AMERICAN ROCKIES
GREAT ESCAPE
ON THE ROAD
HOW TO GET THERE
Denver, the capital of Colorado, makes
the most useful entry point for this trip.
ANA offers the shortest route from
both Singapore and Kuala Lumpur with
one stop in Tokyo (from US$1,498;
ana.co.jp). Other airlines including
Delta, United and British Airways also
fly from both cities to Denver.
HOW TO GET AROUND
Our suggestion for this itinerary is to
hire cars at Denver and Jackson Hole
airports (from around US$45 per day;
hertz.com), and to take a 1½-hour
flight in between them to link the
Colorado and Wyoming parts of the
trip (from US$495 return; united.com).
Otherwise, it’s a drive of at least eight
hours from Rocky Mountain National
Park to Grand Teton National Park,
via some flattish parts of southwest
Wyoming. The trip outlined here
involves less driving than the average
US itinerary; with a bit of planning,
it’s possible to replace all drives with
a combination of local shuttles and
taxis. For example, a variety of shuttles
cover the 45 miles from Denver Airport
to Boulder, including SkyRide buses
(from US$9 one-way; rtd-denver.com).
HOW LONG TO SPEND
It’s possible to follow this route in just
under 10 days, but a fortnight’s trip will
be more comfortable. Yellowstone in
particular is worth an extra day or two
to see different parts of the park. Skiers
may also want to spend more time in
Jackson Hole, or add on a trip to one of
Colorado’s many mountain resorts.
WHAT TO BUDGET
Winter is of course peak season in the
ski towns of the Rockies. Away from
the pistes, however, hotels may be
cheaper than in summer, with rooms at
three-star establishments for around
US$95–US$140 per night, and
upwards of US$190 for higher-end
places. In most eateries you can have a
filling meal for US$15–US$22. One
thing to bear in mind is that your
choice of hotels, restaurants and other
services may be more limited in winter.
There is a full selection in Boulder and
any winter resorts, and a wide one in
Estes Park, but options are fewer in
Yellowstone. In many places, guided
excursions are worthwhile or even
essential to get out into the wintry
environment – count on around
US$45–US$190 per head for such
add-ons.WHEN TO GO
To see the Rockies at their snowiest, it’s
best to come in January and February,
especially if you want to include
Yellowstone National Park in your trip.
While snow may stay on the peaks well
into March and April, the winter season
in Yellowstone is limited (for the
purposes of most visitors) to the period
between late December and the end of
February, after which almost all
facilities shut down again until May.WHO CAN HELP
Audley Travel can arrange tailor-made
winter itineraries in the American
Rockies. A tour following the route of
this feature costs from US$3,620 per
person based on two people sharing,
with eight nights’ accommodation on
a b&b basis (audleytravel.com).HOW TO PLAN
Lonely Planet’s Western USA
(US$24.99) has full chapters on
Colorado and Wyoming, while
Yellowstone & Grand Teton National
Parks (US$19.99) offers expanded
coverage of Wyoming’s two biggest
natural attractions.
Find more Rockies
tips at
discoveramerica.
com, and on state
websites: colorado.
com and
wyomingtourism.
org.Look out for
Bighorn sheep. These agile
climbers are found across the
Rocky Mountains, coming down
to lower slopes in winter.
Colorado has made
them the official
state animal.
Try
Huckleberry products:
jams, chocolates and
even jelly beans. This
sweet-tasting berry
grows in the northern
Rockies, but there are
other ‘huckleberries’
elsewhere in the US.Watch
Woody Allen’s 1973 sci-fi
comedy Sleeper, filmed largely
in Colorado. One of the key
movie locations was the
futuristic, adobe-coloured Mesa
Laboratory in Boulder, designed
by renowned architect IM Pei.Don’t be misled
If you see Rocky Mountain
oysters on the menu: the
ocean is hundreds of miles
away. These novelty items,
more of a prairie-country
dish despite the name,
consist of a pair of the
most intimate parts of
a bull, breaded and fried.Stand astride
The Continental Divide. The Rockies mark the boundary
between rivers that flow west to the Pacific and those that
drain east into the Mississippi and the Gulf of Mexico. There
is usually a sign to point out when a road crosses the exact
line – it happens three times in Yellowstone National Park.