Hi all,
Well, we made it home...must say we are all going through mountain withdrawal. When asked the question, "Where would you like to have spent more time?" here are the results:
Terri - Pryor Mts. & Lamar Valley
Alex - Pryor Mts. & Lamar Valley
Flame - Pryor Mts. & Cooke City
Ethan - all of Yellowstone
In all, we traveled 4,950 miles; averaged 16.6 mpg; used 297 1/2 gallons of gas; and spent 98 hours and 55 minutes in the car! We saw cars from every state and most provinces except Hawaii. The only things we lost were a camera case, a pair of binoculars, and a lexan water bottle - and they are all on mountains somewhere out there.
Would we do it again? In a heartbeat! The time spent in the car really was not a big deal. Even Nugget was great - she is so adaptable, so long as she is with her people.
It was an awesome, unforgettable, incredible trip. Thanks to all of you for traveling along with us!
Flame, Terri, Alex, Ethan and Nugget
Friday, June 27, 2008
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
On the Road Again...
Wed. June 25, 2008
Did a LOT of driving today…Rapid City to Annawan, IL (12 hours). There is a lot of flooding just west of here. We will do a final blog entry, from home.
Did a LOT of driving today…Rapid City to Annawan, IL (12 hours). There is a lot of flooding just west of here. We will do a final blog entry, from home.
Wind Cave/Custer SP/Mt. Rushmore
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Yesterday we did a lot of driving, from Cody, WY to the SD border. Beautiful scenery the whole way. We made our campsite in the Black Hills National Forest. It was a nice spot, although there must have been a fire not too long ago – lots of burnt trees. Played games and explored the surrounding area.
This morning, we drove to Wind Cave, which was (obviously) a cave in SD. The guys went while Terri hung with Nugget. A gorgeous day, so the ‘girls’ didn’t mind not going below! The guys said it was pretty cool, though.
Took a trip through Custer State Park. Again, saw lots of wildlife – second largest publicly owned (that means YOU own them) buffalo herd (second to Yellowstone’s). Saw a lot of cows and their calves. There was also a herd of wild burros – descendants of burros that were used for rides, and then set free. They were pretty friendly for being ‘wild’ – in fact, they were pretty aggressive in their insistence for a treat!
Drove the Needles Highway out of Custer to Mt. Rushmore. Called as such because of all the needle-like stone spires all along it. Very dramatic, and the road is very narrow on much of it.
Mt. Rushmore was even more impressive than we thought it would be! It truly is a remarkable feat. If you are bored sometime, google it and see what was involved in carving this thing. They have a really nice museum there with lots of cool things from ‘back then’.
Got a hotel room in Rapid City for the night….headed home tomorrow.
Yesterday we did a lot of driving, from Cody, WY to the SD border. Beautiful scenery the whole way. We made our campsite in the Black Hills National Forest. It was a nice spot, although there must have been a fire not too long ago – lots of burnt trees. Played games and explored the surrounding area.
This morning, we drove to Wind Cave, which was (obviously) a cave in SD. The guys went while Terri hung with Nugget. A gorgeous day, so the ‘girls’ didn’t mind not going below! The guys said it was pretty cool, though.
Took a trip through Custer State Park. Again, saw lots of wildlife – second largest publicly owned (that means YOU own them) buffalo herd (second to Yellowstone’s). Saw a lot of cows and their calves. There was also a herd of wild burros – descendants of burros that were used for rides, and then set free. They were pretty friendly for being ‘wild’ – in fact, they were pretty aggressive in their insistence for a treat!
Drove the Needles Highway out of Custer to Mt. Rushmore. Called as such because of all the needle-like stone spires all along it. Very dramatic, and the road is very narrow on much of it.
Mt. Rushmore was even more impressive than we thought it would be! It truly is a remarkable feat. If you are bored sometime, google it and see what was involved in carving this thing. They have a really nice museum there with lots of cool things from ‘back then’.
Got a hotel room in Rapid City for the night….headed home tomorrow.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Sunday in Cody, WY
We are now at a hotel in Cody, WY, finally have a chance to update the blog. We added a few videos on the picture site, too. The drive around Yellowstone Lake and out the east entrance was very scenic. Flame and Terri went to an Indian festival, then we all went to the Cody Rodeo. It was a lot of fun, very entertaining. Those guys are nuts! They even had young (under 12) kids riding little steers.
Tomorrow we head towards South Dakota again, towards the Mt. Rushmore area…
Tomorrow we head towards South Dakota again, towards the Mt. Rushmore area…
Sat. June 21 - Summer Solstice in Grand Teton
Today was unbelievable! The scenery gets more gorgeous everywhere we go. Picked up our kayaks and spent the day in Grand Teton NP on the water. The boys went down the Snake River while Terri stayed with Nugget (no doggies allowed on the waterwaysL). They had a great time and saw osprey, pelicans, herons, etc. We stopped in at Jenny Lake Lodge, then Flame stayed with Nugget while Terri and the boys kayaked through String Lake (between Jenny & Leigh Lakes). It was great – we watched a moose for about ½ hour, 20 yards away! It would freak out every once in a while and prance through the water – clearly to get rid of the bugs that were swarming it.
Drove through the rest of the park to see the sights. Returned the kayaks, then headed to Flagg Ranch, just outside the southern entrance of Yellowstone. We spent the night there at the campground.
Drove through the rest of the park to see the sights. Returned the kayaks, then headed to Flagg Ranch, just outside the southern entrance of Yellowstone. We spent the night there at the campground.
Friday, June 20, 2008
Jackson Hole, WY - June 20
We left our quaint little cabin in the woods this morning, and drove down to the south to Jackson, WY. Originally we were going to shoot straight across to the north entrance of Grand Teton NP, but the road we were going to take (Ashton-Flagg Rd.) was closed, due to…what a surprise…snow! The Forestry Service told us they probably won’t have it open till July!
Beautiful drive. The town of Jackson is very cute, and bustling – sort of a yuppie/western feel to it. We are staying here tonight at a motel, and will camp tomorrow at the northern end of the park. Saw some cool birds – kestrels, magpies, mountain blue birds. Also saw a small flock of mountain goats. The Tetons are magnificent – lots of snow on top, and they just rise straight up from the valley floor – no foothills. Drove through the National Elk Refuge where 5,000 elk spend the winter (and boy scouts gather the antlers to auction off!)
We made arrangements to rent kayaks tomorrow for the day – looking forward to it!
Beautiful drive. The town of Jackson is very cute, and bustling – sort of a yuppie/western feel to it. We are staying here tonight at a motel, and will camp tomorrow at the northern end of the park. Saw some cool birds – kestrels, magpies, mountain blue birds. Also saw a small flock of mountain goats. The Tetons are magnificent – lots of snow on top, and they just rise straight up from the valley floor – no foothills. Drove through the National Elk Refuge where 5,000 elk spend the winter (and boy scouts gather the antlers to auction off!)
We made arrangements to rent kayaks tomorrow for the day – looking forward to it!
Mesa Falls, Idaho
Good day all….Hope you are having a nice day!! Today was a mostly relaxing day here in warm Idaho. But, we did do a few things. First, we went to Mesa Falls, a few miles away to check out the picturesque water falls that are there. Then, we tried to go Horseback riding but, we did not see anyone there except a few horses. Then, we went to Warm River (witch was only 50 degrees warm) to try to eat lunch, but the unluckily there were many mosquitoes that swarmed us while there, so we had a nice lunch in the car on the way back for the evening. We saw a really big moose on our drive back to the cabin.
-blogged by Ethan
-blogged by Ethan
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Gallatin National Forest/Yellowstone NP/Idaho
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
After a great breakfast (Flame is a master of campfire cooking), we broke camp and made our way down the mountain, back to Yellowstone through the north entrance. All last evening, we kept hearing this thrumming noise, almost like an ATV starting up, then stopping. It was pretty rhythmic – we would hear it a few seconds, then it would stop. 15 minutes or so later, it would happen again. Went on like this until dark…then started again at dawn! Finally figured it out…it was a grouse drumming for females!
It was a gorgeous night last night, full moon (or almost full) and a ton of stars.
Our first stop in Yellowstone today was Norris Basin. Very colorful, lots of geysers, mud pots, pools, steam vents. Saw a black bear by the road – lots of people pulled over, could care less. We then went down to see Old Faithful. Lucky for us we were only an ice cream cone away from it erupting. After that we checked out the Old Faithful Inn which was amazing. It was the biggest log cabin like structure we have ever seen, it must have taken an entire mountains’ worth of pine trees to build it, it was huge! After hanging around at the Inn we then saddled back up in the car and headed back through Yellowstone having a nice lunch by the river on the way out. The next stop was in Idaho where we are spending two nights in a beautiful log cabin in the woods. It will be nice having a nice warm bed! –blogged by Alex
After a great breakfast (Flame is a master of campfire cooking), we broke camp and made our way down the mountain, back to Yellowstone through the north entrance. All last evening, we kept hearing this thrumming noise, almost like an ATV starting up, then stopping. It was pretty rhythmic – we would hear it a few seconds, then it would stop. 15 minutes or so later, it would happen again. Went on like this until dark…then started again at dawn! Finally figured it out…it was a grouse drumming for females!
It was a gorgeous night last night, full moon (or almost full) and a ton of stars.
Our first stop in Yellowstone today was Norris Basin. Very colorful, lots of geysers, mud pots, pools, steam vents. Saw a black bear by the road – lots of people pulled over, could care less. We then went down to see Old Faithful. Lucky for us we were only an ice cream cone away from it erupting. After that we checked out the Old Faithful Inn which was amazing. It was the biggest log cabin like structure we have ever seen, it must have taken an entire mountains’ worth of pine trees to build it, it was huge! After hanging around at the Inn we then saddled back up in the car and headed back through Yellowstone having a nice lunch by the river on the way out. The next stop was in Idaho where we are spending two nights in a beautiful log cabin in the woods. It will be nice having a nice warm bed! –blogged by Alex
Beartooth Highway/Mammoth Hot Springs
Well, our hike did not happen last night…we had some rain roll through. We used the time to organize our stuff.
Early this morning, Flame and Terri took a ride up Beartooth Scenic Highway while the boys slept in. Charles Kuralt called it “the most scenic road in America” so we had to check it out. It only just opened on Sunday, due to an avalanche and heavy snows (normally opens Memorial Day). It was really beautiful, and worth the trip. There were guys snowmobiling on top – hard to believe its June 17! We started the day in Montana, went to Wyoming, and Montana, then Wyoming, then Montana, back to Wyoming, and are now camping in the Gallatin National Forest in…somewhere different…Montana! For a change of pace, tomorrow we’re thinking about going to Wyoming, then Idaho.
We went to Mammoth Hot Springs in the northern part of Yellowstone NP. Saw a coyote with her three cubs…it was so cute, they were right by the road! All of the animals we have seen really don’t seem to care at all that there are all these cars pulled over and cameras clicking. Guess they are used to it. Mammoth was really cool…like another planet. It was the hottest day we’ve had so far there – 80 degrees.After Mammoth, we drove to the northern entrance of Yellowstone – Gardiner, MT – then to our campsite in the forest (10 miles outside of Gardiner). Haven’t seen a human since we left Gardiner – very quiet here except for roaring water everywhere. Oh, and a few mule deer hangin' with us...check out the new pictures.
Early this morning, Flame and Terri took a ride up Beartooth Scenic Highway while the boys slept in. Charles Kuralt called it “the most scenic road in America” so we had to check it out. It only just opened on Sunday, due to an avalanche and heavy snows (normally opens Memorial Day). It was really beautiful, and worth the trip. There were guys snowmobiling on top – hard to believe its June 17! We started the day in Montana, went to Wyoming, and Montana, then Wyoming, then Montana, back to Wyoming, and are now camping in the Gallatin National Forest in…somewhere different…Montana! For a change of pace, tomorrow we’re thinking about going to Wyoming, then Idaho.
We went to Mammoth Hot Springs in the northern part of Yellowstone NP. Saw a coyote with her three cubs…it was so cute, they were right by the road! All of the animals we have seen really don’t seem to care at all that there are all these cars pulled over and cameras clicking. Guess they are used to it. Mammoth was really cool…like another planet. It was the hottest day we’ve had so far there – 80 degrees.After Mammoth, we drove to the northern entrance of Yellowstone – Gardiner, MT – then to our campsite in the forest (10 miles outside of Gardiner). Haven’t seen a human since we left Gardiner – very quiet here except for roaring water everywhere. Oh, and a few mule deer hangin' with us...check out the new pictures.
Monday, June 16, 2008
LINK TO OUR PICTURES!
To see the pictures we have taken, click here: http://picasaweb.google.com/weiroutofhere
Days One and Two in Yellowstone NP
Our apologies for not updating more often, internet connection is spotty at best (Kathy, we feel your pain)…
Last night, we drove into Lamar Valley in Yellowstone NP. Wow, did we see the critters! Lots of bison, elk, pronghorn antelope, a moose and her calf, GRIZZLY BEAR with her cubs (although she was far off, and we could only see her through a scope). It is like the Serengeti of North America. Be sure to check out the pictures! Flame had a nice Father’s Day…
Today, we went back into Yellowstone. This northeastern part of the park is much less crowded then the southern end. We drove to the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone and saw the infamous falls. Lots more people down there, but not bad. The drive down was gorgeous. A lot of the back roads are still closed; all the locals say this is the most snow they have had in 8 years around here. Stopped and had a picnic lunch (packed for us by the lady who runs Bearclaw Bob’s, a little pastry shop right next door. She has a webcam in her place. In fact, there are webcams all over the place here in Cooke City - http://www.cookecitysinclair.com/webcam.htm .) On the drive back, we saw lots more critters! Bighorn sheep, red fox right by the road (crossed in front of us), a coyote and a black bear!
Tonight our plan is to hike along the river near our cabin – who knows what we will see? (Don’t worry, mum mum, we will take our bear bells!)
More later…
Last night, we drove into Lamar Valley in Yellowstone NP. Wow, did we see the critters! Lots of bison, elk, pronghorn antelope, a moose and her calf, GRIZZLY BEAR with her cubs (although she was far off, and we could only see her through a scope). It is like the Serengeti of North America. Be sure to check out the pictures! Flame had a nice Father’s Day…
Today, we went back into Yellowstone. This northeastern part of the park is much less crowded then the southern end. We drove to the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone and saw the infamous falls. Lots more people down there, but not bad. The drive down was gorgeous. A lot of the back roads are still closed; all the locals say this is the most snow they have had in 8 years around here. Stopped and had a picnic lunch (packed for us by the lady who runs Bearclaw Bob’s, a little pastry shop right next door. She has a webcam in her place. In fact, there are webcams all over the place here in Cooke City - http://www.cookecitysinclair.com/webcam.htm .) On the drive back, we saw lots more critters! Bighorn sheep, red fox right by the road (crossed in front of us), a coyote and a black bear!
Tonight our plan is to hike along the river near our cabin – who knows what we will see? (Don’t worry, mum mum, we will take our bear bells!)
More later…
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Pryor Mountains is GLORIOUS!
hey all! We are here in Cooke City, MT, after spending two awesome nights high in the mountains camping with a herd of about 80 wild mustangs! The scenery was so spectacular, its hard to describe. Weather perfect, too. Lots of funny stories to tell...Ethan was a horse whisperer...walking across a herd of horses with Flame carrying Nugget while Alex covered her eyes so she wouldn't flip out..on and on. We are going to try to put the pix on Web Albums through Picasa (there will be a link here). I will work on it tonight. It will be easier than uploading pix to the blog.
Thanks for the comments, too! It's fun keeping in touch with you all. Barb - we are on our way to the Lamar Valley this evening (only 4 miles away) - hope to see some critters, maybe our first bear:) More later...
Thanks for the comments, too! It's fun keeping in touch with you all. Barb - we are on our way to the Lamar Valley this evening (only 4 miles away) - hope to see some critters, maybe our first bear:) More later...
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Stuck in the Twilight Zone in Austin, MN...But we made it!
After 30 hours in the car (1550 miles) we are now in Gillette, WY! Our trip started out great. Took I90 to stay north of predicted bad weather...yeah, right! During Alex' turn to drive (midnight to 3am, since he is the night owl) we hit some hellacious weather - unbelievable lightning, torrential rain...eventually we had to stop because they shut down I90 west due to flooding. We slept in the car for 2 hours at a truck stop in Austin, MN, snuggled up to about 30 tractor trailers. Around 5:30am we decided to go for it. Finally got rolling again. Fairly easy ride rest of the way. FYI, South Dakota takes FOR - EV - ER to get across...
We went through the Badlands & took a few short hikes. It's pretty cool! Had to stop at Wall Drug in Wall, SD. You see about a million billboards for it, for 400 some miles.
We are looking forward to a good night's sleep, then off tomorrow to Pryor Mt. and the wild mustangs!
Oh yeah, in case you are wondering, across the country gas prices are around $4/gal. Wyoming is cheapest so far - $3.77. And no, no rattlesnakes or Bears yet:)
Saturday, May 31, 2008
The Countdown Begins...
On June 11, Flame, Terri, Alex and Ethan (and of course, Nugget) head West! We are taking 3 XM radios, 1 laptop, 3 cell phones, 2 portable DVD players, digital camera, camcorder, walkie talkies and who knows what other electronic necessities. Nothing like roughing it...
The plan is to drive straight through to Gillette, Wyoming (3 drivers, taking turns, about 30 hours). We are staying flexible in case this is a pipe dream...
During our two + weeks, we will be dividing our stays between tent camping, cabins, and hotels. Flame has spent all winter planning, and has found some awesome places to see, some of which are very much off the beaten path (read: 4-wheel drive access only!). Some of the parks and places we hope to see are Yellowstone, Grand Tetons, Pryor Mountain (Bighorn Mountains), Idaho, Badlands, Mt. Rushmore...and much more.
Stay tuned! We will update whenever we can, including pix and video.
The plan is to drive straight through to Gillette, Wyoming (3 drivers, taking turns, about 30 hours). We are staying flexible in case this is a pipe dream...
During our two + weeks, we will be dividing our stays between tent camping, cabins, and hotels. Flame has spent all winter planning, and has found some awesome places to see, some of which are very much off the beaten path (read: 4-wheel drive access only!). Some of the parks and places we hope to see are Yellowstone, Grand Tetons, Pryor Mountain (Bighorn Mountains), Idaho, Badlands, Mt. Rushmore...and much more.
Stay tuned! We will update whenever we can, including pix and video.
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