My Favorite Place

Never fail when I get to a new place and introduce myself and claim Montana as my home I normally get the comment, "Oh!  It's so beautiful there!"  To which I reply, "Nope, I am from the ugly side of Montana."  Now to some I am sure the badlands of Eastern Montana are beautiful but my heart lies with western Montana.  This, for sure, has to be my favorite place in all the world.  God certainly showed his creative hand when it came to the Gallatin River Valley.

Nestled in between West Yellowstone and Bozeman is a set of switchbacks that follow the Gallatin River.  I have probably made this drive at least 50 times in my life and I am pretty sure I fell in love with it as a young child.  When we lived in Utah we would drive up to see my grandparents.  Then when we moved to Montana and we would make that drive back to Utah to see my Grandma.  For church we attended the temple in Idaho and made that drive annually.  I attended college in Idaho and frequently made the drive home.  Suffice it to say, I could drive this road with my eyes closed.  I have almost hit a moose, slid off the snowy road into the ditch, had several car breakdowns, and have many family car memories such as "salad freaks" and "fruta juego" that include this stretch of highway.

So now I will admit it.  I am in love with this place!  If I could choose to live anywhere in the world, it would be close to this river valley.  In all the times I have made the drive through this beautiful area I have always wanted to stop and snap some pictures thinking someday it will be my bathroom artwork or something!  But, I have never stopped...not in the so many times I have driven through there.  It always seems so much more important to press on and get where we are going.  However, that ended this summer.  I finally did it.  I finally stopped.  And it was every bit as beautiful as I remember it.  And now I have a photo memory so I can see it whenever my heart aches for this gorgeous land.