"The" Trip
Last year, our family, including Pappy and Spam embarked on the neatest "vacation" ever. We call it "the trip". I had made this entry for my website when we got back home but never updated it. I thought it would be fun to share the post and some pictures.I hope you enjoy "the" story of "the" trip.
And they're off.....
The trip officially started when Pappy and Spam left Tennessee, heading west on Pappy's new Harley. With saddlebags packed full and rain suites in tow, they left on the first leg of the adventure early on a Thursday. They almost made it to Texas before they bedded down for the night. They rolled into our driveway Friday night (Saturday morning) a little after midnight, sunburned and walking funny, but with a story to tell.
Are we ready to go yet? Are we ready to go yet?
Sunday
When Sunday morning rolled around, the kids were ready to go. They had on their motorcycle vests Pappy made and they were chanting "Colorado here we come". #2 won the first chance to ride with Pappy but the heat forced us to wait until the middle of the night to head to Uncle Steve's house.
Are we there yet? Are we there yet?
Monday and Tuesday
Because we didn't start off until after 1am, most everyone in the car slept until about a 1 1/2 hours before we arrived at Uncle Steve and Aunt Kristi's. Once in Grand Junction, we were entertained and well fed for the next two days. We got to play at the lake, swim in the pool, buy some wine, play with cousins and lay around planning our next leg of the trip. It was hard to leave knowing we would not have really good baked beans or a big breakfast made for us again for a while.
Now where? Yellowstone National Park or Bust!!
Wednesday and Thursday
Again, we did not get an early start and drove long into the night. Part of our my plan for the trip was to camp along the way with our tent and cargo trailer at KOA's. But driving late into the night became an expected part of our plan by this first night. With this new component, camping and roughing it took on a new meaning.
Our first night of camping on our way to Yellowstone consisted of Spam and me sleeping in the car with the kids and Pappy and Jason making a nest in the trailer parked at a remote (or so we thought) truck stop. We soon found out a few short hours later that it was the hub for natural gas workers for BLM at Jonah Field, one of the largest on-shore natural gas fields in the US near Pinedale, WY. So with this early wakeup call of diesel motors humming we did a quick swish and a promise, as far as getting cleaned up, knowing we would get a hot shower that night at a campground (or so we thought) and off we went toward Yellowstone.
We stopped to get fueled up in Jackson, WY and drove through Grand Teton National Park with our sites set on Old Faithful in Yellowstone National Park. That was our only mission and then to head east toward Devil's Tower. It was hard to drive through both parks and not stop and just gaze in amazement at the beauty of it all. But we were had places to go and a short time to do it. We saw Old Faithful shoot up and then ate an early dinner and watched it shoot again. It was awesome.
We then drove through part of Yellowstone going east with me having high hopes of making it to a KOA close to Devil's Tower. It started to rain on our way out of the park and Spam and Pappy donned their rain suites. Again we drove well into the night and had chosen the high road based on it not being too mountain-ey (or so we thought). Pappy pressed on in the rain while I followed in the car. We fearlessly drove up Horseshoe Mountain, which seem to go on and on and on. It would make you think you were beginning the descent but then you would start going up again. I think we topped out at over 9,000 ft. We passed only a few vehicles and one big truck (ask Jason about "passing" the truck) going the opposite way and none going our way. It is a story within a story and will forever be referred to as "going over the mountain". We finally bedded down for our second night at yet another truck stop in Sheridan, WY.
Not quite a KOA...but getting closer
Friday
We parked by a babbling brook at a truck stop and slept in the car and trailer again. By this time I really wanted a shower so I hung a sheet at the back of the trailer and washed out of a bucket. I was so glad I had brought soap, a towel, a washcloth and a few gallons of water. If the truth were known, I am sure everyone was happy I had brought those items. Not just because I probally needed to bathe but also because they wanted to bathe too. I also had shampoo so we took turns washing each other’s hair in the grass next to the trailer. After a change of clothes and some muffins from the truck stop for breakfast, we were off again. #1 was the winner of the draw to ride with Pappy.
We stopped for lunch at a rest area and made a day camp while the kids played on the playground, Pappy took a nap, and Jason grilled some hamburgers on our little camping grill. Realizing how time was slipping away, we decided not to go to Devil's Tower but to push on to Sturgis, SD and Mt. Rushmore. #4 won as next rider on the motorcycle and off we went. As drove along the highway, in the far distance to the north, we could see Devil's Tower. We waved and headed on.
Right before we rode into Sturgis, Jason pulled over so that Pappy could be the one to ride the Harley into town. We stopped at the Harley-Davidson store in town, bought a few souvenirs, ate ice cream and headed to Mt. Rushmore.
We pulled into the Mt. Rushmore park in the early evening and the kids got to be Jr. Rangers. They received a badge and a patch and learned about history.
That night we stopped early enough to find a KOA!!! We made a fire, pitched the tent, heated up soup and made sandwiches. This time Sam, #3, and I slept in the tent, #1 and #2 each had their own full seat to stretch out in the car and #4, Jason and Pappy headed for the trailer.
Heading home...or at least to St. Louis..
Saturday
When we got up, we had showers calling all of our names. After cereal for breakfast, we packed up and headed to see Crazy Horse. We were in the mindset of having to head to Nashville, so we decided to see Crazy Horse from the highway. So we waved and headed on. We went back to town and made a trip down the Presidents Alpine Slide. After a quick bite to eat we headed east toward Sioux Falls. We drove late into the night and stopped at truck stop (surprise surprise) in Kansas City, MO to sleep a few hours. Spam and I were awakened by two truck stop employees wanting to know what we were doing. I guess they did not notice all the people sleeping but we got up and were off again.
Almost to Nashville....
Sunday
It wasn't very long and we were in St. Louis. We contemplated taking the kids to see the Arch (We all had seen it. Jason and I met in St. Louis when I lived there.) but thought of being home/Nashville was too great. So we waved and headed on. But I could not go on without stopping at the truck stop were I worked when Jason and I met. It has changed so much but I still got a picture of the kids in front of it to show how Jason and I have come full circle.
We pulled into Pappy's apartment complex that evening, tired but happy. What a story to tell. Pappy circled the mid West and part of the West on his Harley. Jason got to be a Harley rider for part of the trip, and he doesn't even have a Harley. I felt like I was trucking again. The kids thought it was fun not to take a bath everyday, see lots of wildlife, ride the motorcycle and adventure sleep (that is what Opie Taylor called it) in the car.
And they're off.....
The trip officially started when Pappy and Spam left Tennessee, heading west on Pappy's new Harley. With saddlebags packed full and rain suites in tow, they left on the first leg of the adventure early on a Thursday. They almost made it to Texas before they bedded down for the night. They rolled into our driveway Friday night (Saturday morning) a little after midnight, sunburned and walking funny, but with a story to tell.
Are we ready to go yet? Are we ready to go yet?
Sunday
When Sunday morning rolled around, the kids were ready to go. They had on their motorcycle vests Pappy made and they were chanting "Colorado here we come". #2 won the first chance to ride with Pappy but the heat forced us to wait until the middle of the night to head to Uncle Steve's house.
Are we there yet? Are we there yet?
Monday and Tuesday
Because we didn't start off until after 1am, most everyone in the car slept until about a 1 1/2 hours before we arrived at Uncle Steve and Aunt Kristi's. Once in Grand Junction, we were entertained and well fed for the next two days. We got to play at the lake, swim in the pool, buy some wine, play with cousins and lay around planning our next leg of the trip. It was hard to leave knowing we would not have really good baked beans or a big breakfast made for us again for a while.
Now where? Yellowstone National Park or Bust!!
Wednesday and Thursday
Again, we did not get an early start and drove long into the night. Part of our my plan for the trip was to camp along the way with our tent and cargo trailer at KOA's. But driving late into the night became an expected part of our plan by this first night. With this new component, camping and roughing it took on a new meaning.
Our first night of camping on our way to Yellowstone consisted of Spam and me sleeping in the car with the kids and Pappy and Jason making a nest in the trailer parked at a remote (or so we thought) truck stop. We soon found out a few short hours later that it was the hub for natural gas workers for BLM at Jonah Field, one of the largest on-shore natural gas fields in the US near Pinedale, WY. So with this early wakeup call of diesel motors humming we did a quick swish and a promise, as far as getting cleaned up, knowing we would get a hot shower that night at a campground (or so we thought) and off we went toward Yellowstone.
We stopped to get fueled up in Jackson, WY and drove through Grand Teton National Park with our sites set on Old Faithful in Yellowstone National Park. That was our only mission and then to head east toward Devil's Tower. It was hard to drive through both parks and not stop and just gaze in amazement at the beauty of it all. But we were had places to go and a short time to do it. We saw Old Faithful shoot up and then ate an early dinner and watched it shoot again. It was awesome.
We then drove through part of Yellowstone going east with me having high hopes of making it to a KOA close to Devil's Tower. It started to rain on our way out of the park and Spam and Pappy donned their rain suites. Again we drove well into the night and had chosen the high road based on it not being too mountain-ey (or so we thought). Pappy pressed on in the rain while I followed in the car. We fearlessly drove up Horseshoe Mountain, which seem to go on and on and on. It would make you think you were beginning the descent but then you would start going up again. I think we topped out at over 9,000 ft. We passed only a few vehicles and one big truck (ask Jason about "passing" the truck) going the opposite way and none going our way. It is a story within a story and will forever be referred to as "going over the mountain". We finally bedded down for our second night at yet another truck stop in Sheridan, WY.
Not quite a KOA...but getting closer
Friday
We parked by a babbling brook at a truck stop and slept in the car and trailer again. By this time I really wanted a shower so I hung a sheet at the back of the trailer and washed out of a bucket. I was so glad I had brought soap, a towel, a washcloth and a few gallons of water. If the truth were known, I am sure everyone was happy I had brought those items. Not just because I probally needed to bathe but also because they wanted to bathe too. I also had shampoo so we took turns washing each other’s hair in the grass next to the trailer. After a change of clothes and some muffins from the truck stop for breakfast, we were off again. #1 was the winner of the draw to ride with Pappy.
We stopped for lunch at a rest area and made a day camp while the kids played on the playground, Pappy took a nap, and Jason grilled some hamburgers on our little camping grill. Realizing how time was slipping away, we decided not to go to Devil's Tower but to push on to Sturgis, SD and Mt. Rushmore. #4 won as next rider on the motorcycle and off we went. As drove along the highway, in the far distance to the north, we could see Devil's Tower. We waved and headed on.
Right before we rode into Sturgis, Jason pulled over so that Pappy could be the one to ride the Harley into town. We stopped at the Harley-Davidson store in town, bought a few souvenirs, ate ice cream and headed to Mt. Rushmore.
We pulled into the Mt. Rushmore park in the early evening and the kids got to be Jr. Rangers. They received a badge and a patch and learned about history.
That night we stopped early enough to find a KOA!!! We made a fire, pitched the tent, heated up soup and made sandwiches. This time Sam, #3, and I slept in the tent, #1 and #2 each had their own full seat to stretch out in the car and #4, Jason and Pappy headed for the trailer.
Heading home...or at least to St. Louis..
Saturday
When we got up, we had showers calling all of our names. After cereal for breakfast, we packed up and headed to see Crazy Horse. We were in the mindset of having to head to Nashville, so we decided to see Crazy Horse from the highway. So we waved and headed on. We went back to town and made a trip down the Presidents Alpine Slide. After a quick bite to eat we headed east toward Sioux Falls. We drove late into the night and stopped at truck stop (surprise surprise) in Kansas City, MO to sleep a few hours. Spam and I were awakened by two truck stop employees wanting to know what we were doing. I guess they did not notice all the people sleeping but we got up and were off again.
Almost to Nashville....
Sunday
It wasn't very long and we were in St. Louis. We contemplated taking the kids to see the Arch (We all had seen it. Jason and I met in St. Louis when I lived there.) but thought of being home/Nashville was too great. So we waved and headed on. But I could not go on without stopping at the truck stop were I worked when Jason and I met. It has changed so much but I still got a picture of the kids in front of it to show how Jason and I have come full circle.
We pulled into Pappy's apartment complex that evening, tired but happy. What a story to tell. Pappy circled the mid West and part of the West on his Harley. Jason got to be a Harley rider for part of the trip, and he doesn't even have a Harley. I felt like I was trucking again. The kids thought it was fun not to take a bath everyday, see lots of wildlife, ride the motorcycle and adventure sleep (that is what Opie Taylor called it) in the car.
Labels: Part of Our Travels
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