Seeing
the Rocky Mountain West by motorcycle, rental car, or motorhome
has become one of the most popular and practical ways to go.
Motorhome rental is available at most major hub airports.
Visitors can take advantage of the superior camping and recreational
vehicle campgrounds throughout the region. This is also one
of the most popular pre-planned fly-drive routings offered
by tour operators.
Day 1/2
- Arrive Chicago
Before embarking on a tour of this length its important
to get "outfitted" with the right clothes, equipment,
and gifts. North Michigan Avenue -"The Magic Mile"
has a variety of stores to help you: Eddie Bauer,
Marshal Fields and Nike
(compete with a statue of Michael Jordan) are just a few.
Overnight Chicago.
Day 3
- Chicago to Denver
Tour Denver, gateway to the West, with its outstanding
collections of museums as well as excellent shopping in Cherry
Creek Shopping Center and Larimer Square, a restored
section of Victorian Denver filled with quaint old buildings,
gas lamps, courtyards and gardens. Overnight Denver.
Day 4 - Denver
To Cheyenne
Proceed north to Cheyenne, where the Terry Bison
Ranch offers a new RV park, chuckwagon dinners and tours
of their large buffalo herd. Overnight Cheyenne.
Day 5 - Cheyenne
- Ft. Laramie - Custer
Ft. Laramie National Historic Site, now preserved,
was a landmark settlement on the Oregon Trail, the first road
west for pioneers. Wind Cave National Park contains
the worlds sixth longest cave with amazing boxwork,
frostwork and popcorn formations. Overnight Custer, Keystone
or Rapid City.
Day 6/7 - Black
Hills & Badlands
Custer State Park is the second largest state park
in America and home to one of the largest publicly owned buffalo
herds. The carving of Crazy Horse Mountain is continuing.
Black Hills Balloons offers scenic aerial flights of
Mt. Rushmore and the surrounding Black Hills country. Mt.
Rushmore is considered the worlds greatest mountain
carving and is certainly Americas most recognized. Badlands
National Park contains spires, pinnacles, buttes and gorges
covering over 98,747 hectar of eerie, haunting topography
created over 37 million years by wind and water erosion. Overnight
Custer, Keystone or Rapid City
Day 8 - Black Hills
to Chamberlain
Traveling east, Chamberlains Akta Lakota Museum
offers artifacts and art of the Lakota (Sioux) culture. Overnight
Chamberlain.
Day 9 - Chamberlain
to Mitchell to Sioux Falls
Mitchells Corn Palace is a tribute to the harvest
with its decorations made from thousands of bushels of colorful
grain. Sioux Falls offers shopping, history and culture.
Overnight Sioux Falls.
Day 10 - Sioux
Falls to DeSmet to Pierre
DeSmet is the site of six of Laura Ingalls Wilders "Little
House on the Prairie" books and Pierre is
home to Oahe Dam, the second largest earthen dam in the world.
Overnight Pierre.
Day 11- Pierre
to Deadwood
The town of Deadwood has been restored to its original
rough-hewn authenticity and is a living history to the wild
gaming days of the 1870s. Overnight Deadwood.
Day 12 - Deadwood
to Buffalo/Sheridan
Devils Tower was Americas first national monument
and reaches 364 meter into the western sky. Southwest of Buffalo,
the Klondike Ranch has been hosting guests for horseback riding,
moving cattle, fishing, and other ranch activities. Sheridan
features the Sheridan Inn, King Ropes, and vast mountain ranch
country. Overnight Buffalo or Sheridan.
Days 13 - Buffalo/Sheridan
to Cody
Cody offers not only the world-class Buffalo Bill Historical
Center, but nightly rodeos, whitewater rafting and excellent
guest ranches through the Wapiti Valley. Overnight Cody
and/or Wapiti Valley.
Day 14/16
- Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park has over 10,000 thermal features.
Hundreds of animal species run wild within its borders. Overnight
Yellowstone.
Day 17/18 - Yellowstone
to Jackson Hole
Adjacent to Yellowstone is Grand Teton National Park,
home of seven mountain peaks ranging from 3,000 to over 4,000
meter in height. Jackson Hole features wooden sidewalks,
elk antler arches and shops that range from the chic to the
traditional. Overnight Jackson Hole.
Day 19/20 - Jackson
Hole to Red Lodge Via Big Sky
Big Sky and Red Lodge, both well known winter
ski resorts, offer golf, horseback riding, pack trips and
numerous summer activities. Overnight Big Sky and/or Red
Lodge.
Day 21 - Red Lodge
to Virginia City
Virginia City/Nevada City is the site of the richest
placer gold discovery ever made in 1863. It has been restored
to show how businesses flourished in the boom days. The Virginia
City Players entertain during the summers. Overnight Butte.
Day 22/24 - Butte
to Glacier National Park
Glacier National Park, in the northwest corner of Montana,
features the spectacular 88.5 KM Going-To-The-Sun-Road and
over 1126 KM of foot and horse trails. Overnight Glacier
and/or Flathead Valley.
Day 25
- Glacier to Sandpoint
Travel south into Idaho via Sandpoint, a beautiful
lakeside town located on the north side of lake Pend Oreille.
Other spectacular lakes with great campsites in the area include
Priest Lake and Lake Coeur dAlene. Heading
south, the resort community of McCall on the shores
of Payette Lake offers several campgrounds. Overnight
Sandpoint.
Day 26/29
- Sandpoint to Boise
Heading south on Highway 55 go east through Garden Valley
into Boise National Forest to Stanley and the
Sawtooth National Recreation Area. The 36 campgrounds
nestled in this spectacular setting offer abundant privacy
in this pristine environment, famous for hiking, fishing and
whitewater rafting. Craters of the Moon offers an eerie
moonscape in the heart of the Rockies.
Overnight Boise.
Day 30
- Boise to Chicago via Denver and Departure
Accommodations and
Other Activities
Denver, Colorado Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau
Glacier National Park, Montana
Rapid City CVB, SD
Wort Hotel, Jackson Hole, WY
Yellowstone National Park, Amfac, WY
Minnesota Office of Tourism
Sioux Falls South Dakota Convention and Visitors Bureau
Custer State Park, SD
Cheyenne Area Convention & Visitors Bureau, WY
Town Square Inns, WY
Twin Pine Ranch/Old West Global, Wyoming
Dude Rancher's Association
Post Falls Idaho
Sheridan Convention and Visitors Bureau, WY
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