WanderWest with the Puryears

WanderWest Day 6 – Montana Adventures 🇺🇸 Happy Fourth of July from the river! Today was all about thrills, splashes, and a little bit of shivering. We booked a white water rafting trip with Absaroka River Adventures on the Stillwater and Yellowstone Rivers. From the moment we pushed off, it was nonstop excitement. Our raft dove straight into rapids with names like Sideswipe, Beartooth Drop, Dew Drop, and Play Pen —basically an aquatic rollercoaster. 🤣 Our guide, Ribbon, a college student from the area and an absolute joy, kept us laughing and feeling safe as she navigated us through the rapids. She even offered us the chance to jump off cliffs, swim, and float in the Yellowstone. The only catch? The water was freezing and a rainstorm was right on our heels. But hey, adventure doesn’t wait for perfect weather.  We shared our raft with Peter and Suzy, a retired couple traveling the country who instantly became new friends. Dan and I paddled up front, while Olivia and Maddie...

 Baa-ing Sheep and Lantern Light WanderWest Day 5 Adventures  I started the day with a walk around the Rapid City neighborhood and couldn’t figure out the pattern behind the street names—Dolphin Ln, Steeler Ln, Colt Ln, Patriot Ln, Bronco Ln, Bengal Dr, Viking Dr, and Milehigh Ave. As I climbed a big hill, it finally dawned on me: the entire neighborhood is NFL-themed! A quick look at Google Maps confirmed it—there were even streets called Eli Dr, Giants Dr, and Marino Dr. Such a random and hilarious discovery to kick off the morning.   After packing up and checking out of our Airbnb, we set off for our next adventure: the Historic Lantern Tour at Jewel Cave deep in the Black Hills Forest.   Before the tour even began, we made a core memory that had us all in stitches. As we pulled into the parking lot, a herd of Big Horn Sheep leisurely crossed in front of us. Olivia and I rolled down our windows to snap photos, and she started making baa-ing noises. One sheep pau...

A Day Full of History, Laughs, and a Little Adventure. WanderWest with the Puryears – Day 4 Update    We started our morning at Mount Rushmore , where we walked the Presidential Trail to see the sculpture up close. We were all inspired by the story behind the monument—the perseverance, bravery, and passion of the workers and sculptor who brought it to life. Standing beneath the massive faces, you can’t help but feel a little more patriotic.                 Afterward, we headed into the Black Hills for a hike, but not without one of those funny road trip moments the girls like to call “core memories.” As we made our way down a road that was being redone, traffic came to a complete stop. The pavement was gone, replaced by dirt, and a truck drove by spraying water over it. We thought, Finally, we’re about to go! —but nope, still waiting. Eventually, we saw a line of cars coming toward us and realized there was a pilot car shuttling each s...

  Officially Out West Today we officially reached out west! We made the 4-hour drive from Sioux Falls to Badlands National Park, cruising along Route 90 West at a glorious 80 mph—easily my favorite part of the drive. The endless open road felt like an invitation to adventure. DownHome by DeBoers!  Before diving into the Badlands, we made a quick detour to see the Down Home by DeBoers storefront. If you’re a fan of Chelsea and Cole from Teen Mom and HGTV’s Down Home Fab and Rock the Block , you’d understand why it felt surreal to stand outside their shop. Even though the store was closed, it still felt like checking an unexpected dream off the bucket list!

 Just Another LONGish Day of Travel  🌟 Road Trip Day Two Recap 🌟 The glittery excitement of travel definitely dulled a bit today as we logged 8 hours and 563 miles of flat, endless highway between Lincolnshire, IL and Sioux Falls, SD. 🙃 But even the most boring stretches come with their own little highlights: ✨ A Haribo manufacturing plant (gummy bear dreams!) ✨ Miles of gigantic wind turbines spinning away ✨ A Cybertruck cruising by with the license plate SK1BIDI (we’re still laughing) ✨ Fresh new highway being poured in real time ✨ And, oddly, way too many police cars clustered along I-90 Not exactly the most thrilling leg of the journey, but we made it!  Haribo! Yum The license plate read  SK1BIDI   So many wind turbines

🚙 Here We GOOOOOO ✌ Road Trip Day One Recap We hit the road bright and very early—3:00 AM sharp—traveling from Eldersburg, MD to Lincolnshire, IL (just northwest of Chicago). It was an 11-hour haul with three quick stops to refuel ourselves and the car. Everyone was in surprisingly high spirits for such an early departure. The highlight game of this leg was Battleship , which kept everyone entertained between naps and audiobook chapters. The girls also kicked off their road trip scrapbook project. They packed plenty of stickers, markers, and other artsy supplies to document every stop and memory along the way. You sunk my ship!  Most of the time was spent reading, dozing, or peering out the windows—until we had two unexpected close calls with deer wandering across the highway. (Luckily, we managed to avoid them!) We also discovered a snafu with our EZ Pass that caused a little confusion at the tolls, but nothing we couldn’t sort out with a bit of road trip resourcefulness. Re...

The Week Before Prep!  Well, we are about a week out from our big adventure. Because life is so busy, I wanted to record a few anecdotes about our week before prep.   The Great Tent Debacle We decided that the best—and most cost-effective—way to experience Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon would be to camp. This is also what Dan and I did 17 years ago, and we loved it! Admittedly, Dan and I waited a bit longer than we should have to make our Yellowstone camping reservations. When we finally booked, there was still an RV/camping site available. At that time, we hadn’t bought a tent yet, and the woman who took our reservation assured us, “You’ll be okay on this site. It holds a 20-foot RV and an 8x8 tent.” Fast forward to June, when I decided I wanted a tent big enough for all of us to be comfortable. After some research, I found an Ozark tent for $129 at Walmart. We loved it! So much room for activities! Everyone would have their own space, plus room for our luggage. ...