Welcome to Rapid City, the gateway to South Dakota’s Black Hills. Your Tour Director is on hand from 3:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. to answer any questions
Visit Crazy Horse Memorial, a monument-in-progress carved into a mountain to honor the Lakota leader, Crazy Horse. Have time to view the collection of art and artifacts that reflect the diverse histories and cultures of over 300 Native Nations at the Indian Museum of North America.
Drive through South Dakota’s Black Hills, once part of the Great Sioux Nation’s ancestral homeland, to see the sculpted granite faces of Mount Rushmore, honoring Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt.
Continue to Deadwood, a once lawless frontier town that boomed during the 1876 Black Hills Gold Rush, where outlaw Jack McCall shot Wild Bill Hickok during a poker game.
Stay overnight and discover Deadwood’s Wild West ways as you walk in the footsteps of legends like Calamity Jane and Seth Bullock. (CB)
This morning, head through Wyoming’s high country, where open-range cattle barons and homesteaders clashed during the range wars of the 1890s.
Drive past Sheridan and ascend into the alpine landscapes of the Bighorn Mountains, passing the site of the Battle of Tongue River. Overnight in Cody, founded by Buffalo Bill Cody and known as the eastern gateway to Yellowstone National Park
Continue through Shoshone National Forest to Yellowstone National Park, the world’s first national park. Discover colorful hot springs, powerful geysers, alpine rivers, lush forests, dramatic canyons, and abundant wildlife.
Travel along the Grand Loop Road to the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone for views of the Lower Falls. Keep an eye out for herds of bison, elk, and other wildlife that call the park home. Spend the next two nights in West Yellowstone.
NOTES:
Routing and areas visited in Yellowstone National Park are always subject to favorable weather, gate access, and road conditions; therefore, routings may be adjusted
Today, explore more of America’s first national park with visits to colorful geyser basins, bubbling mud paint pots, and the famous Old Faithful geyser, known for its remarkably predictable eruptions that can shoot steaming water up to 185 feet in the air!
Along with its mountain scenery and geothermal wonders, Yellowstone is one of the world’s premier wildlife preserves and home to 67 species of mammals, including bison, wolves, and bears, as well as more than 300 species of birds. (B)
Includes meal(s): Breakfast
Head south into magnificent Grand Teton National Park, where the jagged Teton Range rises abruptly above the valley floor. Its 13,770-foot-high Grand Teton peak is snowcapped for much of the year.
Visit glacier-fed Jenny Lake before ending the day in the Wild West town of Jackson. This evening, consider an optional barbecue cookout and Wild West show. You’ll be driven by a horse-drawn covered wagon and immerse yourself in the Old West atmosphere as you travel into Cache Creek Canyon for a BBQ dinner and live Western music. (B)
Includes meal(s): Breakfast
Enjoy time to relax in Jackson or choose an optional 8-mile scenic float trip on the Snake River between Grand Teton National Park and Bridger-Teton National Forest. Drift past nesting areas for bald eagles, ospreys, and other native birds, with opportunities to spot additional wildlife along the riverbanks.
The afternoon is free to explore historic downtown Jackson with the Grand Teton Range rising in the distance. (CB)
Today, travel to Salt Lake City, Utah’s capital. Set between the Wasatch Mountains and the Great Salt Lake, the city is the headquarters of the Mormon religion, and where Brigham Young is said to have declared to his followers, “This is the place.”
An included sightseeing tour features Temple Square, the Utah State Capitol Building, and downtown Salt Lake City. This evening, celebrate your western adventure by joining your fellow travel companions for an optional farewell dinner at a local restaurant. (CB)
Your vacation ends this morning. You may choose to extend your vacation with extra nights and explore Salt Lake City further. (B)
