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Ride Advice - Yellowstone/Glacier

Our trip is firming up on dates (first half of September) and routes and I have a specific question for the collective wisdom here. We're going to be in Moran at the Turpin Meadow ranch for a couple of days and leave there headed toward Glacier with 2 days on the schedule to get there. My initial thought was to ride through Yellowstone stopping and gawking here and there and exit the park on the NE Entrance road (212) and end the day with a romp down the Beartooth Hwy up to Red Lodge.

The other choice might be to exit the park on the east entrance road (14/16/20) and hook back up on the Chief Joseph Hwy to connect with the Beartooth and out to Red Lodge.

Then the second day is a run from Red Lodge up to Glacier staying there.

So what's your recommendation? Out the north on 212/Beartooth all the way OR out the east on 14/16 and up the Chief Joseph to 212 and out?

Here's one of many plans we're looking at:

Idaho%20Loop-XL.jpg
 
Chief Joseph/Beartooth is my vote!

Awesome views, good road, little traffic at that time of year. Hopefully an early snow won't close the road.
 
...what's your recommendation?...PittsDriver

Wes: This is one of the rare occasions when you can have your cake and eat it too.

Take14/16 out of Yellowstone to Cody, have a bite to eat and beverage at Irma's Cafe, and stop at the Sierra Trading Post http://www.sierratradingpost.com/?gclid=CLTzgqWNnLcCFTBxQgodiCMA7Q&codes-processed=true for any stuff that you might not need.

Then go north, do the Chief Joseph to the intersection with the 212. Now, here's the good part: you head west to Cooke City, stop, have a quick look around, and then backtrack east on the 212 across the Plateau. Don't miss the store up top. Doing it this way you get to ride both the CJ and BT, and it only "costs" you an extra 25 miles or so. And the bonus is that you get to ride through the lovely Sylvan Pass. (14/16).

At Red Lodge, don't miss one of the best bars in the West:

http://www.snowcreeksaloon.com/

The Pollard Hotel is almost right next door.

september08%20045-L.jpg


Have fun!
 
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Wes: This is one of the rare occasions when you can have your cake and eat it too.

Take14/16 out of Yellowstone to Cody, have a bite to eat and beverage at Irma's Cafe, and stop at the Sierra Trading Post http://www.sierratradingpost.com/?gclid=CLTzgqWNnLcCFTBxQgodiCMA7Q&codes-processed=true for any stuff that you might not need.

Then go north, do the Chief Joseph to the intersection with the 212. Now, here's the good part: you head west to Cooke City, stop, have a quick look around, and then backtrack east on the 212 across the Plateau. Don't miss the store up top. Doing it this way you get to ride both the CJ and BT, and it only "costs" you an extra 25 miles or so. And the bonus is that you get to ride through the lovely Sylvan Pass. (14/16).


Have fun!


Sounds like a plan. Now my dilemma is whether to take an extra day to ride out to the Big Horns and do that loop from Cody and back. If I do, it'll cost us a day of riding in Idaho back country and I'm not sure I want to give that up as much as the Big Horns have been recommended. We're going up to Glacier then back down to Lolo through the pass over to Kooskia and then meandering our way through the back country to land in Rexburg. I want to make sure we have at least a couple of not three days of fully exploring all of that country and if we do the Big Horn loop it'll cost of some back country time.

Thoughts?
 
Thoughts?

Wes:

The Bighorn Mountains are scenic, with interesting twisty roads, but you pay a price by having to traverse the Bighorn Basin, which is pretty dreary. From Cody, it's not as far to Shell, about 70 miles, as it is from Red Lodge, but I think I'd take the extra day in Idaho, instead. We're headed down there next month, to do some touring.
 
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I'd strongly recommend doing Beartooth from Red Lodge up, and then running CJH into Cody. That way you get the BT's switchbacks on the ascent (no need for brakes), and it's big sweepers on the descent (again, no need for brakes), rather than the reverse. CJH is pretty spectacular in either direction.

This is the view from ead Indian Pass, looking west.


we found a very pretty campsite outside of Y'stone along the Y'Stone River (NW entrance into Mammoth HS). State fishing access site, but camping for $12/night, right on the river. Sweet.
 
I've done most of the roads you're talking about, and if you can swing doing Rt. 14 A through the Bighorns too, it may be worth it.
 
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