Considering take a vacation up north

[Mecca]

The wife and I are strongly considering heading up to the Wyoming/Montana area, who's been and what is there to do?

This is also kind of a scouting trip as this is an area that's on the list of where we may eventually move.

[CrossCheck]

I've been to Black Hills, Tetons, Yellowstone and Glacier multiple times, all beautiful, if you ever have the time (and a passport) go up to Banff, Yoho and Jasper in Alberta and BC, you won't regret it.
I met a couple from Calgary on our last trip (Prague) about three weeks ago and they told me that all the Canadians really like Waterton Lakes National Park (haven't been) which is just across the border from Glacier. Enjoy!

[Pasta Little Brioni]

Manbearpig live up there?

[frozenchief]

Originally Posted by Mecca

I've been to Belize twice...

True story here, it's pretty but I ****ING HATE BEING HOT, and as I get older I like people less so going somewhere colder and less populated sounds pleasant.

These are 2 reasons I like in AK. It’s 2.3x the size of TX with a total population 10% of the DFW metro area.

[Katie]

I have a condo in Livingston I rent out. Happy to give you a deal. Spent most of my life in that area and can give you a lot of info. Pm me if you want to discuss.

[Frazod]

Originally Posted by mlyonsd

Gambling destroyed the old Deadwood I grew up with. Definitely not worth a stop unless you want to see the saloon Wild Bill was shot in. The Black Hills are a poor man's trip if you can't afford the time to go to the Rockies. But if you're driving west I'd think a couple hours out of your way to see Rushmore and Devil's Tower is a smart move.

It's not even the actual saloon. The entire town was destroyed a couple of times; IIRC, once by fire and once by flood. What they call the No. 10 Saloon isn't even located in the same spot as the original.

[srvy]

Originally Posted by Rain Man

I can see that. But I got a good burger at my lunch place, and that type of thing biases my opinions upward.

What's Needles Highway?

Needles is wonderful S Dakota through the Custer National Forest. It's beautiful but a real winder have Dramamine if you're not driving and have kids. One of my favorites along with the Tetons and Glacier NP.

**** that crowded tourist trap Yellowstone.

[HemiEd]

We went to a family reunion in Billings, then on to Missoula in 2016 as I have a lot of cousins live there.

It's name of "big sky country" is well earned. Absolutely gorgeous.

Hiking is a thing they do up there so make sure you are in shape. Made an attempt to hook up with Bwana, but it didn't work out.

Developed a liking for a beer called "Moose drool" if I remember the name correctly, very good stuff.

[trndobrd]

Have a friend who lived in Custer SD and made several trips to the Black Hills. More recently went with the family in 2020. First and foremost, don't go in August unless you are specifically going to rally week in Sturgis. Everying is overly crowded and more expensive.

As someone mentioned earlier, Custer State Park is beautiful and less crowded....got stuck in a traffic jam with a herd of bison for about 20 min. Being 2 ft away from a fully grown bull was impressive. Scenery was awesome. Wish I had planned more time to explore.

The Mickelson Trails runs 104 miles from Deadwood to Edgemont. It is a rails-to-trails biking/hiking trail. Very well kept and allows access to beautiful scenery and is away from the masses. Long, low grades with lots of bridges and tunnels. I rode the 60 miles from Deadwood to Custer in a day.

-Mount Rushmore is good for the selfie. Avoid the touristy area around it.

-Devils Tower has a walking trail around the tower that is beautiful and quiet.

-Deadwood has become a tourist mecca.

[TambaBerry]

Originally Posted by Katie

I have a condo in Livingston I rent out. Happy to give you a deal. Spent most of my life in that area and can give you a lot of info. Pm me if you want to discuss.

My family has one in big sky but we don't rent it out except in the winter.

[Bearcat]

Originally Posted by Frazod

I love the Black Hills, particularly Custer State Park, and more particularly the area around Sylvan Lake. My ashes will be scattered there or I'm going to be haunting people. Rushmore is impressive, but I've been out there so many times that I don't bother with it anymore. And I give zero shits about Crazy Horse Mountain, which is a just a big boondoggle that will never be completed. I first saw it when I was a kid in the 70s, and nearly a half century later it looks pretty much the same. Also, Crazy Horse was never photographed, so nobody knows what he actually looked like. They should call it Random Indian Face Mountain. Devil's Tower is awesome, but so remote from everything else that I've only been there a couple of times.

I've been to Yellowstone once, and there won't be a twice. It's one of those places where saying you've been there is better than being there. Yes, it's a beautiful area, and sure, the geothermal stuff is interesting, but eventually one geyser and mud pot is pretty much the same as another. Also, they're sulfurous, and stink like rotten eggs. A day was all it took for me to get my fill of the boiling stinking water and boiling stinking mud. Also the roads were terrible, the place was crowded and prices were ridiculous. To me the best part was the big waterfall. I'm not saying you shouldn't go there, but I'd make it part of a trip and not a destination. OTOH, I could happily spend a week in the Black Hills and have done so many times. I never get tired of that area. Except for the deer and the goddamn buffalo. There really needs to be a serious effort to depopulate the deer - they are a serious driving hazard. And the buffalo are just a serious hazard, period. If those nasty stinking ****ers had been hunted to extinction I'd have zero issues with it.

I have not been to Glacier. It's on the bucket list.

The Tetons were magnificent. I also really enjoyed the Little Bighorn Battlefield.

Of all the places I've been out west, Yosemite is most beautiful and nothing else really comes close.

I loved driving Spearfish Canyon Highway.... of course, at the exact posted speed limit the entire time. Also had an incredible meal at Delmonico Grill in Rapid City.

I've never been to Yellowstone, but much like some of the places I haven't been to in Utah, not sure how much I'd enjoy it with a million other people around... I'd have to find a good time during shoulder season or the offseason for some goddamn peace and quiet. /shoutsatcloud

[Bearcat]

Originally Posted by trndobrd

Have a friend who lived in Custer SD and made several trips to the Black Hills. More recently went with the family in 2020. First and foremost, don't go in August unless you are specifically going to rally week in Sturgis. Everying is overly crowded and more expensive.

I was in Myrtle Beach last year during the bike rally, and **** them all (okay, some of them)... every ****ing night, people hauling ass and waking up the entire town, whether it was 10pm or 3am. I really wanted to follow those assholes to wherever they were spending the night and return the favor with a megaphone or air horn or fireworks show.

[Frazod]

Originally Posted by trndobrd

Have a friend who lived in Custer SD and made several trips to the Black Hills. More recently went with the family in 2020. First and foremost, don't go in August unless you are specifically going to rally week in Sturgis. Everying is overly crowded and more expensive.

As someone mentioned earlier, Custer State Park is beautiful and less crowded....got stuck in a traffic jam with a herd of bison for about 20 min. Being 2 ft away from a fully grown bull was impressive. Scenery was awesome. Wish I had planned more time to explore.

The Mickelson Trails runs 104 miles from Deadwood to Edgemont. It is a rails-to-trails biking/hiking trail. Very well kept and allows access to beautiful scenery and is away from the masses. Long, low grades with lots of bridges and tunnels. I rode the 60 miles from Deadwood to Custer in a day.

-Mount Rushmore is good for the selfie. Avoid the touristy area around it.

-Devils Tower has a walking trail around the tower that is beautiful and quiet.

-Deadwood has become a tourist mecca.

Oh, I wouldn't go near the area during the bike rally. It's an absolute mess. The locals hate it and hate them, but that week is pretty much their Black Friday so they deal with the madness out of necessity.

Personally I prefer to go out there the week before Memorial Day. The weather is nice (a touch cool, but I prefer that), everything is open, but the crowds aren't bad yet. And we leave the day people start rolling in for the holiday weekend.

[Bwana]

Originally Posted by Bearcat

I loved driving Spearfish Canyon Highway.... of course, at the exact posted speed limit the entire time. Also had an incredible meal at Delmonico Grill in Rapid City.

I've never been to Yellowstone, but much like some of the places I haven't been to in Utah, not sure how much I'd enjoy it with a million other people around... I'd have to find a good time during shoulder season or the offseason for some goddamn peace and quiet. /shoutsatcloud

You nailed it. Anytime after Labor Day is the time to go visit, once all the "tourons" (tourist/morons) have moved on. I haven't been through there in over 20 years and will never, ever, go back through there in the summer. A lot of them seem to shut off their brain, once they pass through the ranger gates and enter the park. Common everyday occurrences:

1. Stop in the middle of the road guy. This guy sees a (fill in the blank) Bison, squirrel, colorful flower, etc) slams on the breaks in the middle of the road and sits there gawking. This creates a long painful traffic jam. As a bonus, a lot of them get rear ended, causing traffic to sit there for hours, before they can clear the road and or corpse.

2. I'm in no hurry guy. The guy that is doing 10-20 MPH backing up traffic for miles. This guy is either totally oblivious to the tens of thousands of other people around him trying to drive, or has advanced Alzheimer's.

3. The 70 ft motor home. Lets call him, cousin Eddie guy. This guy is driving around in the extra wide behemoth urban assault vehicle. In a lot of cases, it's a rental and he is driving a motor home for the first time. Generally this guy realizes he has made a critical error in judgement about the time he enters the park and faced with narrow roads, sharp corners and jagged rock walls, inches from the road. Eddie always over compensates for the narrow road, by taking up half of the oncoming traffics side of the road. Eddie has the wide eyed scared look on his face when he's going by and you can almost smell the excrement in his pants as he drive by.

I could go into the animal error in judgements, but it would take to long.

[Nightfyre]

Originally Posted by Bwana

You nailed it. Anytime after Labor Day is the time to go visit, once all the "tourons" (tourist/morons) have moved on. I haven't been through there in over 20 years and will never, ever, go back through there in the summer. A lot of them seem to shut off their brain, once they pass through the ranger gates and enter the park. Common everyday occurrences:

1. Stop in the middle of the road guy. This guy sees a (fill in the blank) Bison, squirrel, colorful flower, etc) slams on the breaks in the middle of the road and sits there gawking. This creates a long painful traffic jam. As a bonus, a lot of them get rear ended, causing traffic to sit there for hours, before they can clear the road and or corpse.

2. I'm in no hurry guy. The guy that is doing 10-20 MPH backing up traffic for miles. This guy is either totally oblivious to the tens of thousands of other people around him trying to drive, or has advanced Alzheimer's.

3. The 70 ft motor home. Lets call him, cousin Eddie guy. This guy is driving around in the extra wide behemoth urban assault vehicle. In a lot of cases, it's a rental and he is driving a motor home for the first time. Generally this guy realizes he has made a critical error in judgement about the time he enters the park and faced with narrow roads, sharp corners and jagged rock walls, inches from the road. Eddie always over compensates for the narrow road, by taking up half of the oncoming traffics side of the road. Eddie has the wide eyed scared look on his face when he's going by and you can almost smell the excrement in his pants as he drive by.

I could go into the animal error in judgements, but it would take to long.

This is a big part of why I prefer Glacier. Incredible scenery, easier to get off the beaten path. Yellowstone just pisses me off, though does offer unique wild animal viewing opportunities.

[trndobrd]

Originally Posted by Frazod

Oh, I wouldn't go near the area during the bike rally. It's an absolute mess. The locals hate it and hate them, but that week is pretty much their Black Friday so they deal with the madness out of necessity.

Personally I prefer to go out there the week before Memorial Day. The weather is nice (a touch cool, but I prefer that), everything is open, but the crowds aren't bad yet. And we leave the day people start rolling in for the holiday weekend.

The first time I went up, I took another friend, with our mountain bikes in the back of my pickup. Saw a lot of motorcycles on the way. When we got to my buddy’s place we both mentioned being surprised by the amount of motorcycle traffic. He accurately noted that we were complete morons for not knowing that the Sturgis rally was that week.

Ended up going to Sturgis rally (not on our bikes or wearing cycling shorts). It was fascinating.