Denver CO to Rapid City SD 4 days

Will fly in and out of Denver.

Have 4 days not counting arrival and departure days.

Arrive Denver at 1PM

4 days of exploring.

Leave Denver at 3PM

Want to see Badlands, Rushmore, Devil%26#39;s Tower etc.

Other places to see ?

What else can be reasonably added ?

Places to stay overnight ?

Denver CO to Rapid City SD 4 days

The three usual base towns in the Black Hills are Keystone, Hill City, or Custer.

You can easily see your list of what you want to see from any of these towns. Your major drives would be out to the Badlands and to Devil%26#39;s Tower.

In order for us to make suggestions on other activities, we need to know a little more about what you enjoy doing. Do you like hiking/outdoors, native American history, museums, etc.? Will any children be along?

Custer State Park, along with Wind %26amp; Jewel Caves, are just a few things I would certainly consider adding. There is much more that we might be able to recommend once we know more of your interests.

Have fun planning!

Denver CO to Rapid City SD 4 days

While there is plenty in the Blackhills to fill up four days there are some things along the way. One I most often recommend for people coming from Denver is the Snowy Range Scenic Byway in southern Wyoming. If you can divert over to Laramie and take WY-130 for about 35 miles the reward is some very spectacular mountain scenery, especially if the weather is clear.

Then back down to Laramie and take US-30 to WY-34 up to near Wheatland. Since since Denver to Blackhills is just a bit more than a 1/2 day drive there should be plenty of time. You could even then go I-25 to Douglas and WY-59 to Gillette across the Thunder Basin National Grasslands and catch Devils Tower the same day. Either Sundance or Spearfish are nice places to stop for the night and then do Spearfish Canyon into Lead/Deadwood area the next morning.

If you stay in Sundance then catch the Vore Buffalo Jump the next morning at exit 199.

Details for Snowy Range and Vore are in the following goList tripadvisor.com/GoListDetail-i19709-Wyoming_鈥?/a>

Thanks for the response.

Interests: Scenic byways, photography, light hiking, No children accompanying.

Spouse with light handicap, uses 2 crutches for walking

Tell me if the following is possible.

Day of arrival: Denver airport at noon. Pick up rental at 1 PM.

Drive to Estes Park %26amp; Rocky Mountain National Park. Stay overnight at Fort Collins or Cheyenne.

First day: Early start, Laramie %26amp; Snowy Range Scenic Byway, Wheatland, Douglas, Gillette, Devil鈥檚 Tower night at Rapid City

Second day: Black Hills, Deadwood, , Chief Crazy Horse, night at Rapid City

Third Day: Badlands, night at Rapid City

Fourth Day: Custer State Park , Wind Cave, Mount Rushmore, night at Rapid City

Departure day, straight to Denver airport for 3 PM flight

Hi,

It has been many years since I visited Rocky Mountain; in fact, I was a teenager visiting my uncle, and he lived in a Dever suburb. I know we easily did the park in a day. We didn%26#39;t do any hiking. The highlight was driving Trail Ridge Rd and seeing the tundra area. You might want to make a post in the Rocky Mt Nat. Park forum as well to get some feedback.

Overall your itinerary is very do-able. I will just make a few comments.

1. I%26#39;d consider seeing Deadwood on your way in from Devil%26#39;s Tower. Also, plan on driving the Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway for some great photo ops. It%26#39;s a lovely scenic drive with some waterfalls.

2. I would not make a base in Rapid City. To me, you will get a much better ';feel for the hills'; by staying outside the city. Plus, you will be much closer to the major attractions by staying in one of the smaller towns (except the Badlands). Although Rapid City doesn%26#39;t have the urban feel of cities around here, it is still to be considered a city. I get enough urban around here, so when I get a chance for a smaller town, I grab it. Rapid City is fine when you want to get your supplies at the grocery store or Super WalMart, but you can drive in from the other areas to get them.

3. Does your spouse have trouble navigating steps? If so, I%26#39;d reconsider any of the cave tours. Although Wind has less than Jewel (Jewel has 723 steps on its Scenic Tour), it still has its share of steps. Wind%26#39;s Garden of Eden Tour only has 150 steps, whereas its longer tour, the Fairgrounds (we did this one) has about 450. This should definitely be considered based on your spouse%26#39;s abilities. There is always the Jewel Cave Discovery Talk which is rated as very easy and was designed for those who have difficulty navigating stairs.

Please let us know if you have additional questions.