# Yellowstone...anyone made that haul?



## sweenyite

The wife and I are in the planning stage for a trip to Yellowstone either next summer or the year after. Debating on renting a cabin or dragging the travel trailer. We will probably make it a two week trip. Cabins for us and the three kiddos look to be quite expensive. Leaning more towards taking the camper. Anyone on here ever made this trip with their camper? Any advice?


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## Tuff

reservations are a must-take your time, not too many straight or level roads. inside the park is nothing like an RV resort, lots of dirt and gravel. fuel prices inside the park are high, as are groceries and any other supplies you may need. most of the stores outside the park will gouge you too. (TAKE AS MUCH AS YOU CAN WITH YOU). 50 amp is sometimes hard to find, as well as spots big enough for your trailer-don't remember any pull thru spaces. There are a few places that are ok (not saying they are good) outside the park. I have stayed in the park once and at Flagg Ranch twice. My last trip I stayed in hotels outside the park. And if you have never been, take some long pants and jackets/hoodies. I have been there when it has snowed in July.


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## mas360

I visited Yellowstone ten years ago. I agree 100% with Tuff. It is not worth it to tow a camper all the way from Texas to Yellowstone unless you plan to visit and camp a lot of other places along the way, but for a two week time frame that is not feasible. If you drive it would take almost a week for drive time.


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## sweenyite

We plan to visit Tetons and the Grand Canyon as well. We might just reserve motel rooms.


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## Stealth Mode

In 2010, on the way to Alaska, we spent 3 days in Jackson Hole and 4 days in Yellowstone. We left Baytown and spent the first night at Cotton Gin Campground in Goodlett, Tx. Second night in Colo Springs KOA. Third night in Lander, Wy. Then Jackson, Wy.. In Jackson, Wy we stayed at The Virginian Hotel and campground. Colter Bay campground, my first choice was not open yet. Had a good time in the Tetons sightseeing and walking in Jackson. Then we went to Fishing Bridge campground in Yellow stone. It has electricity. But that year they were redoing the elec system so, we had none. Also restricted generator hours It got down to 28 at night and snowed off and on for several days. Some people stay at West Yellowstone outside the park. You will need reservations for Yellowstone and Colter Bay. The sooner, the better. Those first three days were 8-9 hours of driving at 63-65 mph. We had a great time in the Tetons and Yellowstone It will take atleast 4 days to really see Yellowstone. A lot of sights to see and hiking. Have fun. I am ready to go again.


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## Hookem-Guy81

As stated two weeks if barely enough time by camper, but if you do, make sure you have good tires on your camper like Michelin XPS Ribs. Is your tow vehicle in shape for the long haul through all those mountain passes up there and back. They will test your nerves a little. Also, some of the sites in Yellowstone can only take 30 footer or smaller. Be patient and drive slow in Yellowstone, there will be a lot of animal traffic jams. Also, bring plenty of cash. Everything is expensive. I did it. Took 3 weeks.


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## sweenyite

I have an F-350 dually and a 33' bumper pull. My camper has brand new Maxxis tires.


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## Archer

mas360 said:


> I visited Yellowstone ten years ago. I agree 100% with Tuff. It is not worth it to tow a camper all the way from Texas to Yellowstone unless you plan to visit and camp a lot of other places along the way, but for a two week time frame that is not feasible. If you drive it would take almost a week for drive time.


Almost a week for a 1500 mile drive?? For hitting all of the stops mentioned i would definitely take the camper, 2 days to get to Yellowstone if you run 12 hour days then 1 to Jackson Hole, 1 to the Grand Canyon and 1 to get back home. Might be some long driving days but when youâ€™re hauling your hotel room itâ€™s not a big deal.


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## ReelBigFish79

I've never pulled a camper up there but I lived in northeastern Utah for 7 years and made the drive from Corpus to there many times. It is more than a 2 day drive to Yellowstone. Figure 3 days each way if everything goes good. If you've never driven in mountains, leave your camper at home. Real mountains, not hills like even the Ozarks. If you don't know how or like to drive in the snow, leave your camper at home. Unless you're going in July or August. Even then, watch the weather. When we went to Yellowstone it was cheaper to rent a cabin than to pull our camper and pay for a camping spot and extra fuel. We were only 6 hours away. In the intermountain west there are 2 seasons. Winter. And construction. There WILL be one or the other. Construction often means long stretches of gravel and often can be VERY narrow. Have fun. It's a blast.

Sent from my C811 4G using Tapatalk 2


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## mas360

Archer said:


> Almost a week for a 1500 mile drive?? For hitting all of the stops mentioned i would definitely take the camper, 2 days to get to Yellowstone if you run 12 hour days then 1 to Jackson Hole, 1 to the Grand Canyon and 1 to get back home. Might be some long driving days but when youâ€™re hauling your hotel room itâ€™s not a big deal.


That was 1600 miles one way from Houston for me. I did not plan on leaving the camper at Yellowstone at the end of the trip.....:cop:
I also did not exceed 55 miles/hour with the trailer behind me. Trailer tires were rated 60 miles/hour. I kept speed limit at 55 mph for safety margin. 
No, we did not do 12 hours drive a day. That would be work, not vacation...:work:


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## redexpress

We did it 29 years ago in an old cabover camper on a Ford F250 with a 300CID 6 cylinder. Spent 2 weeks in Yellowstone. It was an eye opener for sure. I bought a flyrod and was determined to fish the Yellowstone river. I had some $4 paper thin vinyl Chinese waders and sneakers. Got about thigh deep and my legs were frozen!

Whatever you do please go to the Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody WY. It was incredible. I was expecting some cheapo tourist trap. Oh no...it has some incredible art and Indian history. I had to back a 2nd day.
http://www.bbhc.org/
I'm about ready to go back after 29 years!!


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## redexpress

You should be able to make at least Amarillo the first day. I think Google says 9+ hours there. We used to make it in 12hrs pulling a horse trailer on the way to Colorado hunting. That was in the old days of 55mph. 
I say air up those Maxxis tires and GO!


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## sweenyite

I used to be a truck driver and driving all day is nothing for me... but the wife and kids start getting that look. I think we'll probably take the SUV and make reservations for lodging. Thanks for all the replies. 
If we can stretch it out closer to three weeks, we might take the bunkhouse on wheels, but I don't like to burn all of my vacation in one shot. We'll see.


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## Hookem-Guy81

With that Dually and those tires you should be good. There can be some high winds on the eastern slope of Rockies, but if your a Truck Driver you should know how to handle that. We left Cypress area, 10 hours to Palo Duro Canyon State Park for two days, then 10 hours to Rocky Mountain National Park, Glacier Basin Campground for 2 days, then 10 hours to Grand Tetons for 2 Days Colter Bay, then 5 hours to Yellowstone Mammoth Campground 4 days, then long haul of 13 hours to Ridgway State Park, CO 2 days, then long haul of 12 hours to Caprock Canyon State Park for 1 day, then home in 10 hours for a total of 19 days. Things I found out. Keep Water tank filled. Dump when you can even if not full. If no electricity in Yellowstone, no worries, you won't be home most of the time and at night it is cool. Oh, and have a good Deep Cycle Batt on camper. Best trip I ever made. Just check the campsite length limits and make those reservations.


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## Outearly

We did it several years ago, couple of days up towing a pop up.

You're in for a treat, just get your reservation in.

We've been back 3 times since that first trip, and would go again tomorrow.

Hump it on up there, you'll want every minute you can in the park.

x2 on the museum in Cody. Phenomenal western art, and the best firearms museum in the world.


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## chief1008

*Worth the trip*

The wife and I went after school had begun and the park was far less crowded. We pulled a 26' bumperpull and stayed in the park campground. The campgrounds outside the park are expensive (everything up there is), a long drive from the park areas you'll want to see, and the outside parks will look nothing like the pictures you'll see in on-line adds. As stated the fuel, groceries, etc are pricey so take what you can. We went up the west side of Wyoming and any campgrounds/stopping points were loaded with gas field workers driving in and out of the campground at all hours of the night. We came back through Cody and Cheyenne on the east side on hwy25 and it was far more pleasant and scenic. Leaving the park we got 26 mpg all the way to Cody, of course almost all of that leg was on the exhaust brake and steep down hill. It was well worth the drive and expense. Pic#1 rush hour traffic when we were there Pic#2 thats a live elk at the ranger station below Mammoth Hot Springs Pic#3 thats how big the sites are at the park campground.


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## sweenyite

chief1008 said:


> The wife and I went after school had begun and the park was far less crowded. We pulled a 26' bumperpull and stayed in the park campground. The campgrounds outside the park are expensive (everything up there is), a long drive from the park areas you'll want to see, and the outside parks will look nothing like the pictures you'll see in on-line adds. As stated the fuel, groceries, etc are pricey so take what you can. We went up the west side of Wyoming and any campgrounds/stopping points were loaded with gas field workers driving in and out of the campground at all hours of the night. We came back through Cody and Cheyenne on the east side on hwy25 and it was far more pleasant and scenic. Leaving the park we got 26 mpg all the way to Cody, of course almost all of that leg was on the exhaust brake and steep down hill. It was well worth the drive and expense. Pic#1 rush hour traffic when we were there Pic#2 thats a live elk at the ranger station below Mammoth Hot Springs Pic#3 thats how big the sites are at the park campground.


 Thanks!


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## uncle dave

We did that 2 yrs ago, rented motel room in Cody, I figured the milage between the suburban and diesel truck towing a 30 ft fifth wheel and the motel was cheaper. Beautiful country and friendly people. Have a great trip.


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## Be Young

We just got back Saturday. We debated pulling the trailer also but glad we didn't. Rooms are pretty expensive everywhere, but we did find a nice cabin in Columbia Falls about 15 minutes from the entrance to Glacier National Park.

We flew from Austin to Jackson Hole Wyoming, got a rental car and stayed there one night, The Tetons are awesome. We drove to west Yellowstone the next day, about 3 hour drive. We stayed there driving all over Yellowstone for 3 days. Then we drove to Columbia Falls Montana and stayed in a beautiful cabin right on a small lake called Spoon Lake. We had the whole lake to our self except for a couple kayakers one evening. They even had kayaks and a small john boat and fishing gear in the garage. WE found the place through homeaway.com for only 175.00 per night, the small hotel room in West Yellowstone was 200.00 per night. I think the cabin was just sold to someone from California and might not be available anymore.

Anyway gas and food was pretty high everywhere, I think one place gouged us for about 4.80 per gallon but most were around 3.80

It was great having a cabin with full kitchen for 4 nights, we grilled steaks, and cooked several other meals and breakfast every day.

I think it was much more enjoyable not pulling a trailer, it kind of stresses me out and I worry about my 150,000 mile truck.


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## FLATSDADDY

I took a road trip to Yellowstone at the height of gas prices in the summer of '08. I drove from the RGV to Amarillo, TX and spent the night there.

Next morning left Amarillo to Cody, Wyoming. Drove through OK, Denver, then on to Cody. Stayed at a real nice hotel that was a 40 min drive to park entrance.

Tuff is right, not many straight roads inside park. Seemed like we were always climbing, descending or making some sort of turn in those roads. I know driving 40 mins to and from everyday is a drag. We made the best of it by taking lots of water, snacks, and a couple of pick nicks for lunch and dinner most days. We would always take advantage of the great breakfast offerings in the hotel and saved cash that way.

On way back, we trekked through Grand Teton NP, Utah, and back to Denver over the Rockies.

Saw several trucks towing RVs, and the smell of hot brakes hung over the air as the going was slow with so many switchbacks.


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## redman71

I don't much care for hotels/motels. Too many people in a confined space. No campfire, no sunsets/sunrises etc... I've made this drive pulling trailers several times in two days, but I have also taken 3 or 4 days stopping in favorites places in Colorado on the way. For me it's worth it to take the RV. Typically, when I compare the costs, it's cheaper to take the RV. To each his own...


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## Grinmaker

We make the trip in 2 weeks 4 summers back. Stayed in Amarillo the 1st night Cheyenne the 2nd night into Cody the 3rd day where we stayed in the Koa for a week. The trips very doable in 2 weeks. There's alot to see and do both inside and outside the park. When you get time Pm me and i will be happy to give you some good restaurants and different paces to see and do while you're there.


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## 1fisher77316

Without a trailer we have made the drive from Houston to Yellowstone many times in 2 days. We were driving the speed limit or slightly over. Towing a trailer it would take considerably longer. You will be pleasantly surprised at the number of places where you can rent either a mom & pop hotel room or a cabin for what it costs for a decent hotel room here in Houston. Jackson Hole and Cody are two of the more expensive areas to stay. Try the area outside the East Gate for more affordable prices. That is also the area that is closest to the Bear Tooths One of the most scenic areas anywhere near The Park. My wife probably qualifies as an expert on Yellowstone since she has been there 17 - 18 times..I think 6 times since we have been married. She would be the 1st to tell you the Bear Tooths outshine Yellowstone in many ways.. Of course when I told her what a local had said about The Bear Tooths compared to Yellowstone she wanted to toss me out of the car. LOL Now she plans our trips to Yellowstone where we travel the "Chief Joseph Highway so we can enjoy some real beauty before joining the crowds in Yellowstone. Yellowstone is great but allow more time than you will think you need for the travel through the park. Between the buffalo herds and the construction it takes longer than you would believe.
Tight Lines!
1Fisher77316
Michael


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## Tortuga

Made that adventure many moons ago. Pulling a little two wheel utility trailer with our tents, cots, etc.. Drove to Ruidoso then followed the Rockies all the way up to Canada then over to Oregon and back down the Pacific coast highway to San Fran..then across the Mohave back home. We would camp out at night for three or four nights then spend one night in a motel room to clean up...then repeat.. Three weeks.. Saw all the sights along the way. One warning..if you are pulling anything...be sure your tow vehicle can pull it up those mountains.. Had to back down a couple of them when our little Ford just couldn't make it..and backing down a couple of miles takes the fun out of it...LOL

A good set of maps will show you nice camping areas all over the USA...and mucho cheaper than motels every night...

One other thought...if you are following our route and coming back across that desert..be sure you got a good backup supply of water for the car.. You will need it...AND back then when we made the trip...gasoline was about 50 cents a gallon..and those good souls at the service stations in the desert would also sell you water......at $1.00 a gallon...LOL


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## Skeeter Bait

You have enough input on both sides of the pull the trailer or don't issue, so I will leave that alone. However, I would add a couple of things to think through.

1) As said, it takes a long time to get around inside the park. Construction and Bear Jams will kill your time. There are really very few roads inside the park. So you end up seeing the same scenery over and over.

2) We stayed at the Fishing Bridge campground inside Yellowstone. It is like camping in a Walmart lot. Your rig will back right up to the folks behind you and you can reach out touch the folks next door.

3) As mentioned the time of the year you go can impact what you see and the crowds. We tried to beat the crowds and hit Yellowstone in mid May. Not many crowds, but the majority of the hiking trails were closed. When the bears first come out of hibernation, they close a lot of the trails. Bears are looking for carcasses of elk, Bison, deer etc. that didn't make the winter. They shutdown the hiking so the bear doesn't confuse you with a dead elk. No hiking means more driving on same roads.

If I had my choice between Yellowstone and Glacier, I would pick Glacier. A lot less people. Glacier has all the same animals except Bison. Yellowstone has the geysers and other geologic stuff. I think Glacier's mountains are prettier.

Have fun.


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## texas bohunk

Made that trip a couple of years ago with my wife and 2 grandkids in a 38' motorhome pulling a Honda Civic. 14 days to get there scenic route thru Las Vegas 2 1/2 days to get home Hiway 287 thru Colorado to Enis and then IH45 to Houston. We stayed at the West Yellowstone KOA nice place plus there is a rodeo across the street for added entertainment. You will want to spend a couple of days in the Tetons, there's an RV campground a few miles out of the South Entrance to Yellowstone, I think the name was Coulter Bay really nice views.


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