6/21/07 – Grand Canyon N. P.

Our first stop in Grand Canyon’s North Rim was at the Backcountry Camping Office. Although the ranger had stepped out of the office (which happened to be a small trailer) we were able to gain some useful knowledge from the information board outside of the trailer. We learned that the temperature at the bottom of the Grand Canyon for the day was expected to reach 112°F. There were also several warnings for people not to start hikes between the hours of 12pm and 4pm due to the extreme danger of dehydration. After stopping at the visitor center and taking in a few of the scenic viewpoints we decided to start our hike…it was 12:30 pm. Almost immediately after starting the hike down into the canyon it became obvious to us that in all of the information we had read about the Grand Canyon, there was one significant warning which had been left out. Nowhere in any brochure, book, or map about the Grand Canyon was there mention of the significant danger of vomiting or passing out while hiking due to the immense presence and/or odor of mule poo on the trails. It wasn’t even until our hike back up that we encountered a pack of these freely-pooing mule’s. Of course, in stride with our expectations, one mule in particular welcomed us to the trail by leaving behind a fresh sample of his own. Honestly, I’m not sure when the last time any of you have been here, if ever, but the poo problem is really out of control. Poo aside, we hiked down to a specific viewpoint, ate lunch and then hiked back up.

The hike proved to be very hot and taxing, and oh yeah…filled with poo. After the hike we drove out to several other viewpoints, however, we noticed our enthusiasm was being beaten down by the heat. Feeling satisfied with our exposure to Grand “Poo” Canyon, we decided to head back towards the Visitor Center hoping to find assistance in meeting a list of 4 demands we had generated. 1) Cold ice cream. 2) Cold beer. 3) Lake to go swimming. 4) Comfortable (and free) place to take a nap. To our surprise the Grand Canyon Lodge was able to meet 3 out of our 4 demands. After eating ice cream and drinking a cold beer we found two large leather couches in the Lodge to take naps. Perhaps it was because we looked so comfortable, or because we smelled so offensive, but either way we managed to nap for over an hour, without any hotel guests or staff bothering us.

After waking up from our naps to find the once crowded room nearly empty, again perhaps due to our odor, we decided to go set up camp and make dinner. Camp was at Marble viewpoint in the Kaibab National Forest, just outside of the Grand Canyon N.P. This free, middle of nowhere campsite was recommended to us by the ranger at the visitor center. Although the site itself was a little frighteningly deep in the forest, the viewpoint offered great views over the canyon and was worth the drive. After consuming, over the last two nights, all other dinner options we started heating up all that was left. The first course of the dinner was BIG Beef ravioli, the second was cheeseburger and mac-a-roni, the third was BIG beef rig-a-toni and the last (possibly the most painful) was cheese ravioli…thanks Chef Boyardee!

- Alex

6/20/07 – Canyonlands N.P. to Bryce Canyon N.P. to Kaibab National Forest, AZ

The plan for today was ambitious – drive four and half hours from Canyonlands to Bryce Canyon, “experience” Bryce Canyon, then drive another two and a half hours to an undetermined campsite outside of the Grand Canyon. We started the day off right by stopping at Wendy’s along the way and picking up a bottle of Wild Turkey 101 – anything to help us fall asleep on the ground for another two nights. We arrived at Bryce Canyon just in time to catch the 3:00 showing of a 22-minute movie at the Visitor Center. On stretches like this of the trip, those 22 minutes in a comfy theater go a long way. After the movie, we began our drive through the park.

We initially approached Bryce Canyon with perhaps a cynical attitude, but eventually we came to appreciate the place. After a half hour drive that ended with a view that left us both saying “eh”, we began to wonder if vistas with 50 miles of visibility were really doing it for us anymore. We then drove to Bryce Point, which gave us the classic view of the park’s famous Bryce Amphitheater. The massive canyon was filled with “hoodoos”, spires of pink rock. Other rock formations looked like abandoned city ruins. We decided at this point that we should really give Bryce Canyon a fair shot by taking a short hike through the hoodoos. Sure enough, experiencing the park by foot and up close was far superior to driving from view to view – a common theme for these national parks. After making ourselves a nice dinner of Campbell’s chunky chicken noodle soup, we caught the sunset at the Amphitheater and then headed for Arizona.

The night drive from Bryce Canyon to Kaibab National Forest capped a crazy two-day stretch in Utah. Ever since the beginning of the trip, Utah was a wildcard. We weren’t sure what to expect or how we would even get to see all of the places that we wanted to. In less than two days, we saw three national parks, and while each focused almost exclusively on rock formations, the uniqueness of each park made each visit worthwhile. The trip through Utah was a whirlwind, and all of a sudden we were in a car at midnight driving to the Grand Canyon. Happy to eventually find a campsite, we set up camp in the dark (again).

-Jonah

6/19/07 – Arches N.P. to Canyonlands N.P.

Taking full advantage of the Inca Inn, we woke up just in time for the free continental breakfast, which for us consisted of handfuls of danish’s, several sleeves of muffins and coffee. Before leaving Moab, we stopped at the local food mart to stock up for the next leg of camping. Several gallons of water, 4 cans of chef Boyardee, one package of apple chicken sausage, pasta, more pb and j materials and another bag of trail mix. There are several things that tend to be sacrificed on multi day camping trips, and ones access to decent food happens to be one of those things.

Arches N.P. was our first real Utah experience and we had high expectations. For several weeks leading up to our trip we had seen dozens of Utah propaganda commercials. The commercials consistently showed people doing awesome things and having an awesome time in Utah, perhaps you’ve seen these commercials? Regardless, they were one of the main reasons why we decided to make Utah a multi day destination. You’ll be happy to know that Utah and Arches in particular did not let us down. From the roads, Arches offered awesome views of rock sculptures like nothing we’d ever seen. However, even more impressive, were the hiking trails through the balanced rocks, arches and fins. From these trails Arches N.P. became more like a giant terrain park. Jumping from rock to rock and climbing from arch to arch with the only barrier being fear of heights or personal injury (which turned out to be a concern of some legitimacy). After spending several hours longer in the park then we had planned, we stopped at the air conditioned visitor center to relax and watch the parks video.

Determined to fit in as much of Utah as we could, we left Arches and headed for Canyonlands N.P. The drive from Arches to Canyonlands was only about an hour and half but we arrived at the park late enough for it to seem like we were the only ones there. Unfortunately, the entrance booth had already closed down for the night so we were left only with the small map from our guide book. In an attempt to find the visitor center, and with the small map as an excuse, we made a wrong turn and found ourselves on White Rim Road, a “jeep road”, which hugs the canyon rim for nearly 80 miles as it drops 1,200 feet into the valley. With the promise of incredible views and great photo-op’s for the Land Rover we decided to push forward. With our first views of the park coming from this drive, it was obvious that Canyonlands was a worthwhile stop and another notch on the Utah post. We drove through the remainder of Island in the Sky (the northern segment of the park) with few sightings of other people and awesome views of the setting sun. The Canyonlands’ small campsite was full so around 11:45 pm we ended up finding a site in a nearby National Forest. It was around this time that we realized we had incidentally taken some of Arches and Canyonlands with us. Our feet, legs and hands were covered in a dark layer of desert sand. Hygiene is another one of those things that seem to get lost on a multi-day camping trip. With no running water around, we cooked our dinner of sausage and pasta (which was actually really good) and passed out.

- Alex

6/18/07 – Grand Teton N.P. to Moab, UT

We awoke from our fourth straight night of camping eager to arrive at our first motel of the trip in Moab, UT. The eight hour drive had us enter a new temperate zone – by the time we arrived at Moab, the temperature had risen above 90 degrees and the landscape had changed to red rocks and cliffs. Suddenly, we were in the desert. We would explore our new surroundings the next day at Arches N.P., but for now we enjoyed the comforts of our $50 motel room by ordering pizza and wings and drinking cold beer. Showering felt good as well. We took the time to catch up on our email and update the blog, which proved to be taxing – sometimes it’s nice to have an excuse for not checking your email. The sleep we would get that night would be our last indoors for another four days, so any attempts at debauchery were put on hold until LA.

-Jonah

6/17/07 – Grand Teton N.P.

After waking up at 7:45 am, which is thus far the latest we’ve slept while camping, we took a short walk down to Jackson Lake. From here we could see Rolling Thunder Mountain, Bivouac Peak, Mount Woodring and the tallest among them, Mount Moran at 12,605 ft. Having booked a rafting trip at 2 pm and still feeling hiked out from the day before, we spent the morning viewing the park through scenic drives and various pullouts. After taking a very short walk around String Lake toward Leigh Lake we stopped for lunch which consisted of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (we’re on our second loaf of bread, but still the original jars of pb and j). Anticipating that after the rafting trip we were going to try and find free camping outside of the park, we realized that this afternoon would be our last time spent in the park. Although the time spent at Grand Teton was minimal, it is obvious from the pictures taken that the park was a unique place with stunning scenery.

Before Jonah and I left Yellowstone we called several whitewater rafting companies in the Grand Teton area and booked ourselves on a trip down the Snake River. The rafting trip left from the town of Jackson, just south of Grand Teton N.P. We arrived a half hour early, as instructed, and signed the necessary release forms. After picking out water shoes we returned to the car to change into proper rafting gear. When we returned to the rafting headquarters we met and talked with a family from Phoenix, AZ. They offered several pieces of advice for traveling through the Utah National Parks, including the recommendation to stay in Moab for a night before taking on Arches National Park (our next destination). The next thing we know, the transportation bus arrives and everyone starts loading up. We jump on the bus and are greeted by the friendly driver, Lou. Over the course of the 45 min trip to the drop in point, Lou entertained us with interesting factoids about the places we passed as well as snippets of his own personal life. Arriving at our destination we met our rafting guide, Jason, who spends his summers as a whitewater guide and his winters as a ski instructor. Jason informed us that in his hundreds of trips down the Snake River, this was by far the windiest day he’d ever seen. In any case, we boarded the raft and pushed off. Our fellow rafters included Jason and a family of Texans, who would prove to contribute little to the paddling efforts and in general be a family of “Debbie Downers”. The river took us past class II and class III rapids by the names of Lunch Counter, Big Kahouna and Champagne. One of the highlights of the trip was when a bald eagle flew over and circled the raft. The eagle sighting left only one desired wildlife animal to be seen, the elusive moose. Exhausted and cold, the bus ride back to the rafting headquarters in Jackson provided ample napping time. When we returned to town we gave Jason a generous tip and inquired about free camping nearby as well as suggested places for food and beverage. Having hung around the rafting shop for several minutes after the trip and feeling fully satisfied with our whitewater experience we headed out to the car. Now, everything written thus far has been a factual representation of the events which occurred surrounding the rafting trip. Certain details and realizations have been purposely omitted. Such details may or may not be those which involve the exact cost of the trip, how such payment was tendered and at which point in the story (if any) was payment tendered. However, I’d like to highlight the fact that despite being budget travelers we felt justified in giving Jason a very generous tip (that part is actually true). Attributing any possible miscommunication around payment as a clerical error (and feeling confident that those who deserved payment, received payment via tip) we promptly left the rafting headquarters and treated ourselves to a fine dinner of Taco Bell.

After dinner we ventured over to the local micro-brewery, Snake River Brewery, to try some of the local beers. Debating whether or not to stay in town for a while or go set up camp, we decided that since we weren’t even sure where we were camping we should probably take care of that first. Following Jason’s advice we headed up into the nearby National Elk Refuge. After making the drive up into the mountains on non-county maintained roads we decided that it probably would be a bad move to try and navigate the roads again in the dark. Therefore we set up camp and decided against heading back into town. Instead we built a fire, finished off the scotch and slept peacefully in the National Elk Refuge. Any day with a free rafting trip (there I came out and said it, just in case you couldn’t follow the innuendo’s above) is a good day by me.

- Alex

6/16/07 – Yellowstone N.P. to Grand Teton N.P.

Awaking at the campsite reminded me of the wonderful solitude that we had discovered in this place. The chill in the air made the steam emerging from the nearby fumerals even more drastic than the day before. As I walked toward the water, a lone mule deer explored the edges of our camping area before retreating to the mountain side. I find myself truly appreciating these early mornings, when the air is cold, the sun is bright, and everything seems still. Deyle and I took our time leaving the campsite, soaking in the secret location that we had made our own for a night. With the 1200 foot incline staring us in the face, we eventually repacked our bags and began our ascent.

The hike up the face of the canyon was challenging with our 60+ pound bags on our backs, but perseverance made for an exhausting yet rewarding hike. With burning legs and pounding hearts, we completed the uphill portion of the hike in just under an hour. Energized by our feat, we continued for the remaining few miles of the hike and completed the journey in less time than it took us to climb down. We then immediately rewarded ourselves with sandwiches and ice cream. Deyle and I had just completed our first true backcountry camping trip.

The rest of our time at Yellowstone seemed like an afterthought after our tiring hike, but we made sure to at least see the major attractions of Yellowstone Falls and Old Faithful. The Lower Falls proved to be impressive at 309 ft, but the walk to the top of the falls took its toll – a 3/8 mile path with a 600 ft drop. Walking back up this path practically put us over the edge. We then drove to Old Faithful, but not before catching a brief glimpse of our first Grizzly Bear along the way – perhaps there actually are bears in Yellowstone. We arrived at Old Faithful just in time to miss an eruption, so we had to wait an hour and 15 minutes to watch the great geyser erupt 100 feet into the air. Feeling satisfied with Yellowstone, we drove south for the Grand Tetons.

We arrived at the adjacent park in time to set up our camp as the sun was setting. A rolling thunderstorm inspired us to drive to a turnout and view the storm. As we sat in our chairs, we had the magnificent mountains to our left, a huge thunderhead storm cloud to our right, and the stars above us. Nearby howling coyotes made the setting even more impressive. As the air became colder, we packed up our chairs and headed back to the campsite. With the 5 mile uphill hike under our belts, we were sure to get a good night’s sleep. Even the couple camping next to us, who showed little appreciation for campground etiquette with their late night “noises”, couldn’t ruin our sleep.

- Jonah

6/15/07 – Yellowstone N.P.

On the drive down to Yellowstone Jonah and I had begun reading through all of the information we had on the park. We read all about the threat and danger of bears, the possibility of walking on “thin crust”, which could result in horrific third degree burns and apparently there is a tick problem throughout the park. Taking all this information into account we decided that Yellowstone would be a perfect place for us to try our first backcountry camping trip. After packing up our campsite at Madison, we jumped in the car and headed for the backcountry ranger’s office at Old Faithful.

At the Ranger Station, we explained that we were looking for a challenging hike around 5 miles long that would take us to an awesome place to camp. The three of us reviewed the park map which showed all of the backcountry camping sites. The decision process of where to go was guided by the Ranger saying things like “You guys look like you’re in pretty good shape, right?”, “There are way to many bears there right now” and “I’m hesitant to send you there…”. “There” referred to a hike down Seven Mile Hole into the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone which would lead to a campsite right on the bank of the Yellowstone River. The first three miles of the hike are along the top of the canyon and the last mile and half plummets down 1,200 feet to the very bottom of the canyon. After some mild justifying we decided this would make for a challenging but worthwhile backcountry trip.

The drive to the Seven Mile Hole trailhead took us past Yellowstone Lake which proved to be yet another beautiful body of water surrounded by snow capped mountains, truly a landscape I’ll never grow tired of. After arriving at the trailhead we did one last check through our camping packs to make sure we had everything we thought we’d need. This would be the first time we were cooking dinner and spending the night somewhere out of sight from the car.

The hike down to the campsite took us a full two and half hours. Along the way we stopped often for pictures of the amazing view down into the canyon. There were also times where we had to stop and assess exactly where the trail was supposed to be taking us. The last mile and half of downhill hiking was comprised of narrow trails, daunting switchbacks and unexpected geothermal features. The campsite itself was a stretch of flat land 20 feet above the fast flowing waters of the Yellowstone River, with trails that led down to the fumarole lined bank of the river. Dinner that night consisted of two cans of chili and a can of minestrone soup. An impending strenuous hike back up the canyon and with limited water supply, we were unable to properly clean out our dishes and soup cans. However, after putting everything away and hoisting our camping bags 10 feet in the air we were confident that no bear would be able to infiltrate our rope and pulley system. Having set up camp and finished dinner with ample sunlight left, we took some time to take in our surroundings. After a game of gin rummy (I won) we enjoyed a glass of scotch while overlooking the river from outside our tent. Away from the small towns built up within the park, and from the crowds of people we were able to enjoy a part of Yellowstone which felt uniquely untouched by man.

- Alex

6/14/07 – Missoula, MT to Yellowstone N.P.

Before we left Missoula, we prepared for what was to be a 4-day stretch of camping in Yellowstone and Grand Teton N.P. We showered at Amy’s house, bought some essential items at Ace Hardware (lawn chairs, rope to hang our bags in bear country, chapstick, etc.), and ate at Quizno’s – as ready as were ever going to be, we headed for the greatest national park of them all.

We entered Yellowstone from the North Entrance and immediately caught a glimpse of the geothermal activity that makes this place so unique. At Mammoth Hot Springs, large pools of boiling water emitted plumes of steam and stinky sulfuric gas. We would have stayed at the springs for longer, but we had our sights set on a campsite towards the southern end of the park, which translated into at least an hour of additional driving. At over 2.2 million acres, Yellowstone is the largest national park and is bigger than some states. As we drove through the park, we soon realized that it would be impossible to see everything here and that we had to pick our adventures.

Along the way to the Madison campground, we stopped periodically to view geothermal activity or wildlife along the way. We were hoping to get lucky and see the eruption of Steamboat Geyser, the tallest geyser in the world at almost 300 feet – no such luck (the last eruption was May 23, 2005). A highlight of the drive came when we saw a group of cars parked along the side of the road – a sure sign of something interesting at this park where the people seem to outnumber the wildlife. Sure enough, we were greeted by the sight of nine coyote cubs wrestling with each other on the side of a rocky hill next to the road. Later in the drive, we saw an elk with magnificent antlers. By the end of the Yellowstone trip, we would not even be fazed by bison.

We finally arrived at the Madison campsite, where we were met with the disappointment of having to pay $18 – the first time we paid for a place to stay on the trip. In what was perhaps our most comfortable camping experience, we actually set up camp with enough time to make dinner in daylight. As we ate our grilled chicken and steak salads and sat by a campfire, we were beginning to feel like camping pros. With sleeping on the ground no longer an issue for either of us, we passed out after a glass of scotch.

-Jonah

6/13/07 – Glacier N.P., MT

After sleeping in later than we had all trip, I woke up and immediately regretted indulging in the array of late night cheeses, brownies, old chicken fingers and chips at 4 am the night before. Having missed breakfast, we headed down to the restaurant for lunch. At this point we had to say our goodbye’s to Bear, but not before we watched him plow through three plates of food and made him pose for a picture (below) while he still had an entire omelet in his mouth. After lunch, we took our last luxury golf cart ride back to the cabin to repack the Land Rover. Unfortunately, it was time to leave Paws Up and return to the road. We’d like to sincerely thank all of the Shlansky’s for their hospitality and generosity. We had an incredible time hanging out at Paws Up and with all of you. Ben it was crazy getting to hang out in Montana and I hope your next two months of traveling are awesome, keep us updated on where you are and how it’s going.

Our original plan was to leave the Missoula area today and drive down into Yellowstone. However, after strong recommendations from Amy, Lucas and several people at Paws Up, we decided to take an extra day in Montana and go visit Glacier National Park. We hadn’t done any reading about the park, however, it was described to us as an absolute must see. The drive to the park took us through some of the truest backcountry of Montana that we could have imagined. At one point along our drive we were slowed down by what appeared to be some sort of road block. The road block was comprised of a Montana Sheriff and an army officer holding an M-16. Unsure of what to do we waited for the officer to approach us, at which point he asked frankly “Are you boys aware of what’s going on out here?” To which we promptly answered “Not a clue!” The friendly officer then informed us that two men had escaped from prison, one had been caught but the other was still armed and on the loose. They had established a road block on a 10 mile stretch of the road because they believed that they had the man pinned down within that area. We were instructed to not slow down at any point along the road and to under no circumstances stop. As we were waved through the road block and began driving on the strip of road in question we realized that several things remained unanswered. How long ago did this guy break out of prison? How far away is the prison? What is this guy armed with? And what the hell are we going to do if we see him? Thankfully we made it through the 10 mile strip and emerged at the other side of the blockade. After having our car checked to see if we had picked up the prisoner we found out that the man had escaped from jail 5 days ago and that the jail was almost 200 miles away. He had been looting his way up the country toward Canada and was armed with a hunting rifle. As we continued to drive north towards Canada I don’t think our newly acquired information made us feel any more at ease.

In any case, we arrived at Glacier around 4:30 pm. Unfortunately, due to snow the day before and general treacherous conditions they had closed off a majority of the park. However, one of the hikes Amy had recommended was still open and accessible. Our drive to the Avalanche Creek Trail took us along Lake McDonald and through some of the most incredible wilderness I’d ever seen. The air was refreshingly cool and crisp. Looking out over Lake McDonald you could see the snow covered mountains rising sharply above lush, dense forest which grew from the banks of a tranquil lake. The landscape combined with the glacier cooled air gave the entire park an indescribable feel, truly majestic. The Avalanche Creek Trail is a 4 mile round trip hike that climbs 500 feet. Although a seemingly average trail, this was by far the best hike on the trip thus far. The trail begins by following along a fast flowing creek which crashes water around sharp corners and steep drops of deeply red colored rocks. As the trail veers away from the creek you quickly find yourself deep in a thick forest of small streams and massive trees. Here is where we encountered a mule deer in search of its dinner. The mule deer came marching right down the trail as if we weren’t even there. The most spectacular part of the hike came at the very end as we approached Avalanche Lake. The turquoise waters of the lake were constantly replenished by three waterfalls which fell from the mountain tops high above. The almost unnatural colors, fresh air and tranquility of this lake and its surroundings made it one of the most unforgettable places I’ve ever been to. If I hadn’t already known that I wanted to someday live on a lake, this would have sealed the deal.

After leaving the park we stopped for dinner at a local pizzeria and sampled some of the huckleberry ice cream which this area of Montana is apparently famous for. Goooood stuff. Finally arriving back at Amy’s around 12:30 am and exhausted from the day, we promptly passed out. Glacier N.P. was without a doubt an absolutely worthwhile detour. Thanks to everyone who suggested it.

- Alex

6/12/07 – Paws Up, MT!!!

While almost every day on this trip seems like a long one, this one was truly a marathon. We began with a morning hike to the top of Mount Jumbo with Amy, which resulted in a panoramic view of Missoula and the surrounding mountains. Amy continued to wow us with her knowledge of her own backyard by identifying multiple wildflower species and pointing out all visible geographic features. Amy first arrived in Missoula a few years ago by chance and has remained here ever since – her passion for the area portrayed to us how many people tend to fall in love with this “random” place in Montana. After the hike, Amy dragged herself to work and we prepared for the next phase of our visit – Paws Up.

Our friend Ben Shlansky was kind enough to invite the two of us to join his family at the Paws Up resort, which by chance was only a half hour outside of Missoula. Paws Up is essentially a giant playground for adults, a high-class resort that represented an entirely different world from pb&j lunches. Ben’s grandfather Milton was treating the Shlanksy clan to an all-expense paid 10-day trip to this Montana paradise, and we were permitted to take part in the ride for a day – thank you, Milton and family! Our experience at Paws Up included meals at a five-star restaurant... mountain-biking and paintball... and luxurious accommodations... all under the backdrop of the Rockies. The contrast between spending a night in a cave and hanging out with the Shlanksy’s at Paws Up was downright comedic and represented yet another unexpected, thrilling experience on this trip.

In the evening, we ventured into Missoula for an open mic night at a local watering hole, named “Badlanders”. Ben’s cousin, Bear, performed original songs solo on an acoustic guitar to a surprisingly large Tuesday night crowd. Between Deyle and me, Ben, Bear, Ben’s sister Hannah, and Ben’s cousins Jason and Brooke, we were rolling deep at this place. Even a large number of Paws Up employees were there, which was fun because after a week of serving the Shlanksy’s, they had established an interesting relationship with the family. Let’s just say that their presence added entertainment at a level that should not be discussed publicly for the sake of one Paws Up waitress in particular.

After closing out the bar, we drove back to Paws Up (thanks to our DD, Hannah) and burned the midnight oil. The fact that our late-night snack was crackers and brie should give you even more of an idea of how classy this resort was. While we probably could have stayed up even longer, the group realized that the night had to come to an end at some point. That point turned out to be 4 AM, marking the end of a long but ridiculously fun day.

-Jonah

6/11/07 – Black Hills N.F., SD to Missoula, MT

After making it through the night without any interruptions from a possibly displaced bear, we set out on our drive to Missoula, MT. Missoula had seemed like a strange stop for us, especially since it was the furthest northern location (by almost 4 hours) on our whole trip. However, with my cousin Amy living there and with the Shlansky family there on vacation there seemed good enough reasons to make it a destination. The drive from our campsite to Missoula was just over 10 hours. This isolated and remote drive through “Big Sky Country” proved to be worthy of its name. Small clusters of civilization were scattered, rarely closer than 30 or 40 miles apart, among huge, wide open space and sprawling peaks. As we approached western Montana we were met with our first views of the rugged, snow covered, Rocky Mountains. The sprawling green landscape with the backdrop of the Rocky Mountains provided views only appropriate for Montana. With every aspect of the landscape so large and dominant it’s difficult to feel as if you’re anything more than just a fortunate visitor being allowed to pass through.

Helped by the minimal emphasis on speed limits in Montana, we arrived at the home of Amy and Lucas around 7:30 pm. Amy works at an advertising and marketing agency in Missoula and Lucas has recently started his own architecture firm which focuses on sustainable residential development. After catching up and taking the tour of the house which Lucas had built himself, we sat down to a dinner of sweet potato quesadilla’s. We were also introduced to Amy’s latest pet, Simon. Simon the hedgehog spent dinner rolling around the house collecting coins. But seriously, they have a pet hedgehog, it was awesome! The house, familiar people and a home cooked meal brought a welcomed feeling of comfort after having camped out the last three nights.

- Alex

6/10/07 – Badlands N.P., SD to Black Hills N.F., SD

I awoke from our second night at the Badlands campsite as the sun was rising, although the sunlight certainly wasn’t the reason why. No, I had in fact been elbowed directly in the face by Deyle, who responded with a “Jesus Christ, sorry” and immediately fell back asleep. I was about as confused as I have ever been, groggily staring into the rising sun with a sore face. This trip is far from over, Deyle.

The elbow to the face was clearly a sign that it was time to leave the Badlands, so we packed up the car and headed for Wall Drug. Ever since we returned to I-90 on the eastern half of South Dakota, we saw signs every five miles or so for Wall Drug. These signs advertised everything from 5 cent coffee to T-Rex. We had no idea what Wall Drug actually was, only that it was a necessary stop for cross country travelers that was bound to not suck more than the Corn Palace. Thankfully, the visit did not disappoint. Wall Drug offered us six foot tall bunnies, a shooting gallery, a full-scale T-Rex that roared every 12 minutes, a fudge shop, real-live locals, and an endless list of additional worthless yet surprisingly entertaining gags. Wall Drug put an entirely new and positive spin on our day – we legitimately wished that we had more than an hour and a half to spend there. However, we had reservations for a Wild Cave tour at Wind Cave N.P., which could not be missed.

We added an extra day to the South Dakota portion of our trip when we discovered the four-hour strenuous cave tour offered by Wind Cave. The 124-mile network of caves is one of the most complex in the world, and we were ready to embark on a tour that required us to wear long clothing, knee pads, and a helmet with a light on it. Ahead of time, the park informed us that we would get very dirty and would need to fit through cavities a mere 10 inches wide. Even with all of the hype preceding it, the Wild Cave tour was one of the best parts of the trip. Thanks to our marvelous tour guide Erin, we climbed, shimmied, and squeezed our way through the caves for four hours. The inside of the cave didn’t feature stalactites, but instead earthy red rock that was continuously decorated with “popcorn,” “bunny tails,” and calcite formations called boxwork. One of my favorite parts of the tour was when every member of the tour turned off their light, leaving us in complete darkness and reminding us of how the place looked for thousands of years before humans first entered by candlelight in the late 19^th century. The tour was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience and has put Erin in the early running for MVP of the trip.

After filling out a backcountry permit for Wind Cave, we hopped in the car and headed for Mt. Rushmore. The journey to Mt. Rushmore took us through the Black Hills, a beautiful area featuring pine forests and huge granite rocks. After seeing the area in person, it wasn’t difficult to understand why American Indians viewed this as a sacred land. With this in mind, we became increasingly reluctant to pay the impending $8 parking fee at the top of the mountain. After all, we only needed a quick peek at the faces, right? As the entrance to the visitor center neared, we quickly formulated a plan for capturing bootleg images of the Mt. Rushmore presidents. At this time, we had a serious discussion and agreed that Washington was the best one and we really only needed a picture of him anyway. Done and done. Take that, Teddy Roosevelt.

As we headed back to Wind Cave, we realized that we may have needed to reevaluate our game plan for the night. Considering ourselves as expert campers at this point, we figured we could grab dinner on the way back to the park and set up camp in near darkness again, only this time in the backcountry. We soon realized that this was fairly idiotic, so we called an audible and decided to find a free backcountry camping area near Mt. Rushmore. After grabbing some milkshakes, we packed our bags and prepared for our first non-campsite camping experience. We left the car at the trailhead and marched into the woods in search of a campsite. With the sun practically gone at this point, we discovered an awesome campsite. A large granite outcrop created a cave that was perfectly tent-sized. After determining with about 60% confidence that this wasn’t a bear cave, we set up our tent and passed out. I’m not gonna lie, we are feeling totally badass at this point. Except when we hear things at night.

-Jonah

6/9/07 – Badlands N.P., SD

The rising sun beating down on our tent woke us up around 7 am. Having driven into and set up our campsite in the dark last night we realized we had little clue about what our surroundings looked like. However, we both recalled hearing many strange animal noises throughout the night. Jonah was the first out of the tent and he pointed out one of the most surprising sights of the trip thus far. No more than 150 feet from our tent was a herd of 40 to 50 bison. These massive creatures were peacefully grazing and paid little attention to us or any of the other campers in the area. Amidst the herd was a community of ground dwelling prairie dogs. As the prairie dogs popped their heads in and out of their homes in the ground, and with the bison roaming above them, I was reminded of the popular carnival game “Whack-a-mole”. After taking time to acclimate ourselves with our awesome surroundings, we jumped in the car and set out for the Badlands N.P. Visitor Center. Our drive to the Visitor Center was a 40 mile trip through the bison herd, past the prairie dog town and back through the awesome buttes and valleys that we had struggle to see as the sun was setting the night before.

At the Visitor Center we watched a 20 minute video on the history, geology, and animal life of the park. After the video, we set out on several hikes through the rough terrain that defines the eastern portion of the park. Our first hike, one of the two “strenuous” trails in the park, was on Notch Trail. The trail entailed a rattlesnake warning sign, a steep climb up a rope ladder and an incredible view from a point appropriately called “The Notch”. After the hike we stopped for lunch, at which point we decided to do some free climbing off the trails. We started by climbing up any peak we could find and then moved on to trying to find a path from the peaks down to the valley below. These excursions gave us some of the most incredible views of the park and allowed us to test out our hiking skills and test our fear (or fearlessness) of heights. Feeling exhausted from the heat and the hiking we returned to the air conditioned Visitor Center where we napped through two more showings of the park video.

Feeling refreshed and hungry, we headed into the local town of Interior, SD to find something edible for dinner. The town, with a population of 63, had a post office, food mart, two bars and little else. Walking into the food mart we noticed a sign advertising for karaoke at one of the two local bars, and go figure it was for tonight! After buying supplies for quesadilla’s we inquired at the register about the sign on the door. The woman checking us out laughed and told us it would be a good time. However, the large burly man standing next to her had more to say. He informed us that there would be lots of girls at karaoke, however, he warned us to keep close tabs on our wallets. We laughed, grabbed our food and headed for the door. On our way out the man gave us one last piece of advice. “Oh yeah, and keep an eye out for the girls with adam’s apple’s”. We did not attend karaoke that night.

Upon returning to the campsite we fired up the grill for the first time and cooked ourselves some delicious turkey quesadilla’s. After dinner we decided to play catch around the campsite, Jonah with his baseball glove and me with my lacrosse stick. Within 15 minutes we had turned the campsite into a session of Badlands Sports. Two other campers joined us for catch, two others began tossing a Frisbee, and several people took their dogs off their leashes and began playing catch with them. As the session went on, even a few bison strolled by the site to utilize their favorite scratching post (coincidentally also the sign for our campsite). As the sun went down over the rolling prairie hills that define the western part of the park, all the campers retired to their individual campsites. Having spent the first half of the day hiking awesome terrain, and the second half relaxing and playing sports I felt completely satisfied. After a game of cards I was exhausted and ready for bed.

- Alex

6/8/07 Morris, MN to Badlands N.P., SD

The drive to visit my extended family in Morris, MN signified a transition for our trip. As my Aunt Alisande said, we were entering “the beginning of nowhere.” Pretty soon, our pictures of city skylines would be replaced by those of mountain ridges. Long and straight roads surrounded by only rolling hills and cows typify this portion of the drive. Interspersed along the way, you can find small pockets of civilization – the next stop on our journey enabled us to experience one firsthand in Morris.

Seeing my family members in Morris was a significant experience for me. Alisande is my father’s younger sister, and along with her husband Gordon, her daughter Hadley, and her son Alex, represents one of my closest relatives. I fondly remember visiting Ithaca every summer as a child, where our families would join to see my grandparents – the highlight of the trip was always walking up the creek to Toughannock Falls. Unfortunately, a great deal of time has passed since I had last seen Alisande and crew. In what I guess may be an entire decade, Hadley has grown into a confident sophomore in college while little “Lexi” has blossomed into a mature middle-schooler. While I spent only an evening with them in their house in a small prairie town, the experience truly made me feel more complete and was personally an essential part of the trip; the image of “my cousins in Morris, Minnesota” is no longer an unknown.

Now, back to the trip. After being sent off by Alisande with a breakfast of waffles, strawberries, and whipped cream and visiting the University of Minnesota – Morris, we set our sights on South Dakota. On this day, we would drive across almost the entire state. If you want to know what the scenery was like, just picture that default Windows background with the green hill and the blue sky and you pretty much have it. In between Morris and the Badlands, we made sure to stop at the Corn Palace in Mitchell, SD. This castle-like convention center features a mosaic of corn on its exterior and is possibly one of the most over-hyped tourist attractions around. Needless to say, we had much more fun at the bar across the street where we met Murph, who is pictured below. We also bought trucker hats that made the stop mildly worthwhile.

As we raced across the state while obeying the 75 mph speed limit, we gradually realized that we were facing a race against time with the setting sun. We had planned to set up camp with plenty of time to casually drive around the park as the sun set. As you can guess, those plans went out the window. As we watched the setting sun with still an hour left until the park, we began asking ourselves questions like, “it’s okay to set up the tent for the first time in the dark, right?” The situation worsened when we switched from Central to Mountain Time zone and the sun shockingly stayed in the same low place in the sky. However, the issue of setting up camp quickly took a back seat when we first set sight on the landscape that defines the park. The remaining light we had would be used for absorbing the beauty that is Badlands National Park.

The dramatic rise of the layered sandy ridges of the park left us saying, “Wow” over and over again. The setting sun highlighted the reds and yellows of these fantastic geological formations. The two of us were downright giddy when we first got out of the car and just let nature hit us. Take a look at the pictures, but I hope that all of you have the chance to personally see this natural wonder at some point. This place is truly like nothing we have ever seen.

We received our first real treat of the trip as we drove through the park to reach or campsite. With almost all light gone, only the outlines of geological features could be seen at this point. The two of us were in fact a little disappointed that we had arrived so late to the park that we were actually missing part of it due to darkness. However, one sighting in particular made the timing of our arrival 100% worthwhile. We were driving through a section of the park where the crags from below extended about 20 feet above and directly next to the road. I was sitting shotgun, and as we turned a corner I was taken aback by the silhouette of a bighorn sheep posing atop the mountain a mere 50 feet in front of us. As Deyle slows down, we see two more of these awesome creatures navigate the mountainside towards us. At one point, we were no more than 20 feet away from them. The fact that we were so surprised by these animals made the experience particularly thrilling – the image of that animal atop the crag will never escape either of us.

The adrenaline we received from seeing the sheep carried us almost until the campsite. There was a stretch while driving along a bumpy dirt road in complete darkness when the two of us were absolutely frightened by a tall man in a flannel shirt standing alongside the road, staring down the car. The campsite couldn’t have come any sooner. Luckily, we found an available space for our tent and were able to set up camp. After a glass of scotch and a glimpse at the magnificent starlit sky, the two of us went to sleep excited to wake up early and explore the land we were suddenly a part of.

-Jonah

6/7/07 Chicago, IL to Morris, MN

After going to bed last night at 1:30 am, the alarms went off this morning at 6:30 am. In order to prevent Fat Ass from being towed we had to move it from its parking spot by 7 am. Blind confusion, disgruntled anger, some throbbing pain and a sense of disbelief all adequately sum up my spectrum of emotions as the alarms went off this morning. After throwing our belongings into bags, and packing up the car we found ourselves locked out of Matt's apartment and sitting in the car. It was 7:30 am. Having eaten nothing we used to GPS to find the nearest Starbucks so that we could at least get some coffee. After driving in several circles, repeatedly cursing at “Jill” (The Australian American woman who speaks to us through our GPS) and finding NO Starbucks we decided to just start on our way towards Minneapolis. Needless to say the morning started a bit rocky. The time was 8:30 am.

Despite the start of the day, we managed to get out of Chicago with minimal traffic and we were on our way to Minnesota. After finding the first rest-stop we finally got our coffee. Although we decided that our stomachs weren’t quite ready for food. The rest-stop was surprisingly nice and resembled an airport more than the conventional rest area. This last stop in Illinois left us feeling the state with an overall positive feeling (more so emotionally than physically).

We were welcomed into Wisconsin with huge billboards that read nothing more than “CHEESE”. As our stomachs started to feel better we happened upon a classic American establishment: A&W. After enjoying a delicious combo with ice cold A&W root beer, we opted to splurge the additional 80¢ for the root beer float. Worth it! The remainder of the drive through Wisconsin proved to be more stimulating than we were led to believe it would be. The vast emptiness, rolling hills, random rock structures and the occasional thunder storm made for an enjoyable drive and Wisconsin experience.

After driving past St. Paul, we continued on to Minneapolis. The skyline of Minneapolis came up quick on us and was really incredible. We stopped in Minneapolis for a couple hours to meet up with Cara and Amy and grab some happy hour specials. Cara is working for a law firm in Minneapolis and her sister Amy works as a nurse in one of the hospitals downtown. Today was Cara’s birthday so it was good timing. After meeting up with Cara we promptly informed her of our expectations (“demands”). First we wanted to go somewhere to try a local brew. Second, we wanted to go someplace where we could eat something moderately healthy. Lastly, Jonah had to pee. Cara and her sister Amy were extremely accommodating and took us to a place called Ike’s for some happy hour specials. We unfortunately had only a limited time in Minneapolis, which was facilitated nicely by our waiter who insisted on clearing every dish the second it became empty, and sometimes even before. It was great to see Cara and Amy and although brief we had a great time in Minneapolis. Happy Birthday Cara!

Details of Morris to come . . .

-Alex