From Boise to Yellowstone and Back

In Less Than 48 Hours!

One of the things I love about my job is the ability to work from anywhere!  And, the freedom to take impromptu trips with my family. In June, Jeff and I flew to Boise with Molly and Jack. Jack was in a soccer tournament and the middle two kids were away at camp. Sadly, Jack’s team didn’t win their game to continue, but that left us with a couple spare days before our flight back to Phoenix.

Jeff really wanted to visit Red Lodge, Montana to visit some friends we hadn’t seen in almost a decade. He was apprehensive about sticking the kids in the car for the 13-hour road trip, and the kids didn’t start out very excited about it. But, I persisted (and did a little coaxing… err.. coaching) that we commit to it and we all had an absolute blast.

Off to Idaho Falls

There’s no easy route to get to Red Lodge, so we decided to take our time. One of our first stops was Idaho Falls through the Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve. Craters is a dormant volcanic area with a very odd landscape that you really won’t see anywhere else.

We also stopped into the Atomic Museum which was very interesting. It is so easy to forget there is a lot out there to see and do, even in the middle of Idaho.

Drive Through Yellowstone Outskirts

We continued on through the outskirts of Yellowstone. We saw a lot of wildlife—bear, deer, bison—as we drove through the park and ended up in the Lamar Valley. Absolutely incredible! We even took the Beartooth Highway and drove up to the Top of the World, where bison watched us pass from the side of the road.

Molly loved it, as you can see from the video! Even Jack agreed that this was a great idea. That made Jeff feel so much better about making the trip. And about 13 hours later, we arrived at Red Lodge.

Quick Turnaround

We were able to spend some time with our friends, relaxing on their patio and catching up. But at 8 a.m. the day after we arrived, we had to start heading back to Boise. We repeated our trip backwards, but were much more conscious about stops on the way back. Old Faithful and Yellowstone Lakes were must-sees, but we opted to leave a few other stops for our next trip.

I have to say, Jeff and I have seen some amazing and worldly sites, but this trip was definitely at the top of our list.

What unexpected place did your vacation take you this year?