First big RV trip Ohio to West

Hello all. this is my first day and i have to say i have spent the entire day reading this site! What we are doing is very exciting, and i am learning a lot, especially how much i have to learn! So here are a few questions to get me started.....

We are first time RV'ers. (lots of previous camping/hiking/biking/watersports experience tho) We are in the planning stages for a summer trip from Ohio to see some of the sights of the West. We have 3 to 4 weeks to do this and have a good list of interesting places. What i am having trouble with is putting them in order and mapping out a workable route, especially in the middle of the trip near the Grand Canyon. I have not been to that area of the country at all. There is just so much of interest in that area! Our basic plan with the research we have done is to Head west from Ohio and make it to Rocky Mt National Park in 2 long or 3 shorter days. From there, the middle of this trip is hangin me up.... we want to see Mesa Verde, Zion, Glen and Bryce, Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam/Las Vegas (probably a day trip just to "see" it and probably a show that night) How do you plan a course through all that which is so spread out? I think parts of the general itinerary are going to fall into place easily, because of the ability to spend 3 or 4 days in one area and use a park as a central hub, traveling to see the nearby parks/attractions. But this Southern Utah/Northern AZ part is not falling into place.

And the next challenge is the next leg. We need to get up to Teton area. Is there enough interest in the Salt Lake area to do a day stay there or just do one long run straight up to Teton??? I'd love to Kayak in the Salt Lake if possible. From the Teton/Yellostone area, we plan to head back east making a few days venture of the Custer/Rushmore/Badlands area before heading back.

I realize this is a full schedule. We may need to cut back some of the stays to make it all fit. I have a long list of smaller attractions and "off the beaten path" things we'd like to get in, too. It may be a bit too ambitious..... We dont want to shortcut too much for the sake of seeing more. I know we are going to hit some places we just want to spend a bit longer! But with college students and work schedules, we have to do this while we can. Making a quick run from Ohio to see what we missed is not an option!

"We" is my 22 yo daughter and 19 yo son in a 32 ft Bounder towing a Ford Escape. We plan to take our Kayaks (somehow...) and possibly bikes. We are all pretty sporty and looking for a more adventurous than relaxing type trip. We want to ride the mules (are reservations even possible at this late date?) and white water raft somewhere in the Colorado River.

As new Rvers, we also want to make sure we are not overdoing what the RV can do. (We've only taken a couple weekend trips to date with no heavy driving) So advice on roads, passes etc is especially important to me. I plan to get the Mountain Directory - if you all recommend that... It is tough, though, having never been to any of these parks or areas at all.... The other thing I am getting is that getting park reservations might be a problem due to the timing. We are leaving on June 21. How do i go about finding good campgrounds without having ever been there??? Oh, so much to figure out!

Any help/advice/resources you all can give is much appreciated. Thanks for reading!
Shelley from Ohio

Hello and welcome to the RTA forums !

You don't say where in Ohio you are starting from, but even from Dayton it is going to be a couple of hard days on the road in an RV to get to RMNP, finishing the journey on the morning of day 3 might make for a more comfortable start to a long road trip.

From RMNP there are many possible routes towards Mesa Verde, US 50 through the Currecanti rec area and past Black canyon to Montrose and down US550 [the spectacular 'Million dollar Highway'] would be one popular choice. Heading along I70 to Moab [Arches/Canyonlands] would be another. From Mesa Verde you could head through Monument valley to Grand canyon South rim and over the Hoover dam to Vegas. From Vegas up I 15 to Zion NP and Bryce canyon from where you can start your journey north towards Yellowstone.

To be honest I think you are being over ambitious and although you can cover the miles, having quality time at your great [and long] list of places to visit will be at a premium and would need a minimum of the 4 weeks. As first time RV'ers I would strongly recommend you sit down together and consider saving half of your trip for 'next time' and concentrate this trip to either the Four corners region and keep to the South of RMNP/I70 or keep a more northerly route from Denver to Yellowstone and Badlands etc with some of the Utah parks perhaps. [Arches/Canyonlands/Bryce.]

Thanks Dave. This is the kind of stuff i need to hear and it is what i expected to hear. I think we are going to have to accept the reality of whittling down our wish list to a manageable size so we arent trying to do it all at breakneck speed. We want to be able to enjoy it. But we are quite thinking that the travel days are going to be our restful days and the rest is going to be spent on activity of some sort. We arent really into planning into the vacation such things as movie nights in the RV. I can do that at home!

So you think if we cut the Yellowstone/Teton loop out and kept the rest that it is doable? Maybe coming across 80 from SLC in a marathon day to the Custer area - kinda on our way back east? That pretty much keeps us south except for that one really long run.

We are in the Columbus area so about 20 hours to RMNP. Gotta think we can do a marathon just out of the gate when we are all excited and ready to rock and roll. The good thing is we have 3 drivers. Maybe make it to just shy of Denver on Day 2 and then roll into the park early on Day 3.

I do feel like i need to get some of these basic/large plans figured out soon so i can get down to the nitty gritty details AND Reservations!

Thanks so much for your help!!

Driving a big RV with a toad, I think trying to make Denver in 2 days is pushing it too much. I'd look at somewhere in the middle of MO for the first night and somewhere in western KS for the second night. Try to keep the daily point-to-point drive down to about 500 miles.

Just looking at your initial wish list, I am in general agreement with Dave that this is a huge undertaking. But I also think that it's possible to do if you are comfortable with spending roughly as much time driving as you are enjoying the spots in between.

The first thing you have to come to grips with is the speed of an RV as in 'not much'. You are not going to make it to RMNP in two days from Ohio. Having multiple drivers does not make the RV/tow go any faster, quite the opposite, as you will be lugging more weight and making more frequent and longer stops. You need to budget a full three days for this initial leg and similarly not plan on covering more than 400 miles or so on any single day. That's just the way it's going to be. That does leave you a little time each day to take some refreshing time-outs during each day's drive, but not for major sight-seeing stops.

Your second leg is fairly straightforward: RMNP to Durango via US-285 to Del Norte and then US-160 over Wolf Creek Pass. Be aware that Wolf Creek Pass is 10,850' high and US-160 is a two lane road. This will be very slow going and you will need to pull over frequently to let other traffic pass you. Still at around 400 miles this is a doable leg.

That middle leg that's causing you so much consternation would work most efficiently like this. Head west from Durango on US-160 and cut down through Four Corners and part of Monument Valley to the Grand Canyon and enjoy that, then double back along the Rim Road, thus getting to see any parts of the Canyon you might have missed and head north on US-89 through Hatch, UT to Bryce Canyon. Again retrace your tracks south on US-89 to UT-9 west through Zion to I-15 south to Las Vegas.

Between Vegas and Salt Lake City (There were enough outdoor activity centers there to recently host an Olympics, after all!) enjoy the relative serenity of just muscling your rig down a safe and sane interstate. After SLC you can get back to a more adventurous drive by taking US-89 up to the Tetons. Your final run for home is basically along US-90, but if you really plan to explore some of the Black Hills sights, then you should leave 5 days or so for this last leg.

Again, you can accomplish what you want, I think. It's just going to take a bit more hard-headed attitude about what you can safely and realistically accomplish in a sane day of driving with the rig you're going to be taking.

AZBuck

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Thanks Dave. This is the kind of stuff i need to hear and it is what i expected to hear. I think we are going to have to accept the reality of whittling down our wish list to a manageable size so we arent trying to do it all at breakneck speed. We want to be able to enjoy it. But we are quite thinking that the travel

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I wouldn't say 'breakneck speed', it's just a case of how long you want to spend biking and kayaking and general stops along the way. As Buck mentioned above and I did earlier, it's doable but you have to be comfortable with it, not us. The other thing I was trying to get across is how many other things you could include without quite so many miles, for instance if you didn't do a straight shot from RMNP to Durango.

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We arent really into planning into the vacation such things as movie nights in the RV.

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Thank goodness ! LOL.

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So you think if we cut the Yellowstone/Teton loop out and kept the rest that it is doable? Maybe coming across 80 from SLC in a marathon day to the Custer area - kinda on our way back east? That pretty much keeps us south except for that one really long run.

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My initial thoughts were that you use 170 corridor as a line from Denver. The 'line' could include places like 'RMNP, Colorado NM, Arches, Canyonlands, Bryce and Zion. Then from that 'line' add places to the South, Glen canyon, Grand canyon, Las Vegas, Monument valley, Mesa Verde, Black canyon, Currecanti Nat rec area and so on, or North from the 'line' Tetons, Yellowstone, Black hills, Mt Rushmore, Custer State park, Badlands etc. Either of these options, your one above or your original itinerary could work, so I have probably left you more confused than when you started, sorry !

Why I said that your trip was 'doable but perhaps to big' was the fact that you mention biking, kayaking etc, and setting up camp for 3 and 4 days at a time in one area, and it's getting this balance right to suit you.

Once you have figured it out, we can help to 'fine tune' your itinerary.

OK, guys, i am working on a good itinerary, using all your wonderful advice, that will get as much as possible in without putting us over the edge on the driving. (Dang, this is HARD!) One question i have for you (before i make the final plan and put it out there for you to shoot full of holes!) is this..... We are going to be out on July 4. Depending on the order i put this stuff, we may be near Zion, the Grand Canyon, Vegas or SLC at that time. Anybody know of a super "not to be missed" July 4th celebration we can plan on? Or locations for fireworks, or whatever? Here in Ohio, we often see big stuff on July 3 as well, so anything good you know of on either day is appreciated. Thanks!!

OK, Guys.... after much more research (our Library now has no books in it!), reading this site until all hours of the morning, and the purchase of some books of my own, I think i am ready to have a crack at a real working itinerary. I also spent a good portion of a day with my friend Suzy who just moved to Ohio after spending 17 years living in the Pike's Peak area. (WHY??) She had awesome tips and suggestions as she has hiked extensively in the area and was able to whip out pictures of some of the places we were thinking of including. I also took several really important parts off Dave's famous "Denver to Four Corners" trip and incorporated those (Thanks, Dave!)

So, here goes:

Day 1 - June 21, 2011 = Leave Columbus, OH via Rt 70 just after rush hour. 7 hours to St Louis. Stop in that area for dinner and longer stretch. Continue 2 hrs to Columbia, MO. Now, at this point, option B may include a continuation of 2 MORE hours on to Kansas City IF we are feeling up to it. (must remember here "we" consists of 2 college students who are regular night owls and are likely to get a big second wind)

I'll put in my disclaimer here.... I really am heeding your warnings on keeping driving miles to about 550 per day max, except for this one optional additional 125. I just figure if there ever is a time to do it, it is right out of the chute when we are all psyched up and ready to "just do this!" We'll see, however. 10-11 hours IS a lot! Our good thing is we have 3 drivers and while the "kids" will probably only do highway driving, they will be a big help on our giant leg of I-70. We are planning to have a person drive, one person navigate and somebody totally "off duty" who can nap, eat, watch a movie, etc.

Day 2 - IF we made it to Kansas City, then on to Aurora, CO. If not, as near as we can get in 500 miles or so.

Day 3 - From "wherever" to Denver. Then up the Peak to Peak Byway to Estes Park, CO. Checkin at whatever time.....at campground to be determined...

Day 4 - RMNP - hike, Kayak?, definitely see the sights/animals, etc

Day 5 - Checkout and head to Fruita, CO/Grand Junction area (site to be determined)

Day 6 - see Colorado National Monument - Rim drive and on to Arches NP.

Day 7 - more Arches in AM then on to Mesa Verde/Durango area

Day 8 - Tour Mesa Verde, etc

Day 9 - Whitewater raft the Lower Piedra - 1/2 day, then chill

Day 10 - Leave Durango area and drive to Grand Canyon - North Rim (we arent much for insane crowds...) with good part of day left to see some stuff/hike. Pitstop at "Four Corners"

Day 11 - Grand Canyon all day

Day 12 - Leave GC and Drive to Las Vegas, with pitstop at Hoover Dam

Day 13 - Tour Las Vegas, go up in Eiffel Tower, ride roller coaster - go see Blue Man Group in evening.

Day 14 - Leave LV and drive to Zion - July 4 activities??

Day 15 - Zion all day

Day 16 - Leave Zion and drive to Bryce Canyon

Day 17 - Bryce Canyon all day

Day 18 - Leave Bryce and do Long haul up through Salt Lake City to Flaming Gorge (should we possibly shorten Bryce by a day (or a half day) and make this long haul better? Then we could maybe do something in Salt Lake???) Right now i have 2 full days at both

Day 19 - Flaming Gorge Area

Day 20 - Drive to Custer, SD

Day 21 - Custer, possibly Jewel Cave, Rushmore, Crazy Horse

Day 22 - Badlands (prob just drive through) to DeSmet, SD area for "Little House" museum, etc

Day 23 - DeSmet, SD to Cedar Falls, IA -5 hrs- dinner with friends

Day 24 - Cedar Falls to Mokena, IL (South of Chicago) 5 hours - dinner with more friends

Day 25 - Mokena, IL back to Columbus - approx 6 hr - possible lunch with friends near Indy.

As you can see, we scrapped all thoughts of getting to the Teton/Yellowstone area in favor of spending more time in the others.... it will have to remain on the "list"..... (i really want to see Glacier, so maybe next year???) We also added a couple days to max it out at 3 wks + 4 days. That is absolutely all we can get. :(

Now once i get some feedback on this, making sure it is doable, i am about to set out to find good RV parks in all these areas and book stuff like the rafting, the Vegas show, and possible mule or horse ride in GC, Bryce or Zion- if we are really lucky at this late date. I need to get on it - we leave in 4 weeks!! I have lots of ideas and tentative plans/RV parks, just need to make sure these days work in sensible fashion first.

So..... see any glaring mistakes?? Anything we are driving right by and ought to include? THANKS so much for the help and tips!! This site and you experienced ones have helped sooooo much!!

Shelley and gang

Hi, Shelley - - we are former RV'ers - -that's quite an undertaking you are planning! Be aware that it's much harder to make a 500 mile day in an RV than it is in a car - - take it from my experience! You can't do the same speed limits as a car, and often times the weather won't allow you to go faster than 55 even if the speed limit would say it was okay!

If you make it to Columbia, MO, there's Cottonwood RV Park just off Rt. 63 north of town. It will take you a bit north of Columbia but it's well worth it. If you think you can make Kansas City, try Trailside RV in Grain Valley. We were there a few years back and it was fine.

In Kansas there's a KOA at Wakeeny that's pretty decent. We also have stayed at a place called Camp Inn out of Oakley, but last time we were through there (in a car) we noticed that the place had changed names. I don't know how that has changed the RV park, but the pool was lovely.

Bear in mind that at MOST national parks, the campgrounds do not have hookups. You'll be relying either on your 12-volt battery power or your generator (if you brought one). Still, they are really beautiful places to camp. If you end up at Zion, there is a lovely RV park in Springvale just outside of the park. It's every bit as pretty as the national park, though a wee bit more expensive, but the good thing: SHOWERS. After a day of hiking in Zion, or even kayaking down the river, you'll appreciate the showers.

Hope this is helpful!

Donna

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Day 6 - see Colorado National Monument - Rim drive and on to Arches NP.

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Exit Interstate I-70 at Cisco, exit 214 and drive the scenic Hwy 128 into Moab, Utah. It's a good road. Moab is going to be hot this time of the year. You would need reservations if you wanted to camp at Devils Garden campground in Arches. The Willow Flats Campground at Canyonlands, Island in the Sky district is very primitive and only has 12 spots and fills up early. There are plenty of private campgrounds in the town of Moab or there are BLM campgrounds along the Colorado River on Hwy 128 and the Potash Road Hwy 279.

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Day 7 - more Arches in AM then on to Mesa Verde/Durango area

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Durango is not really a good place to stay to see Mesa Verde. Lots of driving back and forth. The Morefield campground in Mesa Verde hardly ever fills up. There are showers nearby at the store. There is also a private campground called Mesa Verde RV Resort (don't let the name fool you...I wouldn't call it a resort!) but it was very close to the entrance to Mesa Verde.

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Day 10 - Leave Durango area and drive to Grand Canyon - North Rim (we arent much for insane crowds...) with good part of day left to see some stuff/hike. Pitstop at "Four Corners"

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I calculate this will be over the 4th of July weekend so you are smart to avoid the S. Rim. The campground at the North Rim is by reservations so you better check to see if you can get in. If you can't get a spot, keep checking at least daily for a cancellation. I'm not that familiar with other camping in the area.

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Day 12 - Leave GC and Drive to Las Vegas, with pitstop at Hoover Dam

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The only campground on the Las Vegas strip is Circus Circus and it is a parking lot with hook ups! Oasis is a resort but you will either have to walk 1/2 a mile to the bus stop, take a taxi to the strip or if you have a tow vehicle, you will be fine.

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Day 14 - Leave LV and drive to Zion - July 4 activities??

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I wouldn't take the shuttle into Zion canyon that day! Talk about CROWDS! Watchman campground in Zion has electrical hook ups but it's pretty much booked for the summer. Keep checking for cancellations if you want to camp there. South campground is first come first serve, but over a holiday weekend, I'm sure it will be full early in the day. The campground in Springdale is just across the river from Watchman but the spot they put us in we were camped right on top of another camper and I didn't like it. They do have some nicer sites, but have no idea which ones to tell you to ask for. There is a resort ($$)campground in Virgin, Utah. It's about 10 miles or so down the road but you don't see Zion Canyon from there.

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Day 16 - Leave Zion and drive to Bryce Canyon

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You will have to pay the tunnel fee of $15 to go though the Zion Tunnel to Bryce.
There are two campgrounds in Bryce. One takes reservations and the other is first come first serve. There is a shower nearby to both campgrounds. If you want a private campground Ruby's Inn and Campground is just outside the Bryce park entrance. You can even pick up the Bryce free shuttles at the private campground.

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Day 18 - Leave Bryce and do Long haul up through Salt Lake City to Flaming Gorge (should we possibly shorten Bryce by a day (or a half day) and make this long haul better? Then we could maybe do something in Salt Lake???) Right now i have 2 full days at both

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If you decide against going to Salt Lake City, then I'd drive Hwy 12 to Torrey, Utah and possibly stay a night at the Fruita Campground in Capitol Reef National Park.

Flaming Gorge is a boaters recreational area and not sure it's worth a full day. You would be better off going to Vernal and spending a day at Dinosaur National Monument and just drive though Flaming Gorge. The campground at Dinosaur National Monument is very nice.

As DonnaR57 mentioned, most of the campgrounds in National Parks do not have hook ups. Watchman in Zion is the exception in my list. All of them have dump stations and fresh water. You will be driving at least every other day so you shouldn't have to worry about your batteries, but many of the areas you are visiting get HOT in the summer and you won't be able to run the air conditioning all night because most national park campgrounds have generator hours.

I've only listed the camping areas I'm most familiar with.

Utahtea

The section that stands out to me is between Mesa Verde and Zion. I would head from Mesa Verde to Las Vegas and then to Zion, the North rim and Bryce, it will save you a lot of miles and will take you to hoover dam rather than having to detour or back track.

I doubt you will get a site in the Watchman campground in Zion and even less chance of a Riverside site, the sites that are better spaced as Utahtea was referring to. The resort mentioned "10 miles away" is called the Virgin river resort.

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The only campground on the Las Vegas strip is Circus Circus and it is a parking lot with hook ups! Oasis is a resort but you will either have to walk 1/2 a mile to the bus stop, take a taxi to the strip or if you have a tow vehicle, you will be fine.

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I would recommend the Oasis. They also run a free shuttle bus to the start of the strip where you can get the trolley rides along it. The shuttle does go around the houses a bit though picking up and dropping off at other hotels and a cab is most convenient.

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Day 1 - June 21, 2011 = Leave Columbus, OH via Rt 70 just after rush hour. 7 hours to St Louis. Stop in that area for dinner and longer stretch. Continue 2 hrs to Columbia, MO. Now, at this point, option B may include a continuation of 2 MORE hours on to Kansas City

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With long days on the road you need to stop more often to stretch the legs, clear the mind, eat and fill with gas etc and that all takes time, longer in an RV. I would estimate in 'real world' terms [away from the computer generated travel times] that you will be looking at 13, possibly 14 hours on the road to reach Kansas with a "longer stretch" in St Louis and not the 11 hours you anticipate. Columbia is a reasonable 'target' area, but even then I would be looking to leave before rush hour and not after, and that would be your only hope of ending up near Kansas and being in a fit state to continue with another long drive next day.

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Originally Posted by Southwest Dave

I would recommend the Oasis. They also run a free shuttle bus to the start of the strip where you can get the trolley rides along it. The shuttle does go around the houses a bit though picking up and dropping off at other hotels and a cab is most convenient.

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If Oasis had a free shuttle they sure didn't tell us about it when we went in to ask how to get to the strip. This was just last month and they recommended the taxi instead of the bus. It is a very nice campground but we didn't spend much time there. We hadn't planned to stop at all but they had winds gusting to over 50 MPH on our route home so we stopped for the night.

Utahtea

THANKS so much for all the feedback. I am still wading through it as i try to put together campgrounds. Before i can go much farther though, i need to pin down my route in the "middle" of this trip - this dang part has been hanging me up the whole time. Dave - you say you think you'd put it in the order of Mesa, LV, Zion, North Rim, Bryce? OK, with what i have at my disposal, i am just not seeing the big miles savings, so what would a potential route be through those 5?

Also - Since we will have a toad, does it make sense to use it in LV or is it more practical/cheaper/fun to do the trolleys? Not sure how much of an issue it is to park in LV..... and th trolleys might be fun if you can get a whole day pass or something... thoughts?

If you are going to bother bringing the toad, I'd certainly think you'd want to use it in Vegas.

However, consider the pace of your trip - where you really aren't going to be spending more than a day at any one place - why are you even bothering to tow a car at all? It really seems like any advantage of having the toad would be pretty much wiped out by the extra time it is going to take to hook/unhook the car and the hassle of towing in addition to driving a supersized vehicle.

Apologies, I know what I meant, but it didn't translate to the keyboard very well ! You can save some miles, or some back tracking, but not both.

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Dave - you say you think you'd put it in the order of Mesa, LV, Zion, North Rim, Bryce? OK, with what i have at my disposal, i am just not seeing the big miles savings, so what would a potential route be through those 5?

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I was actually unsure which route you were going to take from North rim to Vegas as you mentioned a 'Pit stop' at Hoover dam. If you were to head South from North rim to I40 to Hoover dam to Vegas and then Zion and Bryce, it would be about 80/90 miles more than if you were to go from Durango to Flagstaff [140] to Hoover dam to Vegas to Zion to GC to Bryce. [Shorter] Your right, not big miles but some].
This option is still 40/50 miles longer than going from the North rim to I15 through Vegas to Hoover dam and back to Vegas and back up I15, [backtracking] Personally I hate backtracking along the same roads when on a roadtrip with a vengeance, but if it doesn't bother you and this is the route you originally meant, it's the 'quickest option' by about 45mins overall.

I agree with Michael that with a trip where you are constantly on the move, you might consider leaving the toad at home.

Sorry to confuse you, I should have checked on your planned route first.

That's OK, Dave, i was just rrying to make sure if there was an alternative that might work better, I didnt miss it just because i didn't know...

So at this point, one alternative is to keep it the way I orignally thought, but that puts us in Vegas over the July 4 wknd. The alternative (keeping GC for after LV and Zion) puts us at GC over that time. Not sure which is worse! Gotta think neither is preferable, but afterall, we have no choice. The vacation is when it is... Also, we will be leaving Zion and heading to GC on the 4th (with the one plan).

So Utahtea has said we should avoid taking the shuttle into Zion on the 4th. I gotta think that whole weekend is gonna be nuts in that entire area... Do you see anything i can do to get in a less crowded park at that time - even if it adds total miles? Gotta think going on the busiest weekend of the year is just not gonna be pleasant. Should we maybe head to Bryce on the 4th instead of GC and loop back down on Tuesday or Weds??

speaking of confusion.... sorry!

oh, and more later on why we are thinking of taking the toad - when at first glance it really doesnt seem to make sense...

All of the national parks in this area are going to be crowded on a holiday weekend. We were in Zion just on a free entrance weekend in April and you were packed into the shuttle buses like sardines! I've heard horror stories about holiday weekend shuttle buses at the Grand Canyon. If it were me, I'd shot to be in Las Vegas for as much of the 3 day weekend as possible.

I'd be really torn on taking the tow vehicle too. Zion, Bryce and Grand Canyon all have free shuttle buses that are going to get you pretty much where you need to go, but you still have other places where driving a 32 foot motor home is going to be a drag and hard to find parking.

Maybe the bikes would come in handy if you don't have the tow vehicle if you can take them on the motor home.

Just thought i'd take some time to update you all after we have returned from our big "out west" trip in case anyone was wondering what ever happened to us! I have to say it was one of the best experiences we've ever had. The trip was (almost) without a hitch, the scenes we saw were amazing and unforgettable and the people we met were interesting and fun. We LOVED it!!!!

Overall, we found we COULD push the envelope on the driving, especially on the way out and back from Ohio to Colorado. Once out there, though, you guys are ABSOLUTELY right about setting a lighter driving schedule with more time to enjoy the sights. For us, the passing through states of Indiana, Illinois, Missouri and Kansas were just miles to check off the list. While I know those states have plenty to offer if we were to tour them (no offense, guys!), for this trip, we just saw the berms of I-70 through those states. Therefore, we wanted to push on as best we could within reason.

Day one took us from Columbus, Ohio to Bonner Springs, KS, for a total of 683 miles. I have to say it was effortless for us. We were excited to get there, alert and raring to go, and had three willing and able drivers. We took turns, and all quickly felt at ease behind the wheel. I realize that is probably not for everyone, but for our particular situation, it worked perfectly. We "boondocked" for the night at Walmart. (I had called ahead to ask permission and it was fine with the store manager)

Since we made such good time, Day 2 had a much lighter schedule and we made it farther than anticipated. We drove from Bonner Springs, KS to Golden, CO. (600 miles) Again, no problem, although wind in Kansas slowed our speed a little. Our intended destination had been Aurora, CO on the east edge of Denver, but since we made such good time, we decided to push on and find a campsite in Golden, on the other side of Denver. We wanted to be set up perfectly for the next mornings trip on the scenic "Peak to Peak byway" (Rt 119 North into Estes Park) so we went ahead and went through Denver and found lodging in Golden. This was the first of a couple "fly by the seat of your pants" moments for us, as we changed plans midstream and found a campground where we had not anticipated staying. Fortunately, we found those to work out perfectly (beginner's luck??) We were on the road from about 8 am to 6 pm (10 hrs with a couple short stops- mapquest says it's 9, so about right)

We loved Golden! What a cute little town! We stayed at the Clear Creek RV Park in the middle of downtown and it was perfect! I will state here that we could not have made this trip without the "Trailer Life Directory" What an awesome book! We found it easy to schedule such impromptu stops such as this with this valuable resource! We looked for highly rated parks and always found them to be up to our standards. Anyway, the Clear Creek runs right through town, so we had the added pleasure of spending the evening watching the kayakers who flock from all around to "play" on the fast running (ice cold!) water of the creek, just steps from our campsite. We wandered into town on foot to enjoy an awesome pizza and saladbar dinner at "Woody's Watering Hole"

This night was also a first for us to unhook the "toad" (a Ford Escape) off the dolly and back into a site. Piece of cake! We found the setup to be easy and quick and will absolutely never go on an extended trip like this without the toad!! As the trip progressed, we found this to be reaffirmed over and over again. The toad makes it sooooooo simple to park and use the RV as home base and easily travel to your intended sites in a much smaller, gas efficient, easy to park vehicle. My 2 cents to all newbies, BRING the toad!!

I will skip here all the embellishments about seeing the Rocky Mountains for the first time. Suffice it to say it's gorgeous! I'll try to include in this post the "nuts and bolts" things that i hope will be helpful to anyone, especially new RVers contemplating such a trip. If i start talking about everything, you'll be reading for DAYS!

Just beyond Golden, we were surprised at what a wild ride I-70 becomes!! Yee haw! Since we come from the flatter than flat part of I-70, i had never given thought to it being anything other! But afterall, how are you gonna get through those mountains without going up some side and down the other?? So off we went, lugging our big self up and down in the trucker lane and enjoying the views! Surprisingly the RV (a 32 ft Bounder we bought used just a month before deciding to embark on this giant trip!) did well. We were, of course, significantly slow going up (down to 30 mph at times) and cautious going down (USE those lower gears!!) but so were the trucks. Basically we found in driving the RV, you just need to heed the warnings the signs give truckers. If it says go 25 on the ramp, there is a REASON! GO 25!!

So we hit RT 119 north and oohed and awed over the gorgeous mountains and scenery all the way to Estes Park where we stayed at the Spruce Lake Campground. It gets an A+, too. I cannot stress how we loved Rocky Mountain National Park. This is hands down, the favorite place we visited. Do not miss the hike to Bear Lake, Sprague Lake, Alberta Falls, or especially Dream Lake! To be hiking in snow (in shorts and T-shirts) on the last few days of June is surreal. It is postcard beautiful everywhere you look! Trail Ridge Road is also not to be missed (Definitely need the toad for that one!! We saw RVs up there but would not have liked to be in one! It is STEEP with drop off edges in many places) We spent almost a whole day just doing that driving/get out and hike a little tour (Heaven on earth!). And a tip - keep your eye out for elk in town! They like to lay down right in people's yards! Unreal!

And another tip, for us the "America the Beautiful" pass ($80 for the family) paid for itself several times as we went in and out of park after park over this 3 week trip.

After 3 days, from RMNP, we took off for Fruita, CO (6 hrs), stopping to see Rifle Falls on the way. It is a nice little stop off with a small hike to a pretty falls to stretch your legs, but do NOT take your RV/toad into that parking lot! We had called ahead about parking and were told "no problem". Believe me, that parking lot IS a problem if you cannot back up! Nuff said on that little fiasco!

We chose Fruita to be near the entrance for the Colorado National Monument, which we toured by car (Rim Rock Drive = 23 miles) the next morning. Beautiful, beautiful!! Dont miss the visitor center for great displays, tours and Rangers full of stories and info. And keep your eyes open for big horn sheep! They're everywhere in the park and fun to watch once you get the hang of spotting them against the rocks.

After a morning at CNM, we drove 2 hrs to Moab, UT. (Thanks for the tip, UtahTea, about taking Rt 128 into Cisco. What a cool road! One minute you are on the surface of the moon, the next you're in green river bottoms, then canyons.... a very nice drive!) In Moab, we stayed at the Riverside Oasis, which is very accurately named! It is literally a green oasis of grassy sites with trees in the middle of the red-rock desert! How they get that grass to grow i have no idea! Anyway, we got the RV situated and took the toad over to Arches NP. We took a short evening hike (it was well over 100 degrees!) to see a couple arches and went back to get out of the sun. The next morning, we got a super early start to hike to Delicate Arch, one of the more popular hikes and well worth the 4 hours invested! When we got back about 10 am, it was already 105 degrees and we passed lots of people just heading up there - some with little kids and no water bottles.....ugh!

We had in our itinerary to stop off at Mill Creek in Moab on our way out today, but completely forgot! Right before we left, Yahoo.com had an article about the 10 most scenic swimming holes in the US. One was right where we were going to be, so we added it to the list of things to see, but totally forgot! Dangit! Anyway, after our eraly morning hike, we took off for the 2.5 hr drive to Mesa Verde, and back into Colorado. As we were now on Day 8 of the trip, it was nice to be again at a place we had planned to stay for 3 days. Those little 1 nighters are good if you want to see just a few things in one area that is 2-3 hours away from another, but it is also nice to be in one spot for a little time, too. We went on the first of our tours of Mesa Verde that night.

To sum up Mesa Verde.....DO IT! It is awesome and scenic, informational and educational, and just plain cool! How people living in the 1200's built these structures with no modern tools is unimaginable! In our days here, we went on just about every tour they had. We had no problems with the height issues and "strenuous" warnings, but others might. Where it says strenuous, it really is. Where it warns "if you're afraid of heights....." it IS high, and precarious, and ledge-filled and wobbly-laddered. We were fine, but I was glad I did not have any senior citizens or children in the family.

While staying at Mesa Verde RV Park, we took a day to do a river rafting trip. We drove 1.5 hrs to Durango, and rafted with Animas River with Mild to Wild Rafting. This is a class 4 and 5 rapids and was one of the coolest things we did. We loved it so much in fact, that we restructured the entire end of our trip to accomodate coming back through this same area on our way back east so we could do another rafting trip! The second one was a 2 day-er and we are officially in love with rafting! Again, not for the faint of heart, though! For the one we went on, you have to do an orientation the night before, complete with a swim test in rapids, jumping out of the boat and back in, full wetsuit and heavy gear/helmet etc, etc. (They do have many other "lighter" options, but we went for the "Wild" option with Mild to Wild.) And if in the area, USE this outfitter! They are awesome!!

Next stop for us on Day 11 was the Grand Canyon, with a stop off at the "Four Corners" area - which is literally in the middle of nowhere! (pull in/pay the fee to the Navajo tribe, try the Navajo Fry bread, buy a couple souvenirs or some handmade jewelry and take the requisite picture standing in 4 states at once - a good leg stretch - then hit the road again) We chose the North Rim of the Grand Canyon for a less crowded experience as we were going on the Friday of 4th of July weekend. That turned out to be a good plan. It was not crowded. I have to say, though, that now that we have "been there and done that" will not visit the Grand Canyon again. It was somewhat of a let down after seeing some of the other gorgeous sights we had seen. Yes it is a Canyon, yes it is big, but is it more beautiful than the rest? nope. It's just a big canyon. Sorry, Canyon fans, but it did not make our favorites list. In fact, it ranks near the bottom of all the things we saw/did. Sunset was very pretty, as was the view from the Bright Angel Point.

Although we are not really the Las Vegas types, we decided to put a day and a half towards it since we were so close and none of us had ever been. It turned out to be a nice addition to the trip but with some very surprising encounters. First we stayed at the las Vegas Motorcoach Resort, which i will say is the only RV "resort" we stayed at that was truly a resort! We were shown to our site by the "host" in one of the deluxe golf carts from the fleet! The sites were equipped with "real" patio furniture on a huge, level, cement pad. We felt like bumpkins pulling in after driving through a dust storm and covered in bugs! Ha!! Thank goodness we bought the RV we did, as only class A's are allowed to even stay here! (put your nose in the air now) This place had 5 pools, a "real"mini golf course (real grass on a 9 hole mini course-unfortunately wasted on us as we dont golf!) and tennis courts, spas, etc, etc. Definite luxury and with a $55 a night price tag)

So our time at Las Vegas confirmed what we thought, we are not Las Vegas types. Oh well... Even though we didnt drink (a popular sport) partake in the girlie shows (ambitiously publicized on street corners with x-rated business cards placed into our hands!) or gamble ($20 lost on the penny slots in 30 minutes!) we did have fun. We did the roller coaster in the New York, New York casino, had a meal in the buffet of the Paris casino, watched the famous fountain outside the Bellagio, and took in a show of Blue Man Group (fun!) 1.5 days of it was plenty and we were glad we did it, but we'll probably never return. Definitely another good use for the car, but traffic is a nightmare and parking is a blood sport!

On the morning of the fourth of July, we took off for Bryce Canyon. (4 hrs) This was by design, as we didnt want to be in Zion on the shuttles for the holiday, even though it took us a bit out of our way and ultimately THROUGH Zion anyway. Bryce Canyon was a highlight. We had booked a horse/mule ride for 3 hrs and it is such breathtaking scenery. I will say, as athletic and adventuresome as we are, that mule was murder! After about the first hour, I was ready to get off. The human knee is not designed to bend in the fashion required by a giant mule belly! We had a great time despite the pain and if I had had some painkilling shot applied to both knees, I'd have loved every second. As it were, I had not wanted something to be over so badly since I had had my last child! Upon return, we took toll of our various injured body parts and promptly cancelled our intended ride for Zion later in the week. Oh the best layed plans.......

Zion was only a couple hours away and another 3 day stop for us. Highlight of the time there was definitely the hike into the Narrows. We rented the recommended water-friendly boots and hiking sticks (and agree they are very recommended!) and loved this river hike, where at times, the water is up to your neck! The Zion NP shuttles are sooooo user friendly and free! We easily took the car from our site at Zion River Resort into town to catch the local shuttle bus (also free) that takes you to the first stop of the Zion NP shuttle system. Entire thing is very well planned with informative recorded info on the shuttles, friendly drivers, and never a wait. Nicely done!

On the morning of Day 20, we left Zion on our way (6 hrs) to Natural Bridges NP where we stayed in Blanding UT at Blue Mountain RV Park - which was nearly empty. Midway, we stopped at our much anticipated tour of Antelope Canyon in Page, AZ and it did not disappoint! This canyon is just so cool, such a marvel of nature is simply HAS to be on your list if you are anywhere in the area! It's a short tour (1 hr) although not cheap ($26) but we loved it! Have your cameras ready and plenty of card space - I took over 100 photos in that hour! Gorgeous!

Natural Bridges was nice, too. It was about 30 min from our campsite (the nearest one) and another nice use for the toad. It's basically a big loop road that you can get off and take small hikes to see the various bridges. The visitor center here was really nice with a great video of how the bridges formed. The hiking was all pretty easy and accomplished the entire park (seeing everything) in an afternoon.

This ended the preplanned part of our trip, as we cancelled our intended (major) driving day up to Flaming Gorge and second (Major) push up to the Badlands area in favor of heading back east through Durango, CO for the added-in rafting trip. It was a wise decision. Even though once we got "out there"ost of our driving days were short ones, we were not looking forward to 2 8+ hour days in the car. There is just so much to see!

As it turned out, we needed almost a full day to deal with our one and only problem.... We had a total brake failure on our (new) tow dolly. Now I am not usually the type to bash a product, but this company needs to step it up! I had bought a brand new ($1800+) Stehl Tow Dolly 3 days before we left. We checked the air in the tires and followed the manufacturers instructions to stop after 25 miles and tighten the lug nuts. No problem. We used the dolly with ease for the entire trip, taking the Escape on and off it in minutes as needed at our many stops. Then as we pulled into the campsite in Blanding UT, we were fortunate that the owners happened to be sitting outside and saw (and heard!) us as we entered. The entire brake assemblies (disc brakes- surge style) on BOTH sides had come completely unbolted (2 bolts each!) and were dangling inside the drums, banging and scraping around. The calipers were completely mutilated and we had no idea how long we had been driving that way! The problem cannot be viewed from the top of the dolly, so we missed in in loading/unloading and we could not hear it from inside of the RV. Thankfully the kind folks alerted us before we headed back across those mountain passes!!! Unfortunately it took much wrangling to get Stehl to do the right thing and overnight the parts (it was obviously still under warranty) and it cost us a full day of our vacation to find a trailer dealer and get the problem solved. I just thank God no one was injured!

After the final grand finale of our 2 day rafting trip, we headed home. Such a bummer that this awesome trip was coming to an end..... For us it was a marvel in many ways. The stars lined up for us all to be able to take the giant amount of time we took off from our real lives. We saw 10 states in 25 days. We traveled over 4000 miles in the RV and over 1000 in the toad. We visited National Parks galore and filled it in with too many other cool sites to mention. The RVing has us hooked and after years of tent camping the whole "insta-camp" concept is a real joy! In 5 minutes we were parked, leveled, "slided", hooked up and off having fun. It is definitely the way to go! We are already talking about where to go next!

I must say thanks to those of you who lent your experience and kind advice when I first came here contemplating this trip. You are wise people!! We will definitely poll those in the know for future outings and have every expectation that each will be as enjoyable as this was!

One last tip: I had read somewhere to make a trip notebook before leaving and i have to say it is a marvelous idea. I took a giant notebook and put in dividers for each day and included things like the directions (printed off mapquest), confirmation letters/directions/maps for each park, pamphlets, internet printings, pages copied from books, and news paper articles about the intended stops. As we went, we added park maps, receipts, etc. It was a very valuable tool! We just kept it on the dash and it was a breeze to open it daily and see where we were headed, with maps, etc all ready to go. An awesome tip and one I highly endorse! We also kept a journal and took turns writing about various events. So fun to keep and re-read as things started to get blurry after the trip. Definitely worth the time every evening to write a little.

What a great report. You took me on the trip with you. I am sure it is going to be a great help to future roadtrippers. Do you have any pics. We love pics. You can upload them into an album in photoshare - on the green bar above.

Lifey

What an amazing adventure, thanks so much for dropping by and sharing your trip with us ! Having travelled through much of the same area in a 29ft class 'C' RV, [including driving over the Trail Ridge road and along the rim and through the tunnels at Colorado NM] it has brought back some great memories and I too, was journeying with you through your report ! Pleased you found Clear creek in Golden, it looked lovely but was booked out when we were there.

Thanks again !

Wow, I'm amazed someone actually read all that :) Yes, i will try to get some pictures up, if i can whittle it down to a reasonable number. We actually took thousands! And Dave, you are the one to be thanked! I took quite a few pages from your book and used them on this trip. Your "as you went" descriptions of your Four Corners trip were SO helpful in us deciding where to go and possible routes to get there. While ours varied from your route, the descriptions of many of the sights were helpful in figuring out a route we wanted and stops that were "must see". This site is just so helpful!!

Oh, and by the way, you'll all find this humorous.... 2 weeks after we got back from this trip, we traded in the RV on a bigger/better one. After talking to folks on the road, driving it on the mountains, and living in it for nearly a month, we decided we really did not buy the correct RV for us. I wished i had gotten a diesel and one just a little bigger. We traded it in on a 39 ft Fleetwood Discovery (also used). After crunching the numbers and finding this one online, I knew i was going to lose money on the trade in, but found that if I kept it 2-3 years, I'd lose the same amount. (All that dang Tax down the drain - and then some....) So I went for it! If i'm going to have the use of the one i really want for the next 2 years, it was worth it. I just wish i had bought the right one in the first place. But after having been through this experience, i know it had to happen just the way it did. Had i gone in and the sales man had told me i needed a 39 ft diesel, i'd have laughed. But now i have it and i LOVE it. We took it to Lake Cumberland for 5 days just a week after we got it, towing our boat and it did great. After driving the 32 foot all that way, making the jump to this one was not really a big deal. Yes, seriously hooked.......

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Wow, I'm amazed someone actually read all that :) Yes, i will try to get some pictures up, if i can whittle it down to a reasonable number. We actually took thousands! And Dave, you are the one to be thanked! I took quite a few pages from your book and used them on this trip.

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I'm so pleased my report was of use, as yours will be to many other members. Many members old and new will read your report and take the same pleasure and tips from it as we have. Your thread has already had over 1000 views and it will have many more!

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Yes, seriously hooked.......

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You have well and truly caught the bug, great news !! LOL. Would love to see a picture of your new rig. Oh boy, I got it bad now, and can't wait to get over the water and hit the road in an RV again !

I hope you keep dropping by to share your adventures and knowledge with us, and of course with any trip planning questions you might have.

Dave.

Pictures are up. In a folder by my member name. Not sure if that was the best way to do it as I have never posted pix.... enjoy


You can find the album here !

Of the pictures I have seen so far, you sure got some great captures. Many are familiar and bring back happy memories, so thankyou !

Dave.

Not only did I hang on every word of your trip report I enjoyed all your pictures! What a great trip!

We also loved the big wind turbines. We saw several of the big blades being transported when we drove back east a couple of years ago. They are enormous!

I knew where I was in each of your pictures. Everything lookled like I remember except the 4 Corners Monument. It's nothing like it was 25+ years ago! They had the little square with each of the states seals in it, but there was some rinky dink wood platform you could stand on to take a picture and little wooden sheds for the vendors. Looks like they are using the money from the entrance fees to fix it up!

Utahtea

It was a wonderful report, and we're looking forward to hearing about any upcoming trips you may take. We are "tween RV's" right now, and you made me long for our next one! (We just brought home a "new" tow vehicle - - looking for another 5W, probably.)

UT, we also saw those turbine blades being transported this summer. AAMOF, we felt like we should have taken photos of all the "weird" things we saw transported this summer. I could have had a whole album of photos!


Donna

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Originally Posted by Utahtea

Everything lookled like I remember except the 4 Corners Monument. It's nothing like it was 25+ years ago! They had the little square with each of the states seals in it, but there was some rinky dink wood platform you could stand on to take a picture and little wooden sheds for the vendors.
Utahtea

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It was only around this time last year that the re-construction was completed. What you decribe is how I remember it only 2 years ago.

Yeah, there was definitely a discrepancy between the very new central part and the older outer ring with the wooden stands as you describe. It is pretty nice, with flags all around and odd that this is literally in the middle of absolute nowhere! I'll look thru my pix and see if I can pull out a few of the overall scene.

Oh yeah, and how do you get your pictures to go up in the right order??? They are exactly backwards of chronological. ..

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Originally Posted by ShelleyW8

Oh yeah, and how do you get your pictures to go up in the right order??? They are exactly backwards of chronological. ..

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I asked the same question....the answer is....where they fall is what you get! :(

If that's not right...then I'd love to be able to change mine too!

Utahtea

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Originally Posted by ShelleyW8

Yeah, there was definitely a discrepancy between the very new central part and the older outer ring with the wooden stands as you describe. It is pretty nice, with flags all around and odd that this is literally in the middle of absolute nowhere! I'll look thru my pix and see if I can pull out a few of the overall scene.

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Great & Thanks!

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Originally Posted by Utahtea

If that's not right...then I'd love to be able to change mine too!

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Me too!!

Lifey

I took a look through and dont have a picture of the entire area where the flags/mini grandstands are. I thought I had one, but unfortunately not. I guess the next person through will have to get us all one!

Oh, and to Dave, go ahead and hop over the pond once again. We have a whole lot more for you to see! :)