places, the park does not fully open until June [weather permitting] and settled wintry conditions can return in September. For me, June and September would be a good time, there won't be as many visitors as in the peak season of July and August. Yellowstone really needs 3 to 4 days to do it justice, the park is huge with much to see and it can be slow going on park roads. To the south of the park you will find the Grand Tetons that are wonderful. With that in mind the first thing I would think about is how much driving you want to do within your 2 weeks as Rushmore will add plenty of drive time and personally speaking there other things I would much rather see that would not take so much driving. Some that come to mind that would create a nice loop trip [taking a different route in each direction] are, Lake Tahoe, Shoshone Falls and Craters of the Moon on route to Yellowstone and then through the Tetons into Southern Utah and Bryce canyon and Zion NP. From there you could drive across the Sierra Nevada to Yosemite NP [amazing] before heading back to SF. If Rushmore is a 'must see' for you it's certainly possible and you could take a different route each way with similar options as above but your time out of the car would be less and you would have to be more selective.

So have a look around and see what appeals and when you have more idea of what else you would like to see and when you will travel and then we can help put it all together.

[Lifemagician]

Do you have any good maps of the US? To plan a trip like this from your home, you really need more than just a computer. You need some good maps. This paragraph may help you understand why -

Start with maps. Not GPS, not software, not Google, but real honest-to-god paper maps that show you your entire route, that you can mark up (and erase), that you can stick pins in, and that show something about the land you'll be driving through. Those are your essential tool in any RoadTrip planning process. Start by marking all the places you know you want to visit. Then connect the dots. Then look for more places of interest and scenic routes along the lines connecting the dots. Repeat until you've got as many sites and roads as you think you want.

If good maps are not readily available locally, you may consider purchasing a Rand McNally road atlas from the RTA store (on the blue bar at the bottom of this page). You will find it a great help. These maps have a wealth of information, are invaluable while planning a trip, and essential when on the road.

Lifey