Growing up in Montana the only way we ever took family vacations was on four wheels--you know the “are we there yet” type of trip that builds character and exemplifies family time. We didn’t vacation very often, as it was made known that it was a very expensive endeavor, and neither of my parents seemed to like to travel all that far from home. We did take a trip to California one summer to visit my aunt and cousin and ended up bringing my cousin home with us for the rest of the summer. That was memorable. My maternal grandmother moved to Las Vegas when I was about nine and we got to visit her there at least twice, which I thought was totally awesome. We went mini-golfing, go-karting, ate at the Flamingo buffet, and drove down the strip at night. My dad feigned the good time we were all having shopping, swimming, and enjoying the warm weather by constantly referring to Vegas as “sin city” and playing the part of the Grinch quite well. The rest of us had a great time, and I’m pretty sure that he did too.

As an adult, the best part of any roadtrip has been coming home. Of course I enjoy getting away, learning about other places, seeing the sites and having a great time vacationing, but “home is where the heart is” for me I guess. Nonetheless, we’ve sewn a thread of travel through this issue for you to enjoy. Not only do we have articles encouraging you to “Put a Little Gravel in your Travel,” but we introduce you to sights on the road to Red Lodge and historical tours happening there this summer. We also give you a Top 10 Daytrip list to get you inspired. You may just be inspired to visit Montana’s capital city, Helena, and have a craft brew at Lewis & Clark Brewing after reading all about Pat Hill’s recent trip. If staying close to home is more your style, you can find out about two Bozeman businesses on their own sets of wheels in this issue. Tumbleweeds Food Truck is always on the go serving up delicious food from around the world. Moda Fashion Truck hits the Bozeman streets this month introducing hot trends to Montana fashionistas.

On our way home from an April family roadtrip, my husband and I reminisced about family vacations we took as kids and solidified our commitment to create memories with our kids by taking them on as many adventures as possible, while we are all young! The memories we made with our families as kids are invaluable to us. As parents, Brian and I value each day we are given, knowing we are not guaranteed a certain number, and we intend on making so many memories the banks will overflow. We aren’t waiting for next year, and we are certainly not waiting until retirement to enjoy a roadtrip or two.

Whether it’s over the hill to Livingston or Butte, or across the state to visit Glacier National Park or Fort Peck Reservoir, I encourage you to get out of town sometime soon and roadtrip to some place new. Make it an exciting adventure by tracking down a historical landmark, geocache, music festival or county fair. Enjoy!