Our grand adventure to Chilliwack & Back!

[tash]

T minus 170 days until we pick up our Escape! We will be traveling from Illinois and crossing the border into Canada at the north portal in North Dakota. Our travel to Chilliwack will also include some time in Banff and Jasper (any suggestions for must dos and must sees in that area would be most appreciated). We will be returning home through Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota and Iowa. We have been thinking about staying in or around the following places:

Anacortes, WA
Coulee, WA
Coeur D’Alene, ID
West Glacier, MT
Billings, MT
Sundance, WY
Hill City, SD/Custer, SD
Sioux Falls, SD
Cedar Falls, IA

This will be our first travel trailer (we have been tent campers!), and we are so looking forward to this trip and would love any recommendations of places to stay or places to avoid. Definite stops will be Glacier National Park, Devil’s Tower, Black Hills, Custer State Park and the Badlands. We will be traveling with our beloved blue heeler, so pet friendly is a must. We are Good Sam’s members. Any other insight on places to see or places to eat or places of interest would be great. We’ve spent the last bunch of summers camping in Colorado, and we typically go back to our favorite places each time we are there—creatures of habit definitely, so any tidbits of your favorites would be awesome. And if anyone is traveling to Colorado or our home state of Illinois, we will gladly return the favor! We have been doing a lot of research here, campground websites and campground reviews, but we also thought that forum members would be a valuable resource to ask, too! Thank you in advance for your time and helping us plan this grand adventure!

[Ruthe]

Bighorn Medicine Wheel

Last summer on our way back east from Montana, we got off the highway in Wyoming and I saw on the map that there was something called Medicine Wheel National Monument. We followed the signs and the map and it took us high into the moutains -- beautiful scenery, actual cattle crossing the road -- and when we got there it was about a mile and a half gentle hike to the monument. Most definitely worthwhile.

[Ruthe]

Sioux Falls turned out to be a real highlight. The town is kind of cute --but the actual falls are wonderful. We spent a couple hours there taking pictures and watching a mother duck and her 12 or so ducklings navigate the falls. We stopped there in both directions -- it was only on the return that we investigated the falls. There's a good Vietnamese Restaurant also.

http://visitsiouxfalls.com/visitors/...do/falls-park/ This picture of the falls doesn't really do it justice -- it is wider than you can tell and much more interesting up close. But it gives you an idea.

[thoer]

Have you gone to Wind Cave NP next to Custer State Park? Interesting place and a very quiet well maintained campground when we were there.

[tash]

Originally Posted by Ruthe

Bighorn Medicine Wheel

Last summer on our way back east from Montana, we got off the highway in Wyoming and I saw on the map that there was something called Medicine Wheel National Monument. We followed the signs and the map and it took us high into the moutains -- beautiful scenery, actual cattle crossing the road -- and when we got there it was about a mile and a half gentle hike to the monument. Most definitely worthwhile.

Ruthe that sounds wonderful! We love that kind of stuff--I would have never known about it! After doing some additional research, it looks like there might be some additional places to find medicine wheels in Canada and the US. Thanks so much!

[tash]

Originally Posted by thoer

Have you gone to Wind Cave NP next to Custer State Park? Interesting place and a very quiet well maintained campground when we were there.

Wonderful--thanks much! We will definitely try to check out Wind Cave, too! Did you take the tour of the cave?

[rscovell]

Sue and I will be picking up our new Escape in Chilliwack on May 29th and then wandering back down through the North West and eventually to Denver Co to visit the grandkids.

Do you have any recommendations for campgrounds near Denver?

thanks

Bob & Sue (South Florida)

[dbailey]

Near Wind Cave is Jewel Cave. We visited both in 2010, and did underground tours in both. I think Jewel had the more impressive features, but I guess that's a matter of taste and what you've seen before. In both the underground tours were quite well done.

I think it was Jewel Cave that had some true spelunking tours. You had to be able to fit through this opening before they'd let you sign up on one of those...

[Donna D.]

ooohMG, seeing that picture gives me the willies! I'm claustrophobic. I would jump out of a plane.. and have... before I'd EVER find myself confined.

Isn't it nice we're all different

[dbailey]

I'm not really claustrophobic, though I admit the notion of getting stuck is rather scary.

But that setup surprised me. I looked at it and thought I might have a bit of trouble getting my belly through, but I ended up wedging between shoulders and chest well before I got that far. I probably would have been better with my hands at my sides instead of overhead. Typical desk-jockey posture hasn't left me with much flexibility in the shoulders.

[dbailey]

Just to be clear, though: the normal tours are all walks in the park -- lights, levelled trails, hand rails. Only a few places where you have to watch your head.

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by dbailey

Typical desk-jockey posture hasn't left me with much flexibility in the shoulders.

Time for some yoga maybe. I started doing Bikram hot yoga almost 3 years back, and should have started many, many years before. It really has put some bounce back in my step.

[Ruthe]

No way would I ever be a caver. However, I might possibly go on some of the tours of the large sections of the cave. Possibly. The campground sounds like a good place to stay though -- even though it's a national park the website says it's usually no problem getting a campsite.

[tash]

Originally Posted by rscovell

Sue and I will be picking up our new Escape in Chilliwack on May 29th and then wandering back down through the North West and eventually to Denver Co to visit the grandkids.

Do you have any recommendations for campgrounds near Denver?

thanks

Bob & Sue (South Florida)

We stay in Woodland Park which is up the mountain from Colorado Springs and is in the Pikes Peak area. We stay at Diamond Campground which is a wonderful campground that holds a special place for us. Steph's grandparents spent the summers at that campground for over 20 years, and we've been going there the last five years. Beautiful setting in the pines, clean showers, super owners and camp staff! It is a good location for day trips as it is not to far from Pikes Peak, Garden of the Gods, Manitou Springs, 11-mile canyon, Cripple Creek and so many other places! We are super excited to get our Escape this summer, but sad that we won't be at Diamond this year.

http://www.diamondcampground.com/

We have also stay in Grand Lake at Elk Creek Campground which is at the entrance of Rocky Mountain National Park. It is a nice place as well--a bit willowy, clean showers and not so far from Grand Lake. Grand Lake is a beautiful town which is the same as it was many years ago with wood plank sidewalks and quaint shopping. The lake itself is indeed grand and if you like water activities, then it is perfect for that. And watch out for the moose--they often come to the campground! Grand Lake is at one end of Trail Ridge Road while Estes Park is at the other end.

Elk Creek Camp - Home

Sorry I don't have any places to recommend in Denver...but wherever you stay it will be great because you will be in the mountains!!!

[Ray N]

I did a search on which cave people seem to like better, (Wind or Jewel), and it seems to come out about even. There does seem to be agreement that Jewel is more "colorful" however.

[JerryS]

When in the Denver area we have stayed at Cherry Creek State park in Aurora (close to Denver). Nice sites and this park is also close to a light rail system that takes you straight into downtown Denver.

[ChuckS]

Visit the second tomb of the unknown soldier at Garyowen, MT.
Chuck

[thoer]

Originally Posted by Ruthe

No way would I ever be a caver. However, I might possibly go on some of the tours of the large sections of the cave. Possibly. The campground sounds like a good place to stay though -- even though it's a national park the website says it's usually no problem getting a campsite.

Ruthe - we were surprised how quiet and unfilled the campground was when we were there. The campground host said most people stayed in Custer State Park, but we were much more attracted to the much quieter Wind Cave sites. The cave is huge and there are several tour options. We also enjoyed some very nice hikes in the park.

[CampGirl]

Colorado campground near Denver -- try Chatfield SP in Littleton (SW side of town). Huge campground, beautiful lake and added bonus of Roxborough SP just down the road. Roxborough is a Day Use Park with trails meandering through beautiful red rock formations. Very spiritual. You can also hike to the top of Carpenter Peak (elev 7160 ft) and see across to downtown Denver (on a clear day).

[TAfraser]

We camped in Custer SP last year and had a great time. The campground was small but the sites were huge. We could have fit 3-4 trailers in each site. Because of the size and density, the campground was very quiet. The park itself was great, being near so many animals and sights to visit, (Mt. Rushmore, the Badlands, two sets of caverns, and of course Sturgis for you biker fans). . We also took the Wind Cave tour which was very interesting. We never made it to the Jewel Cave so I can't report on it. On our return trip to Washington, we toured the Lewis & Clark Caverns in Montana. These were wonderful and full of color. We found these caverns more interesting then the Wind caves.