Today was a hectic day for the Skoolies crew. We had to get to the school extra early, around “7:30”, to get our bags loaded up for departure. After this, there were many different things to tidy up before we left. The bunk beds in the back needed to be fixed, and the required plumbing work was done so we could use the bathroom and toilet. We got the crew together right after the first period, and we all went out there and worked hard on the bus so we could get it finished before we left to go out west. I walked around and picked up tools and put them in a tool bag just in case we needed tools while we were out on this long journey. It was a rush to get everything done because we still had to put straps on the cabinets and drawers so they didn’t fly open while driving down the interstate.

 Our goal was to leave the school by “1:30.” We just missed this goal by about 45 minutes because almost all of the parents came to the school and watched us drive away. As soon as this was all done, we took it to Hub City to get our tank filled up and on the way there, we turned a corner and forgot to strap down the microwave, and it flew off the fridge and landed on the ground and destroyed itself. So when we got back to the school, we had to swap microwaves before we left. Once we got on the road, it was around 3:15, and we started the journey. We really didn’t do much on the bus but socialize, play video games, sleep, and eat. We arrived in Illinois around 8:30 at our first campground and started setting up camp and got the grill out to start cooking some food because we all were getting very hungry. We all ate and went to the shower house to get ready for bed, and we ended the night around 11:30. 

Day 2

Today was a very long day because it was the longest driving day of the trip. We got up around 6:00 and got on the road around 6:30. We knew the night before that the weather was going to be bad, and from the looks of the radar, it looked like we were heading straight for a blizzard. We got on the road, headed to the gas station, filled up, and got snacks. Our day began. We started our 11-hour drive, and about an hour in we saw the sky start to turn brown, and we knew we were heading for some bad storms. We got about 2 hours into the drive and we ran into freezing rain. It was starting to get really nasty out, but this wasn’t our only problem. We were lying in the back where the beds were, and there was an emergency hatch in front of us. We look up there is rain pouring in, and not only this, but we see water start to pour in the front windshield. When this happened, we all came together and got towels and tape and started to go crazy. After about 10 minutes of working, we got all of the leakages fixed, and there was no more water coming inside the bus.

 About two hours later, it was beautiful outside. There was no more snow, ice, or anything, it was just sunshine and clear skies. We arrived at our second campground in South Dakota at about 8, and we started setting up camp. This campground was kind of creepy because it was in the middle of nowhere, and we were the only ones there. The temperature dropped drastically, so we got out of the bus and retrieved our bags to put warmer clothes on. Because of the blizzard, the pipes froze at the campground and we couldn’t use the bathrooms or the showers, so we had to shower on the bus. This took forever because there were 11 of us. Once we got settled inside the bus, we cooked pulled pork and had some chips, then called it a night.

Day 3

Today was a very cool day because we stopped at some beautiful scenic routes, and we didn’t have to drive a lot. We were only on the road for about 3 and a half hours, maybe 4. We got up about the same time as usual at 6:30, and left by 7:00. Our first stop was a cool view of just open fields, you could see for miles and miles and there were so many beautiful rocks. We got back on the bus and started to drive.  The time was 8 o’clock, and we made it a couple more miles down the road and looked at our clocks, and now it was 7 o’clock. The time was two hours slower than at home. Our second stop for the day was a little town right on the edge of South Dakota, and it was a replica of the olden days where there were salons and other cool stuff. We walked in there, and it was very interesting because there was just a lot of old stuff that was from back in the day and there were still old cowboys in there drinking coffee. In the cafe, there were old-fashioned doughnuts and the whole crew bought some and tried them, and let me tell you they were some of the best doughnuts I’ve ever had. 

We loaded back into the bus to head to our next stop, which was Mount Rushmore. We were all excited to see this one because it’s crazy that humans carved faces on the side of rocks. When we arrived, it was stunning, I truly couldn’t believe how high-quality the faces looked. It was crazy, they looked spot-on to the actual people. We got some very cool pictures of the monuments and went to the gift shop. It was very big and had a lot of stuff, but everything was so expensive. Once everyone was done shopping, we loaded up and headed back on, our drive was about 4 hours away, so we got settled in to prepare for another long drive. We arrived at our campground, and once again we were by ourselves which was not a bad thing, so we got some dinner on and got cleaned up for the night.

Day 4

Today was another very cool day because of all the scenery, same as always we got up at the same time and got driving on the road. The thing about today was that there wasn’t too much driving, only about 5 hours total so that’s not terrible. But the first destination was only about 45 minutes away and it was called the “Devil Tower,” this was one of the coolest places we have been so far because it looked like it had claw marks on the side of it from a bear but it only looked like that because that’s how it got formed. It was also insanely high; it was 874 feet tall. The coolest thing about this monument was that it had a 2.8-mile trail around the whole thing, and it was some of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. It couldn’t be any better, because you could look out for miles and miles and just see beautiful landscapes.  The trail was really fun but you don’t realize how far 2.8 miles is until you walk it and its wild because we were all exhausted by the time we got back to the bus because the trail was all-terrain there was snow, mud, rocks, and the whole time you were walking up the hill, which made it a thousand times harder. 

We made it back on the bus and headed for the road again, we had about 4 hours until we made it to the campground. We were looking in the fridge and pantry and realized we had to go to Walmart because we were almost out of food. We arrived at Walmart and surprisingly the food and everything were really cheap. But before we left the town we had to head to the hardware store because the fridge fell over while driving and it was a mess because we forgot to put L brackets on the bag to secure it to the wall. We made it to the campground and it was pretty nice outside so we set up some cornhole, made some dinner, and called it a night.

Day 5

Today was a very long day, almost 11 and a half hours of driving and it was brutal because it was a bunch of long curvy roads. We got up very early today around 6 o’clock and got on the road around 6:15 and started our journey to Yellowstone National Park. The drive was insanely beautiful because there were really tall mountains with snow on them and then you drove into tunnels and old railroad tracks. There were also a lot of very cool animals that we don’t have in Indiana like pronghorn, bighorn sheep, and mountain goats. These animals were very cool because we got to see them out in nature and how they act, it’s not like you go to the zoo and see animals they act completely differently. We rolled into a little town and had to stop at a hardware store again for the second time because the shower curtain broke and there was something wrong with the water system. So Blake and Alec went into the hardware store and the rest of the crew went to McDonalds to get some breakfast, after this all got finished we headed for the road again. 

We got about another 2 hours in and it started to pour rain and then it turned into freezing rain. We arrived at Yellowstone and the wildlife there was absolutely amazing. There were so many animals everywhere like buffalo and pronghorn. It was amazing. The coolest part was that the trail you walked was so close to them, you were only like 20 feet away from them and they didn’t even act like you were there. The trails were really fun to walk but you had to be very careful because there was snow everywhere and it was also spitting some snow. Once we reached the top of the mountain we saw the hot springs and it was so cool they were steaming because they were hot and the air temp was cold. After we saw all of this cool stuff we made our way back to the bus, and headed for the campsite. Once we reached the campsite we were all very tired so we got some food and went straight to sleep.

Day 6

Today by far was the best day so far because of how beautiful everything was. We got up extra early today because it was going to be another long one, so we got up around 6:00 and hit the road. We always stop at a gas station in the morning to fill up and get some snacks for the road and at this gas station they had fresh cheesecake and it was amazing, some of the best cheesecake I have had in a very long time. We got filled up and back on the road we went, we were heading for Glacier National Park which was about 4 hours away from our current location, but for once, today I wasn’t complaining about the drive because the whole time we were driving it was so beautiful because there were huge ponds and lakes that almost looked like the ocean. The water was reflecting off of the mountains, which made it absolutely stunning. We arrived at the glacier and we stopped in front of the signs right before you entered the park and got a big group picture, and individual pictures in front of the sign if you wanted it. 

We got off the bus and walked to the gift shop before we walked to the big lake of Glacier. The gift shop had a lot of cool things. I got a hoodie and also picked up a couple of things for my parents. Everyone put what they bought on the bus and we started our hike. When we reached the glacier, it was the most beautiful thing I have ever seen in my whole entire life. The snow also made it look even better. I truly couldn’t get over how clear the water was. It looked like glass you could see right to the bottom in 5ft of water. It was amazing. The mountains also were reflecting off of the water to make the whole view a thousand times better. Once we got all of our pictures we got back on the bus and headed for our next campground since it was quite a ways away. We arrived at the campground very late, and we were all very tired from all of the driving so we ate some food and got right to bed and called it a night.

Day 7

Today was sorta a boring day but still fun, we got up around the same time as always around 6 o’clock, and got on the road. We stopped at our first gas station for the day and it was the best gas station I have ever been to. This gas station had so much stuff in it, it was basically a grocery store because it had hardware things, produce, grills, and all kinds of other stuff. I got freshly baked doughnuts and they were amazing, and a couple of other people got their breakfast burritos and they said they were amazing, so this was definitely one of the best gas stations I have ever been to. We got back on the road and we were heading for the Tetons when we arrived at the Tetons, It was amazing. I have never seen that tall of mountains before. The only bad thing about today was when we went to see them the clouds were low since it was a very cloudy day and you couldn’t see the very top of them so that sucked, but you could still tell how tall they were, and I was amazed, there was also a little valley that was at the bottom of them that also gave the mountains some character. 

Once we all got done enjoying these cool mountains and getting pictures we loaded back up in the bus and headed for the Antler Arch. When we arrived at the Antler Arch it was really cool. It was also a huge arch of all the antlers from elk, deer, and anything that had antlers. It was very cool because they connected them all together. But this really wasn’t anything big in my opinion because it was not huge, but it definitely was still very cool. When we got done looking at the antlers we went to this cool restaurant that was very expensive. They had bison burgers and other cool things that you can’t get at home, so I went with the bison burger and home-cut fries. It was amazing and you couldn’t really tell if it was beef or bison in my opinion but it was still very good. Once we all ate we didn’t waste any time and got right back on the road to head to our next campground 4 hours away. When we arrived it was dark out so we got some food and brushed our teeth then called it a night. 

Day 8

Today was very good because it got up to 80 degrees and it was amazing because it has been cold the whole time we have been on this trip. We had a very long day today because we had to stop at two different parks today, to make up time because it’s already day 8 and we were a little bit behind on schedule. So we got up around 5 today and got on the road, and we were heading to the Arches National Park. We got to the park around 1 o’clock and started to hike around them. It was very cool because it was crazy how the rock got formed to look like arches and it was amazing because there was a 2-mile trail that looped around the whole thing and we walked around it and took some very cool pictures. Personally, the two arches right next to each other looked like the ninja turtle mask. Me and a couple of other people decided to get off the trail and make our own trail around it and it was very fun but also scary because we kinda got lost. 

The reason we almost got lost was because we walked around the whole side of the mountain and it was almost a 4-and-a-half-mile walk. There was no trail, we were just making our own and climbing the rocks. It was very fun though and we made it back perfectly safe and sound and got some good food once we all got back on the bus and settled down. Our next stop was Candy Land and this was amazing because I had never seen a hole that big in the earth ever, it was massive. You could see cars driving at the bottom of it and they looked like ants, we were on top of the mountain looking down on them and it was a huge valley.  The coolest thing about that was we were so high up that you could just look out in the distance for miles and miles.  It was getting very late, almost 6 o’clock and we still had a 4-hour drive until we got to the campground, not including stops to get fuel. We arrived at the campground around 10:30 and we all went straight to bed.

Day 9

Personally, today was going to be my favorite, because I couldn’t wait to see the Grand Canyon. The only downside was we had a very long drive, 10 hours long, so we got another very early start and headed for the gas stations because that was our morning routine. It was also going to be a very long day because we were also going to Zion National Park. When we arrived at Zion, it was very pretty and unique because there were large mountains, but these weren’t just mountains, they were rock mountains. I had never seen so much rock in my life, there were just mountains and mountains of rock and it was so beautiful because there were different colors of orange and red. Honestly, I thought this place was really cool but I wouldn’t say it was my favorite place, it was still very cool though because you drive through tunnels in the rock and you get high on the mountain and there are big valleys down below, which was very cool and I liked that a lot. 

Once we got done at Zion we packed up and headed towards the Grand Canyon this was a pretty far drive from Zion around 4 hours. When we arrived at the Grand Canyon we went through another time zone and it was now a 3-hour difference from home. When we first stopped we were not at the actual Grand Canyon State Park we were at one of the canyon’s looks because the canyon is 277 miles long, with many overlooks. I loved the first overlook we went to because there weren’t any people there and we were taking big rocks and throwing them down. It took a solid 10 seconds for them to hit the bottom of the canyon and we weren’t even at the deepest point. After this, we headed to the actual park. Once we got there it was essentially the same view you were just at the highest point and there was a lot more canyon to see since you were higher. So we took pictures and it was amazing. It almost felt like we were in a whole different country because it was so deep and beautiful and I just couldn’t believe that it was going to be that amazing. After we soaked up the beauty of the cannon we headed for our next campground and when we arrived we were all very tired so we ate some food and called it a night. 

Day 10

Today was like any other day but just a little longer. We had about 11 hours of driving today and it was going to be very long because we are going to see two different things. We hit our morning gas station like always to get everyone ready for the day we had about a 4-and-a-half-hour drive until we made it to Monument Valley, we started to head back in the direction of home, and right before we made it to the Monument Valley we hit another time zone and it made us two-hour difference from home instead of 3. When we arrived it was something I had never seen before, it was different from any other place we had been to. I had seen it was somewhat flat ground and on the flat ground, there was a somewhat tall volcano shaped like objects. It was different but very cool and interesting because they were very red and so was the dirt. You could see these objects for miles and they also offered a charter bus if you wanted to pay and they would take you close to them. 

The next place we were heading to was the “four corners” where Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Utah all meet, that’s why they call it the four corners. When we arrived, it definitely wasn’t my favorite place. In fact, it was probably my least favorite place we have been to so far. The reason why I didn’t really like it was because there really wasn’t anything to see besides a big tile on the ground that had all the state’s names with a start in the middle. Plus there was kinda a line to see it and personally, it wasn’t worth it because it was nothing cool. What was cool to see at this place was around the whole perimeter there were booths set up with old things that the Indian people made such as necklaces, old tools, bracelets, pottery, and other very cool old things. I loved the tools the people made because there were knives made out of buffalo bone. After we all got done looking at everything we packed back up in the bus and headed for our campground 4 hours away. Once we arrived we had some sandwiches and got to bed for the next day. 

Day 11

Today was more of a laid-back day because we had a lot of driving to do, and we only went to one stop. We didn’t have to get up as early as we usually do, but we still did because we had a lot of miles to drive. So our first stop was the Garden of the Gods. When we arrived, we went straight into the cafe and gift shop, plus there was a learning center all about the Garden of the Gods. I thought this place was sorta cool because the dinosaurs used to roam and live there, so I thought that was very interesting. Another thing that was cool was that there were some huge rocks that you could walk around and do some hiking and it’s quite nice to do some hiking when you are cooped up in the bus all day. Plus we saw a bearded dragon that a guy had as a pet with a leash on it and that was very cool because the bearded dragon was so chill and didn’t care if you touched him or anything. 

Since there wasn’t anything else on the agenda we all got together as a group and planned out what we wanted to do for the day to have a little fun. So we decided to go to Top Golf and when we got there it was a 45-minute wait, so while we waited we went to Bass Pro Shops and walked around there for a while and that was a lot of fun because we went to the fish tank and saw the fish and what not. Then we went to Top Golf and it was my first time ever going. It was so much fun because hardly any of us could swing clubs and it was just hilarious watching each other miss the ball. After we had our fun, we got back on the bus and headed for our campground for the night. It was around 5 hours away and it was going to be another late one. We arrived at our campground around 9 o’clock, and got some hotdogs and chips, then called it a night. 

Day 12

Today was another long driving day because we were just making up a lot of miles so we could get home. I didn’t do much today besides sit on the bus and play video games. But we all got up around the same time as always at 6 o’clock and got on the road. Our only stop for the day was the “Center of America” and it was exactly what it said it was, it’s just a monument to the center of America. This monument was definitely my least favorite because it was just nothing cool, the flag was ripped and it just seemed like it wasn’t taken care of very well. There was a cool playground toy that had a large spring and a seat on top of it and you sprung back and forth on it, and that was so much fun, almost better than seeing the monument. But overall I would have to say it was my least favorite monument. But after we were all done seeing it, we had about a 6-hour drive to our next campsite which was in CottonWood Missouri, since we weren’t stopping at any more monuments we thought about going out to eat for lunch. 

We ended up deciding to go out to eat and it was the best decision the group made all trip because I was starving, and I was also sick of eating cold meat on the bus. So the group picked out a barbecue place that had pulled pork, chicken, and turkey. When we arrived there were people all the way out of the door standing up so we knew that it was probably going to be good. When we got in there to order it smelled amazing, I ended up getting “The sandwich” and it was the best sandwich I have ever had, it had onion rings and their special sauce. It was the best-pulled pork sandwich I have ever had. After we ate we got back into the bus and had about a 2 and half hour drive until we got to the campground. Once we arrived at the campground we set up camp and ate a snack and then we all got showers and went to bed. 

Day 13

Today was an exciting but boring day. The reason why it was so exciting was because we were getting home today. This trip has been so much fun and I will never forget all of these amazing adventures with the boys. But I am starting to miss my own bed and miss my family. So we got up extra early today around 5:15 and hit the road. Our last National Park was the “Gateway Arch” and when we arrived it was massive, I had never seen a bigger arch and you could see this thing from miles away, it was amazing. The arch is 63 stories high and you can actually take a tour inside and go all the way to the top. The reason we didn’t do this was because it cost $80 a person and the actual place inside didn’t open until 9 o’clock and we arrived at the park around 7:30. It would have been very cool to go to the very top of it, but it also takes 45 minutes just for the elevator to take you all the way to the top, and we didn’t have time for that because we wanted to get home at a decent time because we all got school tomorrow. 

Once we left the Arch we were all so tired because we got up extremely early so we all went back to bed for a little while. When we woke up we were 3 hours from home and stopped at a gas station for some snacks and to use the restroom. After we got back on the road we were all still tired so we went back to bed and didn’t wake up until Blake surprised us with Raising Cane’s for lunch, it was amazing because we hadn’t had too much fast food the whole trip plus it was the last day on the trip so he took us to Cane’s and it was wonderful. It made us all so happy, and once we got done eating we were all very full, so we chilled and played on our phones for a while until we got about 30 minutes out and we all started to pack our bags and get things ready, it was happy and sad at the same time that we were almost home because I had so much fun on this trip and I will always remember this forever. We arrived back home around 2:30 and said our goodbyes to each other, got everything out of the bus, and called it a trip.