Wild West Vacation 2008

The Reason:  This year represents a bit of a departure for us, we opted for going out West rather than overseas.  Last year, we saw some of our relatives in Europe and this year we chose to visit our relatives in Montana, whom we haven't seen in 12 years!

In addition to seeing the rest of the family, we also saw many of the sights along the way.  What's out there?  Only Mount Rushmore, the Grand Tetons and of course Yellowstone!

How we got there . . .

The Planning:  Like last year, where we drove in what was essentially a large circle in eastern Europe, we looked at doing the same thing, this time out West.  John first looked at Kayak to help with the airfares.

    Air Fare- John found discounted airfare to Denver using Kayak.  $250 per person round trip from Washington.  By having some leeway in when the vacation could start he was able to get the lowest possible air fare that could have varied $100 or more per person upward.  Other major and secondary cities were all too pricey, some being double the cost of the flight to Denver.  It pays to be persistent and check as many options as time allows.

    Car- John also arranged to rent a mid-sized SUV for the trip on line.  Arriving late into Denver, we were upgraded because our SUV was unavailable. so we opted for a Chevy Trailblazer, a great upgrade.  Driving in those mountains took some effort so we wanted to get a good car that was designed to take the strain; we even used the 4-wheel drive a few times.  The rental car company asked if we wanted to pay a 'carbon offset' to help compensate for Global Warming, for the days were driving the car.  Since we know that man made global warming is a myth, John of course declined.

    Route- We decided that the best route to take was a counter clockwise route from Denver. The idea is to travel from Denver to Mount Rushmore, then over to Montana to see Linda's sister and then on to Yellowstone before heading to Jackson Hole, Idaho and Dinosaur National Monument before heading to Denver and home.

The Trip (12-25 August 2008)

August 12- The flight started out late.  We left from Washington D.C. late, arriving in Dallas after our original flight had departed, getting into to Denver 2 hours later than planned.  The delay did give us a break- we were able to get a better vehicle due to the lack of cars at the rental office, getting a better SUV for the trip. delayed from Washington arrived 2 hours late to Denver.  Geting in we drove to Silverthorne, CO for the night to rest.

August 13- The hotel in the morning was a nice place cold morning outside but enjoyed the hot tub and pool before we left.  Drove to dinosaur Nat’l Mon and walked around to see fossil bones along a 2 mile trail.  Main exibit hall was close due to abnormal settling.  Exhibits mostly moved fron DNM to Vernal, UT museum. Hot; needed water after the trek.  Spent the night in Vernal, UT.  Stayed to see the museum and full sized dinosaur models.  Near Jackson, saw a bald eagle just off to the side of the road.  Drove to Jackson, WY.  Saw that the town caters to tourists.  Spent the night in Biggs, ID had some great local beers at the pizza place next door.  No miller or bud to be seen.

August 14- We drove to Jackon to pick up things and went to the local brew pub.  All beers great! Had chili there made with elk, bison and wild boar.  Linda had pasta with meatball made from the same thng.  Shipped a case (assortment) home.  Drove through the Tetons.  Cable car to the top of one of the bigger mountains was being repaired, so Christina and dad climbed part way a smaller one just to get a better view.  We drove to Yellowstone and stopped at old faithful for the night. Before turning in we saw old faithful erupt several times as well as some other nearby geysers.

August 15- We checked out geysers more closely today.  Walked around to see lots of bubbling water and steam vents.  By chance, we had a ringside view of beehive geyser erupting, sending water 200 feet up (higher than old faithful), we also saw a geyser span a river with its erupting spray.

August 16- We went looking for critters on the way to mammoth hot springs.  Saw some large elk while exploring mud pots and falls along the way.  Linda got charged by a cow elk near the mammoth hot springs hotel just before we checked in.

August 17- More critters.  Saw bison that caused traffic jams (Bison jams) during the drive to lake Yellowstone.  Had dinner at lake Yellowstone hotel; bison steaks for john and Christina; antelope and lobster tail for linda.  More good local beer too.

August 18- We saw mule deer and white tail deer, a marmot, and got in more bison jams saw more fantastic falls also.  Met a fellow who developed a map of the bottom of lake Yellowstone using GPS and sonar; mentioned that the lake floor is bulging in some areas up to 6 feet.  Drove to Gardiner, MT for the night; saw a bison on the road well north of the herd 14 miles east of mammoth hot springs, and a 12 point elk near lava creek (even closer); passed within 6 feet of each.

August 19-  We saw Mammoth Hot Springs and another herd of elk before heading to Bozeman.  Saw Betty Jo and Michael today after arriving in Bozeman.  Will meet with rest of the family tomorrow.

August 20- We saw rest of family Linda met famed paleontologist Jack Horner at the Museum of the Rockies.

August 21-  We went to Teddy Roosevelt National Park ND. Many Bison there too, wander through a campground. Headed south to SD saw a red fox cross the road as we traveled south in ND.

August 22- We saw Devil's Tower, WY and Deadwood, SD from our Spearfish, SD base of operations.  Big car show I Deadwood then.  Infuriated Linda.  John participated in a reenactment of the assassination of Wild Bill Hickock.

August 23- We saw Mount Rushmore, saw Wind Cave. Saw lots of critters; antelope, bison, prairie dogs, mule and white tail deer, wild turkey and another marmot.   Met John from Howard, SD and Tom from Tea, SD at the hotel hot tub here for the Deadwood Days antique car show.

August 24- We drove to Boulder to see Betty Ann and family stayed for a few hours and left for our hotel in Denver.  We used the Ron’s wireless network to book a hotel at Linda’s insistence.  Good thing too as we found a place for 112 a night and learned that due to the Demoncratic National Convention in town starting the next day, that the room rates would be going up to $450 a night and that hotels were difficult to find anywhere between Boulder and Pueblo.

August 25- We got to Denver International Airport in plenty of time.  Looking at the odometer, John noted that we had put over 2600 miles on the trip.  More delays got us home after 2:30am the following day.  Most of the family wound up sleeping 18 hours or more back at home that day.

'Must Sees'