montana
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Yellowstone National Park, part I: Mammoth to Madison
Last week, I published a comprehensive guide to visiting Yellowstone National Park, which was largely focused on planning a trip to the park: logistics, navigation, accommodations etc. If you’ve stumbled across this post because you’re planning a visit to Yellowstone, I’d recommend starting there, as it’s much more focused on the big picture. However, I… Continue reading
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Driving the Beartooth Highway
In my opinion, no trip to Yellowstone National Park is complete without a drive over the Beartooth Highway. This scenic byway – US Highway 212 – connects the northeast (Cooke City) entrance of Yellowstone to the town of Red Lodge, Montana. Between these two destinations lies the Beartooth Mountains, a rugged range that sits atop… Continue reading
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A photo a day: Yellowstone edition
This past July, we loaded up the car, drove up to Montana, and spent a week exploring Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks with my in-laws. While I’d been to both parks before and my husband had been to Yellowstone twice, this was the first ever visit for my in-laws. It was very much a… Continue reading
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Campsite roundup: best spots we’ve ever pitched a tent
Back in May, we were relaxing at our campsite in Hovenweep National Monument and enjoying the view, and I remarked that it had been a while since we’d had a scenic campsite like this. My husband agreed, and then joked that I should write a blog post listing our best campsites. He should know better… Continue reading
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A guide to visiting Yellowstone National Park in the winter
I’m in the process of doing a complete overhaul of my old Yellowstone National Park posts because, well, they’re old and in dire need of an update. Given my many visits to the park over the years, it’s a large undertaking. We’re also headed back to Yellowstone this coming summer, so I’m going to wait… Continue reading
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A winter snowcoach adventure in Yellowstone National Park
As mentioned in a couple previous posts, this past Christmas we eschewed traditional gift-giving in favor of travel. Specifically, an overnight trip into the heart of Yellowstone National Park. Despite visiting many times, a winter overnight was something we’d never done, largely due to the expense. Only the northernmost road in Yellowstone remains open to… Continue reading
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Snapshots from the sky: Colorado to Montana
I know I said a couple weeks ago that posts about our Thanksgiving roadtrip to Utah were upcoming – and they are – but I’ve decided to shake things up a bit and talk about our Christmas trip to Yellowstone National Park first. For the last few years, my family and I have repeatedly found… Continue reading
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A comprehensive guide to visiting Glacier National Park
(Updated May 2025) I know some people have a hard time answering the question “what’s your favorite place you’ve ever been?” Not me. Hands down, it’s Glacier National Park and the Canadian Rockies (and yes, I know those are technically two separate places). In fact, I love Glacier so much that we originally planned to… Continue reading
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A photo a day: Glacier National Park
This past summer, we celebrated our anniversary with a two-week roadtrip to my favorite place: Glacier National Park. It was my husband’s first ever trip to Glacier – though he’s been listening to me rave about it for years now – and I was so excited for him to finally see the park with his… Continue reading
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Montana road trip 2023, part II: hiking to Leigh Lake
Just a few miles south of Libby, Montana, deep in the Cabinet Mountains, is a (somewhat) hidden gem: Leigh Lake. This is supposedly the most popular hike in the area, but it seems as though its level of popularity depends on your perspective. We hiked this trail on a Monday and encountered probably 10-12 other… Continue reading
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Walking in a winter wonderland – Lava Lake, Montana
A while back, I saw photos of this snow-covered wonderland and I knew I had to see it for myself. It took a few years to find the opportunity, but I finally managed to squeeze it in. We arrived at the trailhead around 10:00am on a Friday to find an icy road to the parking… Continue reading
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Wild Mustangs and Montana Skies – Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area
Memorial weekend in Colorado was a snowy mess, so it was fortunate that I’d already made plans to visit Bighorn Canyon with my mom. We set off on Friday morning, reaching Bighorn Canyon by early afternoon. The main visitor center is located in the town of Lovell, Wyoming a few miles from the Rec Area… Continue reading
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A Year in Review: #52HikeChallenge 2019
In 2019, for the first time ever, I participated in the 52 Hike Challenge. This is exactly what it sounds like: the challenge of completing 52 hikes in 52 weeks. The only guidelines are that the hike should be at least 1 mile (1.6 km) long, you can complete a maximum of 1 hike per… Continue reading
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Wildflowers and a Montana Summit – Hyalite Peak
Years ago, I hiked to Hyalite Lake. It’s 11 miles (17.5 km) roundtrip, closer to 13 miles (21 km) when you add in all the detours to the many waterfalls along the way, and my feet were pretty exhausted by the time we were back to the car. But the trail doesn’t end at Hyalite… Continue reading
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Crypt Lake – Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta
If you’ve ever hiked to Crypt Lake, you’ll understand why it’s on my All-Time Favorite Hikes list. If you haven’t, you should definitely add it to your to-do list. It’s also high on the list of the most challenging hikes I’ve ever done. It’s incredibly difficult but also incredibly – well – incredible. It’s the entire reason we… Continue reading
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