Chicago to San Francisco via Yellowstone

[MarieFRK]

Hello,

We are planning a roadtrip from Chicago via Yellowstone to San Francisco, but I don't know if what I've planned is doable and your advices are more than welcome :)

We have 15 days in the US, we land at Chicago at the end of May and we leave from San Francisco, so my plan was
- 2 nights at Chicago
- Sioux Falls (only to sleep there)
- the Badlands National Park the day, see Mount Rushmore and sleep at Rapid City
- Custer State Park and sleep at Cody
- 3 days at Yellowstone, last night at Pocatello
- Salt Lake City (1 night)
- Las Vegas (1 night)
- Los Angeles (1 night)
- San Francisco (3 nights)

I'm not sure about the Las Vegas/Los Angeles part, we've been there a lot so it's not a big deal if we don't go, but I don't see anything interesting to do between Salt Lake City and San Francisco.

What do you think about it? Is this doable?

Thank you very much!

[Southwest Dave]

Hello and welcome to the RTA forums !

I'm not sure about the Las Vegas/Los Angeles part, we've been there a lot so it's not a big deal if we don't go, but I don't see anything interesting to do between Salt Lake City and San Francisco.

I really can't see the point in driving all the way to LA to sleep a night there. Personally from SLC I would head across the Great basin via West Wendover, Ely, Tonopah to Lee Vining and then spend some time in Yosemite NP before continuing to SF. You could also head to Reno and Lake Tahoe and maybe even across to Napa valley, but Yosemite would be my first choice entering the park via the Tioga Pass (CA120) which is a fantastic mountain drive.

- 3 days at Yellowstone, last night at Pocatello

Did you consider Jackson to give you some time in the Grand Tetons ?

I think you have a great trip to look forward to !

[MarieFRK]

Hello and welcome to the RTA forums !



I really can't see the point in driving all the way to LA to sleep a night there. Personally from SLC I would head across the Great basin via West Wendover, Ely, Tonopah to Lee Vining and then spend some time in Yosemite NP before continuing to SF. You could also head to Reno and Lake Tahoe and maybe even across to Napa valley, but Yosemite would be my first choice entering the park via the Tioga Pass (CA120) which is a fantastic mountain drive.



Did you consider Jackson to give you some time in the Grand Tetons ?

I think you have a great trip to look forward to !

Seems a really good idea to go to Yosemite !

Thank you for your answer :)

[Midwest Michael]

You've got a solid outline, and I completely agree with Dave that detouring to Vegas and LA doesn't really make any sense on your timeline.

I will offer a couple small suggestions.

Rapid City is actually quite a bit out of the way as an overnight for what you want to see in the Black Hills, and considering you're already rushing through this section of your trip, you should reduce that as much as possible. I'd strongly recommend trying to stay in Custer or perhaps Hill City. That will eliminate almost 3 hours of extra driving by going from Mt Rushmore, northwest to Rapid, southeast to Custer State Park, and then NW again back through Rapid and onto Wyoming.

[MarieFRK]

You've got a solid outline, and I completely agree with Dave that detouring to Vegas and LA doesn't really make any sense on your timeline.

I will offer a couple small suggestions.

Rapid City is actually quite a bit out of the way as an overnight for what you want to see in the Black Hills, and considering you're already rushing through this section of your trip, you should reduce that as much as possible. I'd strongly recommend trying to stay in Custer or perhaps Hill City. That will eliminate almost 3 hours of extra driving by going from Mt Rushmore, northwest to Rapid, southeast to Custer State Park, and then NW again back through Rapid and onto Wyoming.

Thank you very much for the advice. The time is effectively important on this trip so I would do that.

Have a great day,

Marie