Day 82 HOME

Here is a map of where we traveled this summer.
82 days
11200 miles
34 states
completed our map of the lower 48 plus Alaska
This was a bucket list trip of a lifetime.  We had great traveling companions.  We live in an amazing country, both is terms of scenery and the people we met along the way.  We have been asked, "What was the best part?"  I don't have an answer.  We learned a lot of history. ( How will keep all of that straight?)  We saw a lot of beauty all across the land.  We enjoyed folk art sculptures along the highway, fine art in the Smithsonian museums.  Read stories of heros at the 9/11 Museum, encountered military veterans being honored at Mt. Rushmore.  Kind people helped with directions, auto repairs.

Our cumulative map of the roads we have traveled collecting all of the lower 48 states on our map.  We spent days in some states and hours in others.  There are many places we would like to return to and also many places we would like to see for the 1st time.  More trips to be planned.

Day 81 to Spokane

Leaf Peeping in Montana

Once we got to Spokane Carol and Garrett picked up their car at Marks and went on to Ritzville.  We stayed the night and enjoyed celebrating Calebs 6th birthday.  The children really grew over the summer.  We are blessed to live close so that we can see them often.

Day 80 Lewis and Clark Cavern

We have driven through Montana on our way home from several trips but on the way home we don't take much time to stop as we are anxious to get to Spokane to see the kids.  This time we planned a stop at Lewis & Clark Cavern.  What a treat.  This is the best cave of the trip.  Not the biggest but it had a lot of interesting flow stone, soda straws, stalagmites, stalactites.  We had a fabulous tour.

Another beautiful western sunset.  Missoula, MT

Yellowstone, Day 2

 More amazing sites in Yellowstone.  We had quite a day.  The goal was Mammoth Hot Springs at the north entrance of the park.  We made a lot of stops along the way.  Going over the mountain road we encountered snow in the air. We ate our picnic lunch in the truck.  Burrr.

         The first photos are of The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.  First a view of the Upper Falls.

Upper Falls

Then a close up of the top of the Lower Falls.

And then the Grand Canyon.

More colorful leaves.  Fall leaf color was not on my radar so a pleasant surprise to still be out traveling to see the beauty.

Finally, we arrived at Mammoth Hot Springs.  Each time we visit there is thermal activity in a different area.  The features and pathways change over time.

As the hot springs move they engulf trees.  The trees take up the mineral rich water and turn to stone.  They aren't called petrified but I expect they will be here a long long time.

Saving the best for last.  As you drive along the traffic stops occasionally for animal sightings.  We stopped and realized there were buffalo ahead.  Turns out a herd of 600-1000 were crossing the road 1 car in front of us.  We watched them come out of the forest on 1 side of the road, cross over in front of us and down the other side of the road.  Then many of them decided to just run down the road so they were parting in front of us and running on both sides of the truck.  I was taken with how the stay together, bulls, cows, calves of all sizes.  Carol heard a cow calling for her calf.  She waited for the calf to find her and then they ran on.  We watched for 15 minutes watching in awe.

These elk are used to people  

Big Horn sheep eating along side the road.  I have only ever seen these magnificent animals way up on a hill, like our sighting in Glacier NP back on day 3 of this excursion.

A beautiful ending to an amazing day.  This is our last day traveling with Rooneys.  Tomorrow we both start our separate trips home.

Days 78 & 79 in Yellowstone NP

I will never tire of all Yellowstone NP has to offer.  Every trip we experience something new, and exciting.  The first day we stopped at all the features on the way to Old Faithful.  Saw a beautiful waterfall and geothermal areas.  Beautiful colors of both water and mineral buildup around the hot springs.

We stayed around Old Faithful long enough to see 2 eruptions.  

hot springs

Old Faithful.  Didn't disappoint.

We saw black clouds ahead and it got darker as we drove east to see the West Thumb geyser basin. As we parked a hail storm began.  The ground turned white.  We were thankful to still be in the truck when it happened.  So much for the hot springs and fumaroles and mud pots here.

Once we crossed back over the continental divide and down the west side the storm subsided.  We were blessed with a close up  view of this guy.  He walked right in front of us in a parking area along the road.

I love this photo of the bison (buffalo) with fumaroles in the background.  This park is very diverse.

Day 77 Wyoming

Leaf Peeping in Wyoming.  Today is Carol and Garretts 43rd wedding anniversary.  Candy provided a wonderful dinner to celebrate at the Yellowstone Grizzly RV Park.

We made it to Yellowstone National Park.  There were buffalo to greet us.
Today started with Gary and Garrrett taking the truck to a shop in Buffalo, WY to have a seal replaced.  The last repair shop in Rapid City failed to install a NEW seal and instead used the OLD one that had a tear in it.  We were leaking differential fluid as we stopped in this town yesterday, so after going to 3 repair shops we were able to find one that agreed to look at the problem at 8:00 this morning. They had us on the road about 10:45.  

Day 76 Wyoming +259=9905 miles

Here we are at the end of our 3 rig caravan.  Wagenblasts and Rooneys will continue to Yellowstone.  Imels are heading straight home.  It has been an amazing tour of selected parts of the US. We are pleased that Carol and Garrett Templin are with us for the rest of the trip.

More leaf peeping at Devils Tower in Wyoming.  We were here as kids on a family vacation.  This is Carols first time back.  We had fun reminiscing about our vague memories of that trip.

Prairie Dog town.  Garrett remembers a trip here as a young child and trying to catch a prairie dog.

Rapid City, SD Day 3

We drove through the Black Hills, leaf peeping, city hopping, driving the back roads.

Main street of Sturgis!  No motorcycles today.

Leaf peeping in South Dakota

Nature trail to Roughlock Falls

Lead, SD.  Carol and my Great Grandparents lived here.  Great Grandpa Skinner was a gold miner for the Homestake Mining Company in the early 1900's.  We filled out an information request form at the museum to see if any records can be found about them during their time there.

Once they got as much gold from the underground veins as they could they started surface mining.  This is a BIG pit.

After our return to Rapid City some of us went to Bear Country, a drive through wildlife park.  Enjoyed the drive, no photos as my camera battery died.  They have a bear cub nursery.  Had fun watching the cubs.  From there we went to dinner at the Fort Hays Chuckwagon Supper and Cowboy Show.  Good food served on a metal pie plate and a fun musical review.

Rapid City, SD Day 2

A tour of the Badlands...

Spectacular country.  First we saw these hills from and distance,

Then we drove through, around and over them.

Very colorful

More colors

At one stop I was able to touch these formations.  They are very crumbly.  How long will they stand?  The sign board says they are eroding at a rate of 1 inch per year.