Louisville To Portland and no clue what to do

[Ben Wolff]

Alright, my fiancee and I are gonna be making a road trip in early August to a convention in Portland Oregon and wanna take about five days to get out there and about the same coming back. Defninitely a newbie and any suggestions on stops along the way. major sites to hit, recommendations on scenic routes,getaways, and well pretty much anything in general is greatly appreciated. Would like to hit plenty of National Parks and landmarks if time allows.

[PNW Judy]

You'll be driving about 7 hours a day for 5 days if you go the most direct route...I-64, 70, 29, 80, and 84.

Most of the great sites would take you off this route and add more driving time each day. Sites you'd be missing by taking the direct route include Wall Drug, Mt. Rushmore, Badlands, Crazy Horse Memorial, Devil's Tower, Yellowstone/Grand Teton, etc. These are wonderful stops but you would have to increase your time or the miles driven each day to squeeze them in.

However, you can see the St. Louis Arch, Ft. Kearney in Nebraska, Ames Monument between Cheyenne and Laramie in Wyoming, and the Columbia River George and Mt. Hood in Oregon.