Denver to Seattle - 6 Weeks - Any ‘Must See’s’ Missed?

[BlackrazorNZ]

Thank you all very much for the feedback. I've made the following changes to the trip planner based on it :

1) Added 2 additional nights in Yellowstone (one at the Lake and one at Gardiner) and rejigged itinerary to spend more time between stops.

2) Moved the Cooke City stop to Red Lodge - will do Gardiner -> Red Lodge as a leisurely day drive.

3) Bypassed Billings altogether - will go Red Lodge -> Bozeman

4) Added Two Medicine area in before finishing the day at East Glacier Village.

5) Spending additional day in Glacier area.

6) Bypassed Missoula altogether - will go Whitefish -> Couer D'Alene

7) Added an overnighter at Moses Lake so can do the detour to Coulee Dam on the way from Spokane.

Also thanks for the suggestion to get on the road early at Glacier - won't be a problem, we're early starters.

[AZBuck]

My apologies for taking so long to get back to you. I'm a big fan of both the lesser-known units of our national park system and our 50 various state park systems. So let's see which of those might suit you.

Between Salida and Montrose CO, yes, you'll be going by the Black Canyon of the Gunnison, but you'll also be passing Curecanti National Recreation Area. And on your way into Arches National Park, you might want to hike some of the Fisher Towers Trail.

While in SLC, check out Antelope Island State Park. Although the island is 'off shore' there is a causeway out to it. There is also a $10 entrance fee, but in the grand scheme of things for this trip, that's an incidental expense.

Unfortunately, I've taken too long to respond to your post and so your map has disappeared from the web. So from SLC northwest, I'm working just off your description above....

Between SLC and Jackson, although it involves a bit of backtracking, I'd suggest that rather than using I-15 north for a significant portion of that drive, you head east and north from Ogden on UT-39/UT-16/uT-30/US-89 around Bear Lake to Jackson. Those are all scenic roads and they will take you by Bear Lake State Park UT and Bear Lake State Park ID.

While in Billings, note that Little Bighorn Battlefield is just about 50 miles east of there. And while I don't have a lot of suggestions for things between Billings and Glacier, those are all scenic roads and you might want to check out the Museum of the Plains Indian.

Between Glacier and Missoula, I'd probably use US-93 down the west side of Flathead Lake with potential stops at West Shore State Park, then Big Arm Unit of Flathead Lake State Park, or National Bison Range.

AZBuck

[BlackrazorNZ]

My apologies for taking so long to get back to you. I'm a big fan of both the lesser-known units of our national park system and our 50 various state park systems. So let's see which of those might suit you.

Between Salida and Montrose CO, yes, you'll be going by the Black Canyon of the Gunnison, but you'll also be passing Curecanti National Recreation Area. And on your way into Arches National Park, you might want to hike some of the Fisher Towers Trail.

While in SLC, check out Antelope Island State Park. Although the island is 'off shore' there is a causeway out to it. There is also a $10 entrance fee, but in the grand scheme of things for this trip, that's an incidental expense.

Unfortunately, I've taken too long to respond to your post and so your map has disappeared from the web. So from SLC northwest, I'm working just off your description above....

Between SLC and Jackson, although it involves a bit of backtracking, I'd suggest that rather than using I-15 north for a significant portion of that drive, you head east and north from Ogden on UT-39/UT-16/uT-30/US-89 around Bear Lake to Jackson. Those are all scenic roads and they will take you by Bear Lake State Park UT and Bear Lake State Park ID.

While in Billings, note that Little Bighorn Battlefield is just about 50 miles east of there. And while I don't have a lot of suggestions for things between Billings and Glacier, those are all scenic roads and you might want to check out the Museum of the Plains Indian.

Between Glacier and Missoula, I'd probably use US-93 down the west side of Flathead Lake with potential stops at West Shore State Park, then Big Arm Unit of Flathead Lake State Park, or National Bison Range.

AZBuck

Fantastic, thank you :)

Curecanti, Fisher Towers & the Flathead Lake stops are all easy slot-in's.

Here's my current route from SLC to Idaho Falls :

Screenshot 2021-03-04 095419.jpg

It's showing about 2 hours from SLC to Bear Lake via this route, or 3.5 hours to go via 39. Is 39 worth the extra time?

And would it be worth skipping Soda Springs and Idaho Falls and going straight to Jackson from Montpelier via 89?

National Bison Range looks interesting but it's a big detour and presumably you'd be best to spend a few hours there to drive the loop - worth it?

[AZBuck]

"Is 39 worth the extra time?" That's up to you. I would definitely trade 2 hours of driving through a built-up area (SLC/Ogden/Brigham City/Logan), all on superslabs of four-lanes, for a 3½ hour drive on two-lane scenic byways over the Wasatch Range. You may also want to take into account two other factors: There will be minimal, if any, services along UT-39/UT-16/UT-30 aside from the small towns of Woodruff and Randolph; and the speed limit along most of that route is 55.

"[W]ould it be worth skipping Soda Springs and Idaho Falls and going straight to Jackson from Montpelier via 89?" Again, this is a matter of taste as much as anything else. As noted above, I will almost always choose byways over Interstates, especially when the byway does not go through any large towns and the Interstate does.

AZBuck

[BlackrazorNZ]

Thank you all for all your feedback - it is very much appreciated. I've implemented most of the suggestions into the trip planner/route.

Will be sure to post an in-progress roadtrip thread once we're underway :)

[noFanofCB]

89 is pretty scenic and not too frantic.

I like to stop in Afton and look at the Aviat Husky airplanes. They are so new and pretty like Easter Eggs!