Ben's 2019 Summer Road Trip

I've spent most of this week hanging with Western Koller relatives: first Uncle John and Aunt Betty in Greybull, WY for Monday and Tuesday night, then cousin Justin and his girlfriend Kristen here in Three Forks, MT Wednesday and Thursday night. Greybull is a small, dusty town north-central Wyoming, with not a whole lot going on, but John and Betty were very hospitable. We caught up on my trip, status of different family members, and various other goings-on. I also got to hear John's thoughts and musings on topics ranging from their problematic neighbors, the state of NBA basketball, and wondering why so many young men these days are growing beards. John and I went on a nice hike outside town up through a canyon to a scenic ridge with a good view of the surrounding area (desert on one side, but a little more color and some big mountains on the other side). John was also on the lookout for Indian artifacts on the walk, and picked out several that he identified as showing signs o...

After the Badlands, my next destination was the Black Hills in western South Dakota. I took a quick trip to Mt Rushmore, which felt pretty tourist-y, but it was right in the area, so I figured I might as well. It was indeed packed with tourists, but it was cool to see it up close and in person. Took some pics, although they look pretty much exactly the same as what's on google images, but... at least I know I was there? The main goal of the Black Hills was to try some backpacking, so I did an overnight trip up Black Elk Peak (formerly Harney Peak), the tallest point in the US east of the Rockies (7.244 feet). You can ascend the peak directly via a fairly easy trail, so I made a bit more of a trip out of it, taking an indirect trail out and around the mountain taking 9-10 miles to get to the peak. My pack felt like it weighed a ton, which was more of an issue with back/shoulder strain than with the extra weight for my legs. Maybe because I was hauling a ton of water (don't wan...

Badlands! Well, before that...Sioux City! No offense to the folks who live there, but not sure that Sioux City deserves an exclamation point. But it was my next overnight stop after leaving Chicago, since I couldn't make it to the Badlands in one day. Not much to say, as I got there late and left early, but it was my first Couchsurfing (yes, that's a real thing that allows budget-conscious travelers to crash with hosts) expericnce, with a friendly host named Angie. Got a few more supplies Wednesday evening, watched the Red Sox beat Minnesota on TV, and drove out on Thursday morning. As for the Badlands, I'll do more pictures than words. Got there a little after mid-day on Thursday and explored a good chunk of the park (there is a main road that runs through the middle, with pull-offs for good viewpoints and such). Camped out that night, but heavy rain and an old tent with imperfect waterproof-ness sent me scurrying for cover in the car, where I ended up sleeping most of...

*Cue the soft bells, swelling strings, and percussion from the opening of Sufjan Stevens' song Chicago * Headed out on Sunday morning from Bristol for what I knew was a full day of driving ahead of me. Was mostly just foggy (sometimes intensely so), with brief periods of torrential rain. Stopped at a random diner in Cleveland that seemed "local" - the men seemed appropriately grizzled, and the waitress was a woman in her 40s who kept calling me honey and babe while offering to refill my "pop" (how very Midwestern). As an aside, the bits of Cleveland that I saw reminded me of Syracuse, visually. Before getting to Chicago, I took a Hoosier suggestion and made a slightly spontaneous stop at Indiana Dunes State Park, since it was pretty close off the highway. Glad I did, as it basically felt like I was at the beach, waves and all. In Chicago, stayed with my cousin Wendy and her family (husband Jim and two kids). After barely ever seeing Wendy while gro...

I headed out on the morning of Saturday, June 15, loaded up with tons of road-trip friendly food, clothes, camping equipment etc. Destination for night 1 was the grandparents' old cottage in Bristol, NY (outside of Rochester), now in the hands of Andi and Terry (thank you!), who have already upgraded the interior from its previous 'vintage' state. Not much to report about the drive itself - between trips of various sorts of to upstate NY, I have probably been on that portion of I-90 over 100 times. On my way, stopped to see family friends the Kuppinger-Lieberts outside of Albany. They fed me generously, and gave me some snacks for the road, so I was off to a good start! Also got to play with their fun dog! See below: Found my way to the cottage in Bristol, and had hoped to do some walking around the area, maybe through the woods and down by the pond, but it was heavily raining from the time I got there until the time I left, so that was not to be. Enjoyed an evenin...

For my parents, future self, and anybody else who wants to read, I'm putting some thoughts down on (virtual) paper about my road trip this summer. For context, I decided to do a summer road trip for a few reasons: Starting grad school in the fall, so there was a natural break to finish up work early and take some time off. Rachel has been out in Yakima, WA for coming up on a year, so visiting her made sense. There are a number of national parks and other scenic sites that have been on my list for a while, most notably Glacier National Park and various spots in Northern California. Besides Rachel, other members of the Koller family are scattered in convenient locations for stopping by on this trip. With Grandma and Grandpa's old VW Jetta Sportwagen loaded up, I'm headed westward, due back in New England the first week of August, which gives me about 6 weeks on the road.  Enjoy!