It was 10:00 p.m., and the sky was still painted with the orange hues of a late summer sunset, with a hint of rain on the horizon. We stood outside a local pizza place in Gardiner, MT, waiting for our turn. Hungry and tired - for we had been up for 12 hours straight, driving and hiking through Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks - the sweet aroma of pizza wafting out each time people opened the doors only made us hungrier. You’d think we’d eat and crash immediately. Except, there was still a good four-hour drive between the eating part and the crashing part, as we were staying near Jackson Hole, WY.
Finally, we were seated, and I swear it was some of the best Neapolitan pizza we’ve ever had. I don’t know if it was truly that good or if it just felt that way because it was our first proper meal of a tiring day. Either way, the point stands: it will go down as the best pizza I’ve ever had.
We started the drive back, and of course, the rain came. It began as a drizzle, turned into a steady rainfall, and by the time we passed Mammoth Hot Springs, it was pouring. It didn’t let up until we were close to Old Faithful. I’ll never forget driving on those narrow roads, nestled between towering pines, with the sound of rain pouring down. Another distinct memory is slamming on the brakes to avoid a fox that darted onto the road out of nowhere — waking my wife, who had been fast asleep.
Rain, towering pines, narrow roads. More rain, more pines, and even narrower roads. At one point, I was hallucinating, tempted to stop and see Old Faithful erupt at 1 a.m. Good sense prevailed, and I drove straight to the hotel. Ode to adventures.