Our Wild West Adventure!

In June of 2001, we took our second family trip! Our destination was ultimately Yellowstone National Park. This trip took us 16 days, through 11 states and just over 5,000 miles. We took our time getting there stopping off a day or two here and there along the way. Our First day we traveled from our home town in Mississippi to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. While there we went to visit the Alfred P. Murrah building site. Although a somber site to say the least, it was very educational and worth the stop. We unfortunately did not get to see the memorial museum (it hadn't yet opened).

Gates of time and the reflecting pool.

Five years after McVeigh's terrorist act, to the day, the Oklahoma City Bombing Memorial was dedicated. Sandwiched between black stone "gates of time," one marked 9:01, the other 9:03 (the bomb went off at 9:02), the Memorial encompasses the grounds where the Murrah building once stood. A reflecting pool tactfully covers the street where the truck bomb was parked.

Our second day was full of excitement as we caught our first glimpse of the Rocky Mountains. We stayed in Denver, CO, while we were there we made a trip by the Mile High Stadium and Coors Field, and then cruised downtown and had a great dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe/Denver. The next morning we were up bright and early ready to get our day started. We had a great full menu breakfast (which was included in the hotel fare) and we set out to visit the Denver mint. (be aware no one serves sweet tea when you get west of the Mississippi River, BLAH) #lovesweettea

After our morning tour we continued our journey north, to Jackson Hole Wyoming and Grand Tetons National Park. We spent 3 days in Jackson Hole and in Grand Tetons. Jackson Hole, Wyoming, should be on every ones bucket list. Jackson, WY is a beautifully rugged, remote, historic small town, that is within reach of all kinds of outdoor activities, including skiing, rafting, hiking and wild-life watching. But, Jackson, is also full of creative culture. There are galleries and boutiques to delight shoppers and restaurants to please the foodie (one can not visit a wild west town like this and not try a bite of Bison). But, don't worry there are many eateries that everyone can find something to enjoy. We explored The Tetons National Park, took an excursion across the crystal clear waters of Jenny Lake. We were taken across to the base of Mount Teewinot, where we took a hike up to Hidden Falls and Inspiration Point. The views around the area, are some of the most awesome sites I have ever seen.

Our next stop was Yellowstone National Park, also known as the land of fire and ice, and with good reason. Yellowstone is one of the most beautifully rugged and is nature at its best. The park includes features that you will find no where else on earth. We spent 3 1/2 days exploring the park and never got bored. The Grand Loop road is a must travel, it takes you around the parameter of the park and encompasses so much, and you never have to leave your car. But, trust me you're going to want to get out of your car. While traveling the roads of Yellowstone, you never know what might be right around the next bend in the road, wildlife, a beautiful mountainside, or a rushing river, each a site to behold. If you are a star gazer you won't want to miss the opportunity to get out and take a drive on a clear night. The views from Mammoth Hot Springs for instance are breathtaking. Its seems you can see the whole Milky Way. If you are lucky enough you may even catch the Northern Lights. If you just haven't gotten enough of viewing the wildlife, (although, I promise you will see plenty). you may want to do as we did and take a trip over to West Yellowstone, MT and visit the Grizzly and Wolf Center. There you will see some grizzlies that have actually been brought from Yellowstone Park. These bears are refugees here because they have been deemed nuisance bears, or an orphaned cub. (Nuisances bears are bears that have become to used to getting their food from people and areas that people reside in. They cause damage to property or become aggressive toward people in search of food. ) This is why it is never a good idea, no matter how tempting to feed a wild animal. The bears have a large natural habitat that gives them a comfortable and stimulating environment to roam in. Food is hidden in the habitat, and there is a pond stocked with live trout to keep the bears foraging.

While visiting Yellowstone we stayed our first night in a cabin. I will just say right now, this was totally because of my lack of research I'm sure. But, this cabin was pretty much off the beaten path and very rustic. This particular cabin did not have a full bathroom, there was a toilet and sink, but no shower/bath. There was a shareable shower on the complex, but it was just not something I was comfortable with. Besides, when we arrived there, there was a Raven, that sat outside that cabin all evening yelling. Even though my husband and kids probably would have been perfectly fine staying there, I decided we needed to find other lodging. Thank the Lord that the Canyon Lodge had an opening for the rest of our stay! The Lodge was beautifully decorated and very comfortable.

As we left Yellowstone, our next stop was to be in Laurel, Montana, to visit with family for a couple of days. We exited the Park through the northeast and traveled Bear Tooth Highway. There is no wonder why this drive was designated as an National Scenic Byway and an All American Road. This scenic highway is not for the faint of heart, but the views are absolutely stunning and so worth the drive. This highway is only open weather permitting from Memorial day to Labor day. It covers 68 miles through the Absaroka and Beartooth mountains and peaks at an elevation of nearly 11,000 ft. Did I mention the views? There are more than 20 mountain peaks that can be viewed that are over 12,000 ft. Being a Mississippi girl, it had not dawned on me that we may wind up in the middle of so much snow, it was mid to late June after all. When we left our hotel in Yellowstone it was a warm 75 degrees by the time we reached the peak of Bear Tooth Highway we had a few flakes of snow falling on us and the temp was down to 34 degrees. The snow banks on the sides of the road were way over our heads and were packed so hard and frozen over, my son tried to carve into it and had a hard time doing so. Just be aware that the weather is much different up there, and as we were told it can often change at the drop of a hat. So you may start out in perfectly warm sunny weather down below like we did and get up there and find it freezing cold and snowing falling. We stopped at a little general store at the Top of the World. Now I grew up visiting my fathers family in some very rural areas, but, this store was amazing. As we walked in the door we were greeted with a big roaring fireplace, and a huge dog laying in front of it. Talk about quaint! It was almost like walking into a movie scene. The people were very friendly and we chatted a little with them about living way up there. Before we left we figured it would be a good idea to visit the facilities. Well we were directed to an outhouse. We were told it was to cold to fool with plumbing up there (bursting pipes and so forth). This was my daughters first time in an outhouse and it was a funny experience, she couldn't get over the fact that they did not have a regular bathroom. #topoftheworld, #beartoothhighway, #generalstore

When we left Laurel, Montana, we headed for the Black Hills of South Dakota. We spent the next few days in Rapid City, seeing site around there. Of course you must see Mount Rushmore, but to me even more impressive is Crazy Horse Monument.

Sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski began the world’s largest mountain carving in 1948. Members of his family and their supporters are continuing his artistic intent to create a massive statue that will be 641 feet long and 563 feet high. To help you understand the magnitude of that, the heads at Mount Rushmore are each 60 feet high. (for this reason I recommend visiting Mount Rushmore first, after seeing the enormity of The Crazy Horse Monument, I was a little unimpressed by Mount Rushmore). Crazy Horses Face was completed in 1998 and from that point through today workers are focusing on the head of the horse. #CrazyHorse From Rapid City, we took a day trip to Hot Springs, South Dakota. There we visited the Mammoth Site, This site boasts the largest concentration of mammoths in the world. You can tour this indoor active dig site and view Ice Age fossils. The Mammoth Site is fascinating to see and again an educational experience as well. Leaving Rapid City, we made a stop at the Famous

Wall Drug Store, its a fun stop off for the family to enjoy, they have all kinds of things to do like a shooting gallery and goofy props to take pictures with and plenty of shopping, the restaurant has pretty good food to! Just an interesting tibit, if you look across the street from the store you will find where a time capsule was buried! We also went through to see part of Badlands National Park, its very easy to understand how the area got its name. As you will see in the pictures below, the parts we viewed truly did not seem to be part of our world. I am always amazed by this world and beauty of the different landscapes. #outofthisworld

The rest of the day after leaving the badlands and Wall drug store was spent in the car. Crossing South Dakota and then heading south. This was to be the longest day we had, had in the car yet, and we traveled through one of the craziest lightening storms I have ever seen. That lightening streaked across the sky and there is no telling how many miles it was covering as it did so. Ultimately we stayed the night right on the Omaha/Council Bluffs area. After having a long day in the car, it was really nice to be able to stretch out. Our next day proved to be just as long in the car ride, but we did those hours early in the day and arrived in St. Louis, MO with enough time to check in relax with a casual supper and then we took out to go get a view of the St. Louis Arch and see the Cardinals stadium. Our last day of our trip was a long, hard, somber day, as we were all pretty exhausted and by this point were sick of the car.

We stopped in- Memphis, TN at yet another Hard Rock Cafe, (they were my husbands favorites). My personal opinion is they are a little over-rated, the decor is cool, the food is not bad, but they are pricey. Anyway, after enjoying our lunch, we got back in the car and the next stop we made was in our drive-way. Yay!

We enjoyed all the new experiences and we had seen things we may never again see in our lifetime. It was a dream vacation! But, we were glad to be home. One thing is for sure till this day which is 19 years later we still talk about that trip with with awe in our voices. When we live in an area where mountains are prevalent or the ocean is in your backyard we often tend to over look the beauty. Every one should take wondrous trips like Our Wild West Adventure just to give you a new perspective and respect for our Creator and the beauty of this earth. One thing is for sure we as a family created some lifetime memories and this was definitely a trip none of us will ever forget, and isn't that what its all about? #familytrip, #memories