Locations to visit? South Dakota to Las Vegas.

I live in southwest South Dakota.

This summer, I'm planning to take a road trip to Vegas with my sister. She will be modeling for me, and we're in no hurry; our plan is to go to beautiful places along the way and hopefully camp at them.

Which locations should we consider going to -- ones that are roughly along the route to Vegas?

Don't only think of parks and such; I especially like locations that are similar to Reptile Gardens, but only if entry is free or cheap. https://flickr.com/gro​ups/reptile-gardens/pool/

Note: I'd like to have shading, so e.g. not Lake Powell.

EDIT: I'll likely take a westward route to Vegas, but bypassing California (please don't argue with me about CA). I'd like to shoot at the Palouse and Cape Disappointment. Where else should I stop, if I take such a route? On the way back, I'd take a near-direct route (Utah, Colorado) home.

Looks like a very westward route if you want to visit the coast...

Anywhere in the southwest US during summer will be bright and sunny... especially in May until mid-July. After mid-July the monsoon season starts so there's wind and spotty thunderstorms in the afternoons/evenings but the mornings are still bright sunshine. Monsoon season ends around mid-September.

Since you want shade I'd avoid southern CO, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah AND NEVADA.

Near Vegas is the state park Valley of Fire. There is also Red Rock Canyon just on the outskirts of Vegas. However, for photo ops, IMO, the Valley of Fire beats Red Rock Canyon. Either by the way are enhanced by a short rainstorm. That really increases the saturation of colors in the rock formations.

See http://parks.nv.gov/pa​rks/valley-of-fire or Google Valley of Fire and then select images.

Depending on your routing, don’t forget Jackson Hole and the Tetons could be on the way.

You'd have to drive south to Albuquerque which is not the best route for you but the Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona is spectacular.

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If / when you take a more or less direct route from Rapid City to Vegas:

Zion National Park in extreme southern Utah is along your route, and would be a wonderful place to shoot a human. . There are so many varied and dramatic geologic formations and vistas!

People complain about the extreme crowding at Zion, but you needn't let that be a problem; just park in the small roadside turnouts where nobody else is parked and access the backcountry on foot. . The only places you have crowding are the facilities and the established trails. . Walk off-trail, across the backcountry, and you will find loads of great areas for photography and no other people.

If you search for images of Zion, most of what you find will be these landscape photos shot from grand vistas. . But there are many more places in Zion that are much more conducive to photographing a model; more intimate little canyons and draws and rocky formations that are off the beaten path and would allow for some really creative photographic opportunities. . I mean, you could get REALLY creative there and shoot a lot of images that are very different than what you see anyone else shooting. . The topography is so steep in many places that if you want sun you just shoot on the sunny side of a formation, and if you want shade you shoot on the shaded side.

There is a campground with tent sites just outside the East Entrance of the Zion, called Hi Road Campground. . It's somewhere in the neighborhood of $40 / night to tent camp, which includes use of the shower and bath house. . This is quite expensive for a tent site, but it will likely be the ONLY place to go anywhere for many miles, short of the $150+/night motel rooms in the town at the Southern Entrance.

Another place that is kinda along your route is Hovenweep, just on the Utah side of the Colorado / Utah border:
https://www.nationalpa​rks.org …venweep-national-monument

The place is so cool! . It features ancient Anasazi stone ruins that you can walk around and photograph. . There is also tent camping there, as well as a Visitor Center. . The neat thing about Hovenweep is that you will almost feel like you have the place to yourself. . I went on Labor Day weekend last fall, and there were very few other people there.

There is no lodging nearby, so if you want to stay in a motel, you'll probably need to stay in Cortez, CO, which is a little less than an hour away. . But motels in Chaves are very reasonable, so it shouldn't be much of a problem.


If / when you take a very circuitous western route from Rapid City to vegas:

The Columbia Gorge, along Interstate 84, which runs east to west along the Washington / Oregon border, is a place that may interest you.

There are many waterfalls, particularly on the Oregon side of the river. . Because the slopes are facing north on the Oregon side, you will have the shade you are looking for almost all day long in many places.
https://www.google.com …bih=718&biw=133​6&safe=off

The Washington side of the river has drier habitat, because the slopes face south. . But there are still worthwhile points of interest, particularly Beacon Rock:
https://www.google.com …oECBcQBA&biw=13​36&bih=718


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Wow, the photos at that waterfall link make me want to head out to Oregon. We have waterfalls in CO of course, but not with that lush vegetation.

Bear in mind that a teenager burned down 48,000 plus acres including many amazing water fall hikes in 2017

https://en.wikipedia.o​rg/wiki/Eagle_Creek_Fi​re

Check to make sure the hike you have in mind still exists...

SeattleSpeedster wrote in post #19051890
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Bear in mind that a teenager burned down 48,000 plus acres including many amazing water fall hikes in 2017

https://en.wikipedia.o​rg/wiki/Eagle_Creek_Fi​re

Check to make sure the hike you have in mind still exists...
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I worked on that fire as a firefighter.

I visited the area this past October, and the well known, easy-to-access waterfalls down along Interstate 84 looked to be unaffected by the fire. . There was still nice lush vegetation all around them. . It was the coniferous vegetation higher up the slopes, and on the south-facing slopes, that burned.


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If you want to do something off the wall stop by here and take a tour.

https://www.nps.gov/mi​mi/index.htm

Eagle Creek Trail is still closed. The fire made it all the way to I-84 in a lot of locations. Oneonta Gorge is closed. Access to many of the trails is still severely limited as the chance of slides is still very high.

Word is that the Eagle Creek Trail might open soon, but now with Covid and all the parks being closed this will probably be pushed back.

So the Gorge is indeed open... yet still very limited. The falls along the Historic Columbia River Highway are mostly still accessible.

Go here for the latest...
https://www.oregon.gov …lumbia-river-highway.aspx