RV in the American Southwest this summer

[paris]

Hello,
We are a family of four planning a two week RV trip in the US this summer. Our kids are 11 and 8 and have never been to the states so we would like to show them some spectacular scenery and a bit of legendary America. The only sure thing we know is that we want to take them to the Grand Canyon. My husband and I have already been to Bryce and Zion so we wanted to try different national parks this time round. I was hoping that this forum could help me plan a trip that doesn't involve long road journeys every day and that will give the kids the chance to get outdoors in great national parks and good campgrounds. I don't know if Yosemite is too far away to contemplate. Any help in sketching out an itinerary would be much appreciated.
Thank you,
Paris

[Midwest Michael]

Welcome to the RTA Forum!

Two weeks would give you lots of time to explore, and beyond the Grand Canyon, you could easily continue onto some of the other National Parks of Arizona, Utah and Colorado, or you could go back towards California and check out the amazing desert, mountain, and costal views that the Golden State has to offer.

This field report has some amazing pictures and details about many of the possible adventures you could take in during your time. I'd start there and see which things inspire you the most.

[paris]

thank you very much for your quick reply. i will look at your link right now.

[Southwest Dave]

hi there, if you have 2 weeks in the r.v. then getting between grand canyon to yosemite should'nt be a problem,there are plenty of places of interest to stop along the way.if you are planning to camp in the national parks you need to book as soon as possible as they get booked up quickly in season.[google nps.gov for all the info].i highly recommend this,you get time of from having to drive as they have very good free shuttle bus services and the kids will love the evenings around the camp fire,although not all are full hook ups, you have shower blocks and dump stations near by. yosemite is a magnificient place and well worth spending time at.
where are you flying into? if it's vegas you could go up one side of the sierras and back down the other via the tioga pass,possibly visiting death valley and the sequoias with a visit to grand canyon at the beginning or end of the holiday.
i hope you enjoyed my report that michael linked you to,don't hesitate if you have any more questions. have a great trip!

[paris]

I enjoyed the link very much, thank you. The pictures of yosemite were wonderful and have really whetted my appetite. I am interested in the suggestion you made about starting from las vegas. what exactly is this pass? are we talking steep mountains and cliffedge drives? not sure that appeals in an rv (I am not the best on heights!). also are there any good ghost towns that we should not miss. i think the kids (raised in London and paris) would like to see some flavour of the old west...we call it cowboy country - although i suspect that is more up wyoming way.

[Southwest Dave]

the tioga pass is the 120 that runs across yosemite.its a 2 lane road that's not to bad [we had a 30ft 'c' class]but it gets a bit narrow and twisty as it rises/drops to the valley floor. different people have different opinions on this section,but i think it's fine if you take it steady,and the views along this stretch are amazing. r.v's of all sizes cross it regular and it's also a big diversion to get across the sierras if you don't take it.
as for ghost towns,i think there are 2 in death valley[rhyolite nr beatty and ballarat south of pannamint springs] and there is bodie just north of mono lake,although i don't think you will be able to navigate the dirt road in an r.v.
there is also calico just before barstow from vegas on hwy 15, that is an old wild west [replica i think]town that put on shows such as gun fights etc,although we did'nt get there due to time.