We’ve been able to take vacation trips pretty regularly since about 2000. Over the years, we’ve collected various sayings that have stuck with us and have entered the lexicon of our everyday lives. Since we’re about to embark on another trip out west in about a week, I thought it would be good to rehearse some of these sayings.

“You made my day.”

I mentioned in my last post about planning the various side trips that we undertake while on vacation. I don’t want to over-plan, but when something is on the docket, I want it to be memorable.

A few years ago, on a trip to Wyoming, we had a split itinerary. We flew into Jackson (near Grand Teton National Park) and spent one night there. Then we drove four hours up through Yellowstone National Park to stay for seven days in Cooke City, Montana, just outside the northeast entrance to YNP. Then, it was back to Jackson for two nights before flying home.

That left us with a full day at the end of the trip to plan for some activity in the Jackson area. What to do?

Of course, it’s not hard to find something; it’s harder to decide. But I think I had just the thing.

Several weeks earlier, I had stumbled upon a website highlighting a small waterfall on the Idaho side of the Teton mountain range. Carolyn loves waterfalls; they inhabit her happy place. So, without telling her exactly where we were going, we set out to drive over Teton Pass into Idaho and made our way to a little roadside stop along a dirt road.

As we stepped out of the car and over the embankment, this small stream erupted into the Snake River in one of the most breathtaking cascades we’d ever seen. And that’s when I heard it.

“You made my day.”

She enjoys complexity in waterfalls. Lots of streams and rivulets and side channels to charm the eyes. Niagara Falls is pretty stunning for its sheer power, but face it, it’s kinda “meh” in terms of intricacy. It rates a “1” on Carolyn’s Complexity Scale.® It’s only 1 fall (OK, 2).

But this waterfall at the end of Fall Creek, Idaho? 10 out of 10. Not to mention there are no tchotchke shops, almost no traffic, and very few people.

We spent a good deal of time sitting on the banks and climbing around on its various ledges. It was very peaceful and simply exquisite. “You made my day.” I made her day, and that made my day.

Over the years, we have done well at finding sights off the beaten path. We’ve been to Yosemite National Park in California a handful of times and have discovered drives, canyons, and hikes outside the park but every bit as beautiful. The same is true for the Yellowstone and Teton areas of Wyoming/Montana.

Many of the national parks are very crowded. This has been especially true since the COVID pandemic restricted international travel in 2020-2021. Reservations have been required in many parks just to drive the roads, though now restrictions are easing. Parts of Yellowstone are just a zoo. And I’m not talking about the wild animals that inhabit it. You have to plan carefully if you want to see all the major attractions like Old Faithful and Lamar Valley.

But if you get outside the parks, you can find some amazing things as well. There’s a canyon driving out of the east entrance of Yellowstone that is so stunning we turned around and backtracked to see it again. There are native American petroglyphs east of the Sierra Nevada Mountains that are must-see. There are even sights in your own backyard.

Lots of places to “make her day.”