Trip Advice

We will be travelling up from RMNP via Cheyenne and Laramie and staying 2 nights in Keystone before heading across to Red Lodge for 1 night then onto YNP. I have several questions that I need advice with: -

1 - Is there anything worth stopping to look at in Cheyenne or Laramie, or are they just places to drive through to say you%26#39;ve been there?

2 - What would be the best route to take from RMNP to Keystone? and how long roughly would it take to drive?

3 - We will have a full day to explore the Black Hills. We would like to see Mount Rushmore (obviously!), Custer State Park, Crazy Horse and possibly Jewel Cave. Is it possible to do this all in a day? Have I missed anywhere worth spending some time? Or is there anywhere that%26#39;s not worth the time?

4 - We have a day to get from Keystone across to Red Lodge. We were planning on driving up through Deadwood to I90, through Buffalo, Sheridan then Billings. However, upon reading other peoples messages, it sounds as though Devils Tower is worth a visit. Would it therefore make more sense to visit Devils Tower then go North on 112 to the 212 and visit Little Bighorn Battlefield, then Billings, Red Lodge? Would this route potentially save me more time to explore Devils Tower and Little Bighorn? Any ideas roughly how long this route would take?

Any advice regarding this area would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

Trip Advice

212 is a common route for locals traveling between Rapid and Billings.

I%26#39;m usually in a hurry on that drive, and don%26#39;t stop at Devil%26#39;s Tower. It isn%26#39;t exactly convenient to get to.

If you can get an early start on the day, you can do it. Take the Interstate out to Sundance, then go north to the tower, then north again to pick up 212.

212 is a very nice road that has been fixed up. It%26#39;s a great way to get west. You%26#39;ll end up right at the Battlefield.

It%26#39;s a long distance and it is not a short trip no matter how you route it. From Billings, it is about an hour to Red Lodge. It is a pretty drive, so you wouldn%26#39;t want to do it by night. It is not a winding mountain road, though until AFTER you leave Red Lodge!

I hope you%26#39;re spending more than a day in Yellowstone... You%26#39;re traveling a LOT of miles in a very short time. You can%26#39;t really ';explore'; the Black Hills in a day, just do a once over lightly. The same is even more true of Yellowstone.

Trip Advice

Thanks ainwa for the advice. Would you therefore say it was better to drive frrom Deadwood up to I90 to Spearfish then take US85 North to the 212 and try to get to Red Lodge slightly earlier and enjoy that area rather than take time out to go to Devils Tower?

We do have 3 full days planned to explore Yellowstone. Any advice for this area?

Thanks

I will address #3. You won%26#39;t be able to do all those things in one day. Some spend a day going through Custer State Park alone. With only a day, I would definitely skip Crazy Horse and Jewel Cave and focus on Rushmore and Custer State Park. You could see Rushmore by day and then at least travel Iron Mountain Rd. If you can, drive the Needles Hwy and try to stop at Sylvan Lake. You can add the Wildlife Loop only if there%26#39;s time. To do one big loop,you could take rt. 244 toward Hill City and then do a brief drive on 385/16 to Rt. 87. This would take you to Sylvan Lake %26amp; Needles Hwy. Then take the Wildlife Loop (might not see as much wildlife in middday) to Iron Mountain Road which will lead to Rushmore. Just make sure to see Rushmore in the daylight hours and in the evening for the lighting ceremony. I think the loop will help maximize your time, but you won%26#39;t have much time to stop and get out of the car much at Custer. Keep in mind that seeing Rushmore by day takes around 3 hours to really do it right. Be sure to walk the Presidential Trail out to the sculptor%26#39;s studio.

I%26#39;m glad you have 3 days for Yellowstone. The road is shaped in a figure 8. With limited time, some spend a day driving the lower loop, and a day driving the upper loop. Where are you staying while touring Yellowstone?

Thanks slrtravelplanner for the loop advice. The one thing you can never plan for is how long each place/sight will take you. Personally I had no idea Mount Rushmore would actually need several hours however that is the main reason for travelling to this area, so we will definately take our time and do the Presidential trail!

As for Yellowstone, we are staying 3 nights at the Canyon Lodge. My plan is to spend a day in the Canyon area, a day viewing the Northern loop (Mammoth/Norris) and a day exploring Old Faithful/Madison area.

Your plan for Yellowstone sounds good for somewhat limited time. The Canyon area was one of my personal favorites. Old Faithful was a close 2nd. We will be returning this year and taking our daughter who will be 11. We visited 12 years ago, so she obviously missed out. :) Yellowstone is just such an amazing place.

You are right about time for seeing attractions; some people just spend minimal time at a place. I figured 3 hours based on what we spent there. We walked the trail, took lots of pics (my downfall---digital is just way too easy), listened to the ranger talk at the Sculptor%26#39;s Studio, and then explored the exhibits at the visitor%26#39;s center. There%26#39;s also a movie to view there about the creation of the monument. Like I said before, I particularly enjoyed the sculptor%26#39;s studio, as you get a chance to see the planning process. The monument as you will see it was not the original plan..very interesting.

You are going to have a great time seeing some of the best our country has to offer. Enjoy your visit, and feel free to ask more questions!

For what it%26#39;s worth, I would put Little Big Horn near the top of any of the places to visit in any travel plans to that part of the US. Not only for the historical perspective and what it has come to mean but also for the accesibility to I90 and the way the Battlefield has been laid out. You could spend as little as a half-hour there visiting the visitor center and a short walk up to ';Last Stand Hill'; or, they have a CD you can play while taking a drive along the many significant battle sites that are laid out in such a way to give a great understanding of how the Native Americans and Custer%26#39;s army came to meet at that spot at that point in time. I recall you could do the auto tour in less than an hour but we took much longer to get out and walk the many well preserved and documented stopping points. Well worth the time but think they closed around 5 pm when we were there in late May.

Thanks MinnyRoamer for your input. It is greatly appreciated. It will be interesting to see somewhere historical.

Since you%26#39;re in an express-route mood, I%26#39;d go from the Black Hills to Belle Fourche to Broadus to Crow Agency, stop at the Battle of the Little Bighorn site, eat a pre-packed picnic while you%26#39;re there, then bomb on over to Red Lodge.

Days are long and you%26#39;ll have daylight for this ride, but I would get started by 8am. It will be cooler at the Battlefield if you do that, too. Interior of eastern MT can be HOT in the summer.

FYI, The entire interior of the US is classified as a desert with less than 13 inches of annual rainfall, most received as snow.

If you need to resupply for your trip to the park, which I recommend, the west end of Billings has lots more stores (and better restaurants) than you%26#39;ll find anywhere along the route.

Be sure to post in the Wyoming forum for fine-tuning details on your Yellowstone loop. I know part of the road is closed this summer, for example.

neutrogena