Driving Around in Circles

Google Maps

A pretty big circle, it seems.  Google says it's 3550 miles from where we are to where we're going and back again.  As to where we're going, that's influenced by all sorts of things.  We're going to do the route counter-clockwise so that it works out with our niece's wedding which is in some ways the biggest (but not the initial) influence.  If all goes well, it will be the first time in years that Mom and all my siblings have been in the same place at the same time.

I'm looking forward to meeting the parents of the groom.  Ellen & Pat recently moved to Ellensburg, Washington and are in the midst of fixing up an old farmhouse and the farm that goes with it. Ellen writes a wonderful blog about her transition from "city girl to country girl ... and God's great sense of humor..." Highly recommended!

Before we get there, we hope to enjoy the mountain vistas in Grand Teton and the wonders and wildlife in Yellowstone.  We'll pick up our grandson and spend a few days in Glacier and a day in Idaho before the wedding, followed by visits to Mom's place, BJ's hiking friend's place in Oregon, and ghost towns in California.

Twenty-four nights with the longest travel days being just over 300 miles.  It's a mixture of boondocking, National and State parks, Forest Service campgrounds, and commercial RV resorts.  We're looking forward to power for the air conditioner at the lower elevations.  Some of the places are going to be much more crowded than I'd like, but that's what you get when you visit popular National Parks in peak season.  Because of the schedule, we're leveraging reservations as much as possible.

We'll be moving faster than I'd like, but we need to save a week of vacation for our almost annual Green River float trip in late September.

We're all hooked up and ready to go, other than a shorter than normal day at the office tomorrow before we head out of town.  We'll try to do updates regularly assuming we can find wi-fi.