Filled with Dinosaurs, a Giant Eyeball and a Night Inside a Potato!
My husband Craig and I recently returned from a Northwestern U.S. road trip. We started in Colorado where we celebrated my nephew’s wedding, and then took off with a rental car for 1500 miles of sightseeing. With Google Maps, I had laid out a potential route which led us to and through some unusual towns, just to make the daily driving doable. Next, I visited some favorite websites including: www.roadsideattractions.com, TripAdvisor.com, and the index in my National Park Service Passport.
Monday: We were in Estes Park, CO for the wedding, and took the worthwhile tram ride up the mountain. We ate delicious barbecue at Smokin’ Dave’s. We left Estes Park at 11am, but should have booked a timed entry to get into Rocky Mountain National Park. We had to wait at the Visitor Center until 2 pm, but then experienced the most gorgeous mountain roads with steep drops as we crossed the Continental Divide. We selected the downtown, convenient Nordic Lodge in Steamboat Springs for our first night, and it was perfect. We decided to drive to Strawberry Park Hot Springs for a relaxing evening dip. Please note, reservations are required most days, and after 8, nude bathing is optional!
Tuesday: We stayed on Route 40 to Dinosaur, CO, a very sad town on the Utah border. They tried to become a tourist location, but failed. Soon we reached the gorgeous Dinosaur National Monument, with a ten-mile scenic driving loop and optional stops to see petroglyphs, etc., and then an easy shuttle ride to the enclosed rocky ridge with thousands of dinosaur bones. They also have an informative visitor center.
I had looked for Native American sites, an interest of mine, and thus we stopped at the Trading Post in Fort Duchesne on the Uintah-Ouray Reservation, and then saw the Northern Ute Veterans Memorial. We drove to and through multiple Native American sites on this trip, where we saw the pride and richness of Indigenous cultures and the pain in their history after Europeans arrived.
One mistake was staying in Duchesne, UT. There is only one restaurant open for dinner there and it’s for sale. I’m glad we supported the local economy, but I don’t recommend an overnight there.
Wednesday: On to Salt Lake City, with spectacular scenery on the way. We attended a thrilling organ recital at the Tabernacle (there are two concerts a day). We stopped at the Mormon Family Search genealogy center. On to the Red Iguana 2 restaurant (home of a huge iguana statue), and then a 40 ft. high wooden troll and the Gilgal Garden, an odd collection of engraved and carved stones. Overnight at the quirky Anniversary Inn (it was our 47th wedding anniversary).
Thursday: A quick stop at the spectacular Great Salt Lake. We had an interesting visit at the Museum of Clean in Pocatello, ID (thousands of cleaning items) and then the Idaho Potato Museum in Blackfoot. This was a fun visit with a good meal at the Potato Cafe – so many choices! Next was a tour of EBR-1, the site of the first American nuclear reactor. We stayed in Arco, ID in the quaint DK Motel and had Atomic Burgers (really delicious) at Pickles Restaurant..
Friday: We made a quick stop to see the Devil Boat (#666). It’s the top of a decommissioned submarine. Next stop, Craters of the Moon National Monument, another extraordinary sight. Miles of lava fields and cinder cones with each explanatory sign having a true blending of Native American lore with geological facts.
From there, we had a sobering visit to Minidoka, one of the American concentration camps where Japanese-American citizens and non-citizens were held during World War II. On to the Potato Hotel, a rentable room that looks like a giant potato. We got to Boise, a lovely walkable city and dined at a Basque restaurant, made a quick visit to Freak Alley and then took a walk through the moving Anne Frank Human Rights Park.
Saturday: We started at the largest eyeball in Idaho and then saw a statue of the first Native American female rodeo champ. In Baker City, we went to the marvelous local museum. Lots of history, including about the local Chinese population AND a huge collection of fossils and minerals. Next stop – the Umatilla Reservation and the Tamastslikt Institute. A beautifully curated and well-presented story of the history of its Indigenous population with a terrific cafe and Native food trucks for snacks. Next stop: Pendleton, OR with an old-Western style downtown and statues of local figures: White, Black and Native American.
Sunday: We followed the Columbia River for most of the day. The Visitor Center was informative and worth the stop. We came to the spectacular Horsetail Falls. Note: Gas stations are few and far between along the Columbia. In Portland, we stayed at the lovely Hotel DeLuxe and took a sunset river cruise under so many bridges.
Monday: Voodoo Doughnuts for breakfast! In Seattle, we started on Fremont Street, seeing the Center of the Universe marker, a giant rocket ship, the Lenin statue and a fish totem pole. It’s a funky place. Off to the Museum of Pop Culture and the Hotel Sorrento, on the National Historic Register. In the evening we explored the extraordinary Chihuly Museum and Garden, followed by a great meal at Mother India.
Tuesday: Did you know that you need a reservation to get coffee at the original Starbucks in Seattle and local parking can cost $20/hour? We saw the Native Salish welcome statue and then visited the Nordic Museum. Last stop, the Unity Museum, an intriguing collection showcasing the diversity of our country. We had the last meal of the trip at Juba, a Somali/East African restaurant.
These types of road trips need a lot of work in planning, but the effort is truly worth it.
