Travelling Rt 287 from Rawlins, Wy to Jenny Lake area, WY in a 40' Pusher w/toad and beyond to Cody, WY

[mandalay07]

Hello Members and friends,

My wife and I will attend the Gillette Rally in June. We are travelling in through Cheyenne, WY and on to Rawlins, WY, and then hopefully the best route from there to Moran Junction/Jenny Lake area of WY. Is Rt 287 a good choice taking height (12'-9") and 60' of total length into consideration? We will be staying at Colter Lake RV Park for 5 days and then will move on into W.Yellowstone, MT.

The next part of the question is the best route from W. Yellowstone , MT to Cody, WY? Is travelling through the park an exiting the eastern entrance via Rt 14/16 a good choice to handle our coach and toad? Is there a better choice in the minds of those familiar with the mountain roads?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

Stan & Linda Jones

S.Windsor, CT

2007 Mandalay 40G

2005 Honda Element

[lmsooter]

On a trip to Canada and Alaska last summer, we traveled on 287 from Cheyenne, WY through Rawlins, WY and Lander, WY to Moran Junction and on through the Yellowstone south entrance to Fishing Bridge RV Park on Yellowstone Lake.

The highway was good and we had no problems. When we left, we went out the west entrance at West Yellowstone and the highway that way was also good.

I think our rig is about the same length as yours and our height is 13'1". We talked to several people in the Fishing Bridge RV Park who came in the east entrance and they did not seem to have any problems - they were going back out the same way.

Hope this helps.

Enjoy your trip!

[mandalay07]

Thank you very much for this most helpful reply. We are really excited to get underway in about 5 weeks.

Stan & Linda Jones

[lmsooter]

Stan,

I hope you have a great trip.

Just one word of caution. Watch your turns, especially the one coming from West Yellowstone where you will be turning left onto 14. It is really easy to miss.

And if you miss a turn in Yellowstone, places to turn around a big rig are few and far between.

[LaBarre]

Hi Stan & Linda - Rusty & Rosemary here. We are also going to the Family Reunion in Gillette. It will be our fist long trip in our recently purchased '07 Camelot. Not sure if we plan on travelling Rt. 287 but it's good to know its a good road if we do end up in that direction. Do you know when you're out? We'll be coming from MD and haven't yet planned how many days we want to use to get there.

[dianeh]

Hi Stan & Linda!

We too are going to be at Colter Bay RV Park arriving on June 11th. We are spending some time seeing the Grand Tetons & then over to the Reunion at Gillette. I'm thinking we might see you at Colter Lake....

We have an '05 Winnebago Journey towing a Honda CRV. We spent time at Yellowstone in 2010 and stayed in an RV park between W. entrance and Cody then. It was early June and one day we were going to drive down to the Tetons and there was an avalanche in Yellowstone so they detained everyone at the entrance for a couple hours so they could clear the road. Be prepared for "cool" weather.....

There was snow on the ground and Yellowstone Lake was pretty much frozen over that 1st week in June. Temps were in 50's & 60's with nights in the high 30's....I'm taking warmer clothes this time.....:>). It was fun seeing all the baby bison & other animals though. Roads are very nice in Wyoming but not alot of tiny towns with no fuel. Take advantage of the cities that have them. Towns are listed on the map but some are like 2 or 3 houses in the wilderness.

Beautiful country....Hope to meet you!!

Jack & Diane Hauswirth

Altoona, IA

[mandalay07]

Hi Stan & Linda - Rusty & Rosemary here. We are also going to the Family Reunion in Gillette. It will be our fist long trip in our recently purchased '07 Camelot. Not sure if we plan on travelling Rt. 287 but it's good to know its a good road if we do end up in that direction. Do you know when you're out? We'll be coming from MD and haven't yet planned how many days we want to use to get there.

Hi Rusty & Rosemary,

Nice to hear from you. We are planning on leaving CT on May 9th. We are taking 81 south through VA into TN, where we'll stop in Gatlinburg; Nashville; and Memphis for brief 2-4 days stays. From there headed to Branson for 4-5 days to take in some shows and then on thru Kansas City, MO...on thru NE and into the Cheyenne area where we'll stay for another 4-5 days before heading up into the Jackson Hole and Grand Teton area (Coulter Bay for another 4-5 days). Weather is always a concern, as we see flooding along the Mississippi over the last few days. We wish you good luck on your first long trip in your Camelot (nice coach) to the Gillette area. We have an email address of hsjones67@cox.net if you would like to communicate along the way. Maybe we'll cross paths at the rally. Safe travels to you.

[mandalay07]

Hi Stan & Linda!

We too are going to be at Colter Bay RV Park arriving on June 11th. We are spending some time seeing the Grand Tetons & then over to the Reunion at Gillette. I'm thinking we might see you at Colter Lake....

We have an '05 Winnebago Journey towing a Honda CRV. We spent time at Yellowstone in 2010 and stayed in an RV park between W. entrance and Cody then. It was early June and one day we were going to drive down to the Tetons and there was an avalanche in Yellowstone so they detained everyone at the entrance for a couple hours so they could clear the road. Be prepared for "cool" weather.....

There was snow on the ground and Yellowstone Lake was pretty much frozen over that 1st week in June. Temps were in 50's & 60's with nights in the high 30's....I'm taking warmer clothes this time.....:>). It was fun seeing all the baby bison & other animals though. Roads are very nice in Wyoming but not alot of tiny towns with no fuel. Take advantage of the cities that have them. Towns are listed on the map but some are like 2 or 3 houses in the wilderness.

Beautiful country....Hope to meet you!!

Jack & Diane Hauswirth

Altoona, IA

Hi Jack & Diane. Wasn't there a song along those lines? :-) We're hearing about all of this cool weather in the WY area too. We will be sure to pack the warm coats. We will keep our eyes on the fuel gauges. Thank goodness for 100 gallon tanks in these areas! Nice to hear that the roads are decent in the area. Looking forward to all of the wildlife especially since buying new binoculars at Cabelas recently. We're hopeful that a lake cruise is possible (sans ice) as we've heard the cruises are beautiful. We will be at Colter Bay June 2nd - the 6th. We have the Mandalay and tow a Red Honda Element w/Gramy-G on the license plate. Our email is hsjones67@cox.net so if you are in the area on those dates look us up. Have a great trip and stay safe. Thanks for your reply.

[dougallman]

We have traveled Wyoming with 60 - 65' lengths and driven every road with about 140 miles of exceptions that we have not been down numerous times. Just went over these exceptions with my niece and her husband in Cheyenne in February. Been in Yellowstone NP 19 times so far and from every direction including on snowmoblie in winter.

The only route that will take your breath away if you do not have a Jake and are towing is going west from Dayton on Hwy 14/alt 14. It seems like it goes down forever and around every curve it still goes down when you are sure it has to be leveling out.

,

We did go by an older motorcoach, 36' approx, pulling a car on top at a pullout. Did not think anything of it, but we did note that there was a lot of activity around the car by the occupants.

We decided to leave the pickup truck on the trailer and proceed down the mountain on our journey. All was going well until I felt the brakes getting spongy. Air brakes should not do this....... so I looked for a spot to get over. Being none for a ways - 2 miles to next truck run off ramp, I kept gaining a little speed. Did finally get stopped at the run off ramp, still on the asphalt, but had to walk in the stone in front of the coach. My wife was not impressed!

Let the brakes cool for an hour or so and on down the mountain we went AFTER we took off the truck and trailer. Only 6 miles yet to go.

Passing another truck run off ramp we noted that the motorcoach and car, we had seen on top, was 7/8 of the way into the gravel on this ramp. No tires were visible as they had buried it in the pea stone. They were not more than 120 feet from being back onto the mountain in very rocky terrain. (this ramp is on a downhill decline as you are on the total downslope at this section, so I am sure it helped them get this far. I cannot imagine what the towing bill would be).

I did discover that the right rear air line had been almost severed when we had a blowout in Omaha area and is why the brakes felt spongy. At any rate, if you do not have a jake, go slow.

There is a reason that the signs you read along the way indicate that Hwy 16 over the Big Horns has the least elevation change.

I do not believe there is a road in Wyoming that a Big Rig cannot travel with quite ease. If you have to turn around, unless you are in a populated area, it is going to be a challenge. You are going to drive miles, many miles in most areas to find a spot. Best unhook and get turned around as you will most likely save time and frustration.

If you are in Cody the Night Rodeo is very good. All tickets are the same price and you can set in the "Buzzards Roost" or the grandstands. The "Buzzards Roost" is right above the Bull and Bronc chutes on the north side of the arena. It is the place to see the action and watch the Cowboys get ready to ride.

Have a great time. We will again be in Cody and Yellowstone end of July.

[mandalay07]

Best diesel gas refuel access for a 40' coach w/toad in the Jackson/Teton/Cody area anyone?