Quote:
Originally Posted by basehorhawk
The family is taking a trip out to Jellystone at Estes Park the middle of June (from Kansas City) and we are mapping everything out. From a towing perspective is the route from Loveland to Estes Park on Highway 34 better or is the route from Lyons to Estes Park on Highway 36 better.
If anyone has any experience with Jellystone in Estes Park or with family vacations (kids age 8 and 5) in RMNP I'd love to hear those as well.
Thanks!
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HWY 36 is going to be a pretty easy drive with only one or two big climbs and nothing crazy for curves. HWY 34 goes through Big Thompson Canyon which is a pretty drive but is really curvy and has more climbs. Both are passable with a trailer but if you are looking for an easy route I would take HWY 36. If you don't mind the slow going and dealing with the switch backs then HWY 34 would be the one for the scenery. The last time I stayed at Jellystone was when I was little (that was a long time ago), so I couldn't tell you what it's like now. The last time I was in the area, we drove there from Denver where my family lives.
One thing we always used to do when we vacationed there as kids is we used to love to do the horse back riding. There is a lot to see in RMNP and there used to be stuff for families to do in Estes Park. Like I said it has been several years since I have been there so not sure what has changed over the years. A great drive and still one of my favorite ones is Trail Ridge Road, it's one of the highest auto roads in the world climbing to 12,000 ft. and the scenery is incredible. Just make sure you do it on a day that is pretty clear. At those elevations it can get really foggy if there is a lot of cloud cover.
Hope this helps and hope you have fun on your trip!