Well, it’s been about three days since we arrived back in Eugene after our much awaited road trip to Montana.
There’s no place like home.
The house is quiet now; it’s 10:26 p.m. on a Tuesday night. Geoff and I are piled on the bed. He with a good book, and I with the laptop. Bella snores her quiet sleep in her bed just there across our dim room. Takes a few days to settle in again, to come back mentally from such a relaxing trip.
Our luggage has finally all been unpacked by now, the dirty laundry done. I just made the trek to the post office this afternoon to pick up the mail that had accumulated. I guess it’s back to life as usual.
But for one entire week this past summer, Geoff & I escaped. Click here for pictures. Click here for videos. We trucked our precious little “Bella-nator” off to the boarder, made our deposit and skedaddled. We loaded up the shiny new Rav, made our arrangements and closed the door on our kitties as they sat dumbfounded before their giant tower of food we save for special occasions such as this. The last thing I remember was of them madly munching away.
The next thing I know, we are on our anticipated road trip with friends in the back seat. It was uber early, coffee was being passed around. Groggy sleep from the night before quickly turned into excited car chatter as we tacked on the miles. Destination: Montana. Actually, to be more specific…Destination: Ultra cool, fancy/shmancy log cabin on the lake in Montana.
Approximately 30 hours round trip in a car with four people & a small dog is a recipe for stories. Unfortunately, at this point all I can recollect are the following: 1.) We must have driven past/through/nearby almost all of the 20-something towns I used to live in at some point in my life. While I was having a blast going down memory lane, I can only imagine what the other passengers were thinking. 2.) We certainly did not want for entertainment as we were often treated to various road-side anomalies such as rare & irresistible festivals. Despite not being able to stop and visit, the banners and hoop-la that could be gleaned from our very own seats in the vehicle were enough to create giggles for miles. Sweet Pea Festival? Testicle Festival? Anyone? 3.) I can now say I know what it is like to almost spend the night in my car amongst three other people. Note to self: reservations are definitely a must when traveling across country, because you never know when the elusive Sweet Pea Festival will cause an otherwise empty town to overflow with people needing a hotel room. Somehow, we were able to get the last of two remaining rooms available in Bozeman. What luck! Granted…our room smelled like the kitchen of Panda Express all night long…but it was better than the car. Besides, there is nothing like waking up in the morning strangely craving an egg roll. 5.) I also now know what it is like to nearly run out of gas while in the middle of nowhere, while all passengers wait with baited breath as the driver curses their way on…mumbling about how the strong winds must have botched the mileage we expected to get out of this tank of gas. And finally, 4.) I know that there are only three other people in the entire world who will read and smile at the following phrases: “llama, mosquito!, newfoundland” “razor-back boar, shellfish..” & “xylotrope, yak, Zebra.”
The rest of the trip is now kinda a blur. It’s always interesting how true the following saying is: “It’s not the destination that matters, but the journey.”
Still, the destination deserves some description here. Although my ideal vacation in my mind has always included sand, crystal clear water & florescent colors, August in Montana was just as well. We got to spend the week in a gorgeous cabin situated right off of Hebgen Lake. Approximately 20 minutes from the West Yellowstone Park entrance, a hot tub & a boat, and eight others to share it with, we were never bored. After arriving from our long journey, we each chose our rooms reality-show-style, and what ensued from there was a week long string of events. Water skiing, hiking, swinging on the front porch reading, cool nights in the hot tub, visiting, cooking, eating, board games, games of frisbee, white water rafting, exploring Yellowstone.
Yellowstone. What is there to say? It truly is the most dreadful/beautiful place I have ever seen. I mean to say this in a positive way. Please do not misinterpret. If you have experienced it, then you may understand what I mean, though I am not sure. The company I was with during my visit did not seem to understand me at the time when I mentioned it mid-hike. It was so expansive and pristine. It was amazing to know that what I saw today, was what it looked like yesterday. Seeing the animals in their habitat. That was the beautiful part. Visiting all of the geysers and geological activity and the resulting impact on the land. That was the ugly part. Imagining what was going on underneath my feet made me shiver. While other tourists oohed and ahhed…I wondered.
In the end, it was a perfect vacation. We made new friends. Spent more time with old ones. We laughed a lot. Sometimes we cried.
It’s nearly midnight now. Geoff has already turned out his light, Bella’s sleep is quieter now.
It has taken a few days to settle in again, but it is good to be home.