Yellowstone and Mt. Rushmore, June 2025

I thought our road trip would be filled with hours of idle time, lazily wasting the day away and then comfortably continuing our journey onward. Instead, I learned that driving from point A to point B can easily take up the entire day.

For example:

• Portland to Coeur d’Alene should’ve taken six hours, but we detoured through Walla Walla to get burritos with Andrew and Charlotte.
• Coeur d’Alene to Yellowstone should’ve taken seven hours, but we stumbled upon a really cool Old Montana State Prison we had to check out.
• Yellowstone to Billings managed to take the expected three and a half hours.
• Billings to Mt. Rushmore should’ve taken five and a half hours, but Ava and Charlie were having too much fun in the hotel pool.

Thankfully, we had a few great audio books (Space Case was our favorite) and an endless supply of Extra Watermelon gum.

Ava’s trip highlights:

1. Mt. Rushmore
2. Jewel Cave Historic Lantern Tour
3. Grand Geyser
4. Presidential Wax Museum in Keystone
5. Jamaican food in Rapid City, South Dakota

Charlie’s trip highlights:

1. Hiking to Lone Star Geyser
2. Mt. Rushmore
3. Grand Geyser
4. Jewel Cave
5. Earning Junior Ranger badges

My trip highlight: countless hours exploring with my kids.