Utah/Wyoming/Colorado vacation

#51
#51
Ulysees E. McGill said:
That is awesome. Both of those are still on my bucket list. I have knocked Trail Ridge rd and the San Juan parkway and Skyline drive off, but I still got the PCH and The Crater Lake rim road along with a few others to do before I leave this world.
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Have the PCH but not the others.
 
#53
#53
If I wasn't a tech idiot, I would post some of our videos of our 16 day trip in 11. It was an experience of a lifetime that I spent two years planning and saving for. It was worth every sacrifice and every dime spent. We only have 9-10 days next year, but we are just going straight to GTNP and Yellowstone then straight back home. After that our next big trip will be a Grand Canyon NP, Death valley NP and Yosemite NP over to San Fran, then down the PCH to LA, then back to Arizona loop. Hopefully I can make this happen in the next 5 years.
 
#54
#54
volinbham said:
Have the PCH but not the others.
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Hope to knock off Tioga pass Rd, The PCH and Avenue of the Giants in Cali off my bucket list on our next big trip. The Death Valley drive is also on that list but it is made up of several roads.
 
#55
#55
volinbham said:
Would be a good day trip from Yellowstone or you could overnight in Red Lodge and drive back the next day. RL is a cool little former mining town.
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It will wipe out a whole day of exploring Yellowstone though. If you find out what you missed later. You may regret it. But unless the Volcano blows it will be there to visit another time lol. You do have to make some tough choices with limited time. Man talking about this is getting me pumped! I can't wait for next year! As John Muir said "The mountains are calling..And I must go". One of the few things in life that make me wax poetic..lol
 
#56
#56
Drive the Bear Tooth hwy. Feed the chipmunks. Maybe hit up the Buffalo Bill museum in Cody. There's a cool dam out there too. Kayak on Jenny Lake in the Tetons. Check out moose road early in the morning or near sunset in the Tetons. We saw several moose on that road. Pull off at ox bow bend in the Tetons for a few minutes to take a pic. For Yellowstone, if you want to stay in the park, you need to plan way ahead of time. We reserved lodging in the park almost a year in advance. Before you go out there, read the chapters dedicated to Yellowstone in the book "A short history of nearly everything" by Bill Bryson. It will blow your mind when you learn about the geology involved in the formation of that place.
 
#57
#57
We went in the middle of January and snowmobiled 45 miles through Yellowstone to Old Faithful. Just about the coolest thing I've ever done.
 
#58
#58
We did an overnight white water rafting trip on the Colorado river in early June. It was cool. Started in Grand Junction CO and ended near Moab UT
 
#59
#59
Looks like the plans changed and we will be going the first week of June.

She was able to move some stuff around to make it happen. Hope that will increase our chances for good weather.
 
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#60
#60
volfanngatorland said:
Looks like the plans changed and we will be going the first week of June.

She was able to move some stuff around to make it happen. Hope that will increase our chances for good weather.
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Dude that is awesome. It will be a lot less iffy then..still volatile, but much better chance of decent weather, and more stuff to do.
 
#61
#61
if you go into town in SLC check out the men wearing wedding rings and see how many women ar standing close by with a wedding ring


yea I know,a pointless comment for sure :)
 
#62
#62
volfanngatorland said:
Looks like the plans changed and we will be going the first week of June.

She was able to move some stuff around to make it happen. Hope that will increase our chances for good weather.
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In Jackson that will greatly increase the chance for good weather. May can still get pretty nasty but by June winter is finally giving up it's hold.

There will still be a lot of snow at high elevation, but plenty of good hiking to be had. Cascade canyon is a good one early season. If you want a strenuous hike and it is free of snow, Table mountain is one of the best hikes in the Tetons. The views are spectacular.

Southern Utah is incredible. Arches, Grand Staircase/Escalante, Bryce, Capital Reef are great; and then there is Zion which is mind blowing.

I lived in Jackson for 8 years, so if you want any more info let me know.
 
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#63
#63
And I intended to echo the comment about the Beartooth Highway. The drive from the Northeast entrance of Yellowstone to Red Lodge, MT is beautiful.

Charles Kuralt called it the most beautiful drive in America. While I would not go that far, I would say it is spectacular.
 
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#64
#64
NorCalVol67 said:
In Jackson that will greatly increase the chance for good weather. May can still get pretty nasty but by June winter is finally giving up it's hold.

There will still be a lot of snow at high elevation, but plenty of good hiking to be had. Cascade canyon is a good one early season. If you want a strenuous hike and it is free of snow, Table mountain is one of the best hikes in the Tetons. The views are spectacular.

Southern Utah is incredible. Arches, Grand Staircase/Escalante, Bryce, Capital Reef are great; and then there is Zion which is mind blowing.

I lived in Jackson for 8 years, so if you want any more info let me know.
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The year we went(11)in mid june, Cascade falls was as far as you could go because the snow was still piled up above it. I wanted to at least make it to Inspiration point, but the trail was closed. We are going again next year in early June, hopefully the winter is not so bad...I got a question for you...between the Taggart/Bradley lake hike, or Phelps lake-Death canyon hike..which one is the most awesome? We only have time for one 4-5 miler that day.
 
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#65
#65
NorCalVol67 said:
And I intended to echo the comment about the Beartooth Highway. The drive from the Northwest entrance of Yellowstone to Red Lodge, MT is beautiful.

Charles Kuralt called it the most beautiful drive in America. While I would not go that far, I would say it is spectacular.
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The Beartooth was also closed by a heavy snow the night before we were leaving...another missed life experience I hope to rectify next year.
 
#66
#66
NorCalVol67 said:
And I intended to echo the comment about the Beartooth Highway. The drive from the Northwest entrance of Yellowstone to Red Lodge, MT is beautiful.

Charles Kuralt called it the most beautiful drive in America. While I would not go that far, I would say it is spectacular.
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I believe it's the Northeast entrance :hi:
 
#68
#68
Ulysees E. McGill said:
The year we went(11)in mid june, Cascade falls was as far as you could go because the snow was still piled up above it. I wanted to at least make it to Inspiration point, but the trail was closed. We are going again next year in early June, hopefully the winter is not so bad...I got a question for you...between the Taggart/Bradley lake hike, or Phelps lake-Death canyon hike..which one is the most awesome? We only have time for one 4-5 miler that day.
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I would do the Phelps Lake hike, it is much more interesting. Plus, if you have more time you can hike farther up Death Canyon which is really nice. The Moose-Wilson road, which is how you access the trail head, is a great drive also.
 
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#69
#69
NorCalVol67 said:
I would do the Phelps Lake hike, it is much more interesting. Plus, if you have more time you can hike farther up Death Canyon which is really nice. The Moose-Wilson road, which is how you access the trail head, is a great drive also.
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TFTR..we drove moose Wilson rd and went to the Rockefeller visitor center. I was going to attempt Phelps, but just did not have enough time that day as we were going to ride the JH tram, visit Jackson, and catch sunset at Signal mtn. We drove on from the visitor to the Tram, and afterwards to Jackson, and back around to Signal mtn. This time I am going to have 3 full days, so I'm going to definitely do Phelps. Your reply confirmed my plans..many thanks. We are staying in the center of the valley at Moulton Ranch cabins this trip instead of Colter Bay. I love CB, but we wasted way to much time driving...by the way if you dont mind me asking, where are you now? I want to do a Yosemite/Redwoods/Crater Lake loop some day, and would appreciate some input on how to attack it. I generally try to plan 7-10 day tightly organized itineraries that pack as much as possible into them. I hate missing great stuff.
 
#70
#70
Ulysees E. McGill said:
TFTR..we drove moose Wilson rd and went to the Rockefeller visitor center. I was going to attempt Phelps, but just did not have enough time that day as we were going to ride the JH tram, visit Jackson, and catch sunset at Signal mtn. We drove on from the visitor to the Tram, and afterwards to Jackson, and back around to Signal mtn. This time I am going to have 3 full days, so I'm going to definitely do Phelps. Your reply confirmed my plans..many thanks. We are staying in the center of the valley at Moulton Ranch cabins this trip instead of Colter Bay. I love CB, but we wasted way to much time driving...by the way if you dont mind me asking, where are you now? I want to do a Yosemite/Redwoods/Crater Lake loop some day, and would appreciate some input on how to attack it. I generally try to plan 7-10 day tightly organized itineraries that pack as much as possible into them. I hate missing great stuff.
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Moulton Ranch is a great location, my wedding was there. That will save you a lot of driving time.

I now live in the Bay Area. Unfortunately I have yet to make it to either the Redwoods area or Crater Lake, but Yosemite is amazing.

The hiking is great. If Yosemite falls is flowing, hiking to the top is great, but it is steep. I highly recommend driving Glacier Point road out to the lookout. Along the way there is a hike to the Fissures and Sentinel dome that give you spectacular views of Yosemite Valley. Another good hike in the valley is to Vernal and Nevada falls.

The Valley gets quite crowded, but you can also drive Tioga road which is less crowded. There are plenty of hikes along this road also.
 
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#71
#71
Made it in yesterday. Not sure we could ask for better weather. Jackson Lake this morning
 

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