Best route? Avoid what route?

We are going to Keystone (K Bar S Lodge) in mid-June. Driving from Northern CA. I%26#39;ve been studying maps and see no clear choice for how to head north after driving I-80 east through Nev. and Utah. No major routes, so must decide which of the lesser roads to take. AAA doesn%26#39;t always know either, and I would like insights from folks who actually KNOW the terrain. Helpful suggestions are most welcome. Thanks. IndexMom

Best route? Avoid what route?

We are coming the end of May and flying into Denver. We are going up to Cheyenne and then thru Lusk, Wyoming to Keystone. Hopefully someone who knows the area or is from California can give you insight. We are staying at K Bar S Lodge- you will really like it.

Best route? Avoid what route?

Getting to the Black Hills through southeastern Wyoming is always a crap shoot. I%26#39;d either turn off of I-80 at Rawlins or Laramie and find your way up through Lusk and Edgemont.

Actually if she is staying in Keystone at the K-bar-S she will not want to go through edgemont, and hte southern hills, it is taking her out of the way. Where area you coming from in Utah.

If you are coming from Salt lake follow 80 to Rock Springs Wyo and then get onto US North 287 via US 30 ( only a mile or so on 30), then east on US 220, until you get to casper. from there get onto I -25 and head south to Exit 126 (Orin, WY)

Take exit and head East on Hwy18/20 to Lusk WY. When arriving in Lusk you will approach a ';T'; just after the Fair Grounds. Take a left and head North on Hwy 85 Towards Newcastle. Upon Entering Newcastle you will come to a 4-way stop. Take a right and head East on Hwy 16 to Custer.

Follow hwy 16 thru Custer Recognizing you will have to take a left at 5th Street Stop Light. Follow Hwy 16 to Junction with 244. Turn Right onto 244 and follow for approx 10 miles until you come upon the back side of Mt Rushmore.

Continue past Mt Rushmore for approx 3 miles through the town of Keystone. There is one stop light in town( old Hill City Rd), at that stop light take a left and K-Bar-S will be on the left.

While in the overall scope of this long trip, it really doesn%26#39;t matter, I will say that if you%26#39;re coming from Lusk to get to Keystone, it will faster through Edgemont than through Newcastle. The reason for this is US 16 drops into Hell Canyon by Jewell Cave and slow you down considerably. 18 to Edgemont, 89 to Custer, 16 to 244 to Keystone will be slightly faster.

Accommodator,

Thanks for the great info. We too will be travelling to Keystone in late May. We arrive at the Denver airport and will go thru Cheyenne to Lusk, Edgemont and on to Keystone. Map directions say it takes between 6-7 hours to travel. Is this correct? We have never driven this route from Denver before.

Thanks for your help. Also where along the route would be a good place to stop and eat?

6-7 hours between Denver and Keystone is about right. I won%26#39;t even get into the ';best'; way as there is no real good or bad way--whether you go through Nebraska or Wyoming, it%26#39;s a wash either way. I do know that I wouldn%26#39;t go through Newcastle.

Traffic on I-25 north of Denver can be tough sometimes (the Wyoming route) and it%26#39;s rarely bad on I-76 northeast of Denver (the Nebraska route). Does this make the Nebraska route better than the Wyoming route? Probably not.

Where to eat: (Wyoming route) Ft. Collins or Cheyenne have some options. There is some fast food in Wheatland. Lusk is mostly small town cafes, gas station pizza, etc. (Nebraska route) Sydney, Alliance or Chadron.

Accomodator,

Another quick question. Is it worth going thru Ft. Laramie on the way to Lusk, Edgemont, and then Keystone, SD? Or is it better just to go straight thru Lusk? Thanks for all your great info.

If you have the time to stop at Fort Laramie, it%26#39;s not a bad stop. It isn%26#39;t out of the way and it%26#39;s only a few bucks per person. Read through their website and if it looks interesting to you, go for it.

A similar stop to consider--although it would take more time--is Fort Robinson State Park near Crawford, NE. Fort Robinson has more to see but will take you longer to get through.

Thank you so much for all the good information you all have taken time and trouble to share with us. My experience on Travel Advisor has always been excellent. Helpful friendly people trying to help someone they have never met, makes trip planning more interesting.

If the price of gas continues to sky rocket, we may have to drive a mile and carry the car for a mile, but South Dakota has places to see, and I intend to see them. Many thanks. IndexMom

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