Road trip to mt rushmore (Cheyenne, Casper: fit in, best cities, hotels)

[SoniaCANV]

Hello All,

I am getting ready to take a road trip at the end of May from Las Vegas to Mt Rushmore and back.

Id like to get the most out of my trip so we are going via Utah/Wyoming and back home through Denver.

There is a total of 6 of us, including my husband, children and mother.

It looks like its about 15 hours from Las Vegas so I'm thing of stopping about 10 hours into the drive and spend the night which would probably bring me into Wyoming.....Can anyone suggest best cities/towns for me to stop and spend the night?

Does anyone know of any 'MUST SEES" I should do on this trip?

Any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance for you help!

[Wyoprairie]

If you are coming straight up I-15 to I-80 then 10 hours will basically drop you in Rock Springs. It's a ways past there to the next option (Rawlins).

For something different, a little retro feel, you can stop earlier at the original Little America near Granger. It is by itself,
there is no town. Kind of a coffee shop/deli type food setup-you order and then go get it. It is not as swanky as the one in Cheyenne, but a bit of motoring Americana. There is a Hampton with a unique setting in Green River. They have evening light meal-drinks Mon thru Thurs. Same deal at the Homewood in Rock Springs. All brands of hotels in Rock Springs.

Then you could go all kinds of directions to the Black Hills. If you were still going the fastest route (as in one day) it
would be about 8-9 driving hours from Rock Springs via Rawlins-Casper-Lusk-Edgemont SD to Hill City SD (which is a town near Rushmore). If you have more days, there are some other routes with scenic prospects.

[rya700]

I assume you are driving across I80? Its a long desolate drive across Wyoming. Your 10 hr Mark will most likely be Rock Springs or Rawlins (traveling with kids you never know how often you'll have to stop lol). Neither are very scenic towns - just saying. You could try to make it to Laramie which is about another hour or so from Rawlins.

You want to see Devil's Tower while in the vicinity.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devils_Tower

Possibly the coal mines in Gillette.

[NW Crow]

You could stop in the Uintas for the night and / or morning. Or take a peek at Flaming Gorge.

Devils Tower is a good stop too.

[WyoNewk]

Originally Posted by Wyoprairie

...For something different, a little retro feel, you can stop earlier at the original Little America near Granger. It is by itself, there is no town. Kind of a coffee shop/deli type food setup-you order and then go get it. It is not as swanky as the one in Cheyenne, but a bit of motoring Americana....

That's where we've stopped for the night the last couple times along that route. It's very easy on-off since there's no town. The rooms are very nice, especially for the price (right at $100 last summer). My only disappointment was in discovering that there's no longer a restaurant there, just the coffee shop/deli thing. Rooms do each have a coffee machine and small refrigerator, and we were able to get some ice for our cooler.

[NDak15]

Originally Posted by SoniaCANV

Hello All,

I am getting ready to take a road trip at the end of May from Las Vegas to Mt Rushmore and back.

Id like to get the most out of my trip so we are going via Utah/Wyoming and back home through Denver.

There is a total of 6 of us, including my husband, children and mother.

It looks like its about 15 hours from Las Vegas so I'm thing of stopping about 10 hours into the drive and spend the night which would probably bring me into Wyoming.....Can anyone suggest best cities/towns for me to stop and spend the night?

Does anyone know of any 'MUST SEES" I should do on this trip?

Any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance for you help!

As others have said, you'll likely end up in Rock Springs. Not much there for sure. If you get there early enough and you're really bored, you could do the wild horse loop. It's a drive between Rock Springs and Green River.and much of the time you can see wild horses and other wildlife like deer, antelope, and the occasional coyote. You'll want to do it in a high clearance vehicle and as I mentioned, it's not something I'd make a special effort to see.

[Cloudy Dayz]

Originally Posted by SoniaCANV

Hello All,

I am getting ready to take a road trip at the end of May from Las Vegas to Mt Rushmore and back.

Id like to get the most out of my trip so we are going via Utah/Wyoming and back home through Denver.

There is a total of 6 of us, including my husband, children and mother.

It looks like its about 15 hours from Las Vegas so I'm thing of stopping about 10 hours into the drive and spend the night which would probably bring me into Wyoming.....Can anyone suggest best cities/towns for me to stop and spend the night?

Does anyone know of any 'MUST SEES" I should do on this trip?

Any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance for you help!

My suggestion, if you have the time, take I-15 all the way north to Idaho Falls, then travel east to Jackson, then up through the Grand Tetons to Yellowstone. Then take US Highway 14 east all the way across Wyoming to Devils Tower, then on to Deadwood and Mt. Rushmore.

If you don't have enough time for that, honestly I would drive both directions through Colorado. I have driven I-80 many times. It's a nice drive, but I can't think of even one "must see" along that route. If you do go through Colorado, you could still do a side trip to Devils Tower to see some of that part of Wyoming.

[jody_wy]

what Cloudy Dayz said.... and cut off I-15 earlier and hit US 30 up thru Kemmerer and see fossil buttes, then US89 up thru Star Valley and on too
Jackson...

[NDak15]

Originally Posted by jody_wy

what Cloudy Dayz said.... and cut off I-15 earlier and hit US 30 up thru Kemmerer and see fossil buttes, then US89 up thru Star Valley and on too
Jackson...

That's a long ways out of the way if you're going to Rushmore isn't it?

[StealthRabbit]

Originally Posted by jody_wy

what Cloudy Dayz said.... and cut off I-15 earlier and hit US 30 up thru Kemmerer and see fossil buttes, then US89 up thru Star Valley and on too
Jackson...

I third this vote.

Mt Rushmore is NOT too close to Las Vegas!!!!

Do a round trip if possible, drive much of the plains of WY at night (if you want to make up time)

DON'T MISS Valley of Fire (50 mi NE of LV and on the way) Nice at sunrise and sunset!!!

and... if possible fit in Bryce and the UT rte 12 to Capital Reef (Spectacular views)

If possible... do a Round trip to see different sites (Such as loop through the Big Horns one direction).

I also like the route from Bearlake to Logan, UT

If I were to stay somewhere unique in WY... It would be Jenny Lake Lodge! I like overnighting in Thermopolis when it fits my route. Burgess Jct is one of my favorite stays, but if you can fit in Saratoga and Snowy Range (if you are on Southern route) it is pretty nice too!.