Casper, WY

After a long day of travel, two days in one place was exactly what we needed. Even better, we had two rooms—a rare treat. It made all the difference: everyone had their own bed, and Annie had a quiet space to work on Tuesday.

Monday night, we headed into downtown Casper for dinner and a short walk around the city. On Tuesday, the kids and I took it easy. We watched a movie, hit up a fun buffet and arcade, and went swimming while Annie worked. Once she wrapped up, we all went back into town for a little shopping, followed by dinner at a local “saloon.”

These two days gave us just what we needed before venturing deeper into Wyoming: a chance to rest, a place to work, some good meals, and squeeze in a little fun before the journey to Cody and Yellowstone.

 

Cheyenne, WY

 After a long trip the kids needed some down time.  We spent the morning the the Tru Hilton Lobby playing games, reading, and swimming.  It was just what the doctor ordered.  We did take some time to explore Cheyenne before leaving though.  We explored a cute little downtown area, a local park, and Frontier Park.  Cheyenne is the smallest capital city I've ever seen.  

5 states in one day

 During dinner the night before in Kansas City, we asked the kids how they wanted to handle the next day’s travel. We had a few options: stop after a few hours in Lincoln, push on a bit farther into Nebraska, or just see how far we could go. The kids—still riding high on road trip excitement—chose the bold route: “Let’s just see how far we can make it.”

The answer? Twelve hours. Five states. Nearly 700 miles.

We started in Kansas City (Missouri) and took a completely unnecessary detour into Kansas—just so I could yell “First in Kansas!” before promptly turning around. From there, we dipped briefly into Iowa before settling in for a very long drive across Nebraska. Flat, endless Nebraska.

Marley didn’t stop talking the entire time. He called out every cow (there are a lot), voiced every grievance with his sisters, and shared whatever happened to be on his mind—nonstop. It was adorable… for the first couple of hours.

At last, we arrived in Cheyenne, Wyoming. We assured the kids: no more state lines for a while—we’re staying put in Wyoming for a couple of weeks.

St. Louis and Kansas City

 While St. Louis isn’t exactly “on the way” from Michigan to Yellowstone, we chose this route to begin our journey at the Gateway to the West. We had planned a picnic under the Arch, but rain called for a change of plans. Instead, we ate at the museum café—which may have worked out for the best. Faith discovered toasted ravioli, a St. Louis classic, and it was a hit.

None of us had been to the Arch before. It's a unique national park, and the museum beneath it is packed with great exhibits about the city’s history, westward expansion, Lewis & Clark, the Mormon Trail, and more.

With the rain still coming down, we hit the road early for Kansas City—a 3.5-hour drive. It turned out to be a great call. We arrived with time to explore downtown, ride the streetcar to the Freight House District, and enjoy some excellent BBQ at Jack Stack’s on the patio. The restaurant sits in a restored freight depot, and we had dinner while watching trains roll by—Marley was thrilled.

This time, we stayed downtown at the historic Phillips Hilton. It's within walking distance of Main Street, the trolley line, shops, restaurants, and even a grocery store. Parking was a bit of an adventure—the valet didn’t bother with the garage and just left our Subaru out front the whole stay. But that made for a fast getaway in the morning, which we needed. Our longest travel day was still ahead.

Chicago

While we didn’t have much time before heading to our next stop, we were still able to enjoy a quick visit to the Windy City. We chose to stay outside of Chicago to avoid traffic and the hassle of parking with our car-top carrier—our vehicle is often too tall for standard parking garages.

Our first stop was Navy Pier. Lainey and I had visited Chicago a few months earlier, but the pier was closed that day due to high winds. Lainey found it ironic—Navy Pier, in the windiest part of the Windy City, shut down because of wind! But this time, we lucked out. The weather was perfect, and the breeze was just right. We rode the Ferris wheel, Tower Drop, swings, and a few other rides before heading to the Ice Cream Museum.

Lainey and I had been to the museum before, but the rest of the family had no idea what kind of fun was in store. Once inside, they took the “train” to the museum, explored all the colorful exhibits, and ate so much ice cream that Marley actually said he didn’t want any more—a rare moment for a four-year-old! Even Annie and I overindulged and went to bed with mild tummy aches.

By late afternoon, we were back on the road—heading toward St. Louis to officially kick off our epic adventure westward.

Setting Out

After a long day of preparations, we finally set out on our epic trip out West. We had planned for a late departure—Annie had work, the kids had school, and packing took longer than expected. Still, we left even later than planned. We thought we’d hit the road around 4 or 5, but it was nearly 7 before we pulled out of the driveway—and almost 8 by the time we circled back to grab the things we forgot.

As a result, it was nearly 11:30 p.m. (12:30 Eastern Time) when we pulled into our hotel in Burr Ridge, just outside Chicago. But no one seemed to mind. The adults hadn’t planned anything for the night, and the kids were excited to be on the road—with their own space, seat-back organizers, and iPads. The real adventure would begin tomorrow.

41 year old birthday boy goes to Chuck E Cheese