The Great American Road Trip: Reflections, RV tips & Rushmore-to-Yellowstone pics
Head out on the highway…
As I mentioned last week, I’m with my family on our first ever RV trip. (Thanks to readers and e-mailers for sharing your wonderful travel memories.) Internet and phone access on my trek have been quite spotty – blissfully so. Doug Powers will continue to hold down the fort here on the blog, along with La Shawn Barber and Val Prieto, as I head back home in coming days. Please be sure to thank them for their terrific work.
Some notes on the journey:
Over the past seven days, we’ve hit Mount Rushmore, the Crazy Horse memorial, Cody WY, and Yellowstone. The scenery is cinematic; the frontier history is larger-than-life. And the RV community is full of friendly, independent, and amazingly resourceful people.
If you ever need your faith in our country’s resilience and beauty renewed, a Great American Road Trip does a body and soul good.
RV’ing is also a budget-friendly way to travel. Yes, fuel costs are hefty. But you can save a lot on meals by planning ahead and cooking on the road. We rented a 31-foot RV with a stove top, oven, microwave, and ample freezer/fridge with a small crisper for veggies and enough room for a gallon of milk, a dozen eggs, and several days’ worth of drinks and other perishables. Added bonus: No airline headaches, no TSA intrusions, no cramped seating, no crappy plane food!
KOA fees (even for deluxe hook-ups) are extremely reasonable — especially given the full range of amenities (showers, pancake tents, bike rentals, tourist shuttles, horseback riding, pools, showers, jumping pillows, chuckwagon dinners, firepits/firewood, ATV rentals) that the campgrounds provide. The Hill City SD KOA was top-notch (both staff and facilities exceeded my expectations) and I’d highly recommend it to fellow parents with young kids.
RV’ing is not everyone’s cup of tea, of course. If you’re high maintenance and need a hot bath every day, forget about it. If you can’t bear to be unplugged from the world, don’t bother. And if you are unwilling to jump feet first into the great unknown, go ahead and make boring, conventional flight and hotel reservations instead. Yes, the prospect of barreling across the highway in gusty winds and on wet treacherous mountain roads in a 10,000-pound home on wheels left me a little queasy. But if you make sure to pack some RV must-haves — sense of humor, spirit of adventure, industrial-strength rubber gloves, duct tape, extension cords, wrench, multi-tool, Petzl headlamps, tarp, S’mores ingredients, marshmallow roasting sticks, walkie-talkies, and Dramamine — you can live the RV dream. Experienced friends recommended we watch the movie “RV” before we started our trip. Aside from a few p.c. tirades against big corporations, it’s definitely good prep viewing.
RV rule of thumb: Things will go wrong. We tried to use the RV generator while off-site and somehow ended up setting off the propane gas detector, causing significant newbie panic. Also: One of the holding tank hoses got stuck during our first attempt to de-camp (which taught us the hard way to have a wrench at the ready). But as I said, RVers are immensely friendly and willing to lend a hand, tool, or tip. Attention to detail is key. Getting into a checklist routine before departing and upon arrival at your RV site will save a lot of grief.
As with everything, there’s an iPhone app for that. We used this one.
Our first major stop was Mount Rushmore. Yes, we all know Teddy Roosevelt doesn’t belong there (fun fact: a ranger at the sculptor’s studio explained to us how TR greased the wheels to earn himself a spot on the monument). But don’t let that dissuade you from appreciating this amazing engineering landmark and learning about the brash, ambitious, visionary sculptor, Gutzon Borglum, who spearheaded the project and possessed an uncommon reverence of the Founding Fathers despite his crony weakness for TR.
Taken from a little cave on the Presidential Trail:
This was taken from inside Borglum’s studio with the model in the foreground, looking out onto the monument (look in the top window and you can see Washington):
The ranger at the studio gave a fascinating talk about how the workers would hang from ledges strapped in bosun chairs with massive jackhammers. They would work full days for pennies — and many would then head to grueling second jobs in the mines of the Black Hills. Borglum gets the glory, but American brawn, guts, ingenuity, and dynamite turned a mountain into a monument — in just 14 years.
A few miles down the road, work continues on the Crazy Horse memorial. I knew nothing about the monument other than the fact that the planned 562-foot carving has taken decades and decades to complete. I assumed it was a government-subsidized project. Boy, was I wrong. The history behind this 100 percent, privately-funded monument is an amazing American story in and of itself. Crazy Horse sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski was a self-taught “storyteller in stone” who refused to take a dime in federal funding. He was a fervent believer in the free market and individual initiative — and he and his wife instilled those values in their 10 homeschooled children. The orphan son of Polish immigrants was a WWII hero who was wounded at Omaha Beach. He worked briefly with Borglum at Mount Rushmore before agreeing to work on Crazy Horse in 1948 at the behest of Lakota Chief Henry Standing Bear (who admired Ziolkowksi’s award-winning bronze portrait of Polish composer Ignace Jan Paderewski). Ziolkowski worked on the memorial every day until his death in 1982. He is entombed at its base and his widow Ruth and 7 of his children continue his work to this day. (On the day we visited, there was a dynamite blast as workers chip away at the horse’s head.)
Stock photo of Korczak’s model with the monument behind it:
And here I am in front of the work in progress last Thursday:
Our next stop was Cody, WY. We were too tired to see the night-time rodeo, but hit the five museums all housed at the Buffalo Bill Historical Center downtown. This is a definite must-see if you’re driving from the East on your way to Yellowstone.
You’ll get a taste of the life and times of Buffalo Bill, Native American history, a huge exhibition of rare firearms, towering stuffed bears, a Yellowstone natural history appetizer, and Western art. My horse-loving daughter loved seeing exquisite saddles like this one currently on display at the entrance to the Whitney Gallery of Western Art:
Before I get to Yellowstone, here’s a brief pictorial interlude on building the perfect campfire. If you have kids, you must do S’mores at every opportunity — and you simply cannot do S’mores right with a puny, smoke-choked lame excuse for a roaring fire.
Gather small twigs, newspaper, used paper plates, tween magazine photos of Justin Bieber, etc., for kindling:
Build a little teepee of kindling over the pile. Leave some space for oxygen flow. Stuff one of those firestarter blocks near the front of the pile:
Build a larger teepee with your thick pieces of dry firewood (avoid damp! damp=smoke! smoke=unhappy, teary-eyed children running inside the RV!):
Mission accomplished:
On to Yellowstone. We took the Buffalo Bill Scenic Byway. In a hugetastic RV, “scenic” = slooooooow. The views are indeed spectacular:
But the grades are steep and it’s white-knuckle, marital stress-inducing driving right up into Yellowstone.
I promised ranger Emily at the East Entrance that I would post this pic of us. Hi, Emily!
The weather is completely unpredictable here — gloriously sunny when rain is forecast, mild when a cold front is predicted. Ponchos, endless layers of clothing, and good walking shoes are de rigeur. Binoculars are also a must. We have a fancy Nikon camera, but I took all of the photos in this post with my iPhone, including all of these Yellowstone pics.
I can see bison from my window…
Don’t miss the mudpots:
Putting the “yellow” in “Yellowstone” at the Mammoth Hot Spring Terraces:
Buffalo in the mist:
A rainbow over the Chinatown Restaurant in West Yellowstone, MT:
This is truly “America, the Beautiful.” How humbling, how blessed we are to call it home.
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What a great trip! America, isn’t it great! Thanks for sharing!
Beautiful pictures, excellent tips!
Time spent with family is priceless, and no doubt a nice respite before the long, grueling, and relentless summer/fall campaign season takes hold over the next few weeks.
Cheers to the Malkin family!
Thanks for the photos and recollections Michelle. I went to Yellowstone on my move (solo) from my native Texas to California in the 1990s. I ended up going a different route, through Jackson Hole and the Grand Teton Nat’l Park, which was beautiful. When we moved from California to the DC area a couple of years ago, my family and I did the drive across the southern US. I don’t have enough space to tell the whole story, but quite an illustration of the changing landscape. Going from the Bay Area & Calif coastline to concrete of LA, the desert of AZ, NM and, West TX, the tropics of the Rio Grande Valley, swamps of Louisiana, the hills of Tenn & VA. Quite an experience.
I envy you. I hope to tour this beautiful country by road myself someday.
WOW. Your kids are going to remember this trip. Great idea!
Thanks for the check-in and the pictures. Great stuff…..
Yes, the western United States is amazing in it’s beauty and grandeur. Particularly, the inter-mountain west, and the high plains. It’s been home for me all my life.
IMHO, there is not one place in our United States that is not wondrous in it’s beauty, and the kindness of it’s people.
Have fun and enjoy your road trip. Then come back and give the liberals hell!
“Gather small twigs, newspaper, used paper plates, tween magazine photos of Justin Bieber, etc., for kindling:
Build a little teepee of kindling over the pile. Leave some space for oxygen flow. Stuff one of those firestarter blocks near the front of the pile:
Build a larger teepee with your thick pieces of dry firewood (avoid damp! damp=smoke! smoke=unhappy, teary-eyed children running inside the RV!):”
To my friends who may not know how to properly make a fire, I must caution you on the use of trash in the fire. Some types of paper with ink on them can release harmful fumes when burned. I should think everyone knows not to burn styrofoam, or cans for that matter.
My suggestion for a better tinder to help get the fire started is a length of baylors twine. Cut a length of it then undo the twisting into a birds nest. Then build with the smallest tinder wood you have around it (a teepee can work here), then add kindling and a bit of fuel wood before lighting.
If you are going to a national park make sure to check what rules they may have for fuel cook stoves and fires in general. Most parks will have spots prepared for fires IF they are allowed, some parts of the Southwest I believe do not permit fire building.
Take it from this Eagle Scout though, if you really want to have fun on a fire, get a Cast Iron Dutch oven with legs on it. There are so many wonderful courses you can prepare that way, like Dump Cake for example
You’re living my dream. Not fair! The government needs to do something about this, I have a right to an RV vacation, too.
I’m very happy for you and your family, Michelle. Thank you for sharing the great pictures and stories from your trip.
Sounds awesome! I have been talking to my husband about doing something like this with a smaller RV. We want to do the West with all the parks. And it would probably be easier to travel with a dog this way than trying to find a motel that allows pets.
Wow! Thanks Michelle for sharing with us your trip pics. I’m glad to hear you are all having a great time.
And who knew you were a fire bug too!
Also, Hi Emily from the gang….
God Bless America!
Looks like a fun trip, enjoy every moment!! We are praying for you and family, safe travels.
If your’e a history buff, it is worth hiring a guide to take you on Custer’s route to Little Big Horn. I did that around 12 years ago. I don’t know if you can still do it. There is a Custer battlefield that you can see where Little Big Horn unfolded but it lacks the power if you haven’t actually traveled Custer’s route from the fort to his demise at Little Big Horn. BTW, the book to read is Evan Connell’s “Son of the Morning Star” which is from the 1980s and does not take the knee jerk liberal view that all American soldiers (except Kevin Costner!) are guilty and all Indians are saintly. Connell simply lays out the story and you can decide for yourself.
Thanks Michelle! I’m more than jealous being that I’m recovering from knee surgery and barely get to the livingroom and back! Enjoy the great American scenery!
Thank You Michelle for stopping by what we like to call “Home”…
The Beautiful Black Hills of South Dakota. If I would have know you were comming I would have been Happy to take you and your family Gold Panning…
Now you just have to come back in Aug. for the Sturgis Bike Rally, America at its Finest.
Great trip. I hope you are able to fit in Glacier and Tetons.
I’m filled with righteous envy -this the way to see our great lovely land and meet fellow Americans!
On this:
The pic looks like it was taken from the passenger window – precipices are more scary when they’re on “your” side.
Godspeed to you & yours as you’re on the road!
Michelle, isn’t it a shame that we live in a world where all the photos you share on this site can be of you only and not your lovely family together with you?
Suh-weet! God Speed!
Glad you are having fun! Thanks for the great photos.
I have been to several of the sites you mentioned when I was going to college and living in Utah. I hope you get to see the National Parks in Southern Utah at some point.
Also, thanks for the mention of the Crazy Horse Memorial. I’d like to see that someday.
Someone, I can’t remember who, once said no American should travel overseas before seeing what this nation has to offer.
Maybe from the very funny “Frasier” episode “Travels With Martin”?
“We’re Americans, we should see America!”
Everyone should see the west, while it’s still part of the USA……
And I wasn’t even invited
What a blast! What memories! We miss youm and are happy to live vicariously through you on this trip.
Oh yeah, roughing it, just like Lewis and Clark! (snort!)
What wonderful road trip, I wish I was there. Thanks for sharing the pics.
Enjoy your trip across the fruited plain!
We’ll hold down the fort and try to keep Doug in line until you return
Years ago we also rented an RV and toured the South West US. Great times and lots of fond memories. Michelle is right. Expected the unexpected! Things will go wrong, but don’t freak out about it. Just adapt and overcome and enjoy!
It sounds you’re having a wonderful trip! We have a similar RV and (same brand actually) and I recall the learning curve of RV’ing it. Some excitement for sure.
Our kids love RV’ing. I wasn’t sure they’d dig it, but they really enjoy it big time.
One tip. If you happen to be running the Air conditioner, Microwave and a hair dryer at the same time…… and suddenly lose all power, you probably just tripped the main breaker. Don’t panic. It’s inside the RV, often in or near the master bedroom.
Enjoy your trip! That’s a route we’re looking to do very soon.
Errah, Thanks Michelle for giving a great secret away on RVing. I have a similar Class C and we love spending time in it with our family whenever we can. We did the same trip to Yellowstone two years ago. What a blast. There are a lot of down to earth wholesome folks still RVing even though most municipalities are trying their damn best to legislate them out of existence like in Montgomery County MD. When you think about the gas thing its probably cheaper and greener to take an RV anywhere in lieu of a family of 4 hopping on a plane. How much gas does that use? One other unfortunate item is that a lot of states are jacking up the camping site rates due to the economy. In some locals its actually cheaper to go to a Motel 6 for a week than to stay at the state park. Enjoy, you are now hooked. Who knows, maybe we’ll see you out there on the road sometime.
Thanks for the stories and photos, MM. God bless, and stay safe.
Maybe we can work on getting a czar appointed for it.
With the exception of the Crazy Horse monument, my wife and I took the same trip a few years ago. Cody Wy is a beautiful little town with a Walmart at one end and Grandma’s Country Cookin’ at the other. Yellowstone is only 50 miles away. Great trip. Enjoy, MM.
Thanks Michelle, great pics. I am in the process of planning a trip myself.
You are giving your children a wonderful gift. The trips I made with my parents and siblings are the best memories I have.
RV or not (family makes it hard to backpack), everyone should take a few months off sometime and just meander across the country. I did it for about 3 months in 1989 when I moved from Boston to LA and I was a changed person when I arrived.
I took a picture of the Crazy Horse monument from the same spot and I swear it looks almost identical. Not much progress that I can see.
One of my favorite moments was arriving alone at the mud pots in Yellowstone before sunrise seeing nothing but muledeer along the way. The smells, the sounds, surrounded by an eerie panorama with no one in sight for mile in any direction,… It was like being on another planet. Great pictures too.
Beautiful Michelle…we have been up there often. But the last time was the best….two years ago in our Crysler convertable. Nothing in the world like driving through Yellowstone in a rag top.
By the way, I certainly hope you are coming south now…down here to Utah. Southern Utah on an RV trip would be breathtaking. Hell, still takes my breath away and I grew up just a short distance from Bryce Canyon…..
AIN’T AMERICA GRAND???
BTW, in 1989 when I made my own epic Great American Road Trip, I ran into almost nothing but German and French tourists at the national parks. Meandering into various small towns to see why they are there and why people would still live there was where I discovered what most of America is about.
This is a great country but most people never see much of it.
Thanks for the great story and pics, Michelle. And we truly do live in the most beautiful country in the world. The Rockies are a match for the Alps, and any beach in Florida is way nicer than the French Riviera. The Maine/Massachussets coastline and fall foliage is breathtakingly beautiful. The Pacific coastline from Canada to Mexico is a Photographer’s dream, while the western deaserts are incredible landscapes of vast scale and proportion. The upper midwest with it’s great lakes and fishing are an angler’s paradise. SEE AMERICA FIRST, THEN YOU WILL KNOW HOW BEAUTIFUL THIS COUNTRY IS, AND WHAT A TRAVISTY GRAFFITI IS.
That’s a great trip, we did it when the kids were young. The other great RV trip is Grand Canyon/Four Corners/Durango Railroad/Mesa Verde Cliff Dwellings. The kids still talk about it.
At the Grand canyon we were taking a tour and the Ranger/Tour Guide asked “Kids, who owns the Grand Canyon?” Some answered “the people,” “the Indians,” and “the government.” My then 8 year-old son raised his hand and answered “God.” The poor Ranger lady didn’t know what to do when several adults stood up and gave my son a standing ovation.
May you have a blessed trip.
I’m Mrs. McCloud9, Yellowstone is my favorite place on the planet. It’s so gorgeous there. I’m so jealous, it’s been 13 years since I was there. Wish I would’ve know you were at Mt Rushmore, would’ve loved to say hi. Enjoy!!!
My boys and I did a few road trips. Some of the best times we had! I recall one leg of a trip where I had the radio off and spent 5 straight hours in deep conversation with my 9-year old. Fantastic!
In 1989 I visited Crazy Horse, Mt. Rushmore and the Badlands in South Dakota. I stayed at the Rosebud Indian reservation and attended the annual rodeo. One of the best vacations I ever took.
I am glad I went to Mt Rushmore before I went to Crazy Horse. Just for perspective, Mt. Rushmore would fit on Crazy Horse’s forehead. Not that Mt. Rushmore was a disappointment. One of the best American Indian museums is located at Crazy Horse. I still have the piece of rock blown from the mountain they give away.
We owned a motorhome when the kids were young. Great trips. The best was the conversations with the kids as we traveled down the road to our next destinations.
We, too, did a Teton’s, Yellowstone, Mt. Rushmore and Badlands trip. Thanks for the photo’s Michelle…..brings back wonderful memories.
Lived in the Black Hills of South Dakota during Air Force Days (Ellsworth AFB); never got tired of driving through there and must’ve seen Mount Rushmore a hundred times. Same with drives through Nebraska, Wyoming, Kansas, Colorado. We have been blessed with a beautiful country!!
Two words: Wally World
Amen, Michelle.
Amen.
We have the greatest country in the world, I don’t care what anyone(especially Obama) says…..
I had the same thought as 123up…I was curious to see Michelle’s husband and kids, but as one of the left’s most reviled conservative women, I know she’s just being safe. But remember, its the Tea Partiers that are prone to violence. Also, does Ranger Emily know who Michelle is? Rangers and other NPS workers tend to be pretty left wing. Anyway, great Pics!
Rent Thunderheart with Val Kilmer… GREAT movie, great location.
I was there just last weekend. In fact, I’m assuming you took I-90 from Rushmore over to Yellowstone, just 20 miles east of Gillette, Wy, you drove right past my house.
I can’t believe you were that close and missed Devils Tower. I know you missed it becasue if you hadn’t, there would be pictures. It’s like 25 miles north of I-90 (you can see it from the interstate just West of Moorcroft, Wy). It’s where the aliens landed in Close Encounters of the Third Kind.
Well, it sounds like you’re having a great time and your kids will tell their grandkids about this trip.
Being from this area, we tend to take it for granted a bit. But I would like to make a trip “back East” and see the Pre-Western Migration historical sites of our nation.
Teddy Roosevelt doesn’t belong on Mt. Rushmore? Just how infectuous is the Glenn Beck pseudohistory anyway? Teddy Roosevelt greased the wheels to get put on Mt. Rushmore? Teddy Roosevelt died in 1919. The monument was built in the 1930′s.
Those national parks you’re visiting and oohing and ahhing about wouldn’t exist without TR, Michelle. Not to mention the Panama Canal, turning the US into a world military power, rescuing capitalism from corrupt oligopoly, little things like that.
Sometimes my fellow conservatives remind me of Wellington’s quote when viewing his Hessian mercenary troops on the eve of Waterloo:
“I can only hope my allies instill as much fear in the hearts of my enemies as they do in my own.”
Michelle, you’re making me homesick for Wyoming.
(Born and raised in Laramie).
Ironically, I’ve been to every corner of this country, from Anchorage to Key West, from Hilo to Bar Harbor, but I’ve never been to Yellowstone.
My wife and I did this road trip last year on the Harley. We started in Utah and went east to Iowa to visit Jan’s family. Then we headed north to Minnesota, and on to Rapid City. Stayed there a few days and then headed west. All together, we spent 3 weeks and about 3000 miles on the bike.
We did “wimp out” and stay at hotels.
Greatest. Experience. Of. Our. Lives.
obama would never take a trip like this. For vacation he likes to go to downtown Chicago.
I see that the Crazy Horse monument is no further along today then it was 10 years ago. I think it will never be further along.
which explains why you don’t see this story very often on PBS…
Having spent a good portion of my childhood in Wyoming, I can attest to its uniqueness and beauty, especially Yellowstone and the Tetons, which I have been fortunate enough to visit 4 times.
It truly is a different world out there, and in many ways vestiges of the “Wild West” remain. I recall once a guy, coming from I have no idea where, riding horseback stopping at our house to see if he could water his horse and set up a tent out on our land for the night. (actually, we didn’t own the land, so we had to send him up the road to the rancher’s house). Fascinating. Like something right out of a John Wayne movie.
Very cool! The nomad life can be lots of fun.
I can see why you would say that. It does look like it hasn’t changed.
But…apparently they blasted away 1,100 tons of rock around the horse area just around Memorial Day.
I am one of those odd balls who think there should be no National Parks, only State Parks. It could just of well have been Yellowstone State Park. Of course Yellowstone spans three states but that’s ok too. Nearly all Federal land should be returned to the states.
OT but of interest…
WaPo reporting that Helen Thomas is retiring in wake of her comments about Israel.
He’s the President who admitted Oklahoma to the United States! For that reason, alone, he deserves to be on Rushmore!
From the pictures here, Michelle, I see you’ve discovered one of the best uses for newspapers. They’re great for starting fires.
Returned? That would imply it belonged to the states in the first place. Certainly not the case with the land out west, which the FEDERAL government bought from various parties long before there were states or even formal territories.
Yep but, 1100 tons is about 500 cu yds or about the size of 8 yd x 8yds x 8 yds. They need a lot more dynamite.
To where? Beirut?
Michelle,
Make sure you stop by the Redwoods in CA. Takes your breath away. We have been RV’ing full time since October 2009 and have enjoyed it so much.
You can catch our misadventures at http://www.RV-103.com
It does get down to semantics. Eastern states acquired how? And western states acquired for pennies per acre. i.e. Alaska purchased for 2.3¢ / acre.
Thanks for the pix Michelle!
Next Friday we leave for a week-long family reunion in Bozeman. I’ve been balking about going to Yellowstone because even though I’ve never been there I’m more interested in hiking and kayaking…and looking for snakes.
Thanks to your photo’s, I’m now interested.
When I was about 10 years old, my sister and I and a girl that lived across the street were horse back riding in the mountains outside of town. We were about an hour and a half from town when our neighbor fell off here horse and broke her arm. I stayed with her while my sister headed back to town to get help. She returned in about fifteen minutes with our next door neighbor, who had been out four-wheeling.
Life in Wyoming.
Why do you think you can’t do ay and all of these things in Yellowstone?
1,100 miles of hiking trails, of all lengths, difficulty levels and degrees of remoteness…
5 species of snakes, including a rattler.
A huge mountain lake and countless rivers and streams where kayaking is allowed.
Sounds cliche, but Yellowstone is definitely what you make of it. If you want to see Old Faithful, Mammoth Hot Springs and Morning Glory, expect lots of people. But you can totally avoid all these things and spend days and days hiking into the backwoods areas, where you will be lucky to see a dozen other people the entire time.
Me jealous.
Welcome back.
I’m glad the caldera didn’t open up, not just for Mrs. Malkin’s family but the other 20 or 50 million Americans who would have passed.
I’ve told Mrs, Mahmoud when we retire (she can retire in about 15 more years as a Texas teacher, me, who knows) I wanna buy a Winnebago and tour America.
The Mahmouds (not our real name) are just 3 weeks from a Disney Vacation, helping the desperate California economy, mainly because I used to live at NTC Orlando, 32813, and Orlando in late June is humid and prone to rain, Anaheim is a dry heat.
I did Disney in February 1969 when I was four years old. First morning, before going to the park from the Motel Jolly Roger, chocolate chip pancakes at IHOP.
I wanna make memories for the kids that’ll last forty years…
Man, they’ll be a fan club for Park Ranger Emily on the interweb soon…
Don’t forget to journal your trip, MM. Years from now they are a blast to re read when those little kids have grown into young adults.
Great trip! You certainly have your priorities in order. All the best.
Michelle, I’ve been following your love of this country for several years now. Right here. Thanks for what you do.
http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=Jolly+Rogers+motel+-+Anaheim&fb=1&gl=us&hq=Jolly+Rogers+motel+-&hnear=Anaheim,+CA&cid=0,0,3255995798421819568&ei=rDENTIa_JYmSNrrtkLYE&sa=X&oi=local_result&ct=image&resnum=1&ved=0CA8QnwIwAA
http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=IHOP+-+Anaheim&fb=1&gl=us&hq=IHOP+-&hnear=Anaheim,+CA&ei=gDINTLqsLpXMNffT_bUE&sa=X&oi=local_group&ct=image&resnum=4&ved=0CCgQtgMwAw
SERIOUS FLASHBACK!
We traveled for 10 days through Yellowstone in an RV. Husband, two kids (3 y/o & 9 m/o), MY in-laws and their little American Eskimo dog. It was a WONDERFUL experience.
You are correct M/M. The RV community is Americana at its purest. I am SO glad you and your family are having this fantastic experience!
Keep posting pictures. LOVE’EM!!!
Poignant note ~ Our vacation was 3 weeks before 9/11.
Southpaw- Jolly Roger still there, and has a website.
Hotel in the park because my wife booked through Disney.
Thanks for sharing. It brought back memories of my trip to the Rockies. Our country is amazing! I wonder what it was like to discover the beauty of that area prior to the founding of this country.
Reminds me of a PBS (I think) special on Parks, and they mentioned a couple who were honeymooning in the Yellowstone area at the time of Custer’s last stand. Indians came by, shot him in the head, but he recovered, and he and the Mrs. later spent their 50th anniversary in the park.
As others have said, thank you Michelle for sharing our vacation with us. God be with you and your family.
L
I am so ready for another road trip!! Those are the best. We have been to the Black Hills three times. And Yellowstone, etc. We flew to Montreal, then rented a car and drove down Vermont, into Massachusetts (genealogy trip). We took a train trip to Seattle and then rented a car and travelled up the coast to Eugene, Oregon. Driving through this great country makes it all the more urgent that we preserve and save it from all enemies..foreign AND DOMESTIC!
YOU MUST SEE Old Faithful Lodge!!!
The artistic use of of natural wood is AMAZING!
We came close to loosing this treasure during the BIG ’88 fire.
Talk to an old timer about it!
“5 species of snakes, including a rattler.”
Oh just great. Now Chap will be held repsonsible for the snakes in Yellowstone Park. Did you have to post that Chap?
MM, if you’re having trouble looking out over 1000+ ft. drops from the road, I really wouldn’t recommend Cooke City Highway – Glazier Park is well worth it too (more plugs for Montana). Glad you and yours are having a great time.
“MM, if you’re having trouble looking out over 1000+ ft. drops”
Do not take the “back” way out of Mesa/Apache Junction/Tucson into the White Mountains or Alpine, AZ.
I didn’t realize that was anywhere near Rushmore. That would be a great site to see. Along with all the other sights out there. What a great trip and a great way to do it.
WoW great trip my parents took us kids to south dakota back in the 70′s. I remember crazy horse monument seeing you michelle standing at the railing all those memories came flooding back the slanted wooden railing etc. FYI you look like you are about the same height as my mom LOL.
Rainbows are a sign from God.
What a wonderful trip for you and your family. Nature, history, and Americana combine to make for exceptional experiences. God bless you, and may the rest of your trip be as good as the past few days have been. Or better…
The only thing I would change is using pics of Miley Cyrus for kindling after her performance on Britain’s Got Talent. I sense a trainwreck coming from that one.
“I am one of those odd balls who think there should be no National Parks, only State Parks. It could just of well have been Yellowstone State Park. Of course Yellowstone spans three states but that’s ok too. Nearly all Federal land should be returned to the states.”-Dasher
That’s fine. I think overall the states, at least mine, SD, do a better job of managing than the federal government.
But in 1900 none of the land was being preserved. No TR, much of what we enjoy today would have been lost forever.
Unfortunately, I don’t have a very great of RV’s. I carry around a 28′ bumper pull travel trailer that I live in while I work on oil rigs. After enduring rig roads, deer hits, blow outs, and the occasional unlucky buzzard, my trailer has been beat all to hell. When I get home, the last thing I want to do is take a vacation in that thing! Great pics, though Michelle. I loved Yellowstone, and the Grand Teton mountains took my breath away when I first saw them.
My apologies. Very great = very great love.
Exact same as we did just 3 years ago, then we went south thru Salt Lake to Moab, ATV 4 wheelin, river raft, etc, then 4 corners, cliff dwellings… and on…
My sons name is Cody, so that was a must, along with the museums , esp gun museum in Cody.
Wow, thx for making me remember that today.
Back then I wasn’t aware that Crazy Horse had been under construction for 50 years already, and will take another 50 to finish. AMAZING.
have fun!
Thank you for sharing your trip with us.
You are a national treasure!
Michelle,
What we use for internet access is the Verizon MiFi. We have found it to be overall a good way to access the web with up to 5 devices on our RV. But beware! If you exceed the monthly 5 gig limit, they will rape you with overages.
My review is at http://www.rv-103.com/?p=499
Enjoy yourself Michelle! Your kids will talk about it for years to come.
Only in The People’s Republic of California
No kidding… she’s a real cutie
I know who Emily is, indirectly via interweb, and I know her mother, again via the interweb.
Not moonbats.
Part of the vast right wing conpiracy as Grouchy Conservative Pundits.
On June 7th, 2010 at 2:39 pm, jsmiddleton4 said:
“5 species of snakes, including a rattler.”
Oh just great. Now Chap will be held repsonsible for the snakes in Yellowstone Park. Did you have to post that Chap?
Though I live in the Chicago-area snakes doesn’t bother me…unless they’re of the political stripe.