A day in Yellowstone

I don't know how many times I can say the the day was full of amazing, beautiful sights without you getting tired of hearing it but today, our first in Yellowstone, was full of amazing sights. I have heard of the wonders of this place but couldn't really appreciate them until today.

We intended to see the southern part of the park today and then move north tomorrow and see that half but we are so tired tonight that we arranged to stay here another night and move on Sunday.

We stopped to see one geyser that was spewing but couldn't see it very well so we moved up (in the car) and as I took a great picture the wind caught the spray and blew it right into the car. It smelled like sulpher! It didn't take us long to move along to the next scene!

When we arrived at the Old Faithful sight there was a huge parking lot with buildings (and another being built) and a lot of people. We searched for a parking spot and finally found one and started over to the crowd. Just as I got close it blew! I didn't have time to scout the perfect place to photograph it but had to take what I could get as I ran closer and closer. The one with the unknown man in the middle was the geyser at its highest point (I think) but the one with the crowd in it is a better picture of Old Faithful. At least we didn't have to wait the 92 minutes till the next eruption. It was a wonderful thing to see!

One of the most beautiful was Firehole Spring. The color around it was wonderful and it would bubble a while then boil up then settle down again. Amazingly beautiful and there was a wood walkway close enough to get a really good look. Actually there were walkways everywhere but dogs aren't allowed on them so we didn't walk there. (I ventured out for a few pictures but didn't walk the miles and miles of wooden walkways.)

Janette asked the other day if we would cross the continental divide so when we passed the sign we took a picture. We crossed it 3 times (4 if you count the one we crossed twice).

We saw these two elk by the side of the road. One laying down in the background and one walking around. There were cars stopped on both sides of the road to see it. If there are cars stopped on the road there is sure to be something interesting to see. We saw buffalo and elk and I swear I saw two pelicans flying by! Do pelicans live around here ? Sure looked like pelicans to me. Didn't get a picture but that's my story and I'm sticking to it (until someone tells me that it couldn't have been pelicans.) There is so much water in massive lakes, streams and rivers that anything is possible.

Try to put my stories with the pictures again. I'm too tired to try to figure out how to do it right. I miss everyone and love you all dearly!

The Grand Tetons

This view of the Grand Teton (the highest peak in the Teton range) was taken from the car with just the zoom on my little camera. I thought it showed clearly how many peaks there really are. In the book we bought about the Tetons there is a picture of climbers on the ice heading for the top. It said peak climbing time is mid July to the end of September. We weren't even tempted but I thought of Clem. He would definitely be tempted and probably do it!

Mindy likes to see the views. There are so many scenic overlooks and pullouts to stop and look and photograph without blocking traffic. We stopped at most of them. Just couldn't get enough of the Tetons from different perspectives. They look different from different angles but they are beautiful from every angle.

It's a little hard to see in this picture but there is a lake between us and the mountains. This is Jackson Lake, the largest but there are 4 smaller lakes and many really small lakes all at the foot of the mountains. They are so serene and beautiful! There were lots of boats and canoes and that just made it prettier.

Mindy makes friends where ever we go! I think Bill likes her as a "chick magnet" although these particular chicks are a little young. She now knows the drill of getting in and out of the Jeep and loves looking out the back when the window is unzipped.

Wednesday, July 15th

We survived the night in the parking lot just fine. Really it wasn't bad at all except for the lack of a shower this morning it wasn't so different than any other place and we had a bonus when we looked out the window this morning. There was a beautiful female moose grazing in the grass very close to us. I grabbed the camera and took several pictures. Isn't she beautiful!

We had breakfast and left Casper headed for the Grand Teton RV Park. We called last night and made reservations for 3 nights. We didn't think there would be many Wal-Marts here and we were longing for a shower that would last more than a couple of minutes.

There was construction on the mountain road that held us up but the scenery was so gorgeous we didn't mind sitting and looking at it a little extra. As the Tetons came into view we could see snow and the temperature dropped to 65 degrees! It's warmer in the park but I expect it will be quite cool tonight. The stay at the Wal-Mart wasn't in vain...we bought an extra blanket.

We will spend the next few days viewing the sights close by. Both Teton National Park and Yellowstone are close. I'm looking forward to it.

I forgot the picture of the blast

So here it is! Don't get too excited...it will be over in seconds! I can't seem to place the pictures where I want them in the blog so they appear, in no particular order, in a string at the top. If anyone who reads this can help me do it right I am open to advice.

Tuesday, July 14

One of the outside doors broke off on the outside of the motor home and repairs had to be made before we could get on the road. Bill went out and started working and two neighboring campers came to help. After gathering tools and screws from various RVs the repair was complete and we were off to see the blast at Crazy Horse.

I don't know what I was expecting but a blast at Crazy Horse was something I definitely wanted to see. I was not alone! There were lots of people gathered outside the park to watch. A boom, a puff of dust, and it was over! We all got in our cars and left. That was it! I guess it gives me bragging rights that I witnessed a blast at Crazy Horse but it was over in seconds and was much lower on the mountain than I expected. Nobody even yelled "Fire in the hole!" that I could hear.

Anyway, we were off to Casper, Wyoming! We drove for miles and miles and miles with nothing but rolling grassland with an occasional herd of cattle grazing. We saw three trains all loaded with coal. I counted 135 cars in one of them! Very picturesque. I realized that I wanted to be out of here before winter set in when I saw miles of snow fence along the highway. There was one lone tree. Then in the distance the purple mountains appeared. How beautiful! Mindy couldn't be roused to witness the scenery. Notice the beautiful Indian blanket she is sleeping on? We got that last night just for her so she could sleep on the couch. At home she isn't allowed on the furniture but in the RV with the slide in there is no place else for her to go so she is loving this RV travel thing!

As we got closer to Casper I started calling campgrounds (all 4 of them!) and nobody had a space available. So here we are in the Wal-Mart parking lot. Bill insisted on going inside to ask if it was okay for us to stay here tonight. The manager said they don't mind at all but sometimes the police run everybody off. Great! That will make me sleep sound! Oh well, what is an adventure without some hardships. We'll go on tomorrow (or maybe the middle of the night) and I'll start calling for a space a bit earlier. Maybe that will help.

I thank everybody who reads this blog. It is fun to write it and I hope you are enjoying it too.

Custer State Park Wildlife Drive

This afternoon we decided to drive the wildlife loop in the park. When we went through the gate the ranger told us we could drive some of the gravel roads in our jeep to see the best sights. We did just that and saw hundreds of buffalo, antelope and prairie dogs! It turned out that even people in big RV's were driving the gravel roads so we had lots of company. We stopped and watched a huge herd of buffalo mosey down a hill into the valley. Another car stopped and I was telling them about it when even more buffalo appeared and started down the slope. The man finally told me to speak more slowly so they could understand. Turns out they were from Belgium! Wow! It was a man, wife and teenage daughter and they were having a grand time. We watched with them for a while and started driving again. We got behind a rented RV who was headed into a herd crossing the road. It took us a half hour to get by them but I got some awesome pictures. I have seen buffalo all my life but they still impress me! They were so beautiful roaming the grassy hills and ignoring us tourists with cameras. Mindy sat in the back and watched but never barked and certainly never thought about jumping out of the jeep even though the back window was open. She is such a hound dog!

Tonight we'll go see the light show at Crazy Horse. Clear sky and perfect temperature. If it gets a little cool we bought Crazy Horse sweat jackets so we'll be toasty. I'll tell you all about it later.

Crazy Horse

This has been one of the most amazing days of my life! We went to Crazy Horse and viewed the orientation about the beginning and the sculptor. We met Clem's friend, Rich and he took us up to the face of Crazy Horse and we walked out on his arm!! Oh my God! We heard stories about the blasting (Rich is a blaster) and learned so much about the memorial and how it will be completed. Rich was a wonderful guide and very gracious. He gave us a packet of information about Crazy Horse and other things in the area and a DVD copy of what we had seen in the orientation. He told us about a special blast planned for Tuesday and of course we immediately changed our plan to leave Sunday so we can be here for that blast. He got us an admission slip so we can get in. I LOVE that man! We are going back tonight or tomorrow night (suddenly we have lots of time here) for the laser light show. This has definitely been an amazing day. Thank you, Clem for hooking us up with Rich!