Flying the National Parks of the Rockies August 2023

For our third honeymoon, a couple of months after our wedding, Sarah and I set off on what felt like a dream trip—flying our Mooney from Nashville across the country to explore some of the great national parks of the Northern Rockies. In just over twenty-six flight hours, we combined three of our greatest loves: flying, hiking, and being together. Along the way, we crossed borders, covered vast landscapes from the air, and then slowed down on the ground, hiking more than ninety miles through mountains, canyons, glaciers, and valleys that define North America at its most spectacular.

Each destination offered its own kind of awe. From the sculpted rock formations of the Black Hills and Badlands, to the glacier-fed lakes of Banff and Jasper, to the dramatic peaks and historic lodges of Glacier National Park, we were constantly reminded how small—and how fortunate—we are. Yellowstone brought a different kind of wonder: geysers, waterfalls, and the surreal beauty of standing inside the caldera of an ancient volcano, hiking the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone and watching steam rise from the earth itself.

One of the most unforgettable moments came flying VFR into Jackson Hole, descending into the valley with the Tetons rising sharply ahead of us—a view that quite literally took our breath away. Wildlife sightings, quiet mountain trails, historic lodges, and evenings reflecting on the day’s experiences rounded out a journey that fed both body and soul. Experiencing these parks from the air and on foot gave us a deep appreciation for their scale, beauty, and fragility.

This trip turned out to be everything we hoped for: adventurous, intimate, and deeply renewing. Traveling this way—by small airplane, hiking boots, and open curiosity—allowed us to experience these extraordinary places not as tourists passing through, but as grateful visitors fully present in the landscape.