End: Holiday Inn Express, Billings, MT
Total miles: 410 miles
Last night we got a TINY glimpse into having a teenager. Emma went out with some family and friends from Bismarck and didn't get back until 11:30pm, which was totally fine, but we obviously waited up until she was back and in bed! LOL Luckily, she's probably the most responsible 15 year old alive, so that helps!! I don't know if I can say the same for her uncle ;)
I've been fighting a migraine for over a week and exercise seems to help, so I got up and went for a 5K run at the hotel. Well, when I got done, I checked on the kiddos and WOKE THEM ALL UP at 8:45am!!! I guess traveling takes it out of them. I mean, I don't think Finn has slept passed 7:30am in like 8 years!
Even given that, we were packed and on the road at 9:20am! Really amazing, but we had about a 6 hour drive ahead of us and wanted to get going and were looking forward to a stop at Teddy Roosevelt National Park.
We stopped for a bathroom break at Painted Canyon Overlook/Rest Stop. Unfortunately, it was super foggy and we couldn't see a ton BUT we did (almost) have a run in with a rattlesnake! Okay, not really BUT somebody saw one while we were there, so the rangers went looking for it. They didn't find it but did ask Jim to help them look. He was a kid in a candy store for sure! I, however, was ready to go the instant I heard the "S" word!
We left and went to TRNP, which I've been looking forward to for three years. We didn't do the South loop because part of the road was closed, but we drove in, saw Prairie Dogs (Emma's favorite...oh, they are so cute!!) and had a picnic lunch. We hope to see more of it on the way back.
We finally drove out of the rain and fog and into Montana so Emma was able to drive for a bit. I think Jim likes guiding her and giving her tips. He also taught her about Adaptive Cruise Control. He may have ruined her for life! LOL
We made an impromptu stop at Pompey's Pillar National Monument, which is a rock formation and the only remaining on-site physical evidence of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. It was super informative and a good little hike, which Korri did NOT like.
There was a trail along the Yellowstone River at Pompey's Pillar that I would have loved to explore, but we'd already stopped for quite a while and I didn't think my kiddos had ANOTHER "hike" in them. So we headed to the hotel. We unpacked and the boys went swimming. Korri relaxed in our room while Emma rested in the kiddos' room (she had a headache and backache and probably needed some quiet time away from the chaos of our family for a bit!!).
I think we're headed to Idaho Fall, ID tomorrow which will bring us to YELLOWSTONE! Super excited and hope to see some wildlife.
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