Wild West, Cowboy And Buffalos

Saddle up for a Wild West family adventure starting with a relaxing afternoon together in Salt Lake City before meeting your travel companions for a rootin’ tootin’ evening Kick-off Party with your Travel Director.

Put on your cowboy hats, pull up your boots and get ready to make memories that will last a lifetime. Experience the rich history and culture of the world’s most humble vegetable – the potato! Visitors to the Idaho Potato Museum will learn about the many facets of the potato industry from planting and irrigation to harvesting and processing. There’s no place better to showcase potatoes than in “The Potato Capital of the World,” Blackfoot, Idaho! You will enjoy a potato-themed lunch including potato ice cream! Then, it's off to Jackson Hole, WY where you can walk through the town's famous landmark arch of tangled elk antlers. Step back in time as you explore the Town Square with its Western boardwalks, craft boutiques and ice cream shops-all surrounded by the majestic Rockies.

Family fun awaits every day of this trip and today is no exception. If the season is right, today is your chance to get out on the water for some adventures. Rise early to float down the Snake River on an optional, scenic wilderness float trip. It’s the most relaxing way to experience the river as you learn about its history, geology, and wildlife from an expert guide. Travel onward to your hotel for the night.

Today you’ll enjoy a full day’s exploration of the geothermal wonderland of Yellowstone. You’ll join your Travel Director, marveling at Old Faithful, the thousand-year old geyser which has been shooting up water every 90 minutes for centuries. See the wonders of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone whose colors and shapes are a sight to behold. The rest of the evening is yours to enjoy on your own terms.

You'll get a glimpse into "Spirit of the West" at the Buffalo Bill Center for the West museum complex. As you wander through this huge set of exhibits you'll feel like you've been transported back to a time of cowboys and cowgirls, lawmen and brave Native American warriors. The complex includes the Buffalo Bill Museum, Plains Indians Museum, Whitney Western Art Museum, Drapter and Natural History Museum. The museum was founded in 1917 and today holds over 50,000 artifacts. The Museum has been part of the Smithsonian Affiliate Membership Program for the past 15 years.

We continue our discovery of the Wild West heading through the "Energy Capital of the US," Gillette, WY. Then, we travel to South Dakota to spend the afternoon getting familiar with a famed Lakota warrior at Crazy Horse Memorial. You’ll gaze in awe of this colossal carved tribute to Crazy Horse, which you’ll learn is the largest mountain carving in the world.

Today, participate in a MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience with a visit to the Oglala Lakota Living History Village, introducing you to the beautiful landscape of the past and present Lakota culture, and of indigenous knowledge of Pine Ridge Reservation. Your visit contributes to the sustainability and resiliency of the Lakota community. Walk with a local guide on the trails through displays of living quarters used through the 19th and 20th centuries. Meet local artists who, through crafts and storytelling, provide insight into their cultures and traditions. Later, visit the Ben Reifel Visitor Center, the perfect place to prepare for your visit of Badlands National Park. Learn about the local earth science, wildlife and history as you explore museum exhibits, visit a working Fossil Preparation Lab or learn about Indigenous communities who one inhabited the land.

Today, head for the famous Black Hills of South Dakota to view the giant faces of former American presidents etched in the stone cliffs of Mount Rushmore. This evening, join your fellow adventurers at a MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience and Farewell Dinner featuring your Lakota Sioux Tribe Member Stephen Yellowhawk (or another tribe member).

Your Wild West adventure comes to an end after breakfast. Say so long to your newfound friends this morning. Depart from Rapid City at your leisure.