AAA Traveler Feb/Mar 2022 Colorado - 17

YOUR STORY
Sylvan Lake Lodge Trail
Upper Falls Yellowstone River
" It was on his bucket list, " says his wife, Lynn, who
accompanied Donald on a 15-day tour of the American West.
She loved seeing his face on day 10 as they approached the
national monument rising 1,267 feet above the Belle Fourche
River in northeastern Wyoming.
" Devils Tower is in the middle of nowhere; we thought we
would never get there, " says Donald. " Then, all of a sudden, you
see this huge, larger-than-life rock formation. "
Originally, the Macks wanted to spend 11 fall days exploring
the sights of the American
West: Old Faithful,
Mammoth Hot Springs, the
Buffalo Bill Museum,
Mount Rushmore, Devils
Tower, Sylvan Lake, the
Badlands and the infamous
South Dakota town of
Deadwood.
But as they started to plan
their trip on their own, they
hit a few roadblocks. First,
they were quoted more than
$5,000 for a rental car.
Then, they discovered that
many of the national parks'
lodges were already booked.
On top of that, there was the
COVID-19 concern.
That's when the Macks called Betsy Vance, the AAA Travel
Advisor who'd helped them plan a family cruise to Hawaii a few
years ago. " We appreciated knowing that if she planned our trip,
we could call her if anything went wrong, and she would work it
out, " says Lynn.
After hearing the couple's must-see list, Betsy suggested
extending their trip from 11 to 15 days. She also suggested
stopping at Grand Teton National Park, where they could hike
Mount Rushmore
West Thumb Geyser Basin
the scenic Hidden Falls trail, watch the sun rise over the Tetons
and take a gondola ride with sweeping views of Jackson Hole
valley. " The weather was perfect, " Lynn adds. " The sky was blue,
and the lakes were crystal clear. "
The drive to Cody, Wyo., took their breath away. " We drove
through the Shoshone River Valley, past canyons and big rock
formations, " says Donald. " It's called the most scenic 52 miles in
America. " Lynn experienced the same wonder. " I was awed, " she
remembers. " I took my crocheting and books with me to read in
the car, but forget that! I
wanted to look at
everything! "
On their drive to South
Dakota's Custer State Park,
the Macks were thrilled to
spot a herd of buffalo
behind a tall fence off in
the distance. " All of a
sudden, I looked up to see a
buffalo right on the edge of
this curvy, windy road,
right beside our car, " Lynn
says. " He was almost as big
as our car. "
By the time day 14 rolled
Grand Tetons National Park
around, the Macks wondered
if South Dakota's Badlands
National Park would be a little anticlimactic. " We'd seen so
much incredible scenery, " Donald says. " But this was like
nothing we'd ever seen. It was like being on the moon-no
vegetation, no trees. It's phenomenal how the landscape is
sculpted. You can see for miles and miles. "
" All the westerns in the world can't prepare you for the West.
You can watch things on TV or read about them in books, " adds
Donald. " But when you're there, you get a sense of the vastness
of the area that's hard to believe. "
Your AAA Travel Advisor can help you explore our national parks.
Visit AAA.com/TravelAdvisor today.
TRAVELER FEB/MAR 2022
17
PHOTOS COURTESY OF DONALD AND LYNN MACK
http://www.AAA.com/TravelAdvisor
AAA Traveler Feb/Mar 2022 Colorado

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