national parks – SEA 2 Shore

Our Trip in Numbers

7,671.6 Miles driven in total
2,011 Photos taken with the camera (add in another 300 or so across four iPhones)
642 Miles: longest travel day (Midwest City, OK to Fort Smith, AR, to Beale Street in Memphis, to Dickson, TN)
151 Hours, 11 minutes, 54 seconds of total time in the car
102 Miles walked/hiked
80 Miles: shortest travel day
49 License plates (surprisingly we found a Hawaii but never did find the elusive Alaska plate)
27 Days
25 Roller coasters (plus one Alpine Coaster and one Alpine Flyer)
25 Clothing souvenirs purchased
23 States
20 Junior Ranger badges earned
19 Gas station stops (some less populated than others)
18 Different beds
16 Christmas ornaments purchased
13 Apples picked fresh in the orchards of Capitol Reef National Park
12 National Parks
11 Books read/listened to
11 Bears
9 Roadside attractions
8 Free hotel breakfasts (5 skips of the free hotel breakfast because we were sick of free hotel breakfasts)
6 National Historic Places
6 McDonald’s meals (we tried to avoid them, but man they come in handy when you roll into a sparsely populated town at 9pm without having eaten)
6 Time zone changes
5 Lost items: camera charger/battery left in Utah hotel room, bracelet left on Capitol Reef welcome sign, pair of Keens left in Shenandoah parking lot, koosh ball down a street drain in South Dakota
4 Bison traffic jams
4 Escape rooms…so fun!
3 Times we told the kids to “just eat some snacks” for a lunch…don’t judge
3 Days of body boarding in the Atlantic Ocean
3 Bicker Jar contributions (each child contributed once and then never had to again!)
2 Great Lakes (Erie and Michigan)
2 Rappels
2 Days with rain that slightly altered our plans
1 number of planned stops that we skipped (Devil’s Tower)
Countless Wall Drug billboards, silly family inside jokes (this is Nat Soo Pah), and memories we’ll always cherish

At this point in the trip we’ve seen a lot of National Parks. They are all amazing in their own little ways. The rocks of the Utah parks were jaw dropping. Seeing black bears in Great Smoky Mountain NP was a thrill. The Leahman Caves in Great Basin were so unique. The list goes on and on. We apparently saved one of the best for last, however, as Yellowstone brings so much together in one place. Amazing scenery. Incredible wildlife. Jaw-dropping thermal features. The park is so big and our two days of exploring only scratched the surface. We all agreed that if we could go back to one park for a week, we’d go back to Yellowstone.

We arrived in the evening of August 21st after a super fun stop for lunch in Cody, WY. The girls got a kick out of us ordering 12 soda shooters at Annie’s Soda Saloon (Butterbeer was the favorite).

That evening we were lucky enough to catch an Old Faithful eruption (they can predict the time +/- 10 minutes), we had dinner at the historic Old Faithful Inn, and stayed the night at the Old Faithful Snow Lodge.

The next morning we beat the crowds out to the geysers and had an awesome walk around Upper Geyer Basin. So many different thermal features to see. After taking in a Junior Ranger talk and some lunch, we headed off into the park to go see the Grand Prismatic thermal pool, a huge valley where the Buffalo truly roamed, and we hiked a trail to the Mud Volcano (very stinky sulfur smell).

We stayed that night at the Canyon Lodge where we had the rare treat of being back in our room and ready for bed early. For the first time all trip we sat around and played family card games. We realized how busy we’ve been!

The following morning we beat the crowds again and headed to the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. WOW. We had no idea such an amazing canyon and waterfalls were just a mile from our lodge. Being out there early was extra special as we had many of the popular spots to ourselves. We took in the views from the overlooks such as Artist’s Point and closer in by taking trails down to the brinks of the falls. Did I mention Yellowstone was diverse?

We took in some more wildlife on the way out, had lunch at Mammoth Hot Springs, and headed out to make our drive to Missoula, MT. We’ll be back Yellowstone!

Thermal Features

Unfortunately we had some cloudy and smoky skies so many of the geysers don’t “pop” in the pictures.

(click the first picture in the gallery to enlarge)

Wildlife

The buffalo certainly didn’t disappoint. There were everywhere in the valleys and caused their fair share of buffalo jams. We were fortunate to see an amazing elk and even a little fox ran across our path. Everyone wanted to see a grizzly (from a distance) but we never did. On the last day, however, the girls got to borrow a telescope and observe a pack of wolves.

(click the first picture in the gallery to enlarge)

The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone

These yellow walls are where Yellowstone got its name!

(click the first picture in the gallery to enlarge)

The Old Faithful Inn

Built in 1904, this inn is gorgeous. It is the largest log hotel in the US and possibly the largest log building in the world. It was a joy to have dinner and explore.

Day 23 From Badlands to the Cold War, from Rushmore to Wyoming

After a nutritious breakfast of orange juice and Wall Drug’s homemade donuts 😂, we headed into Badlands early. Between the beautiful geologic formations, prairie dogs, and getting to hike around the rock, we had a wonderful morning. At most of the viewpoints, we were the only family there. The girls enjoyed the peaceful morning overlooking one of the canyons while working on their Jr. Ranger books. We then headed back to the ranger station to be sworn in, view the fossil lab, and hike around a bit more. The girls all wished we had more time there to explore. After the heavy rains, the rangers told them that there would be a good chance of finding fossils. My little paleontologists really wanted to stay, but we had to move on.

(Click on the first picture of the gallery below to step through the photos at full size)

Just outside of Badlands is the Minuteman Missile National Historic Site. We decided to stop in, learn about the missiles hidden in plain sight, and the role these silos played during the Cold War era. It was definitely all new to me and eye-opening in it’s magnitude. For 30 years, Air Force airmen descended underground into the silos for 24 hour shifts ready to deploy the missiles if needed. To my surprise, there were one thousand of these silos all throughout the Great Plains. It was a humbling experience to be at the site, learn about the assignment and even meet a former airman who, when the silos were deactivated, became a park ranger.

For many, this would be a full day! For us, we had miles to go. We also were not going to travel through South Dakota and miss Mt. Rushmore. When we arrived, many of the parking structures were mostly empty. We were fortunate to experience this breathtaking site without huge crowds. Between the magnitude of the sculpture, the historical significance, and the beauty of the Black Hills, the site was magnificent. We took some time to hike around, explore the exhibit hall, and watch the movie. Our only regret was not being able to stay for the evening lighting ceremony.

We reached our destination of Gillette, Wyoming, tired, but excited by what we experienced today. This was a triple-junior-ranger-badge-day and we all know that doesn’t happen everyday. Excited to head into Yellowstone tomorrow!

5th Park in 5 Days

It’s not very common that one drives 400 miles in a day and still walks over 5 miles as well. It’s also not very common to visit two national parks in one day. That said, we did both. We headed out early from Bryce Canyon and began the windy, but gorgeous drive to Capitol Reef national park. Capitol Reef is interesting because it combines some crazy geologic features with historical elements. The girls enjoyed learning about the area’s history, rock formations, viewing the petroglyphs, and completing another Jr. Ranger book. We took the scenic drive, enjoyed the historical sites, and picked apples in a very old orchard. Apples were all you could eat in the orchard or $1 per pound if you took them out of the orchard. From there, we managed to get to the Arches visitor center before they closed and decided we’d take advantage of the cooler evening temps to explore. We drove the entire length of the park stopping for short hikes and arch viewing. The only bummer was that there were storms in the area and cloud cover made for dimly lit photos. Still, it was a spectacular day and I’m so proud of the girls’ stamina and cheerful attitudes. Day 5 was a hit!