Salt Lake City to San Fransisco via Yellowstone and Yosemite...tlo much?!

Hi,

We have booked flights to fly into Salt Lake City and out from San Fransisco for next August. We have three weeks to get between the two cities. We will be travelling with two teenagers. I would love to go to Yellowstone and my husband would love to go to the Redwoods, Yosemite and sequoia NP. I realise that is a lot! We will be travelling in an RV. What suggestions do people have? What would be a good route? I don't want to spend days and days driving, I would prefer to take our time and spend time to explore each area.

Look forward to hearing your ideas :)

Billie

Hello and welcome to the RTA forums !

With 3 weeks you certainly have enough time to complete your 'wish list', it's just a matter of where to prioritise your time. I think it's a trip that would have been suited to a loop trip but as you have booked your flights already lets have a look. From SLC you could head into Yellowstone via Jackson and explore the Tetons on route. It's worth spending at least 4 nights to look around properly, add that to the time flying into SLC and not being able to collect the RV untill the afternoon and spending another couple of hours during the hand over, you will be nearing the end of week one. (If it's an International flight you have to spend a night in a hotel prior to collecting RV) It will be a minimum of a 2 day drive to Yosemite. If you stopped around Lee Vining for a night you could enter Yosemite over the spectacular Tioga pass taking the time to take in the views. Then I would recommend at least 2 or nights in Yosemite valley to explore the valley floor, Tioga pass and Mariposa grove. If you head further south and spend a couple of nights in Sequoia you are at the end of week two. It would be 2 days to the Redwoods NP and another 2 to San Fran which leaves a couple of days in the city.

You should consider dropping the RV off when you arrive in SF and book a hotel, it's not a friendly city for vehicles and even less so in an RV and parking and campgrounds are expensive. If you want to visit Alcatraz I would highly recommend you book in advance using the National parks booking partner and also make booking campgrounds a priority, (as soon as the booking window opens) they fill up fast !!

Of course there are many other options, you could head to Sequoia NP after Yellowstone, possibly head to Las Vegas, or head to the coast after Yellowstone and drop down before heading inland to Yosemite and Sequoia. To cut down on miles you could enjoy the Sequoias of Yosemite and cut out Sequoia NP, or visit some of the smaller groves of coastal Redwoods nearer to San Fran.

As you move ahead with your planning and more questions crop up or you would like an opinion on your itinerary just post it here and we can help you with the finer details.

As Dave pointed out, you've got lots of time for this trip. Indeed you have enough that the stops are going to be much more enjoyable, longer and frequent. Three weeks will allow you to see many more places than the four you mentioned. In between or near the sites on your wish list you should also consider:

Grand Tetons National Park,
Jackson Hole,
Craters of the Moon National Monument,
Thousand Springs of the Snake River'

You might also want to check out some state parks and roads-less-traveled, but if your experience in RV's is limited, you should approach driving on two-lane roads through mountains with caution.

AZBuck