Day Nine | Yummy Breakfast, Mt. Rainier, Seattle and a Scary Van

We started the morning off right with breakfast at our resort. We love supporting small businesses, so we were happy to have breakfast with Nick, the three year-old grandson of the owner of our resort. Yummy, yummy food and only $20 for a HUGE breakfast!

Off we drove to Mt. Rainier. The temperature sure did drop when we hit the park; it was only 45 degrees! We stopped at all the Visitor Centers - Longmire, Paradise, Ohanapecosh, and Sunrise. Scott and the girls enjoyed some snowball fights along the way ...

We went on a hike through The Grove of the Patriarchs and saw some beautiful old trees. They were huge. It was amazing to see how large the Red Cedars could get after all those years.

It wasn't until we got to the top - Sunrise - that we saw how beautiful Mt. Rainier really was. Wow! If you are going to go to Mt. Rainier do not skip the drive to Sunrise. Fabulous views.

We drove to Seattle and dropped off the last of the Redbox movies. Yes, Annelies is kissing the Redbox cases - she was sad to see them go!

We settled into a Holiday Inn Express (used Scott's travel points) that we will stay at for the next two nights, threw in a load of laundry and emptied the rental van, completely. Let me tell you ... after nearly 3,000 miles on the road that thing was disgusting! Yikes! Tomorrow we will spend the day touring Seattle ...

Day eight: 215 miles (2,710 total); $59.64 on gas ($412.08 total); $66.34 on souvenirs ($371.53 total); $15 tourist traps ($410.17 total); One state (Six total); One Country (Two total); 1 fight (1 total); 1 injury (1 total).

Day Eight | Oregon Plate, Mt. St. Helen, and off too Rainier

Annelies slept in the closet last night. For some reason she has been opposed to sleeping with Paradis on this trip. She says Paradis is creepy and Scott snores (which he does at times, but what does it matter if you are sleeping next to him or in the bed one foot away?). 

We woke to find this deer just ten feet from our room when the girls were headed to the pool. Crazy. The wildlife is a little too friendly around this part of the country, but we are enjoying it. 

We needed an Oregon license plate, so we stopped at an auto repair shop by our hotel. We met the owner, Chris Page, who although didn’t have a modern plate, had a bunch of antique plates hanging on his wall. He took one off and gave it to us! Again, no lie. He was excited to hear about our travels and simply asked that we ‘friend’ him on Facebook. Please take a minute to friend Mt. Hood Auto and Tire on Facebook! 

Off we went to Mount St. Helens. As we crossed the Oregon/Washington border there wasn’t a ‘Welcome to Washington’ sign. So we stopped at the first rest stop and got this one … my traveling team thought it would be funny to hold me horizontally. Lovely. 

Mount St. Helens was foggy when we first arrived (there was a small part of me that was glad we got to use the rain jackets we packed!), but the skies cleared on our way down the mountain. We found the history of the volcano eruption to be fascinating. We wished we could have stayed a little longer at the Visitor Center, but we only had a couple hours. It was interesting to hear about the volcano erupting in 1980 and how Mother Earth has adapted since. 

We decided to drive all the way to Mount Rainier so we could see the park right away in the morning. The distance is only twenty miles as the crow flies, but took us two hours getting through the mountain and across the rivers. The drive was enjoyable. 

We stayed at Rainier Overland, a small resort just a few miles from Mt. Rainier’s Nisqually Entrance. We are anxious for our last National Park visit tomorrow. Both girls will be flying home with a bag full of pins, Junior Ranger badges and their Passport books filled with stamps. We will spend the day in Seattle and then travel to Victoria Canada via the ferry before we fly out on Monday.

Day eight: 264 miles (2,495 total); $62.92 on gas ($352.44 total); $17.28 on souvenirs ($305.19 total); $16 tourist traps ($395.17 total); Two states (Six total); One Country (Two total); 1 fight (1 total); 1 injury (1 total).

Day Eight | The Courthouse,

We got back on the road with the goal of getting a Washington license plate. I called several salvage yards and all stated they couldn't give plates away as they were required by the state to destroy them. I wouldn't give up, so I called the Licensing Bureau in a town an hour away. Lovely Haddy answered and said, "I can't sell you one, but I have a couple at home in my recycle bin. I will drive home and pick them up. Stop by on your way through town." This is no lie people. Haddy literally left her job at the Licensing Bureau, went home to get the license plates from her recycle bin, and brought them back to the courthouse for us! AND she had an Idaho plate as well. It was surreal!

We continued down the road, crossed the border into Oregon and stopped for the standard photo.

We continued down the road to beautiful Mount Hood. Amazing. Have I said that yet? This country of ours is absolutely amazing! We drove up to Timberline Lodge, picked up a few souvenirs and ended up in Welch Village. We were all ready for a relaxing evening, so I negotiated a great rate at The Resort on the Mountain and we hung out for the evening swimming in the pool and relaxing. 

I added a Quote Wall and Slide Show of ALL our photos to the blog. Check it out in the right-hand column (on the web if you are getting email updates). 

Day eight: 371 miles (2231 total); $59.44 on gas ($289.52 total); $40 on souvenirs ($287.91 total); $0 tourist traps ($379.17 total); Two states (Six total); One Country (Two total); 1 fight (1 total); 1 injury (1 total).

Day Seven | Bye Cozy Cabin, West Glacier, Rafting, Idaho and Washington

We packed up and said good-bye to our Cozy Cabin in Glacier. Annelies and Scott had a little power struggle over taking her medication, so I’m going to have to mark that as our first fight. Needless to say, she refused to join us for the Cozy Cabin photo!

We drove to West Glacier, did a little souvenir shopping and drove the Going to the Sun road within the park. The drive was OK – but the scenery was nothing like the East side of Glacier. It felt more like big hills with trees vs. mountains with snow. Don’t get me wrong, it was beautiful but we are glad we spent more time on the East. We also noticed that the West side was very busy. Much more touristy. 

Next we went Whitewater Rafting. What a blast! We had a choice between the ‘family ride’ or one with rapids. What do you think my team said when I asked which one? Paradis said, “I want to get wet!” Annelies said, “I want the more dangerous one!” Shortly after we started floating down the river, guess who was in the back steering the raft with our guide? Yes, Annelies! Wish I had a photo to show you, but I had to buy a waterproof disposable camera; I’m hoping some of them turn out!

We bought a few souvenirs, said good-bye to Glacier, stopped at a Redbox kiosk to gear up for the drive, and drove to Spokane (5 ½ hours). Along the way we drove through Paradis, Montana. Of course we had to stop and get a picture.

We crossed into Idaho on busy I90, but pulled over on the side and snapped a few pictures. State #17 for the girls! We also crossed into Washington, but didn't see a welcome sign - we will have to get one on our way out. 

We checked in at a Days Inn in downtown Spokane and fell asleep within minutes. Good day … we are sad to see Glacier go but are looking forward to Mt. Hood, Mt. St. Helens and Mt. Rainier.  

Day seven: 519 miles (1,860 total); $0 on gas ($230.08 total); $113.76 on souvenirs ($241.04 total); $179.12 tourist traps ($379.17 total); Three states (Five total); One Country (Two total); 1 fight (1 total); 1 injury (1 total).

Day Six | Rest, Oh Canada, and a Firework Finale … Eh?

The Fourth of July started with me making an executive decision that my traveling team could use a couple extra hours of sleep. So our original plan of catching the 10:00 boat tour moved to 1:00. I spent the morning making lunches, doing laundry, cleaning the Cozy Cabin, hauling garbage to the dumpster (I was in heaven) and picking up warm cinnamon rolls! Yum, yum. 

We hit the road and drove to Canada. Yes, we left the country on one of the biggest celebration days of our country’s history! One of the best parts of the day was simply crossing the American/Canadian border and seeing how the land was cleared all the way from Montana to the Pacific Ocean (see the cut in the trees just above my left shoulder). The girls loved it. Scott and I were relieved they didn't search our car and find the large box of fireworks we had stashed in the trunk!

We drove to Waterton, located on the Canadian side of Glacier Park, and boarded a boat that took us on a two hour ride down Waterton Lake.  We docked at Goat Haunt which is on the American side of the park. Beautiful. When we arrived, we got our passports stamped, once again, with a cute goat stamp!

We did a little shopping to pick up our pins and stamps and Annelies became a Junior Explorer (equal to Junior Ranger in America). We had an early dinner at Trapper’s Mountain Grill (Scott had to smell the ketchup since it wasn’t Heinz) and hit the road back to the great U.S. of A. We stopped on the way home and finished up all the ‘twirly – shooting – twisty – exploding’ fireworks on the side of the road overlooking one of the best Fourth of July backgrounds we have ever had. The girls would like to travel every Fourth of July, to any state that legalizes fun fireworks! They had a blast!

I would like to take a moment to thank my traveling team. When Scott and I first met, 17 years ago, the first year of our relationship was built around planning a month-long trip to Europe. Travel became a large part of our lives and I learned rather quickly I love traveling with him. We are great partners. Everyday I’m reminded at how much I enjoy traveling with Annelies and Paradis as well. We don’t vacation like normal Americans – I realize that. Our goal is to immerse ourselves in the natural environment of the locals as much as possible, we love learning about the history of this wonderful country, we avoid eating out and getting sucked into tourist traps, we love collecting things (pins, rocks, pressed pennies), we love to meet new people along our journeys and we are just downright cheap! There isn't a day that goes by that one of us doesn’t get caught in a huge belly laugh on account of another. We have a democratic process of voting on what we want to do and just simply have fun. I completely admit Drivin’ the Dream was my dream; but this team has jumped on board and more importantly embraced the dream themselves. Thanks Scott, Paradis and Annelies … you three rock!

Day six: 156 miles (1,497 total); $0.00 on gas ($230.08 total); $62.13 on souvenirs ($127.28 total); $121.05 tourist traps ($200.05 total); One state (Three total); Two Countries (Two total); 0 fights (0 total); 1 injury (1 total).

Day Five | A Real Glacier, Workout, New Captain and More Fireworks

Day five was another day in Glacier. Our second goal while visiting Glacier was to see ... well, a glacier! This is not the best time to see Glaciers in the park as they had 150% snow coverage this past winter. All the glaciers are currently covered with snow - which is a good thing to help preserve them longer, but doesn't allow the Vandeputte family to see one up close. Of the 150 glaciers that existed in the mid-19th century, only 24 exist in the park today, and they estimate they will all be gone by 2030. So I wanted the girls to see a glacier on this trip. You can typically hike to Grinnell glacier, but not today - or maybe not even this season due to the large amount of snow. But we all saw two snow-covered glaciers today and have photos to capture the moment ...

We started our day in St. Mary park just north of East Glacier. We boarded a boat which took us for a ride on Lake Mary allowing us to see Sexton Glacier as well as a couple islands on the lake up close. We docked near Barring Falls and joined another Ranger Led hike through two falls; Barring Falls and St. Mary's Falls. We were told another mile up the path was a third water fall that couldn't be missed, Virginia Falls. So we ditched the group and headed onward to a site that was just spectacular. Scott and the girls hiked close and got soaked as I shot some photos ...

We settled down for a picnic at the base of the falls and enjoyed the view.

Since we had ditched the Ranger Led group earlier, we were on our own to catch the boat for the return  trip. We noticed it was 1:25 and although had originally planned to catch the 3:00 boat back, the girls wanted to try and make it to the 2:00 boat so we could gain an extra hour in our day (I just love those two!). So we started running ... and kept running ... and running. Everyone we past along the way just starred at us like, "Aren't we suppose to be enjoying this hike through nature, not speed through it?". One couple yelled "Overachievers!". When we got near the boat dock, and Scott yelled, "It is 1:50, we can make it," the girls kicked it into third gear and left Scott and I in the dust. We arrived sweaty but excited that we would gain another hour in our day just to find out that a boat wasn't scheduled to return at 2:00! No kidding ... we ran all that way to sit for an hour waiting for the 3:00 boat!!

After catching a little siesta on the boat dock we boarded the Joy II with Captain Pete and headed back toward St. Mary's Visitor Center. Scott, Paradis and I sat in the back of the boat, which was outside. Annelies went up front to visit with Captain Pete - we all said simultaneously, "God help him!" Minutes later I saw Captain Pete standing in the aisle, not at the controls. My heart started beating a million miles an hour when I couldn't find Annelies anywhere. As my eyes quickly scanned the crowd I finally caught her in this position ... driving the boat! Oh how I love that girl!!!!

After eating at Johnson's Diner in St. Mary (as suggested by Captain Pete), we drove back to our Cozy Cabin, took our required showers, downed a little Ibuprofen (as a couple of us were a little sore from the run!), lit a few fireworks (only those that wouldn't shoot in the air!) and went to bed. It was yet another great day in Glacier.

[After reading the draft of this entry to my traveling team, Scott was surprised to find out I hadn't included the fact that Captain Pete was hot. OK ... so he was! Just another wonderful view to enjoy while traveling in Glacier Park.]

Day five: 50 miles (1,286 total); $68.88 on gas ($230.08 total); $49.23 on souvenirs ($65.15 total); $69 tourist traps ($79 total); One state (Three total); 0 fights (0 total); 1 injury (1 total).

Day Four | Going to the Top, Huckleberry Pie, Brownies and Fireworks

Immediately upon arriving at Glacier we spent time browsing Trail Maps discussing where we wanted to hike. We knew five days in Glacier was not nearly enough time to see this park, and we would have to focus on some agreed upon goals. Annelies summed up our goal in one sentence, "I want to go to the top!". So Day Four started in Medicine Lake (East Glacier) hiking Scenic Point; a fairly short hike (6.2 miles) but with the steepest climb (2,350 feet). We figured .. if we are going to do this, let's do it right!

Morning folks we are not, so our goal of hitting the trail by 9am didn't get met. But it worked out perfectly, as we stumbled upon a Ranger Led Hike when we got to the Trailhead at 10:30am. Pat Hagan was our guide and I absolutely fell in love with him. No, he wasn't hot, but he was entertaining. At times my girls get a little bored while hiking, "Are we there yet?", "How much further?", "My legs are killing me." Pat's entertaining stories about bears in Glacier, information about other wildlife and just about the Park in general made the hike go so much quicker. I loved him so much I stressed over the question  ... is it appropriate to tip a National Park Ranger? Since it didn't feel right, I instead went to the local diner, where we bought a piece of local Huckleberry Pie (yummy), and a copy of his book Seasonal Disorder: Ranger Tales from Glacier National Park. Looks like a great read.

But I digress  ... we were told this hike had 'great payoffs' within minutes. They weren't kidding. The best way I can describe the views was that I felt like I was living inside a postcard the whole way to the top. Amazing. Just amazing. I took 200 pictures on the way up and that was while saying to myself the whole climb, "Don't take too many pictures ... don't take too many pictures."

When we got home, Paradis made dinner while we all took showers (yes, we did sweat a little). We walked to the local diner (Luna's Cafe) and had Huckleberry Pie and a Brownie Sundae. Y-U-M-M-Y. Our first injury of the trip occurred when Paradis banged her head on the spiral staircase that leads to our Cozy Cabin loft. Ouch ... that hurt! Hopefully our only injury for the trip!

We came back to our Cozy Cabin and the girls sorted out the 'Independence Special' box that included millions of fireworks we had bought the day prior. Since fireworks aren't legal in Minnesota our girls were pumped about setting some off. We were having a grand old time just outside our cabin, which happens to be next to a road, until one of the fireworks started twirling into the air across the road just as a car started driving by. Scott and I just kept saying, "This isn't good ... this isn't good ... this isn't good " Once that sucker landed just feet from the passing car Scott and I said, "Time to wrap it up for the night!" and went inside with the hopes the owners of the car didn't dial 911 on their way past our little Cozy Cabin! We will do some more tomorrow night. In an open parking lot.

Day four: 35 miles (1,236 total); $0 on gas ($161.20 total); $0 on souvenirs (15.92 total); $10 tourist traps ($10 total); One state (Three total); 0 fights (0 total); 1 injury (1 total).

Day Three | A little more driving, a new knitting project and ahhhh ... Glacier!

Day three was the shortest driving day, but felt the longest. We were ready to settle in one place.

We took 'the road less traveled' between Great Falls and Browning where we discovered a very scenic drive, but very few places to stop and use the bathroom. Annelies just couldn't wait, so we stopped at a 'variety store' of sorts. I was excited to find a large section of the store was dedicated to YARN! Yes, yummy hand-spun and hand-dyed yarn! Annelies bought some yarn to start a scarf and balled it while we drove.

We made it to East Glacier and discovered our 'Cozy Cabin' was just what we needed. It was cozy, but clean and had all the essentials we would need for the next few days. We unpacked the van and immediately headed into Two Medicine Lake of Glacier Park. It was amazing. While preparing for this trip everyone would tell us, "The views are absolutely amazing", "You won't be disappointed." We weren't.

We ended the evening having a light dinner at Two Medicine Grill and got some great advice from Aaron, our waitstaff, on hiking trails and things to see. A great first day in Glacier Park.

Day Two | An Anniversary, License Plate, Flood, Theodore Roosevelt Park and Lots of Miles

Day two was another success! We started on the road from Fargo, ND and ended in Lewistown, MT. Scott and I were married on this day, 16 years ago in beautiful Venice Italy - Happy Anniversary Sweetheart. On that day we vowed to see the world together and although many changes (and additions!) have occurred since, we continue to pursue our dreams.

Our first stop was Gille's Auto Salvage Yard in Valley City, ND where we scored North Dakota, Minnesota, South Dakota and Washington license plates. If you are new to following our blog we collect a license plate from every state with the goal of using the plates to create a License Plate Map. This is usually one of the highlights of our day ... crazy, but true.

We caught a small glimpse of the North Dakota flooding on I94; the road was down to one lane where the water was being held back by sand bags.

We stopped at Theodore Roosevelt National Park on the West side of North Dakota. It reminded us of the South Dakota Badlands. Beautiful. The girls stamped their National Park passport books and Annelies became a Junior Ranger.

We were determined to get a better 'Welcome to North Dakota' sign, so on our way out of the state we pulled over on the side of I94, took a picture of the Montana sign, walked (briskly) across both highways and took a picture of the North Dakota sign! SUCCESS!

We got back on the road and spent the rest of the day driving through Montana, the most desolate area of the United States I have ever seen; Highway 200 just west of Glendive. We would go 60 miles without seeing anyone or any homes; and no internet service via my treasured air card. I had to resort to knitting a scarf (finished it) and talk endlessly to Scott. He is hoping I will have internet service Friday!

We stayed at a Bed & Breakfast in the heart of Limekiln Canyon (Duvall Inn), just north of Lewistown. We discovered an absolutely breathtaking view outside our door upon awakening. The girls were elated to find horses roaming freely in the yard. We went on a short hike, had breakfast, and got back on the road towards Glacier. The weather is perfect.

Day two: 663 miles (935 total); $105.60 on gas ($161.20 total); $15.92 on souvenirs (15.920 total); $10 tourist traps ($10 total); Two states (Three total); 0 fights (0 total); 0 injuries (0 total).