US Road Trip: Yellowstone and A Drive through the Great American West

US Road Trip: Yellowstone and A Drive through the Great American West

I was living in Astoria, Oregon for the summer. Before returning to California, my friend and I planned a mini road trip and a visit to Yellowstone, America’s and the world’s first national park. Ever year millions of tourists flock to the park to see the hot springs, wildlife, mud pots, and geysers.

At first, I was worried that my car didn’t have snow tires or chain, and we had to drive through some snow areas. Fortunately, there were only a few snowy areas, and we managed to drive through without an incident. We drove on freeway I90, and there was nothing impressive along the route. Thank god I had Duat as a travel companion. Duat is one heck of a smart kid. When he was studying in Vietnam, he racked up a lot of medals in Computer Science and Math.

Not only that, he possesses tremendous knowledge about Vietnamese literature and music. The drive would be dull without him. We passed a city called Belgrade, named after the capital of Serbia. Apparently, wealthy Serbians supported a group of explorers who ended up discovery this city. A small city in the middle of nowhere probably doesn’t hold much attention for you, but for me, it does as I have just returned from a long year living in the former Yugoslavia.

We arrived at Yellowstone River Motel (www.yellowstonerivermotel.com), located in Gardiner city, around 1 p.m. ($46/night including tax for a double-bed room with free wireless Internet access.) The owner, Betty, was an exceptional host. She voluntarily provided us with useful information, gave us a microwave and even gave Duat a sweater because he forgot to bring warm clothes. If you visit Yellowstone via the North Gate entrance, check out this motel.

We pulled into a shop in Gardiner city, Montana

Map of Yellowstone

The tourist map of Yellowstone

We left the motel at 2:45 p.m. to explore the park. Since didn’t have a lot of time to see everything before dark, we drove all the way to Yellowstone Lake through Mammoth Hot Spring, Norris and Canyon without stopping to see the hot springs at Mammoth and geysers at Norris.

Yellowstone canyon

A close up shot of a deer in Yellowstone

We got out of Yellowstone through the south entrance because I wanted to pass Grand Teton National Park and the Snake River, having seen them in a famous black-white photograph shot by the famous photographer Ansel Adams.

Ansel Adams’s Tetons and Snake River

I wanted to take a similar photo but failed miserably in my attempt to find a spot where I could have the same view. “I think they took such pictures from another mountain. You can’t see the river standing low right here,” Duat said. We rode off.

At last, on highway I89 in Wyoming, I managed to snap a picture with the same concept: a trail leading toward infinity.

Finally, on highway I89 in Wyoming, I managed to capture an Ansel Adams’ infinity shot

Wyoming’s big open space left a big impression on me, a person who was born, grew up and have always lived in big cities. I’d never witnessed a sky so clear with clouds hanging so close to my head as if I could reach them with my bare hand. (Ok, I was exaggerating a little, but you got my point.) I’ve never had so much empty space. We drove for miles without seeing any vehicles. Nobody. Nothing. Just me and the whiz kid.

The big open space extended to Idaho although I saw more sights of living.

Idaho on freeway I89

We arrived in Salt Lake City at 9:30 p.m. to meet up with Duat’s college friends at a restaurant. We had dinner and headed to Provo to rest for the night before continuing home to California.

The famous Mormon church in Salt Lake City

Photo Credit: Onasill ~ Bill Badzo Flickr via Compfight cc