Ideas on Sacramento, CA, Yosemite, Yellowstone, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado Trip

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Linda, We live in Cortez (when we're home). It's a great base for visiting Mesa Verde NP, the San Juan mountains, and Canyon of the Ancients Nat Mon. There are several campgrounds in the area and lots to do. Black Hawk is one of several old mining towns in Colorado where they allow gambling, Cripple Creek and Central City. They're fun to visit, especially if you like history, gambling, and eating.

Another place we like to stay is at Dillon Lake, off I-70 west of Denver. Beautiful spot (even with the beetle-kill in the pine trees) and close to Breckenridge.

When we were in Sacramento in 2009, taking care of the crushed VW, we stayed at Folsom Lake, Beals Point. The camping rate there for hookups is $45 or $55, depending on whether it's Peak Season. The campground was nice but they were doing work on the dam so it was noisy in the morning. But it was nicely located for the places we needed to go. And we couldn't beat the price with Mike's VA discount. Do you have the California disabled card? Gets you half-off at California State Park campgrounds. While we were in Sacramento, we kept finding info about places we thought we'd like to visit some day when not running around looking for VW parts. Even if all you do is the capitol and the railroad museum, I'd say it's worth a visit.

Have fun
Wendy
 
[quote author=Wendy]Even if all you do is the capitol and the railroad museum, I'd say it's worth a visit.[/quote]

Aye Wendy, it is. Right next to the railroad museum is Old Town Sacramento, and moored right there at Old Town on the Sacramento River is the old Delta King paddlewheeler, currently used as a hotel complete with restaurant and bar. They're all within a short walking distance.

Chris and I have stayed aboard the Delta King and, on one occasion, we stayed in the captain's quarters - a 2-story suite near the bow of the boat.
 
Linda,

Others have given you good advice on places.  May I  just kindly remind you that you may also want to build in down days or days of being a vegetable.  Dean needs time to heal and he will likely push himelf so slow  him down.

Your schedule looks hurried at first glance.  We also plan a trip to Yellowstone sometime this summer but have not yet firmed up when.  One year we went through  Ten Sleep in Wyoming.  It was when Bill Calton was there and we visited his place.  If I recall Tensleep has  a little campgrund and we took a drive out to his spread.  Wonder if Shirley still goes in the summer?

I am not a railroad buff but I really enjoyed the Rail Museum in Sacramento.  I have never toured the  Capitol either (shame on both of us) But having just toured the capitol in Austin, I think they are a delight to tour.  I did notice with GLEE the huge STRS building.  Long may it last!

Betty
 
When I first arrived in CA it was part of my training as an engineer w/the Bureau of Reclamation out of Denver. My assignment was out of Redding, CA as an inspector on the Spring Creek powerplant segment of the CA water project. I lived in Redding for about 3 months then transferred to Sacramento with BurRec. I loved living in Sacto.  :)

Probably the reason I liked it so much was because of it's location to the wonders of NCal. It was a hub that allowed quick access to "The City", Reno, Lake Tahoe, Carmel, Santa Cruz, Big Sur, Monterey, CA Delta area, or a bit farther to Yosemite. During ski season we would also take at least one trek back up to the Mt. Shasta area.

Sacto itself is the capital of CA - and the location of Sutter's fort. When I took friends and family around Sacto the RR Museum and Old Town were always popular spots. It was interesting for visitors to take in Sutter's Fort and then travel to Donner Lake over old 40 to see what the Donner party endured.

I had a 15' ski boat that I kept on Folsom lake. From my office in NorthSac, we were exactly 45 minutes away from being underway with the beer iced down and ready. On those hot summer nights Folsom was like a sheet of glass with many spots to rest from skiing and picnic. In those days Brown's Ravine was the location of my boat and many grand evenings.

The Sacramento River flows South down the Sacramento Valley and the San Joaquin River flows North up the San Joaquin Valley both winding up in the Delta Area before dumping then into the San Francisco bay. Many evenings we drove the levee roads down the river to some of the finest sea food in NCal. Driving north or south out of Sacto you would see the beautiful farmlands of the valley. BTW, while in Sacto you could also tour the Campbells' Soup cannery and see where that great Tomato Soup originates.

Have lived in NCal most of the time when in a stick house but have traveled CA with my work and as a full time RVer - and for sure prefer NCal to SCal. Whenever forced to spend time in and around LA I would once again appreciate living in the Sacramento area. My home base as to residency and mail box is now Rocklin -- just East of Sacto. I still enjoy the times I return to the area for whatever reason.

So, if I were your tour guide for the day, we would take in Sutter's Fort, the RR Museum, the State Capital -- and an early dinner at the Fat City restaurant in Old Town by the river.  :)
 
Bob Buchanan said:
Probably the reason I liked it so much was because of it's location to the wonders of NCal. It was a hub that allowed quick access to "The City", Reno, Lake Tahoe, Carmel, Santa Cruz, Big Sur, Monterey, CA Delta area, or a bit farther to Yosemite. During ski season we would also take at least one trek back up to the Mt. Shasta area.
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I love it Bob.  usually only us San Francisco natives know what someone is talking about when they refer to "The City".  When I was a kid the NBA Warriors were the SF Warriors and the front of their uniforms had a Cable Car on them and "The City" written below it.

Rick
 
There are 2 books on MT that I recommend for anyone spending time here.  They are "Montana Behind the Scenes" and "Montana Off the Beaten Track".  They are both a few years old but much of the information is still good.  "Frommer's Montana & Wyoming" is also pretty good.  Lots of neat stuff off the blue roads.
 
seilerbird said:
The City? You mean Frisco. ;D
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You watch you mouth, young fellow!!!  :) :)

There are a number of folk that have strong feelings about nicknames for their city - but as TomS knows, none probably more so than natives of San Francisco.

I recall a visiting instructor from our Denver offices teaching a course in our San Francisco training center a number of years ago -- and referred to The City as Frisco during his opening remarks. At the first break, about 5 students called him aside and in a nice way told him the next time they heard Frisco the entire class was going to walk out in protest . . . Yikes!!

Can you imagine Tony Bennett singing about The City by the bay, "I left my heart in Frisco"?  :(
 
Orick said:
:mad:Tom  :mad: Tom  :mad:Tom  :mad:

You'll have Wendy throwing something at you from one side and me from the other if you're not careful!  ;)

Rick
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As an ex-Santa Cruz resident I just couldn't resist. That sound you are hearing is the teeth grinding of 1/2 million people who live in Frisco.
 
Placer Co Fairgrounds in Roseville is probably about 12 miles from downtown Sac.  I don't remember the volunteer's name that I had trouble with at Beals Point but I do remember what I think he should have been called.  ;D  If it sounds like the kind of facilities you might like I'd go for it and not let my bad experience with one guy taint your view.  Bottom line is that this guy put a one hour eviction notice on my windshield after I had gone to the office to pay that day's fees and found it closed... when it should have been open already.  I instead used the outside drop box and envelope to pay via check.  It was raining and the envelope apparently didn't fall all the way to the bottom of the pipe so he didn't see it when he collected the envelopes in the morning.  Ok, honest mistake.  I went to the office to clear it up and he called me a liar and claimed he had opened the office on time that morning!  Before things got out of hand we got a Park Ranger there who had him walk back out to the drop box and look again.  He found it.  Didn't say he was sorry either.

On another note, you may want to consider Cal Expo RV Park.  Very central to downtown with stark but spacious sites.  The American River greenbelt runs right by it with great walking and bike trails.

Good luck...

Rick
 
Orick said:
On another note, you may want to consider Cal Expo RV Park.  Very central to downtown with stark but spacious sites.  The American River greenbelt runs right by it with great walking and bike trails.
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Would second that, Rick. I usually stay there on visits back to Sacramento. It "is" just a parking lot with too much slope converted to an RV park, but it is clean and in a great location for shopping and restaurants. A few years back they added more sites on level but gravel ground. And fees are reasonable. There are other parks in Sacramento but none are recommended.To me, the best feature tho as you mention is the bike trail entrance.

The Sacramento Bike Trail is probably one of longest and best paved and maintained in the US.  From the CalExpo RV park trail entrance, you can skirt the American River all the way to downtown (about 6 miles or so), or go North East all the way to the Natomas control dam below Folsom Dam (26 miles) and farther. This trail connects to other trails in the area (probably several hundred miles altogether) as noted to the right of the linked page above. Best stay to the right as recommended because some very serious bikers use this trail every day. On a good day on level ground I can sometimes maintain 10mph, and am constantly being passed like I am sitting still.
 
Orick said:
I love it Bob.  usually only us San Francisco natives know what someone is talking about when they refer to "The City".  When I was a kid the NBA Warriors were the SF Warriors and the front of their uniforms had a Cable Car on them and "The City" written below it.
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Yep, Rick -- I took a job in San Francisco in the early 70's and moved to Shoreline Drive in Alameda - and commuted down that stretch to the Bay Bridge every day that was flattened in the earthquake. But learned to call San Francisco, The City, on my first visit several years before. I then moved to Clayton beyond Walnut Creek after I got married - and then into The City during my divorce. I lived in an apartment in the Golden Gateway Center for a year or so, then bought property in San Mateo where I spent the next 10 years.

And became a Warriors fan as well. Their offices at the time were just down the street from my office in the Federal Building on Golden Gate avenue -- and if I recall, The City, was part of their signage. Actually, that was back in the days of Rick Barry. Do you recall his two handed underhanded foul shots - that he never missed? Am also a Kings fan in Sacramento, but it looks like they will be moving to Anaheim soon because Sacramento voters don't want to pay for a new arena. Oh well -- my basketball loyalty has always been with my hometown and alma mater team in Lexington, KY -- and the Kentucky Wildcats. The Kings pick up a Kentucky player from time to time (like DeMarcus Cousins this past year) so there is that connection that I enjoy.
 
Bob Buchanan said:
And became a Warriors fan as well. Their offices at the time were just down the street from my office in the Federal Building on Golden Gate avenue -- and if I recall, The City, was part of their signage. Actually, that was back in the days of Rick Barry. Do you recall his two handed underhanded foul shots - that he never missed? Am also a Kings fan in Sacramento, but it looks like they will be moving to Anaheim soon because Sacramento voters don't want to pay for a new arena. Oh well -- my basketball loyalty has always been with my hometown and alma mater team in Lexington, KY -- and the Kentucky Wildcats. The Kings pick up a Kentucky player from time to time (like DeMarcus Cousins this past year) so there is that connection that I enjoy.
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I graduated HS in 1968 so Rick Barry was my hero.  I'm 6'6" and played ball wearing #24... wrist bands and a head band if that tells you what I thought of Rick Barry.  ;)  I could never get into that underhand freethrow style though.  I then played a year of ball at USF before I realized I just didn't have much talent.  :eek:

Our youngest daughter did a two year marketing internship with the Kings while she went to Sac State and we lived in Granite Bay.  Got all the tickets we wanted and got to meet some of the guys but by then the heyday of the 2003 heartbreak season was long gone.  The latest word is that the Kings are going to remain in Sac for another year.  I'm guessing they'll draw about two dozen people per game...

Rick
 
 
Poor Linda had no idea where this thread was going to go when she asked for places to see on her planned path :)

Wendy
 
Linda,  we will be right behind you going up I5 through the San Joaquin Valley but not until the last part of May heading to Alaska.  (side note: Did you know that there was a Mexican bandit named Joaquin who stole horses and ran them back down south of the border.  He had a bandit buddy with him that cut off men's ears and make a necklace out of them.  They stole all along the central valley and Souther California.  Wonder if this is who the San Joaquin Valley was named after... ;D )  So let me know what you did in Sacramento.  Tim is an ex-railroader so he'd like to see the trains.

Getting us back on track.....Some ideas for campgrounds and things to do:

  • Grizzly Bear RV in West Yellowstone for Yellowstone park.  Allow lots of days and be sure and get "Moosetracks" ice cream downtown.  There are also several playhouses that are very good. in West Yellowstone
  • The KOA in Billings, Montana is fabulous
  • The drive down 191 from/to Yellowstone from/to Bozeman is very very pretty.  It follows the Gallatin River and the Gallatin National Forest.
  • Cody Museum in Cody Wyoming-allow at least 2 days
  • The Absoraka RV park in Cody
  • Do a day drive from Cody up to the Bear Tooth highway and back down into Red Lodge coming back into Cody.  Don't take the coach
  • The Grand Tetons (don't have a campground recommendation) but Tom (seilerbird) probably has a good one to recommend.
  • I know you said not to mention Glacier NP; but if you head there through Missoula, Montana take #93 north to Whitefish and Kalispell around Flathead Lake and Bigfork.
Now I need to get my own planning done.  We took the coach into freightliner last Friday for the PM3.  They  found a cracked fan blade so now we need to replace that.  We keep telling each other it's a good thing they found it because we could have been miles from help in Alaska with a fan blade flying into the radiator; but it's just more "cha ching...cha ching" to our trip.  Good thing I'm going on Medicare in September...... ;)

Make Dean be careful.

Marsha~
 
"The Grand Tetons (don't have a campground recommendation) but Tom (seilerbird) probably has a good one to recommend."

I sure do Marsha. Coulter is the one I use. It is huge and rarely even half full, so you will never need reservations. There is also an RV park right next to it with hookups, but I have never stayed there. Beautiful campground, located very close to everything and only a few hundred yards from the beach at the lake. The grocery store, marina, visitors center, museum, showers, laundromat and the campgrounds are about as centrally located as they can get.

There are four other campgrounds. Jenny Lake is for tents only and is very small. I have not camped at Lizard Creek, but the one at Signal Mountain is small but stunning location. Gros Ventre is huge and very isolated from the rest of the park.

The Travel Channel produced a program ten years ago called "The top ten National Parks to view wildlife in the US". First place when to the Tetons. I have been in 48 of the 58 US National Parks and I would agree. Yellowstone came in 3rd. So plan on seeing a lot of critters there.

Also located at Grand Teton is what I consider the best spot in the country to view a wide variety of wildlife. The location is Oxbow Bend located 5 miles from Coulter Bay right on the Snake River. Every night around sundown the place turns into a zoo without bars. You will have no problem finding the right spot, there is usually a large crowd there every night since it is not a secret spot. I have seen bears (black and grizzly), elk, moose, coyotes, bald eagles, pelicans, beavers, and osprey there.
 
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