Wandering the west....

[deezlgeezr]

....To the tune of 7222 miles in 13 days.

Finally got my Four Wheel Hawk out of the driveway and out on the trail.

Western MA out to CA and back, with 6 national parks on the schedule.

Took 90W to Albany, then 88W to Johnson City, then 86W to Erie PA, then 79S to 70W thru OH & IN. In IL, picked up 74W to Davenport IO; this allowed me to avoid the Rt 80/90 Buffalo/Cleveland/Chicago area. From Davenport, 80W to CA (Tahoe area).

Visited Yosemite, Zion, Arches, Canyonlands, Bryce Canyon and Rocky Mountain National Parks. Had the annual pass (a must @ $30 per park fee) and camped in a beautiful campground in RMNP.

On the return trip I dared to use 80E and drive thru the dreaded Chicago/Cleveland/Buffalo corridor - worst traffic nightmare ever, never again. UNBELIEVABLE maniacs on that road experience.

Overall, a great trip. Truck was amazing, camper was excellent - although I haven't even scratched the surface of the possibilities with the camper.

Most important lesson: if you wanna learn to live in a camper, you must get out there and do it.

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

Sounds like a great trip.
Do you have more photos to post?
Yeah that area through Chicago is a
disaster.
Nice NP choices.Never been to RMNP.
All the others you visited we have been to also.
These campers sure get you to a lot of awesome places.
Frank

 

[buckland]

Ah fellow New Englander... I know the pain of the drive through Chicago... horrible.
We did the Alaska and back trip two years ago and that was a lot of miles but your time frame
you packed in a lot! I love the FWC. Keep on trucking.

 

[deezlgeezr]

Gotta say RMNP was the best of the bunch...Others were very nice (Zion, Arches) and some were.....OK.

Southern Utah is absolutely gorgeous, can't wait to tour that area again. Lot's to do in UT, I was impressed. Lots of peeps driving around the streets in off-road 'sand rail'-type of buggies, a major activity in the area. The entire area seemed like an off-road enthusiast's dream, with the absolute best state-maintained off-road vehicle park I've ever seen.

Saw diesel for $5.29 in CA, got a deal @ $4.89

Have many pics & vids, but most are way too large for this thread.

I visited these parks at the height of the tourist season and saw many lines of traffic, waits for parking, etc. I even saw a 'fast lane' for pass holders at RMNP; users slide their pass like a CC and the gate pops up! Some areas were closed early in the day due to lots being full; The people crush was not overwhelming but I'd really like to see some of these places off-season, like Sept-Oct.

Heard a lot of foreign languages in the viewing areas throughout the parks. Talked to many very friendly people, some of whom inquired about my 'rig'. EVERY inquiry was about the camper, not the truck. That was surprising, as my personal experience was that the truck was the star of the show, with the camper coming in as a solid second. I have so much to learn about using the camper!

 

[Foy]

Mid- to late September is a terrific time to visit RMNP and probably YNP and Glacier, as well, though we've only seen the latter two in high season of July-August, albeit in the mid-1970s to early 2000s time frames, somewhat before the more recent increases in head counts.

Our first visit to RMNP was on our honeymoon in September 1978. We car camped out of a 1977 Honda Civic and backpacked two different two night loops in the RMNP back country. It was also my wife's first time backpacking. First night in the remote campsite included a long serenade from elk bugling in the meadow just a couple hundred feet from the tent.

Weather can be blustery and early snowfalls can wreak havoc on inflexible plans, but all in all, I'd take September over any other warm weather month to visit the Rockies.

Thanks for the nice report!

Foy

 

[takesiteasy]

Thanks for your report. We've had similar experience with the crowds in National Parks but they are still great to see.

 

[buckland]

That is a very nice photo. Diesel was $4.00-$5.00 in the Maritimes. Around the Northeast it is around $3.10. I can’t wait until I am she free to travel in the off season. I prefer cool weather anyway and crowds drive me nuts.... I have wanted to see Utah again as I drove through on a motorcycle in 1981 and it seemed magical. Thanks for the report.