We celebrated 4th of July 2023 in...

4th of July is an interesting holiday to plan around when RVing full-time in the US. It's typically a very busy time for camping, so we always need to ensure that we have a place to stay, or else we risk campgrounds filling up. It's also always a strange vibe because everyone around us is in party-mode, but we're continuing to work and do chores, just as we would during any other time of year. We do, however, take the holiday off, and the plus side to traveling the country is that we can decide where we want to celebrate America's birthday, and it can literally be anywhere. We don't purposely try to choose extra historical locations - we are from Boston after all, so you can't get much more historical than that - but we like to use this holiday as an opportunity to see how different towns in the US enjoy this day.

This year, we dove head-first into country western celebrations in West Yellowstone, Montana! We got the small town vibe, which catered to locals and tourists alike. The town had a whole itinerary of events planned out, with the capstone being, of course, the fireworks display.

We began our celebration with a visit to the 4th of July farmer's market, which was set up along the sidewalk right outside the Museum of the Yellowstone. In a region of the country where farmland is abundant, we've started wondering about these so-called farmer's markets. The vast majority of the ones we've been to have been much more what we'd call a craft fair, featuring woodworkers, jewelry makers, knitters and crocheters, and similar. Our attempts to purchase farm-fresh food have mostly been futile. Here in West Yellowstone, we were able to buy a couple loaves of zucchini and carrot bread, plus some natural dog treats for Tanner.

While we were wandering, we were stopped by a lady who asked us if we were planning on going to the museum. We said we weren't sure, but she gave me her entry receipt which was good for another admission. Well, technically, she and her friend were on the same receipt, but it had one adult and one senior admission. We sometimes joke that Anthony is an old man, but we think this would be pushing it. We pocketed the receipt and figured we'd see how the day went and decide later. First, though, we had an important stop to make.

The last time we were in West Yellowstone, we passed by an ice cream place that serves Hong Kong bubble waffle cones. We were intrigued. And so, we made our way over to the shop, where we bought an Oreo waffle and a brownie waffle. We weren't expecting much since this was obviously a novelty, but the waffles themselves were cooked perfectly. The ice cream was average, and we could have done without the toppings. Still, it was satisfying to our whim, and it certainly made for entertaining pictures!

We then headed over to the town park, where we heard there was a Buffalo Chip Chuck scheduled. If you don't know what that is, neither did we, and when we looked it up a few days earlier, there wasn't much information, but the little bit we did read had us wondering, "Wait, seriously?!" Ah, yes. The chip chuck is indeed a competition where participants throw bison feces to see who can throw it the furthest. It sounds grosser than it is. They shellac the poop so it won't smell or come apart as its tossed. ...OK, no, it still sounds gross. We learned a lot, though, like how if you throw it at the right angle, it will then roll on its side, giving you more distance. That's probably knowledge we'll never need in our lives, but there it is. The line to participate was quite long, and we were more than fine leaving without being able to say that we "flung the dung," and so we only stayed for a short while before venturing back across town.

Since we had already explored the shops of West Yellowstone during a previous visit, we decided to cash in on our free admission to Museum of the Yellowstone. We had Anthony pay for his entry, but the girl working the front desk didn't seem to notice what the receipt said, so we probably could have gotten Anthony in as the senior. We're just too moral for that. This museum is prominently located across from the Yellowstone Visitor's Center, and it's an old Union Pacific Railroad depot. Unsurprisingly, this means that the museum had lots of exhibits on the history of the railroad and its Yellowstone Branch. Thinking about those days, when Yellowstone was all but impassable, was eye-opening for us. Nowadays, we take our national parks for granted much of the time, and it's so easy for us to hop in a car and drive over to most of these parks. Back then, that wasn't the case. Even forming this first national park was a feat. Not only did the US not have a national park organization in place yet, but no country did that we could emulate. It was a long process to get this service to where it is today.

Other exhibits showed the lives of Native tribes in the area, a photograph collection on the September 1988 wildfire, and a wildlife management display. The museum also has a few theater rooms, where you can watch various films on the region. We watched Above Yellowstone, an aerial overview of the park. It was special getting to see so many of the places we had explored in the park and learn more about them.

Next on the itinerary was the 4th of July parade, which West Yellowstone dubs as the "most festive small town 4th of July parade you'll ever experience." They even let the public march in it! We opted to be spectators instead. We immediately caught onto the festive nature, with many marchers throwing candy, water balloons, and shooting water guns at the bystanders. The local fire department marched, as did the town mayor. Several of the Yellowstone tour companies took their safari jeeps out for the parade, and we even saw some extra festive animals marching! The parade, festive as it was, was missing one big component, though: Music. A couple of the floats had music playing through a speaker, and one had a girl playing guitar and singing. But where were the marching bands?! Perhaps I should have marched with my harp.

Next up for us was an activity we had talked about attending ever since we made it out to the country west. It was time for our first rodeo! What can we say about this experience, besides that it's something you just need to see for yourselves? It's probably the most American thing we could have done for the 4th, and being crammed into the bleachers with everyone enjoying themselves, the energy was infectious. The cowboys and cowgirls are unbelievably talented, and the horses, bulls, and calves were adorable. The rodeo had a special 4th of July ceremony at the beginning, before the National Anthem, and they also honored all the veterans in attendance.

We left the rodeo a little early so we could pick up food and grab a spot on the park green before the fireworks. We had overheard someone that afternoon say that the park gets crowded, so it's best to get there early for the fireworks. We weren't sure what crowded meant in a small town. We were used to the Charles River in Boston. But we also knew that the park's bandstand had local bands playing all evening long, so there was likely a crowd that got there early to listen to the music. We first stopped at Asian Mama, an Asian fusion takeout restaurant, put in an order, and then brought our camping chairs over to the park. There was still plenty of room, and it would remain that way into the night, but we didn't care. We got all cozy and listened to some music while we had our dinner. As inauthentic as it is, we couldn't skip Asian Mama's novelty food item, the potato twist. This thing had to be close to 2 feet long, and boy was it delicious! I mean, can you really go wrong with fried potato on a stick?

Finally, the sun had set enough for the fireworks to begin. We weren't expecting a tremendous display or anything, but we were a bit confused. The town said the best place to view the fireworks would be the park, and so that's where we all went. Only, they launched from a direction that made all the fireworks shrouded by trees. From what we could see, we weren't missing much. There was a lot of space between bursts, and the finale was so underwhelming that we only knew it was the finale because everyone started leaving. We didn't care, though. For us, 4th of July isn't about the fireworks, and many years we skip them altogether. The best part of the day for us was being surrounded by people enjoying this country that, when we take away all the polarization and turmoil, is truly beautiful. American nomads all say the same thing: Traveling the US allows us to see beyond what the news outlets want us to believe. There are good people everywhere, and deep down, we all want everything that America is all about: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.