Home Northwest Restaurants Lodging Highways RV & Camping Espresso Day Trips	The “Great Western Circle” Tour
	The Great Pacific Northwest of the United States is a very diverse region from high mountains to the Pacific Coast and from great deserts to lush rain forests. If you visit the Western United States and only visit a coastal town or two or one of our great amusement parks you will miss the real flavor of the “Great Pacific Northwest”. Our “Great Western Circle” tour starts on the wonderful Puget Sound of Washington State. It goes through parts of eight western states and takes you through cosmopolitan cities, great redwood forests, the ocean beaches, rain forests, to see Geysers, American Castles, Great Salt Lakes, famous boardwalks on the beach, and some of the best wineries in the world. The Basic Tour The tour is a basic circle down Interstate 5 through Washington and Oregon to Interstate 80 in California, then east on Interstate 80 through Nevada to Salt Lake City, Utah. From Salt Lake City the tour heads north on Interstate 15 (with a little side trip to Yellowstone National Park) to Interstate 90 in Montana. In Montana the tour heads back west through Idaho and Washington to its origin in Seattle.
	Time needed for the trip Our “Great Western Circle” takes seven days to drive with little or no time for sightseeing. We presume a day’s travel is approximately 8 hours of driving time. We do not suggest that this trip be taken in seven days unless you only want to see what lies along the roads. This is really a three-week or more experience if you desire to have a relaxing trip and see some of the thousands of attractions along the main route. To make your choices more difficult and time even more valuable there are dozens of side trips you will want to take. And each side trip adds additional time requirements to your trip.
	The Trip around the “Great Western Circle” Day one – Seattle, Washington to Grant’s Pass, Oregon Our “Great Western Circle” Tour begins in Seattle, Washington State. Washington is a wonderful state for tourists to visit because of its great diversity and wide variety of things to do for the tourist. Visit our Washington Page for suggestions of things to see and do while visiting. To start on the “Great Western Circle” Tour you head south on Interstate 5 passing through the Seattle – Tacoma metropolitan areas and arriving at Olympia, Washington State’s Capital. You can see the dome of our Capital Building from Interstate 5. From Olympia to Kelso you pass through low rolling hills and farmlands. When you reach the Longview / Kelso area you reach the shores of the Columbia River and you follow the river to Vancouver, WA and then over the Columbia River to Portland, Oregon. From Portland you head south on Interstate 5 through Oregon’s Willamette Valley. This valley is separated from the Pacific Coast by the coastal mountain range giving it more moderate weather making this a prolific agricultural area. It is a short trip from Portland to Salem, the Capital of Oregon. You will continue south through Eugene and Roseburg before leaving the valley and entering the mountains in southern Oregon where you will arrive at Grants Pass. Grants Pass is located on the famous Rogue River with its wild riverboat trips into the wilds of the Rogue River.
	Day Two – Grants Pass, OR to Sacramento, California On your second day of travel you will leave Grants Pass and follow the Rogue River Valley to Medford, OR. Medford is the pear capital of the world and is located in the Rogue River Valley. South of Medford you will cross the Siskiyou Mountains. Siskiyou Pass, near the Oregon / California State Line, is 4,310 feet above sea level. From here to Lake Shasta you will travel through the mountains of Northern California entering Weed, CA. You will drop down out of the mountains when you reach Redding. Redding is the east end of the Trinity Scenic Byway which heads west to the Pacific Coast. Redding lies at the north end of the Sacramento River Valley. From Redding to Sacramento you will travel through this valley, which is one of the most fertile agricultural areas in the United States. You will go through the cities of Red Bluff, and Willow before reaching Sacramento. Sacramento is the Capital of California and has many tourist attractions including Old Sacramento that is an area along the Sacramento River that has been restored to the way it looked in the late 1800’s.
	Day Three – Sacramento, CA to Lake Tahoe, Nevada There are several side trips you may want to consider that take off from this area of the “Great Western Circle” Tour. They include: San Francisco, The Napa Valley Wine Country, the Santa Cruz / Monterey Bay area, California’s Big Sur, and of course the Hearst Castle at San Simeon. The “Great Western Circle” Tour heads east from Sacramento into the mountains where the California Gold Rush happened in the 1850’s. The tour actually heads west on Interstate 80 but we also suggest a side trip on US Highway 50 to Placerville, Sutter’s Mill (where the gold was first found), and on to Lake Tahoe on the California / Utah State Line. The area offers may tourist attractions on and around the lake and is famous for its gambling casinos at State Line. Lake Tahoe or Reno are great places to spend your next night.
	Day Four – Lake Tahoe, NV to Elko, Utah Day four begins with breakfast overlooking Lake Tahoe. From there you head east over 7,140 foot high Spooner Pass on US-50 on your way to Carson City, the capitol of Nevada. From there you head north to Reno via Virginia City were fortunes were made during the Gold Rush. From Reno you head east on Interstate 80 through very dry country where there are miles and miles of northing but dry hot hills. This is pretty desolate territory with a few waterholes to stop at and take a rest. Elko a town of nearly 15,000 at an elevation of 5,060 feet above sea level is one of those water holes with a nice variety of hotels and motels where you can rest your weary bones. This is the heart of Nevada’s cattle country
	Day Five – Elko, UT to Idaho Falls or West Yellowstone From Elko it is about 110 miles to the Utah / Nevada State Line. When you cross over the State Line on I-80 you enter the Bonneville Salt Flats and beyond is the Great Lake Desert. There are 70 miles of salt marsh and desert until your reach the Great Salt Lake and it is 122 miles to Salt Lake City. Salt Lake City is a welcome oasis and the Capital of Utah. This is a place where you will want to spend some time. From Salt Lake City you next head north on Interstate 15 to Idaho Falls. This city of about 44,000 offers a wide variety of lodging and tourist attractions and is a great place to spend the night. Also, if it is not too late you may want to push on to West Yellowstone and spend the night just outside the National Park.
	Day Six – Idaho Falls, ID to Missoula, Montana From Idaho Falls to the West Entrance to Yellowstone National Park there are a lot of recreational activities. This is a high mountain plain with forests, rivers, fishing, hiking, canoeing, lodges, cabins, and RV parks. The Town of West Yellowstone has a lot of tourist facilities and you will want to spend some time here. Yellowstone Park defies adequate adjectives to describe the wonder and beauty of this park. You can get a good feel of what the park is about in a four hour drive through but three or four days would not be wasted here. The “Great Western Circle” route leaves the north entrance to the Park through Roosevelt Arch. Theodore Roosevelt dedicated the arch in 1872. This is the main entrance to the park and the only entrance open in the winter, Gardiner, a town with an elevation of nearly one mile, is located just north of the North Entrance. It also has a lot of facilities for the tourist. There are some great white water rafting opportunities here. From Gardiner the tour heads north on US-89 for about 60 miles to the junction with Interstate 90 at Livingston, Montana. On I-90 we head east through Bozeman, MT and Butte, Mt. to Missoula, MT our last overnight stop in the “Great Western Circle”.
	Day Seven – Missoula, MT to Seattle, WA The last days travel is from Missoula, MT to Seattle, WA on Interstate 90. Even though this is only about an eight hour drive it is not without its places you will want to see and even spend some time at. The first of these is Waterton Glacier International Peach Park (Glacier National Park) that is 145 miles north of Missoula. Certainly you must consider spending some time at this National Park. Two and a half hours west of Missoula is Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. This city, with a population of around 25,000, at the north end of Lake Coeur d’Alene is tourist central for the region. You will find everything from destination resorts to camping in this area. One half hours trip to the west of Coeur d’Alene on I-90 is Spokane, Washington. Spokane is Washington State’s second largest city with a population of around 178,000. Riverfront Park is a 50 acre park in the middle of the city on Spokane River that was the site of the 1974 Expo. There are gondola rides, a carrousel made in 1909 by the maker of the original carrousel in Coney Island, and an IMAX theater with a five story high screen in the park. West of Spokane off of US-2 is Grand Coulee Dam, one of the largest concrete structures in the world. It is 550 feet high, 500 feet thick at its base, and 5,223 feet long. Roosevelt lake extends 151 miles up the Columbia Riverbed behind the dam. Traveling from Spokane to Vantage, on I-90, you will travel through Ritzville, and Moses Lake in Washington’s wheat country. At Vantage you cross the mighty Columbia River. About a half hour after you cross over the Columbia River you will enter the City of Ellensburg. This city is in the middle of Washington’s cattle country and it is the last city you will pass through before you climb the eastern slope of the Cascade Mountains. When you go over the top of 3,022 ft. Snoqualmie Pass you will slide right down the west side of the Cascade Mountains back into Issaquah on Interstate 90 to the junction with Interstate 5 in Seattle.
	Side Trips on the “Great Western Circle” Tour The San Juan Islands in Washington State – one to five days You can take a Washington State Ferry from Anacortes to Friday Harbor on San Juan Island for the day. Leave your car at Anacortes and walk on the ferry. The ferry will wind through the islands stopping at the west most island in Friday Harbor. This quaint island city is a tourist Mecca. There are also several ferry routes that you can take as a driving tour through the islands to Vancouver Island in Canada and to the Olympic Peninsula. Visit our Puget Sound Page for more information.
	The Olympic Peninsula and Pacific Coast in Washington State – three days Highway 101 starts south of Seattle in Olympia. It begins just south of Washington’s capital and heads west and then north up the west side of Hoods Canal, a salt water inlet, to the north end of the Olympic Peninsula. From there the highway runs west along the north side of the peninsula and then turns south along the Pacific Ocean. When it reaches Aberdeen it has gone nearly in a full circle. The Olympic Mountain Range and the Olympic National Park take up a majority of the area on this huge peninsula. All around the perimeter of the park, along the salt water, is a coastal plain. There are two major port cities on the peninsula, Port Townsend and Port Angeles. Today these cities have lost most of the wood products industries and have become great tourist spots. You will find more outdoor recreation on the Olympic Peninsula that you can enjoy in ten visits there. The Oregon Coast in the State of Oregon – three days The Oregon Coast offers a unique drive along the Pacific Ocean. Around every turn there is another quaint and pleasant community with its own attractions. You could spend weeks on the coast and not see it all but three day to drive down the coast to northern California will give you a good overview. The Trinity Scenic Byway from Redding, CA to Eureka / Arcata, CA and down US Highway 101 to San Francisco – two days This historic road from Redding, CA to the Arcata / Eureka was originally a mule train trail bringing mining supplies to the miners in the 1850’s. It is a full day’s trip across because the trip is very curvy and you will want to take a break in Weaverville, at about the halfway point, for food, some history, and other tourist things. Look at our Trinity Scenic Byway page for more information. Once you are on the Pacific Coast it makes sense to follow US Highway 101 south through the Redwoods and into California’s Wine Country and then across the Golden Gate Bridge into San Francisco.
	The San Simeon side trip down the Central California, Pacific Coast – three days There is only one Hearst Castle. It is located in San Simeon, on the Pacific Coast south of Monterey Bay and Big Sur. William Randolph Hearst turned a family camp site into a location of an incredible castle frequented by the rich and famous. Today the castle has been given to California State Parks and they run a fabulous public tour operation. There are several different tours let by very professional tour guides and there is a movie about the building of the castle you won’t want to miss.
	California’s Wine Country – one day North of San Francisco, over the Golden Gate Bridge lies what we call the Napa Valley Area. The Area consists of Marin, Sonoma, and Napa Counties. This is unquestionably California’s Wine Country just based on the number of vineyards located in the area. Most of the vineyards have breath-taking chateau like wineries with wine tasting rooms that are open to the public and many are also gift shops. Many of the wineries have lovely gardens and picnic grounds. The area is full of renowned restaurants and shops. This area is a gourmet food and wine lovers dream.
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