Fetch me that horizon!

[booyah]

So, I'm entering the VERY early planning stages of a very serious road trip.

Thinking 5000 miles give or take, a full run of US12 from Detroit the the Pacific Ocean, and a return down US 2 (Seattle to St Ignace)

Looking for things to see/do along the way. Thinking this is probably a summer of 2017 trip with my two oldest daughters who would be 12 and 8 (I would love to do 2016, but I suspect if I left the wife alone with the littles that long, she'd leave me alone the rest of my life).

Being so far out, everything is fair game. We're Michigan kids, so until we get outta Wisconsin its all pretty familiar.

Ideas initially are
Badlands
Biggest ball of twine
Detour down to 14 for
Devils Tower
Mt Rushmore
Yellowstone

Continental divide
Plenty of time in the mountains (we're flatlanders so they are cool)
Any native sites/museams/reservations we can visit along the way
a stop by Glacier NP on the way home

A lots of time on the good old open road

Thoughts? Things to add? Things to remove? Kids are both full/total road warriors, so I'm not intimidated by taking a road trip with two young girls. They are both adventurous and love going further.

Years ago I used to live off 12, and when I saw it went all the way to the Pacific I got hooked on the idea. Now that we have a teardrop I want to fetch me that horizon!

[tony.latham]

#1. The Beartooth Highway between Cooke City and Red Lodge: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beartooth_Highway



#2. Stanley Basin in the middle of Idaho.



Good luck and don't let the bears git ya!



Tony

[tony.latham]

toney on your photos.... slowcowboy

Thanks. But I didn't take 'em. However, I've been to all three places. All three of 'em. Beartooth, Stanley, and Brooks Falls. Mandatory bucket list items.

Tony

[JohnnyG]

See Mt. Rushmore before sunset and stay for the closing ceremony after dark.
Soak in the free hotspring at Thermopolis Wy.
Visit Buffalo Bill Museum in Cody Wy.
Watch sunrise on the old barn at Mormon Row near the Tetons. Take the tram up the Tetons and go for a day hike up there.
If you go through Medora ND watch the show at the outdoor ampitheatre.
Take a Segway tour of downtown Minneapolis.

[razorback]

if you are going to rushmore it would be a shame to miss Crazy Horse memorial. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crazy_Horse_Memorial
Custer national park is great also.

[jandmz]

As you leave Chicago on Rt 12, you will pass through the northwest suburb of Lake Zurich.

Consider stopping for lunch at Hackney's, a burger joint whose claim to fame is their signature onion loaf side dish. They have been in business there for over 40 years, and were featured on Diners Drive Ins and Dives. Check the status, though, because the price of land in that area has skyrocketed, and there have recently been rumors that they may close that location and sell the land to developers.

About another 20 minutes up the road, near Ingleside is the Volo Bog State Natural Area. It is the only open water quaking bog left in Illinois. It is an interesting environment, and you can walk a boardwalk through the bog to the open lake in the center of the bog. https://www.dnr.illinois.gov/Parks/Pages/VoloBog.aspx

Enjoy your trip.

[Vedette]

Good Idea to plan ahead!
I did a similar thing here on the Forum back in 2013, when we took a trip heading south as far as New Mexico.
I asked about each State we planned to travel through and got some Great tips from other Forum members.
As we all know there are some fantastic treasures that lurk just out of sight of the main highways. These are usually the best spots that only the locals (or those that have taken the time to seek them out) are familiar with.
Sometimes the Romantic thought of doing just one hwy. can cloud your vision?? You might not want to get locked into that if you really want to see what a long trip like this has to offer. We did the trip from the PNW to Detroit and back in 2012, in my 46 Studebaker PU. Crossed South Dakota twice?? and not to offend anyone from SD.......But!
Granted there will be days of lots of boring open road (as this is a long drive) but sometimes you should be taking the scenic route that parallels it.
My expertise lies in Washington State (I have driven almost every road and back road in the State over the past 40 years) and there are definitely some treasures to be had here! Hwy. 12 does have some nice stretches but there is so much more that can be seen on other routes. Similar to Hwy 2 (which we will be camping on tonight with a group of TD friends) there is good and bad, depending on what you like. One way or the other you are going to see mountains!!
My personal favorite route to cross Wa. is scenic Hwy 20 ( of which we just completed a 10 day Crawl with 14 Teardrops).
Over the next year I will help you with a list of places you should put on your "Must See" list while in Washington State.
Do you have your Passports? As I know of this beautiful FREE camping spot on a Farm in the heart of the BEAUTIFUL Okanagan Valley in Canada (only 2 1/2 hours north of Hwy.
Good Roads
Brian & Sandi
PS
Dry Falls on Hwy. was 20 times larger than Niagara Falls when the water ran over it!

[RudyS2MT]

Once in Montana when you arrive in Helena you will be halfway between Glacier and Yellowstone (about 3 hours each way). I can't imagine being this close and not hitting them both.

Also the Beartooth highway is indeed once of the finest rides in North America! Don't go home without cruising it!

Do get in touch with us here when the trip is about to start. Lots of local info. for you then.


Rudy in Helena,MT

[booyah]

Thanks folks, already planning on dropping down from highway 12 to 14 for mt rushmore, stopping by devils mountain, and taking that into yellowstone.

US 2 on the way home brings us through glacier as well.

Buffalo Bill Museum would be on that route too, so thats an easy win.

Interested in crazy horse, didnt realize it was that close to mt Rushmore
Volo Bog State Natural Area sounds kinda neat. I will add that to the hit list.

Thanks everyone, keep the ideas coming

trip out the plan is us12, not married to the one highway idea, but its a fun concept.
trip back is US 2, as I'm not driving the length of one highway BOTH ways!

[Vedette]

Spent some time on Hwy.2 in Washington this past weekend, and found a few new campgrounds that you might want to consider.
Good Roads
Brian & Sandi