Originally Posted by
Diamondback
I'd recommend doing SD on another trip. I90 is quite a boring drive and adds a lot for you to make the big loop. You could spend the extra days in Jackson/Tetons/Yellowstone and then fly back out of SLC.
That's why I'm planning to do that particular leg of the trip first, just to get the plateau/prairie land driving out of the way. The reason I want to hit SD is not so because of SD but because I want to see Devils Tower. I simply MUST see Devils Tower. I HAVE to see Devils Tower.
And since the tower is close enough to Mt Rushmore it'd behoove me not to extend the loop to include Rapid City too.
I'm assuming the break in seeing Devils Tower, then passing through the Bighorn mountains will help break up some of the monotony on my way to Yellowstone. I should be able to handle it since I drove the entire state of Mississippi once and managed to stay awake the whole time. Literally, straight as an arrow and flat as a pancake. My goodness. That's when having an iPod playlist filled with Van Halen and Def Leppard comes in handy.