Road trip Montana

Last weekend, Christine and I took a road trip to a friend's wedding in Montana. Despite my efforts, we did not find Hannah.

Windmill blades

We got a leisurely start Thursday morning and headed north to Wyoming. The beginning of this trip was sure to be a bore. Even with at copy of Roadside Geology of Wyoming book at hand, there's just not that much interesting stuff going on along I-80.One of the more interesting things was seeing a trainload of windmill blades.

On the first day of the trip, we were just driving up to Jackson. Once you get up near the Wind River Range, the landscape gets way more visually appealing. We stopped a couple times along the road to check out the river and to give our car-sick prone dog a chance to stretch her legs on solid ground. If you find yourself hungry in Jackson, WY, make your way over to Snake River Brewing. I wasn't as enamored with the beer this time as I was last time I was there a few years ago, but the food was really good. And for bagels, don't go to Pearl Street Bagels. It's the only bagel shop I've ever heard of that doesn't have a toaster. I'm still shocked by this.

Jackson Lake

Friday morning we drove from Jackson up to Livingston, MT with a tour through Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks. Unfortunately, there wasn't time for much more than a few stops inside the national parks so it was a rather rushed tour. As people who would normally prefer to get off the beaten path, it feels weird to be wandering around with the masses of other people at selected parking lots.

The last time I was in Yellowstone was 1988. The only reason I know the year is because that's the year there were huge wildfires there and we had left just before they started. I remember thinking about how terrible it was that the park was burning, not knowing that it's all part of the natural cycle of things. This time, I could see the 20 year old tree growing up in the remnants of the fire damage.

I don't think I'll ever get over how weird it is to see bubbling mud, or steam rising from holes in the ground. It's a very strange place. On the Wyoming-Montana boarder, there is a hot spring called Boiling River. It flows into the Gardner River about a half mile off the road. The highlight of this trip to Yellowstone was probably taking a warm soak in this confluence. Well worth the walk if you're in the area.

Yellowstone River

Yellowstone River Lower Falls

Artists Paintpots

Murray Hotel

Once in Livingston, we settled in to our room at the historic Murray Hotel. It's a neat hotel that has been in operation since the early 1900's. Saturday morning I went out for a ride on my cyclocross bike and had a good time exploring some nearby dirt roads and hills. I'm pretty sure nearly everyone in Livingston fishes. It seems I couldn't ride anywhere without seeing boats on/behind trucks, or people getting fishing gear together while they waited for a buddy. Someday I may have to get up there for some fishing.

The wedding was Saturday night at the Yellowsone Valley Ranch. The setting was beautiful and the skies were cloudless for a very nice outdoor wedding. Afterward, the celebration continued with a whole roasted pig, veggies, and more. All local food (the bride is a nutritionist and is big on supporting the local agriculture). The party carried on into the night, but Christine and I retired a little early back to the Chico Hot Springs where we enjoyed a quick soak.

Sunday morning, we made the long drive back to Fort Collins. I-90 to I-25. Not very exciting, but very windy.