At our house, excitement ran high for weeks in anticipation of this day. Today we leave for Yellowstone! I went home early to make preparations and wait for Tim to come home from the science center where he volunteers every Wednesday. We had already packed most items in Jay's Blazer the night before. Tim returned home and then Jay arrived a little early. We had lots of stuff. Too much, actually! Jay and I decided to put the big tent and some other items on the roof rack and repacked the interior so we could see out the back. We held hands and said a prayer for safety and joy on our respective trips.

Patty, Rachel, Tim and I all exchanged hugs and kisses and then it was time to get TRUCKIN'! I took the wheel for the first round, while Jay took shotgun and Tim was bartender sitting in the back next to the cooler. (Don't worry! He served juice, Mountain Dew and Dr Pepper.) Our trusty steed took us out through Carlisle to the PA Turnpike. Cranking it up to the limit, the blazer was pointed west with Avalon singing "Testify to Love" on the CD.

True to form the PA turnpike was bumpy, narrow and busy, but we made it through the rain, endless construction zones and into Ohio. Pennsylvania receded into the rearview mirror and 76 turned into 80 as night settled in and the sounds of a moving vehicle worked in time with the music. The music included CSN, Dan Fogelberg, Aaron/Jeffrey, Kenny Loggins, Celine Dion, Yanni, Petra, many others, the radio, and Tennessee Ernie Ford's Greatest Gospel hits of all time. It was getting late as we entered Indiana, but we made it to Elkhart about 2am and collapsed at the Econolodge motel. Zzzzzzzzzz...

Our excited troop rose and hit the road this morning intent on making it to the Badlands. I love the transition from urban and suburban to rural as we leave Chicago behind. Iowa is lovely with its sprawling farms and distinctive barns with the large cupola or room on top, but my exuberance to get to Yellowstone results in a ticket from a nice polite Iowa State Patrolman for doing 75 in a 65 zone. It cost me a whopping $41.00!! I think I like Iowa.

On the far side of Iowa the Corbett-Williams Expedition turns north and enters South Dakota. As we turn to head west once again, the farms quickly give way to the wide-open range. This ol' Pennsylvania boy is enthralled by the vast expanses, the beautiful endless sky dotted with clouds, the miles and miles of nothing but miles and miles. A clouded but beautiful sunset heralds the end of day and darkness reveals few lights twinkling at vast distances from each other. Each light seeming to move at a different speed, according to it's distance from us, as we pass by. The routine of switching drivers, music, conversation, Dr Pepper, fast food and twizzlers has settled in and Jay, Tim and I let the miles and minutes roll by.

What a place to live! God has certainly blessed us greatly. As the expedition drives on into it's second night, we contemplate the vastness of America and the awesome courage the pioneers displayed to tackle this country by horse, ox and wagon. What to us seems terribly long at two and one-half days was months for those intrepid travelers wishing to find a piece of America to call their own. We, too, are heading for a piece of America we call our own, and it's yours, too! Kadoka, just short of the badlands, is our next stop on our way to that place. After a good nights sleep all expedition members are ready to rise early and hit the road once again.