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Leaving the afternoon of 8/9, need to be back in TN by 8/20. Only hard and fast stops are St. Louis the night of the 9th
(where we will do the Arch and the Museum of the West the morning of 8/10), and the goal of seeing Mt Rushmore and Devil's Tower, while doing the tourist stuff in Deadwood and Spearfish. Return route goes through OKC becuase my wife wants to see the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum. If you have favorite stops (scenic, museum, food) along the route below, please let me know!
Last edited by DPC57; 07-03-2018 at 11:18 PM.
Reason: Sturgis week drives up hotel prices
Following. Looking for similar advice for a return trip from the 2019 Corvette Caravan to Alberta. We are in the Deadwood / Black Hills area for a few days on the way there. After having been there 2 summers ago I can advise it's a great area to spend 3 or 4 days. Look for concerts in Deadwood - they get some pretty decent acts there on the weekends!
Just got back from a business trip three weeks ago where I went to Mt Rushmore, Devils Tower, and Deadwood. I drove to them in a rental, but flew out of Rapid City, SD. I wish I had my Corvette on the twisty roads on Hwy 16 from Devils Tower to Mt Rushmore. I would take that route instead of I-90. Nice country in those parts.
Just got back from a business trip three weeks ago where I went to Mt Rushmore, Devils Tower, and Deadwood. I drove to them in a rental, but flew out of Rapid City, SD. I wish I had my Corvette on the twisty roads on Hwy 16 from Devils Tower to Mt Rushmore. I would take that route instead of I-90. Nice country in those parts.
Definitely plan on doing the Alt14 drive to hit Bridal Veil Falls and such while in that area
I did the Black Hills last year. If you are interested in the old west, you might be disappointed in Deadwood, as I was. Whatever history you may experience is literally surrounded by the flashing lights, bells and mirrors of the gambling casinos. Only relief from the glitz was hiking up the Mount Moriah cemetery to grave sites of Wild Bill Hickok, Calamity Jane and Seth Bullock.
Some great drives though. There's the needles highway with its many stone spires and tunnels and Iron Mountain road (17 miles with 314 curves, 3 tunnels, 14 switchbacks and 3 pigtail bridges.
Sylvan Lake in the Custer state park at the beginning of the needles highway would be a nice place to stop for a picnic lunch.
If you need to get out of the car for awhile, there's the 1880 steam train running between hill city and keystone. About 2 hours round trip as I recall. There is a self guided walking tour of some of the remaining historical buildings if you have time to kill in Keystone which i found somewhat interesting.
Custer national battlefield at the Little bighorn.would be another 200+ miles and 4 hour drive north west from Deadwood just into Montana. If you get that far, don't miss the regularly scheduled "battle talk" given by the park rangers.-Informative and very well done.
If true leaving 8/9 & return 8/20, I can't see how you would manage over 3K miles in 10 days plus sight-seeing. I'm sure I'm missing something (probably) or you just miss-posted.
Last edited by madrob2020; 07-03-2018 at 10:43 PM.
If you make it through Kansas City in time for lunch or dinner, try to hit the original Joe's KC (formerly Oklahoma Joes) location at 47th and Mission.
^^^ Jeff is absolutely right! We are known for our outstanding BBQ. Also, when you come thru KC, stop at the World War I/Liberty Memorial. It's the only WWI Museum in the United States.
If you make it through Kansas City in time for lunch or dinner, try to hit the original Joe's KC (formerly Oklahoma Joes) location at 47th and Mission.
The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum is definitely a must visit place when in Oklahoma City. You might also consider the Oklahoma City Bombing Memorial in downtown OKC. If downtown I would also recommend walking along the canal and visiting one of the casual dining places. Or for more upscale dining in downtown I highly recommend Mickey Mantles (on canal), Red Prime Steakhouse, Vast (on top of the 55 story Devon tower), or many other great restaurants in downtown.
My wife and I just completed a 7,100 mile trip. I, too, recommend a stop by the Corvette Museum in Bowling Green.
FYI - The roads in Missouri (especially around St. Louis) were the worse on the trip.
How often will you be able to get back to the Black Hills area? That's a long way from your home and if you won't return there soon, I'd bias my time toward that area. We've done the Black Hills Corvette Classic three times and still have things to check off our list around there. But try to plan a fewquick stops along the way out and way home, so it doesn't turn into one of those "March or Die!" drives.
Whatever you do, don't work too hard at it. And be sure to post pics when you return.
Last edited by Gearhead Jim; 07-03-2018 at 10:22 PM.
How often will you be able to get back to the Black Hills area? That's a long way from your home and if you won't return there soon, I'd bias my time toward that area. We've done the Black Hills Corvette Classic three times and still have things to check off our list around there. But try to plan a fewquick stops along the way out and way home, so it doesn't turn into one of those "March or Die!" drives.
Whatever you do, don't work too hard at it. And be sure to post pics when you return.
That's the plan. I expect to get to Deadwood by Monday and will base us there until Thursday. It's likely I'll do a couple 12 hour drive days just to have more time to sightsee at places that are worthwhile. If I run a day or two long I can work from a hotel if necessary.
07-03-2018, 12:00 PM
Help me plan our driving vacation
