We will be in the area the end of Aug. 3 nights in Keystone, (stopping by Devil%26#39;s Tower along the way to Cody, Wy) and on to Yellowstone, etc. My question is this: Map Point is sending me from Keystone back to Rapid City and on westward via I 90. On the map-- I am seeing Rte 385 thru the Black Hills natl Forest- thru Deadwood to I 90. According to the map, it is basically the same amount of travel time. Which is the preferable drive? We LOVE photography and scenic drives. What do think? Which route should we take? Any good reasons to take 385 or avoid it?
mt rushmore to devils' tower
I%26#39;d highly recommend taking Rt. 385. We drove this route in the reverse direction. We were coming from Lead/Deadwood and really enjoyed it. The road was good quality and definitely more scenic. The Pactola Dam area is beautiful!
It might take a little more time, but if you like scenic drives, take a detour and drive the Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway! There are some pretty waterfalls here and lots of nice photo ops. You can take the byway into Spearfish and then pick up I90.
Sounds like you have a great trip planned! Enjoy your time in the Black Hills and Yellowstone!
mt rushmore to devils' tower
If you like a scenic route definitely take us385 but it will be more timeconsuming.
good. sounds like something we%26#39;ll want to do. We are taking 2 and 1/2 weeks- coming from Ohio -- trying to fit in the Black Hills, Yellowstone, Tetons and Rocky Mt Park. I try and and squeeze in as much scenic driving as I can. The west is SO vast (compared to here) that strictly interstate driving can get tiring. Stopping and climbing out with our cameras is a big part of our travel fun, so... sounds like 385 is definitely the way we%26#39;ll want to go. I%26#39;ll check out the Spearfish Canyon too. See how it fits into our trip. We%26#39;ve reservations in Cody, Wy the night we leave Mt Rushmore and want to run by Devil%26#39;s Tower too, so-- I%26#39;ll see how the timing goes that day. Definitely interested tho.
Thanks for the help!
I would suggest leaving Keystone as early as possible. We did this same thing in 2007. We left at 7 am from our Rapid City hotel and headed to Devil%26#39;s Tower on I-90. We didn%26#39;t do the hike as it was a little long for our kids (5, 2, and 1). We then drove through the powder river pass. Very pretty.
We also stayed in Cody that night and we arrived later in the evening, around 4pm. We didn%26#39;t get to do any of the museums in Cody because of our late arrival.
So chances are if you leave at 7, take 385, and do the hike at Devil%26#39;s Tower, you probably won%26#39;t get to Cody until 7 or 8 at night.
Have fun
Casey is right. It will be a long very long day. Planning a route you%26#39;ll think: Ok we do Devils Tower but you%26#39;ll already see if from a distance, closer and closer, and you will want to make stops for photo%26#39;s because it%26#39;s a remarkable sight and that takes time. The visitor center is very interesting not to mention the Prairie dogs at the foot of Devils Tower. Stops again. That sidetrip easily can take up to 2 hours but I wouldn%26#39;t want to skip it. Towards Cody you can take 14A and 14. Both are very scenic routes but 14A even more scenic but not faster. So maybe better take 14.
Tet
thanks! that is definitely helpful. Been to the ';southwest'; a couple of times and if there is one thing I%26#39;ve learned is that the beauty slows you down at every turn :) That and get advice from people who%26#39;ve been there! This is the first time heading north.
Is just my husband and I so that helps with any long days. 2 years ago, we did a big loop (beginning here in Ohio) to Albuquerque, Taos, Durango, over the San Juan skyway, monument valley, antelope canyon, Sedona, Tucson, Tombstone, Silver City, the very large array, back to albaquerque and then back home to Ohio. We were one night in each place aside from Sedona and Tucson. Ended up over 5600 miles in 2 weeks and 2 days. Yes, I know-- insane but we loved it :)
Decided to make this an ';easy'; trip, so 3 nights in Keystone, one overnight in Cody just to sleep, 4 nights in Yellowstone, 2 in Tetons, 1 in Laramie just to sleep, 2 in Estes Park. We%26#39;ll think this is a leasurely pace :) However... I WOULD definitely prefer to get into Cody before 7 or 8, so... may have to pass on the scenic route to allow enough time for Devil%26#39;s Tower? Is that your thoughts? Considering the whole trip, I suspect we%26#39;ll end up with plenty of scenic drives-- Time in Custer State park will show us the Black Hills? What do you think?
On your way from Sheridan to Cody (fastest way) you%26#39;ll have to take wy 14 or wy 14A. (If you were thinking of Buffalo-Worland-Greybull, this will take longer). Wy14 is the way to go on a tight schedule. Even if you are staying just for the night in Cody, a visit to the Buffalo Bill museums simply is a must. You can spend days there but 3-4 hours gives you a good impression. Maybe the morning after the Cody night (Cody also has its night rodeo event in summer)and drive to Yell in the afternoon.
You schedule looks good. 2 full days in the BH/Badlands area, the drive to Cody, your time in Yellowstone/GTNP and it%26#39;s an easy drive from Jackson to Laramie. And who am I to judge over 5600 miles trips, our last 2 trips were 8000 miles to the USA and 7500 miles to Australia, but I admit, we resp. had 8 and 9 weeks for it. Isn%26#39;t it great being retired-lol-
Tet
oh my gosh! Okay-- you%26#39;ve beaten me in miles! but I win in the ';most insane miles in too short of time'; award, right? :)
Not retired-- That%26#39;s why we try and cram so much into those 2 week plus weekend vacations. To make things worse, I am terrified to fly. Last time I tried, I ended up standing on the tarmac with some airport worker sneaking a cigarette to me trying to calm me while I sobbed. Horrid! Anyways, makes it tough on the husband all these miles, but thank goodness he LOVES photography and wandering the roads.
I wasn%26#39;t going to bother with anything in Cody, but I will take your advice and make time for the museum. Speaking of museums-- have you been to the Western Heritage museum in Oklahoma City? Might sound uninteresting, but it is REALLY great. Could spend hours and hours there. Has that famous ';End of the Trail'; original sculpture there. That and the memorial downtown where the bombing occured are worth a stop in OKC. Not sure if you%26#39;re interested--but my husband has a website-- front page gives slide shows link to the trips. First southwest trip is when we were in OKC. This is NOT a sales website-- just for fun. http://www.angel-gallery.com Just thought you might enjoy some of the photos since you love traveling :)
Wow, your husband Chris is a great photographer! Fantastic. Nice relaxing music too. Missed the spiral staircase in Santa Fe.....
Funny you mentioned Western Heritage Museum....we already were planning a visit to it next year! Terrified of flying are you? Good you didnot went with us this year. Spent 42 hours in the air...
glad you enjoyed the photos. You%26#39;ll like the western heritage museum, I think.
okay-- the staircase. We did not go in because I was peeved you had to PAY to go into a church.-- (my dad is a retired minister) long story, but my fault he didn%26#39;t get photos of it. We%26#39;d had our vehicle broken into, all of our camera gear, gps, etc stolen-- spent vacation time getting the window fixed and replacing photo gear-- got into Albuquerque for the balloon festival right from there and it rained all day-- (no balloons) Santa Fe followed Albuquerque and it took VERY little to peeve me (obviously) at that point. Not to mention insurance people calling and refusing to pay, blah, blah, blah..Stupid of me, but there you go. No staircase. Just a bad day and bad attitude on my part. Loved Santa Fe tho-- my favorite ';town'; that I%26#39;ve been to.
No thanks-- no 42 hours for me in the air :)
No comments:
Post a Comment