Badlands/Black hills to SLC??

[fulano]

Hey folks! A friend and I are planning a trip from Boston to San Francisco and we'd like to see the Badlands and the Black Hills. After checking prior postings, I haven't been able to find any suggestions between there and Salt Lake City since most seem to find Yellowstone, Northern Wyoming and Montana (for good reason) irresistible. We are looking for something direct-ish due to time constraints, but opinions on must-visits in the region are always welcome. Any suggestions would be great, and I'm a forum noob, so go easy... thanks!

[litespeed]

I suppose you could cut SW across Wyoming to Casper or Riverton and on to Salt Lake City but you would be missing out on Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Jackson, McKenzie Pass, Crater Lake and the west coast. Also US26 across Oregon, one of my favorite rides. And from SLC your most direct route to San Francisco would be to ride the shoulder of I80 across Nevada. I've never heard of anyone doing this. I sure wouldn't want to. You could swing south and ride US50, "The Loneliest Road", but that would be almost as long as a much more scenic (and less arduous) northern route.

You really should consider making time to swing further north and see the sights. Even if you don't want to go all the way to the coast you could cut south at Bend, OR and take in Crater Lake. But if you do go to the west coast to, say, Florence, I can pretty much guarantee that the ride down the coast will be the highlight of your trip.

[FredHiltz]

+1. If I had to cut it short, I'd ride from Boston to Niagara Falls, then take the train across as much of the Midwest as necessary. The Midwest is fine riding, but does have a much-the-same quality after the first week or two. Finish the Northern Tier and head down the Pacific Coast. Litespeed is right about the riding there.

Fred