Milwaukee to San Francisco in 2 weeks

[cdubya]

Soooo, flying into Boise has given us a couple of extra days. Unless it says otherwise we will be camping. So any suggestions on campsites are welcome. I'll take hotel ideas too.

The new overall plan is:

July 15-fly from MKE to Boise, land at 1pm, pick up rental car and head east.
Sleep in Jackson WY (hotel)
16-Leave Jackson and arrive in Yellowstone by lunchtime
17-Yellowstone
18-Yellowstone
*19-Leave Yellowstone and drive south thru WY to UT
Sleep in ???? (hotel)
20-Get to Arches NP
21-Arches
*22-Leave Arches, drive thru Mounument Valley, get to Grand Canyon North Rim
23-GC
24-GC
*25-Leave GC, drive thru Zion, continue on to Pahrump, NV (hotel)
*26-Leave Pahrump, drive thru Death Valley up to Yosemite on Hwy 395
27-Yosemite
28-Yosemite
29-Leave Yosemite, drive to San Francisco (hotel)
30-SF (hotel)
31-Fly back to Zurich

My questions:
The dates with the stars are long driving days of about 7/8 hours. Are those spread out ok in between no driving days and days ranging from 2 to 4 hours? Not sure how to get around the the 25th and 26th of 2 long days of driving in a row.

On the 19th we leave Yellowstone and want to get as far into Utah and as close to Arches as possible. What would be a realistic option for a place to sleep? I was looking at Provo, UT but Price, UT would get us even closer.

If you had to choose to spend more time in one would it be Zion or Arches? I've opted to spend time in Arches while only driving through Zion. Good choice or should I switch that around? Spend more time in Zion and just a quick look at Arches?

I'm more interested in Yellowstone while hubby's more interestd in Yosemite. Have I balanced the time spent in those parks correctly?

Thanks for taking a look.

CW

[Lifemagician]

Well done!

This looks like a trip which will be remembered for a long time. Nicely spaced with down time in the main parks. Time to explore and really see the great wonders of the natural world. Has anyone mentioned the Junior Ranger program at each National Park?

As for Arches vs Zion. Both are great places, and which ever you choose, you will have done well. The other will still be there when you have the chance to make another trip.

As for hotels, I can't help you there, other than to point out that typically hotels have a limit of 4 per room. Some however cater for larger parties and this link may help you choose a hotel for five or more.

Do you get the children to keep a journal of their trips? It is so worthwhile. Just get each one to jot down before bed the best parts of their day - this can be in words, drawings, ticket butts, or even a menu. Of course it works best if Mum and Dad to it with them, and keep their own journal. Great memories.

Lifey

[Rick Quinn]

Hello!

On the singular question of whether Arches deserves more time and attention than Zion, if you have to choose, my vote would go with Zion. The whole region is spectacular, but Zion has hidden marvels that require a little more time; much of the best of what that park has to offer can't be seen if you're just driving through. There's a reason why Zion is the fifth most visited National Park in the U.S., ranking right after Yosemite, and ahead of Yellowstone. Arches will be less crowded, but Zion has more to offer (in my humble opinion).

Rick

[Midwest Michael]

I think you're on the right track, but there are a few things I would do differently.

July 15-fly from MKE to Boise, land at 1pm, pick up rental car and head east.
Sleep in Jackson WY (hotel)
16-Leave Jackson and arrive in Yellowstone by lunchtime
17-Yellowstone
18-Yellowstone
*19-Leave Yellowstone and drive south thru WY to UT
Sleep in ???? (hotel)

I think you're approaching the start of your trip a bit backwards. Rather than driving to Jackson, and then racing up to Yellowstone the next morning, where you won't get any time at the tetons at all, I'd drive from Boise to West Yellowstone, or someplace in that area, and spend the night. Spend the next two nights in Yellowstone (or continue to stay in West Yellowstone) to explore the park, then on the 3rd day make your way down into Grand Teton and spend the night in Jackson.

That will give you a touch more time in Yellowstone, give you a chance to do a little exploring of Grand Teton, and by staying in Jackson, you could make the drive to Moab in one fairly long, but still reasonable day on the 20th.

23-GC
24-GC
*25-Leave GC, drive thru Zion, continue on to Pahrump, NV (hotel)
*26-Leave Pahrump, drive thru Death Valley up to Yosemite on Hwy 395

I don't think the problem here is that the distances are too much to drive in back to back days, but I don't think you'd really have time to see either Zion or Death Valley at this rate.

If I had to choose between Arches and Zion, I would probably go with Arches - making sure I also spent a little time in Canyonlands too. However, I don't know if you have to do one or the other. Rather than 2 full days at the Grand Canyon, I think I would do one day at GC and one day at Zion.

While it would be a tough choice, I think I would consider skipping Death Valley and just driving from Zion to the Mammoth/Lee Vining area if you are feeling crunched for time. For Yosemite, I would try to spend one night east of the park, so you have a full day to explore the high country over Tioga Pass, and then spend the rest of your time in and around the Yosemite Valley.

[Southwest Dave]

Michael's idea of flipping the start of your trip and going to Yellowstone first is really good and saves some time on route to Arches. So the 16th and 17th would be spent in Yellowstone,leaving lunchtime on the 18th for Jackson. (Same amount of time in Yellowstone) The 19th you could, as Michael said, get to Arches or at least very close. The 20th at Arches and perhaps part of the morning of the 21st (or at Canyonlands) and then head towards the North rim, perhaps over night at Jacob Lake. If you spent all day on the 23rd and the morning of the 24th you could then head to Zion for the night and spend the 25th there as well, giving you a full day to explore. From then on I would choose between a day in SF or skipping Death valley and going direct towards Yosemite, perhaps overnight in Tonopah. If you were to leave Yosemite on the 30th to SF, you could look at stopping over in Lone Pine after Death valley.

[cdubya]

Lifey: That link for hotels for big families is great!! Thanks! And I have heard about the Junior Ranger Program and my kids will definitely take part. And journaling is something we do on all of our big trips and it's really a fantastic way to not only have some down time but also to keep hold of great memories.

Michael: Your idea of switching the beginning of the trip around has been put in place. We'll spend our first night in West Yellowstone and then on to Jackson after our days in the park. After a night there we'll make the looooong drive to Moab.

Dave: Because of your advice both Arches AND Zion make the cut now. :)

We're splitting our time in UT/AZ/CA like this now:
20-arrive in Arches
21-Explore Arches area
22-leave Arches for a meandering, sight filled drive to the North Rim
23-Explore GC area
24-leave GC after lunch, drive to Zion
25-Explore Zion
26-Leave Zion, drive thru DV get to Yosemite. (we have to see "the hottest place in America", the kids are insisting :D)
We'll sleep up near Tioga Pass (Tuolumne Meadows) the first night, then down in the valley the next 2 nights
27-Yosemite
28-Yosemite
29-Leave Yosemite, drive to SF
30-SF
31-fly home

I've taken a look at the Parks' websites and it looks like I can't book anything until March. So I have some time to see to choose campgrounds. It looks like we're leaning towards Tuolumne Meadows and Bridal Veil in Yosemite; South Campground in Zion; North Rim Campground in the GC; Devil's Garden in Arches. Yellowstone has so many options that I'm really not sure what would be the best place.

Thanks for the tips, everybody. I'm having so much fun planning this trip. Now that the itinerary is more or less set, I have to search for fun, quirky, kitschy pit stops along the way. So far in Idaho I've found the Potato Museum. :P

CW

[Southwest Dave]

26-Leave Zion, drive thru DV get to Yosemite. (we have to see "the hottest place in America", the kids are insisting :D)
We'll sleep up near Tioga Pass (Tuolumne Meadows) the first night,

That's too much for one day when you consider the lower speed limits in Death valley NP. It would be at least 10 hours without stopping to see anything. You either need to stop sooner or leave Zion after lunch and get towards Pahrump.

[cdubya]

That's too much for one day when you consider the lower speed limits in Death valley NP. It would be at least 10 hours without stopping to see anything. You either need to stop sooner or leave Zion after lunch and get towards Pahrump.

Yes, my original plan had us stopping for the night in Pahrump because we were skipping Zion.
So maybe we leave Zion early on the 26th, drive through DV and get as far north as possible on hwy 395. Then on the 27th we'll have a short drive into Yosemite.

[Southwest Dave]

Bishop would be a long day but doable with an early start although looking for a Motel is worth considering, you will arrive late in the day. Looks like you are in for an awesome trip !

[cdubya]

*25-Leave GC, drive thru Zion, continue on to Pahrump, NV (hotel)
*26-Leave Pahrump, drive thru Death Valley up to Yosemite on Hwy 395

Hmmmm, one of the bonuses of my original plan was driving through Las Vegas at dusk on our way to sleeping in Pahrump. Would be cool to see all the lights of the hotels...