Cliff notes
Who: Myself, two daughters (11/14), and possibly my wife for a few days if she can fly in.
What: Camping, mountain views, caverns, water, experiences, etc...
Where: Leaving from North West GA, and pointing west.
When: Last week of May, first week of June (2 weeks hopefully).
Vehicle: 4th Gen 4Runner Sport 4×4, roof rack, RTT, small lift (OME 2").
I have one week of vacation approved already for the first week of June. I have a couple of days of single days awaiting approval for the last week of May, that I will couple with two sick days and the holiday Monday, so hopefully I will have two weeks off total. Worst case scenario, I will only have a week and a half off, in which I will have to back up and punt.
For the time being, I am looking for suggestions for some must see spots. Right now, my idea is to run out to Big Bend for a couple of days or so from Mi Casa here in GA, grab some tacos over in Boquillas and somehow loop up into NM and CO before heading home. In theory, it isn't that much further mileage wise versus straight out and back to Big Bend, at least not enough to amount to anything.
I am not the guy that does reservations or has to have anything set in stone. I like to have some ideas, but be flexible enough to spend an extra day or so in an area that tugs at me. I will be doing this trip in a 4runner that I will have a small lift (OME 2"), roof rack and will be transferring my RTT from my truck to it. The trip will be with my daughters (11/14), and my wife will likely fly out and meet up with us for a few days at some point, in which I will have to be close to a major airport. This trip will be a combination or camping and hotels for when we need to regroup.
I admit that sometimes I get ambitious with the ground I want to cover, which is something that is left over from my riding days. To give you an example, I left Panther Creek Junction in Big Bend NP with a buddy and we rode the 1400+ miles home in 27 hours on our ADV bikes. I understand I won't be able to do that, but my plan is to cover the distance from GA to Big Bend in 2 days and CO to GA in 2 days, so we will have 4 days of big mile days. My daughter's and I drove to Long Beach, CA in 3 days a few years back, so they can do it as long as I reward them with a hotel that has a pool at the end of the night!
I know I won't be able to see or do everything in the time that I have, so I am lookijg for suggestions on the "must see or do" spots, and routes. I had someone at work tell me to do the trip in reverse as the drive to CO is more boring than the one to TX, so do it when we're fresh and excited.
I am flexible and don't have to be on the road everyday. I could even not do Big Bend, but wanted the girls to experience the row boat and Burro ride into Boquillas. I am not looking for technical trails or offroading. Driving down dirt roads is perfectly fine, I just don't have the desire to test the limits of my vehicle nor myself 2k miles from home. Getting out and stretching our legs is a must. I'm looking for experiences to share as a family and not monkey butt from sitting in a vehicle all day.
Thanks in advance for all suggestions and/or criticism.
Who: Myself, two daughters (11/14), and possibly my wife for a few days if she can fly in.
What: Camping, mountain views, caverns, water, experiences, etc...
Where: Leaving from North West GA, and pointing west.
When: Last week of May, first week of June (2 weeks hopefully).
Vehicle: 4th Gen 4Runner Sport 4×4, roof rack, RTT, small lift (OME 2").
I have one week of vacation approved already for the first week of June. I have a couple of days of single days awaiting approval for the last week of May, that I will couple with two sick days and the holiday Monday, so hopefully I will have two weeks off total. Worst case scenario, I will only have a week and a half off, in which I will have to back up and punt.
For the time being, I am looking for suggestions for some must see spots. Right now, my idea is to run out to Big Bend for a couple of days or so from Mi Casa here in GA, grab some tacos over in Boquillas and somehow loop up into NM and CO before heading home. In theory, it isn't that much further mileage wise versus straight out and back to Big Bend, at least not enough to amount to anything.
I am not the guy that does reservations or has to have anything set in stone. I like to have some ideas, but be flexible enough to spend an extra day or so in an area that tugs at me. I will be doing this trip in a 4runner that I will have a small lift (OME 2"), roof rack and will be transferring my RTT from my truck to it. The trip will be with my daughters (11/14), and my wife will likely fly out and meet up with us for a few days at some point, in which I will have to be close to a major airport. This trip will be a combination or camping and hotels for when we need to regroup.
I admit that sometimes I get ambitious with the ground I want to cover, which is something that is left over from my riding days. To give you an example, I left Panther Creek Junction in Big Bend NP with a buddy and we rode the 1400+ miles home in 27 hours on our ADV bikes. I understand I won't be able to do that, but my plan is to cover the distance from GA to Big Bend in 2 days and CO to GA in 2 days, so we will have 4 days of big mile days. My daughter's and I drove to Long Beach, CA in 3 days a few years back, so they can do it as long as I reward them with a hotel that has a pool at the end of the night!
I know I won't be able to see or do everything in the time that I have, so I am lookijg for suggestions on the "must see or do" spots, and routes. I had someone at work tell me to do the trip in reverse as the drive to CO is more boring than the one to TX, so do it when we're fresh and excited.
I am flexible and don't have to be on the road everyday. I could even not do Big Bend, but wanted the girls to experience the row boat and Burro ride into Boquillas. I am not looking for technical trails or offroading. Driving down dirt roads is perfectly fine, I just don't have the desire to test the limits of my vehicle nor myself 2k miles from home. Getting out and stretching our legs is a must. I'm looking for experiences to share as a family and not monkey butt from sitting in a vehicle all day.
Thanks in advance for all suggestions and/or criticism.
