Today was not a very exciting day. We decided to take a few days to regroup and relax. We started off pretty early- even earlier than the kids next to us (turns out they were up, just waiting to yell and scream). After fighting with the tent for a good half-hour, we were finally packed up and ready to go. We stopped at Mammoth Hot Springs, in the Northwestern corner of Yellowstone, before leaving the park. It was impressive, to see the thermal terraces. It wasn't quite what I was expecting, but then again, I'm not sure what I was expecting. It took us two hours to actually leave the park. We entered Montana at around 9:00 this morning. The first town in Montana is called Gardiner. There isn't much in town, but it is very "Western".
We planned on heading up to Helena, the Capitol. There isn't much in between. There is a town called Bozeman, where Montana State University is located, so it's pretty big, relatively speaking. We stopped there for lunch- totally worth it! From there, it was another 90 minutes to Helena. If you want to know where your tax dollars are going, it's going to fixing the roads in Montana. There was at least 30 miles of road work, in remote areas. Not much to see on the drive, except for the historical marker that said, "Thar's gold in them thar hills!" There is a reason they call it "Big Sky Country"- because that is all you can see for miles. There are no buildings to block it.
We finally got to Helena and went to Starbucks to catch up with civilization. It was one of the nicest, friendliest one we've been to. We found a hotel to spend a few nights in- it's really nice compared to the ground. We also heard that there was a bear attack in Yellowstone a few days ago. The activities around the park all make sense now. If it happened when and where we think, we were pretty darn close to it...luckily we didn't go in the backcountry. Apparently everyone else knew about it before we did. We spent a little time trying to plan the next leg of our trip (and probably the most exciting!) Other than that, not much happened today. We're planning on relaxing tomorrow, so it's probably going to be another low-key post. And with that, it is time for bed!!
States Visited: Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New York, South Dakota, Wyoming, Wisconsin (11/50)
Provinces Visited: Ontario (1/10)
License Plates Seen: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming (49/50)
Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan (8/10)
Showing posts with label Yellowstone National Park. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Yellowstone National Park. Show all posts
Friday, July 8, 2011
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Day Thirteen: Grand Teton and Jackson Hole: One 'Elk' of a Place!
After a very uncomfortable night, and waking up almost every hour, we finally woke up around 8:00. It was probably a good time to wake up, seeing as the kids next to us were up and at it. We were planning on watching the sunrise, but didn't make it in time. Oh well. After wondering why the guys next to us didn't invite us over for coffee and eggs, we decided to hit the road and head to Grand Teton National Park. It is about an hour from Yellowstone to the center of the park. It, too, is an amazing place. We were going to turn around after a while, but like Yellowstone, around every corner is another gorgeous view. The mountains out here are nothing like the ones at home. And neither are the views!We saw what may have been a moose or an elk. I hope it was an elk, since we'd be very disappointed if we missed a moose. We stopped to take some pictures, but other than that, we didn't get out of the car. There are a few hiking trails there, but a lot of them were closed off because of bear activity. We didn't see any.
We continued to Jackson, Wyoming. It is a cute little town, with a lot in town, but not much around it. It's a small Western ski town, with an enormous mountain to ski down. Similar to what you would find in Vermont. It was pretty crowded. We went to the Visitor's Center and looked at their exhibit on elk. Jackson is home to the National Elk Refuge, so they have this huge area set up. There weren't any around today- the Ranger said they make their way up to higher ground to stay cool. I don't blame them! We stopped for lunch at the Betty Rock Cafe. It's a quaint cafe-type place. The prices were a little high, but the food was delicious! We were also able to catch up with civilization a little. After that, we decided to head back to Yellowstone. We were finally able to use our Parks Pass, and got our maps for Yellowstone. We are going to go back and check to see what we missed.
Tomorrow is our last day here. We will be off to Montana for a few days to regroup and get ready for our stop at Glacier National Park.
States Visited: Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, South Dakota, Wyoming, Wisconsin (10/50)
Provinces Visited: Ontario (1/10)
License Plates Seen: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming (49/50)
Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan (8/10)
We continued to Jackson, Wyoming. It is a cute little town, with a lot in town, but not much around it. It's a small Western ski town, with an enormous mountain to ski down. Similar to what you would find in Vermont. It was pretty crowded. We went to the Visitor's Center and looked at their exhibit on elk. Jackson is home to the National Elk Refuge, so they have this huge area set up. There weren't any around today- the Ranger said they make their way up to higher ground to stay cool. I don't blame them! We stopped for lunch at the Betty Rock Cafe. It's a quaint cafe-type place. The prices were a little high, but the food was delicious! We were also able to catch up with civilization a little. After that, we decided to head back to Yellowstone. We were finally able to use our Parks Pass, and got our maps for Yellowstone. We are going to go back and check to see what we missed.
Tomorrow is our last day here. We will be off to Montana for a few days to regroup and get ready for our stop at Glacier National Park.
States Visited: Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, South Dakota, Wyoming, Wisconsin (10/50)
Provinces Visited: Ontario (1/10)
License Plates Seen: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming (49/50)
Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan (8/10)
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Day Twelve: Thar She Blows!
After bragging about how well we set up our tent, it came in handy last night. It rained and thundered, but nothing leaked! We woke up to what sounded like a bear grunting. It startled us. It turned out to be a man blowing his nose in the bathroom. We decided to take a drive around the park today. The park is so huge and spread out that you need to drive from site to site. The first stop was West Thumb. We had to drive around Yellowstone Lake. It was so pretty. The snow-covered mountains in the background, with lots of blue water. West Thumb is home to a bunch of different geysers and hot springs. There is a big boardwalk connecting all of them. As you walk by a geyser, it gets so much hotter.
Our next stop was Old Faithful. It is on the other side of the park. As we drove there, we crossed the Continental Divide at 8,000+ feet in elevation. We stopped to take a picture of the sign and some guy asked us if we were from Central Connecticut in Hartford. Close enough. It was kind of weird. When we finally got there, it was very touristy. We walked out to the geyser, and luckily we got there just in time. We waited for about 5 minutes and then it erupted. It started off really slow, and then eventually went all-out. It goes pretty high. The whole thing lasted about 2-2.5 minutes. The next time was supposed to be in another 90 minutes or so, so we didn't have to wait again. We walked through the Visitor's Center, and they have an exhibit all about the geysers. We didn't realize that Yellowstone was actually a volcano, which is why they have so much thermal activity. I guess if you think about it, it makes sense.
From there, we took a 1.5 mile walk through a whole bunch of geysers, pools, and mud volcanoes. Along there was supposed to be the world's tallest and most predictable geyser, Grand Geyser. We saw the area, but didn't wait to see it erupt, it would be another hour- it was too hot to sit still. We passed through a few sulfur pits. It was disgusting. The last sight on the walk was the Morning Glory Pool. It was interesting because it looks like a rainbow in the pool, and the hole in the earth is pretty deep. After what seemed like three hours, we got back to the car and decided to head back for lunch next to the Lake. It was so peaceful.
After lunch, we went back to the campsite to plan the rest of the day. We decided to go to Yellowstone's Grand Canyon. We stopped by the Information Center and saw a whole bunch of stuffed animals. It was really neat, but kind of scary. They had a wolf, two otters, swans, and even a soaring eagle. As we were driving there, it was amusing that people would stop on the side of the road to take pictures of deer. However, we did see a herd of bison in the distance, and one really close to the road, just grazing. When we finally got to the Canyon, there was a line of cars. There was an elk in the grass, so they were all trying to get pictures. One crazy lady was really close to it... We walked the trail around the South Rim. It was about a mile long, but it was much quicker than this morning. We saw the Upper Falls and Artists' Point. It is a lookout that is definitely picture-worthy. On our way back, we were trying to outwalk the lady in front of us, but Dawn slipped, and somehow we lost her. I don't know where she ended up going. As we were coming out, there was a group of rangers, who looked like they were on a mission, and they blocked off the entrance, where we came in. I don't know what happened, but I hope everyone's OK. We also stopped at the Mud Volcano, which was probably the worst smelling place in the park. I would rather go to a porta potty after a race than go there again!
When we got back to the campsite, we started planning our adventure for tomorrow, but the sleeping bags are much more attractive! As long as the kids next to us are quiet. One sounds like they belong on Toddlers and Tiaras (except we're pretty sure it's a boy).
States Visited: Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, South Dakota, Wyoming, Wisconsin (10/50)
Provinces Visited: Ontario (1/10)
License Plates Seen: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming (49/50)
Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan (8/10)
Our next stop was Old Faithful. It is on the other side of the park. As we drove there, we crossed the Continental Divide at 8,000+ feet in elevation. We stopped to take a picture of the sign and some guy asked us if we were from Central Connecticut in Hartford. Close enough. It was kind of weird. When we finally got there, it was very touristy. We walked out to the geyser, and luckily we got there just in time. We waited for about 5 minutes and then it erupted. It started off really slow, and then eventually went all-out. It goes pretty high. The whole thing lasted about 2-2.5 minutes. The next time was supposed to be in another 90 minutes or so, so we didn't have to wait again. We walked through the Visitor's Center, and they have an exhibit all about the geysers. We didn't realize that Yellowstone was actually a volcano, which is why they have so much thermal activity. I guess if you think about it, it makes sense.
From there, we took a 1.5 mile walk through a whole bunch of geysers, pools, and mud volcanoes. Along there was supposed to be the world's tallest and most predictable geyser, Grand Geyser. We saw the area, but didn't wait to see it erupt, it would be another hour- it was too hot to sit still. We passed through a few sulfur pits. It was disgusting. The last sight on the walk was the Morning Glory Pool. It was interesting because it looks like a rainbow in the pool, and the hole in the earth is pretty deep. After what seemed like three hours, we got back to the car and decided to head back for lunch next to the Lake. It was so peaceful.
After lunch, we went back to the campsite to plan the rest of the day. We decided to go to Yellowstone's Grand Canyon. We stopped by the Information Center and saw a whole bunch of stuffed animals. It was really neat, but kind of scary. They had a wolf, two otters, swans, and even a soaring eagle. As we were driving there, it was amusing that people would stop on the side of the road to take pictures of deer. However, we did see a herd of bison in the distance, and one really close to the road, just grazing. When we finally got to the Canyon, there was a line of cars. There was an elk in the grass, so they were all trying to get pictures. One crazy lady was really close to it... We walked the trail around the South Rim. It was about a mile long, but it was much quicker than this morning. We saw the Upper Falls and Artists' Point. It is a lookout that is definitely picture-worthy. On our way back, we were trying to outwalk the lady in front of us, but Dawn slipped, and somehow we lost her. I don't know where she ended up going. As we were coming out, there was a group of rangers, who looked like they were on a mission, and they blocked off the entrance, where we came in. I don't know what happened, but I hope everyone's OK. We also stopped at the Mud Volcano, which was probably the worst smelling place in the park. I would rather go to a porta potty after a race than go there again!
When we got back to the campsite, we started planning our adventure for tomorrow, but the sleeping bags are much more attractive! As long as the kids next to us are quiet. One sounds like they belong on Toddlers and Tiaras (except we're pretty sure it's a boy).
States Visited: Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, South Dakota, Wyoming, Wisconsin (10/50)
Provinces Visited: Ontario (1/10)
License Plates Seen: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming (49/50)
Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan (8/10)
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Day Eleven: Wild, Wild, West
We decided to get an early start today. Apparently all campers wake up before 6. So we had to wait for the showers, but were able to leave by 7 anyway. We started by going to Sturgis, SD. Had to see what all the hub-bub was about there. Bikers don't have the same schedule as campers. Nothing was open that early in the morning. So we got our picture of the Harley Davidson store in town. Then it was off to Deadwood. This is where Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane came in the summer of 1876 during the gold rush in the Black Hills. They are buried there, too. Everything you would imagine in a wild west town can be found here- casinos, saloons, and the town cemetary. From Deadwood, it was off to the Geographic Center of the United States. It's in a little town called Belle Fourche in South Dakota. Well, we put in "Geographic Center of the US" in our GPS. It sent us to a far out of the way middle of nowhere field. Turns out that we could've saved about an hour if we stopped in the Belle Fourche information center where all the flags were. We even said to each other as we passed it the first time, "That's probably the monument." I think we should listen to ourselves next time.
After all of that, we crossed over from South Dakota into Wyoming and were off to Devil's Tower National Monument. The first town we got to was Aladdin. Population: 15. We passed through Sundance, Wyoming, made famous by Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Devil's Tower was the first national monument. It is pretty neat to see this huge rock formation sticking up in the middle of nowhere. We were driving along and all of a sudden, it pops up out along the horizon. Since you can see it from the highway, you think that you are close to it, but it takes another hour to actually get there. We took an hour hike around the base of it, and saw some climbers up the middle of the rock's face.
We didn't want to take too much more time up, since it was another four hours to Yellowstone, and we had reservations for tonight. We continued along I-90 and passed some more small towns. One of them was Emblem, WY, complete with it's own post office. It has a population of 10. Two houses. No lies. On our way, we passed through Bighorn National Forest. We went up and down the windy roads, and we got our first glimpse of July snow. It was amazing! The views were even better than the ones yesterday at Custer State Park. The next big city we got to was Cody, WY, named after Buffalo Bill Cody, who was supposedly buried in town, so they would name it after him. We were too early for the rodeo and didn't need anything from Walmart, so we decided to keep driving.We drove through the Shoshone National Forest, along the Shoshone River, passed the Buffalo Bill Reservoir and Dam.
Finally, around 9:00 we reached Yellowstone's East Entrance. It was still another 27miles to our campsite. A plus for arriving late was that we were able to see the sunset over Yellowstone Lake. I don't know if I have ever seen anything as cool as that! As we were checking in, the Park Ranger was going through all of the specifics, including bear protocol- how you can't have any food, cosmetics, water, etc outside. Made me really want to stay there... When we finally got to our site, we put up our tent. After all our practice, this is probably the best we've done! And with that, it is definitely time for bed!
States Visited: Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, South Dakota, Wyoming, Wisconsin (10/50)
Provinces Visited: Ontario (1/10)
License Plates Seen: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming (48/50)
Alberta, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan (7/10)
After all of that, we crossed over from South Dakota into Wyoming and were off to Devil's Tower National Monument. The first town we got to was Aladdin. Population: 15. We passed through Sundance, Wyoming, made famous by Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Devil's Tower was the first national monument. It is pretty neat to see this huge rock formation sticking up in the middle of nowhere. We were driving along and all of a sudden, it pops up out along the horizon. Since you can see it from the highway, you think that you are close to it, but it takes another hour to actually get there. We took an hour hike around the base of it, and saw some climbers up the middle of the rock's face.
We didn't want to take too much more time up, since it was another four hours to Yellowstone, and we had reservations for tonight. We continued along I-90 and passed some more small towns. One of them was Emblem, WY, complete with it's own post office. It has a population of 10. Two houses. No lies. On our way, we passed through Bighorn National Forest. We went up and down the windy roads, and we got our first glimpse of July snow. It was amazing! The views were even better than the ones yesterday at Custer State Park. The next big city we got to was Cody, WY, named after Buffalo Bill Cody, who was supposedly buried in town, so they would name it after him. We were too early for the rodeo and didn't need anything from Walmart, so we decided to keep driving.We drove through the Shoshone National Forest, along the Shoshone River, passed the Buffalo Bill Reservoir and Dam.
Finally, around 9:00 we reached Yellowstone's East Entrance. It was still another 27miles to our campsite. A plus for arriving late was that we were able to see the sunset over Yellowstone Lake. I don't know if I have ever seen anything as cool as that! As we were checking in, the Park Ranger was going through all of the specifics, including bear protocol- how you can't have any food, cosmetics, water, etc outside. Made me really want to stay there... When we finally got to our site, we put up our tent. After all our practice, this is probably the best we've done! And with that, it is definitely time for bed!
States Visited: Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, South Dakota, Wyoming, Wisconsin (10/50)
Provinces Visited: Ontario (1/10)
License Plates Seen: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming (48/50)
Alberta, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan (7/10)
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