Native American History
While portions of this scenic route remain open year-round, weather permitting, the entire Going-to-the-Sun Road is open for vehicle access from mid-June to mid-September. Before and after this core summer season, sections of the road will be closed.
First, save money on entrance fees by picking up an "America The Beautiful - The National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Annual Pass" at parkpass.net. If you're age 62 or older, you're eligible for the Senior Pass.
In Utah You’ll be right in the heart of the Grand Circle, a collection of seven national parks, eight national monuments, numerous state parks, scenic byways, historical sites, prehistoric Indian ruins, colorful ghost towns and stunning geologic formations. Take some time to explore some of these places, including Zion, Canyonlands and Monument Valley. For more information on sights to see in the area, check out www.grandcircle.org and www.utah.com/nationalparks/grandcircle.htm. This article also offers some great tips!
Be sure to stop by and let us know how your trip goes!
Wow. What a great trip. There are few that imediately come to mind, though you may have to get off the road to visit them. Devils Tower National Monument is eastern Wyoming is an impressive site that merits an hour or two. Custer State Park in Western South Dakota is well known for its herd of 1500 free roaming bison and populations of mule deer, mountain goats, bighorn sheep, pronghorn, mountain lions and feral burros, which were have grazed here for decades. The park is famous for its scenery, its scenic drives (Needles and the wildlife loop), with views of the bison herd. You can easily access the park from Rapid City, the Badlands and Mount Rushmore. C
South Dakota has many other points of interest worth visiting, including Wind Cave National Park, Jewel Cave National Monument, Crazy Horse Memorial and Kevin Costner's Tatanka: Story of the Bison (in Deadwood) just to name a few.
What is the best route to get from Rocky Mountain National Park to Grand Teton National Park?
Make sure to visit Wall Drug and check the history of this unique place. You'll be in the Badlands anyway, and it is well worth the stop. Also, Wind Cave is a great cave if you like caves, and it is very accessible and easy to walk. If you will be in the Black Hills for dinner, I would highly recommend Circle B Ranch, if they are still in business. Just a terrific experience we had years ago.
I live in Montana, I would check the local ranger district on snowpack reports for the season and see if road opening dates may be delayed. I am not sure if they adhere to a strict road opening date, but being government they probably do. The snowpack in our end of the state has been a bit low, not sure about the park down south. The south entry may get more winter action if I recall correctly. I entered from the north when I lived in Billings area and came thru red lodge. The ranger district should have better info if you look them up and make contact directly.
Just a quick note to all readers of this. I have seen it be 90 degrees in August and snow 7 feet that very night. It has happened to me so please all of you visiting, come prepared for all seasons, and don't pet the buffalo. To many people get smashed up against trees trying to get a picture. At least one or two people get killed each year doing this kind of thing, I am not kidding. Stay safe.
The roads from the North Entrance and the West Entrance to Old Faithful are scheduled to open April 16, 2010. The road from the South Entrance is scheduled to open May 14, 2010. Road opening dates are weather dependant. Check, http://www.nps.gov/yell for more information.
Kristine
Everglades NP has several access points. Shark Valley should be a 1-1 1/2 hour drive from Ft. Lauderdale. It's a great location to see wildlife up close and there are usually options: walking, renting a bike or taking a tram ride. There are other entrances futher away at Elizabeth City to the west, which have some outfitters (mostly outside the national park, I believe) that offer boating excursions. The other main entrance is in the south at Flamingo where services are limited. Everglades NP is definately worth a visit!
This was the very question I had - I was doing some work for a client who wanted some work on his website - he has puppies for sale from some of the top dogs worldwide. He recommended the glades and had some good recommendations. I actually took my own pooch out there and he loved it.
Anyway - I took advice from a company called everglade tours and they were fantastic. You can google them. In fact, I was a little reluctant to go out on the glades by myself, so I went with this tour group first. The next day, I rented a high tech boat, GPS nav and everything - it was pricey - but well worth it.
You're in luck! According to our contacts at the National Park Service, this year's scheduled opening date for the North Rim is May 15. The North Rim almost always opens on the scheduled date, but be sure to check with the NPS as your trip date approaches. More information and phone numbers are available here.
