Home

After a quick overnight in Spearfish, we finally arrived at home tonight!! Overall, the trip was amazing!! We survived tenting in 30 degrees in Jackson Hole, the obstacles during the Tater Dash Mud Run, the chilling water of the Boise River floating in the tube, the threat of bears camping in Yellowstone, and the MANY hours in the car. Most importantly we survived each other and had loads of fun doing a lot of different things during the last 2 weeks!! 

Special thanks to Kara with the help of Suzie and Rod for watching the four legged boys, Franco and Buddy, to help make this trip possible. 

Yellowstone

We did a whirlwind tour of Yellowstone National Park on Monday. We started on the west end at MadisonCampground, where we tented one last night on our trip. 

We started by going north and stopped at the Norris Geyser Basin, then onto the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone where we did some hiking with some spectacular views. On our way to supper at the Lake Lodge along Yellowstone Lake we viewed mostly herds of bison.  We also stopped at the Mud Volcanos. After supper and some shopping we were trying to beat daylight to see Old Faithful. As it so happened we arrived 2-3 minutes late so we had to wait a little over an hour until 10:34pm to watch Old Faithful. Luckily, there was a full moon which provided enough light to see it in all of its glory! 

Boise Finale

Yesterday, we spent the morning at the Tater Dash event trudging through mud and going over obstacles. Later in the afternoon, we went tubing down the Boise River for a couple hours. It was sunny and warm, but the water was cold! 

Today, the boys went to an old penitentiary and explored Table Rock in the foothills surrounding Boise.  Geneva and I hiked the Oregon Trail near their home. Fun was had by all on another gorgeous day! 

More Boise

Yesterday, we went to Roaring Springs water park and went on a lot of water slides, tube slides, and the wave pool. On the way there we just had to stop at Krispy Kreme donuts. 

Today, we drove into the mountains north to go whitewater rafting on the Payette River. It was a gorgeous day!! We ended the night eating pizza and enjoying live music at a restaurant out in the middle of nowhere close to Geneva and Bobby's home. 

Boise

Yesterday we made it to Boise!!  Regular food, a normal shower, a bed, and best of all...family. We spent the rest of the day checking out the neighborhood, hiking on the Oregon Trail, and catching up. 

Today was spent sleeping in (much needed), swimming at the neighborhood Rec Center, and dinner downtown Boise enjoying live music with friends. (The boys opted for pizza and video games) I'm loving the weather here as it is absolutely perfect...no humidity, sunny, and warm. 

Jackson Hole / Snake River

Today was more of a rest day. We've been busy with activities and with driving so today was a nice break. We did go to Teton Village and ride up the gondola from roughly 6,000ft to 10,000ft in elevation. The views were spectacular. The plan was to hike down, but it was cold and windy and snowy at the top! The rest of the day was spent at the campsite fishing, reading, and sitting by the fire. 

Driving

Yesterday was a full day of driving from the Black Hills out to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Let's just say I thought we lived out in the middle of nowhere in southwestern Minnesota...I stand corrected. I also have a renewed understanding of the term, ranch. There weren't many houses in view along the drive (some mailboxes), but I saw a lot of ranches and cattle. Coming into the mountains we encountered rain and temperatures dropping vastly from a high of 87 somewhere along the way to 47 degrees. It cleared off later in the evening and was beautiful, cold but beautiful. Our campsite here is absolutely amazing along the Snake River. Listening to the river to fall asleep was priceless. 

Here is a pic of the campsite in the Black Hills. Gorgeous background but a lot of people. 

Jackson Hole

Snake River

We are literally steps from the river!