Yellowstone - Day 14

July 5, 2013...Final day of vacation is bittersweet.  We are quite happy to be home but being away is so much fun!  Now it will be back to face a bushel of mail to open and do something with, lots of laundry, and work on Monday.  But I am very thankful and feel lucky to have experienced the last two weeks. 

Waking up early we headed down the road in the church van to Kearney, Nebraska.  There is a wonderful giant arch over the Interstate 80 that we wanted to see. We were very pleased that we took the time to experience it! The museum is wonderfully done and shows the history of settling the west from the early days of white man's arrival to the area.

We were given headphones to hear the stories that went along with the wonderfully created diaramas as we walked through.  WOW!  It was all so professionally done and reminded me of being at Disney where everything is nearly perfect.  Do not miss this the next time you are barreling down the highway headed west. 

The early pioneers stories mimic all the things we have been discussing the last two weeks.  Hardships galore with only a hope of a better life to come.  Again, I found myself wondering if I would have had the gumption to continue on from this point.  But for most, what choice would there have been?  They couldn't stay.  And they couldn't go back.  Onward was the only option.

There were two peekholes to view the interstate below.  That was fun and they had a radar up there reading the speed of the vehicles passing below. A lovely gift shop and café completed the inside of the archway part of the museum.

Outside was one of my favorite parts...the river.  Which had many big carp in them and feed to give to them. I don't know why but I LOVE feeding carp. If these carp lived at my house they would be so fat they couldn't swim for all the food I would give them!  I wished I had a five gallon bucket of food to give to them instead of a baggie full.  Next time.  ;)

Dan and I wandered around the outside exhibits including the garden and the lodge pole shelter.  It seems that this large round shelter was constructed by women and housed 20 or more families.  The huge lodge poles had to be brought in from further west because lodge pole pines do not grow in Nebraska.  What a gigantic effort those early settlers had to exert just to construct their home. 

Back on the highway these Illinois travelers headed east.  We talked some but I think most of us were pondering our experiences and tucking away favorite memories into our long term memory banks along with thinking of what awaited us at home....comfortable beds, pets we missed, and family and friends.

The people in our lives and our time spent with them are what makes life rich. I encourage you to take a vacation with friends and family even if it is only for a short time.  The few tense moments you experience but quickly overcome, the hours spent in each others company laughing, and the shared exploits to refer too later make for those lasting memories we will cherish when we are old and sitting in the rocking chair.  I plan to tell my grandchildren about my Yellowstone adventure and this blog will help flesh out the story.  Now, to get those photos and memories scrapbooked!  And now on to the next projects!

Thank you for taking the time to hear my Yellowstone story.  Sometimes it was a struggle to take the time to put fingers to keyboard (as opposed to pen to paper) but I am glad I did.  When I read the stats on how many of you read my words, I realize that somebody out there is listening to my thoughts and ramblings!  Thank you!!

Yellowstone - Day 13

July 4, 2013…Oh my gosh, what a day!  Things started out quite smoothly.  The campground was quiet after the excitement of last night!  We did see green shirt walking around but there was no sign of red shirt or orange shirt or even blue.  Wonder what happened there.   We ate a camp breakfast and loaded up the church van and headed off to see some more of the Flaming Gorge area.  We were looking for Chimney Rock and knew approximately where to find it.  We enjoyed the colorful scenery of rocks and sagebrush and finally saw the beautiful formation named Chimney Rock.

This area is so desolate I can’t imagine what the early settlers must have thought.  We are near the point in the Oregon Trail where settlers of the west either went one way to California or another route to Oregon.  As a mother how scary it would have been to look at the sight that lay before them.  They had already experienced months of hardships and sacrifice and knew that there was only more of it ahead.  This part of Wyoming is void of trees, water, black dirt, and people.  But still, it is very beautiful in its own way.

We stopped at a historical sight that was a stagecoach stop from the mid 1800’s.  The ruins of the stable is still there and some plaques explaining all about it have recently been erected.  We also viewed the restored station but up the hill I spied, what I declared looked like a cemetery because of the white fence surrounding it.  The guys poo-pooed us but the girls insisted and we headed up the hill.  As it turned out, it was indeed a cemetery.  Seven people had been murdered near here in a stagecoach robbery and had been buried here.  At this sight I saw and smelled babies breath.  There was so much of it growing wild that I could smell it coming in through the windows of the van.  Gin had read to me earlier in the trip that gypsophellia (babies breath) is an invasive weed to WY and they are working to eradicate it.  We pondered why that might be and came up with perhaps nothing eats is and it is crowding out the growth that the animals can eat.  Our theory anyway.

Our next stop was in Rawlins at the Montana State Penitentiary.  It is now a historical building listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  Built in 1901, it originally had no heating and with Wyoming winters often coming down to 40 degrees below zero, it had to have been a miserable place.  We took an official tour of the facility and our tour guide did a great job of keeping us entertained as we went through the facility.  We got to tour the cell blocks, the cafeteria, the shower rooms, and even saw the gas chamber.   This place is officially haunted according to our guide and has been featured on several television shows about hauntings.  It was a yucky place that’s for sure but everyone was fascinated by this gruesome part of old west history.  The cemetery for the prisoners was just over the hill and we made a stop by there to take a peek too.

Driving east on 80 we laughed and snacked the drive away.  That is until early afternoon between Laramie and Cheyenne when the church van started jumping around.  Again it was tire issues, this time in the front.  Dan and Tim changed it out for the spare at a beautiful WY rest area that had a huge monument of Abe Lincoln.  Why Abe Lincoln?  Well, I will tell you.  The Lincoln Monument was commissioned be the state of WY in 1959 to honor the 150^th anniversary of Lincoln’s birth.  The monument marks the highest point on the old Lincoln Highway.  It was moved to its present location in 1969 when interstate 80 was completed.  Now, how’s that for a history lesson?  Thank you, Laramie visitor’s guide for the explanation.

Back on the road we were still uncomfortable with the van.  We could feel the other front tire was not feeling right.  West on 80 we went.  We passed through Cheyenne and BOOM!  The driver’s side front tire shredded.  Tim expertly guided it to the side of the road.  We girls were a little shook but the guys were calm and put the bad tire they had previously removed back on the van.  We turned around and slowly made our way to a truck service center.

The guys at the truck service center only had tires for semis but told us to go to Wal-Mart only seven or so miles down the road.  We were glad we were not on the interstate but on a smaller road and head back to Cheyenne.  The Wal-Mart people were great and replaced two front tires for us within the 45 minutes they promised us.  Now, normally I detest Wal-Mart but today they were wonderful!

Back on the road east we headed.  I phoned the van rental place, MVP in Milan and left them a message.  I was very nice yet firm in my disappointment, but believe you me, when I get home they are getting a stern talking to.  Not only will I insist they pay for the replacement tires, I will be asking for a weeks rental refund.  That isn’t too much to ask for is it?  I don’t think so.  We were so lucky that things didn’t go more horribly wrong.  We have seven people’s lives that were depending on their renting us a van in good working order…including good dependable tires.  They knew where we were going and we were dang lucky that we were not on some mountaintop headed down a 8% grade like we were this morning!  Thank you, St. Christopher  for taking care of these travelers as we head toward Illinois.

We completed the day with a few fireworks in a small town in rural Nebraska.  Happy 4th America!

Yellowstone - Day 12

July 3, 2013…Today we decided not to leave as early as we have been and it was good to sleep in an extra hour.  Leaving the hostel parking lot we say three hot air balloons flying just a short piece away.  One of them was the same balloon that I rode in yesterday.  Lucky balloonists.  Heading south we soon were saying goodbye to the Grand Tetons and looking forward to our next adventure.

Our destination was the Flaming Gorge area and we checked into our campground in Moran, WY.  This time we opted for a large single cabin with a kitchen and bath in the unit instead of the two separate cabins.

Several of us were ready for some more road time and we headed to the Flaming Gorge area.  It took a couple of hours to get there through the most desolate landscape.  Some sage brush grows a few small juniper trees, but that’s about it.  But the stark beauty of the area is breath-taking!  Huge canyons, deep valleys, huge hills, craggy rock formations, and they have wonderful names for some of them like Deadman’s Gulch, and things like that!  Hilarious!  And I love the work gulch.  That’s a word we just don’t use in Orion very often!

Finally we could see water!  A huge lake appeared and I learned that it is a manmade lake.  A dam was built and the water formed this huge lake.  The largest trout ever was taken from this lake.  This lake is used extensively for recreation and saw people water skiing and fishing.  Tim, Gin, Sierra, and Sandy decided to swim a bit and when they got in they were surprised at how cold it was!  I stayed dry and took photos.  Unfortunately, the weather was overcast and the lighting was not great and we did not get as good of photos as we had hoped.

We stopped at their wonderful visitor’s center at the top of the dam and got our National Parks Passport stamped.  We sure did gather a lot of stamps in our passport this trip.  And I was able to add to my stick nail collection that I started in Germany.  What are stick nails you may wonder?  They are medallions between the size of a quarter or half dollar and made of metal.  They have tiny holes in each side into which you hammer tiny nails onto your hiking or walking stick.  They are a great thing to collect because they are not too expensive and are small to transport in your luggage. 

Back home to the campground we went and made a delicious supper of Rueben sandwiches.  After supper we were sitting on the porch and suddenly the Sweetwater County police department showed up with three units and pulled up just beyond our site.  Of course, being the nosey folks that we are we diligently watched the action progress.  It seems that a lady in a blue shirt with a man in an orange was accusing a lady in a red shirt who was with a man in a green shirt of drugs and not taking care of her child.  The police were there quite awhile and seemed to think that they had things straightened out and two of them left.  But no sooner than the third one was leaving the grounds when blue shirt slapped red shirt and orange shirt was holding red shirt still so her arms could not move and she started screaming!  Loud!  And we all stared.  They quieted down and soon we all went back inside and locked the door.  Many suggestions and theories of what was going on ensued and finally we all settled in for sleep.  Tomorrow we start for home.

Yellowstone - Day 11

July 2, 2013...Oh my gosh!  Today I checked off another bucket list activity!  Dan and I got up very early and were picked up at the hostel to get flight instructions.  You see, today we rode in a hot air balloon. I have always wanted to do this and today was the day!

We rode a short distance to a field where three balloons were laid out on the ground.   We received our safety instructions and soon large fans were blowing air into the balloons.  After they were full, heat was added and our balloon majestically rose up.  It was made from bright assorted colors and had a moose and a jackalope on it.  Surprisingly, it was made close to home in Galena, Illinois!  We climbed into the basket and I wasn't scared a bit.  I thought I might be, but I really wasn't.  The first balloon left the ground and we waited our turn.  After a couple of minutes the balloon gently left the ground and we were in the air and rising quickly.

Up, up, up we went and gently floated over the ground below.  It was very quiet when the heat was not on.  The mountains were to one side of us and ranches and fields of grass, streams, and trees everywhere else.  Once, the pilot brought us down over a small pond to kiss the water just for fun.  As we were descending an alarm on his controls beeped warning us that we were going down.  But back up we went and we were off again.

The ride lasted an hour but that was not nearly long enough for me.  I would have done this for several hours!  We did not go over a mountain as I thought we might.  Something about winds and downdrafts, and other technical stuff.  They have to keep to a specified flight pattern and we could not have flown if the breezes were not exactly right.  All too soon it was time to touch down and we had been watching the first balloon land.  We were enjoying watching the cows gather to watch this spectacle.

It seems that the landing spot is on a 3,000 acre cattle ranch.  The cattle were very curious and not afraid of the large colorful balloon and ran from all corners of the pasture to see what was going on. The ground crew had to keep shooing them away or they would have walked all over the now flattening balloon. 

All too soon we gently touched down and the cows gathered around us.  I love cows and think they are wonderful creatures and I enjoyed listening to them moo at us and I even enjoy the scent of cow pasture even with all its gooey surprises.

Out of the basket we climbed and the ground crew began deflating the balloon and we hopped in a van to go to a very picturesque spot by a stream for our graduation ceremony.  We received certificates of achievement and toasted with champagne, a tradition from France it seems.

Back to the hostel we go to wait for the rest of the group to catch up with us.  The other five chose to go horseback riding and when they returned we shared stories of our adventures over lunch.

The afternoon took us all in different directions, San and Gin went to a wildlife museum, Dane, Sierra, Tim and Dan went to do alpine sledding, and I went for a mani-pedi.  We gathered again only to again go our separate directions.  Tim, Gin and Sierra went shopping (not my favorite thing to do those of you who know me well already know) so Dan, San, Dane, and I wandered Jackson and toured Ripley's Believe it or Not.  This was on Dane's wish list and we were happy to oblige him after he had endured countless hours observing rocks and stuff earlier in the trip. 

We met again in the town square, the one with the antler arches, and headed for dinner at the Mangy Moose.  Eating outside with a mountain as a backdrop was fun and we all enjoyed ourselves immensely.  I love all the new types of flowers I get to see here.  These are lupines, Gin tells me.

Back to our rooms for a bit of computer time was next on the agenda and then to bed.  But not before I tried to knock myself out!  You see it was rather dark in the room and Sierra had her phone plugged in and I had to duck to under it as she was in the top bunk. No problem so far except that it was so dark that I didn't see the bottom of the wooden upper bunk board and smacked into it with my forehead!  Not a light tap either...it was a full blown hard hit that the boys heard in the next room!  Wow did it smart and I had visions of a large bruise and lump in the rest of the vacation pictures.  Those did not materialize, thankfully.  I guess because I hit it flat on and not on a corner it saved me from that.  And off to sleep we all went after a few minutes of laughter and giggles all around.

Yellowstone - Day 10

July 1, 2013…Thank heavens we left this primitive campground!  We are quite tired of dirty bathrooms and no electricity.  I doubt I would have made a very good pioneer woman.

We mugged for the camera at the entrance to the Grand Teton National Park and in our silly photo we always take, we all pointed to our own tetons…you see, Grand Teton in French means “large teat.”  The guys even took part and we all enjoyed a giggle as we headed into town to a real breakfast.

Off to do more sightseeing, our first stop was at another beautiful chapel named The Chapel of Transfiguration and was framed by the beautiful mountains.  The log church was open for our visit and again I am humbled by the beauty of this place.  The simple beauty of the logs against the raw splendor of the mountains is truly something wonderful to behold!

 

Down the road in Jackson Hole was a famous landmark, Morman Row.  My friend, Roger told me to be sure to stop by the most photographed barn in America and we did!  There was a wedding being photographed there and we took our own photos after they finished.  Just adjacent to the barn were a few other abandoned buildings...abandoned by everyone except another large herd of buffalo.  One big fella was casually scratching his back on the corner of the log house.  The herd casually walked by us headed to the next green patch of grass.  Below is the barn reported to be the most photographed barn in America.

 

 

We headed to Jackson where we will be staying in a hostel.  Sandy and I have stayed in them before but they are a new experience for the rest of the gang.  Should be fun!  After checking into our hostel we wanted to explore and first stop was the  town square in Jackson. We delighted in seeing the famous arches made from antlers.  It is quite a sight!  We killed some time looking in the very expensive shops and visited, The Bunnery for a raspberry scone another recommendation from Roger.  But the real action would come late in the afternoon when we took a whitewater raft tour!

 



We boarded a bus and headed to the Snake River for our adventure.  Our guide was a happy fella named Eric and we all took to him immediately.  Squeezed into life vests and given instructions as what to do in case of falling overboard, we started out down our stretch of the river.  Lots of laughing, getting wet, paddling, picture taking, adrenaline, and fun ensued.  I did not jump in the river as some of our group did and we all had a great time!  We finished out the day with laundry and a great meal out before bedtime in the hostel.  We have more adventures planned for tomorrow!

 



Yellowstone - Day 9

June 30, 2013... Waking up in Moran, WY at 5 am this morning was on our schedule.  It was quite cool and a bit damp.  We wanted to get some sunrise photos of the Tetons on the Snake River and headed out in the church van.  We stopped at several pull-outs and snapped away and then Gin got out her handy dandy guide book to see what else there was to see.

We read that there was a small cemetery at a particular location.  We looked and looked and couldn’t find it.   But we ran into a ranger and asked if he knew where it might be.  He gave us better directions than the book and it turned out it wasn’t where the book said anyway.  The park ranger also told us to be alert because a mama grizzly and her cub were seen quite often in the area recently.

 We headed to the cemetery of a family named Allen.  Charles Allen was a postmaster, and shopkeeper early settler of Jackson.  When he sold the land he insisted that the cemetery remain intact.  Someone still visits the graves because there appeared to be flowers that had been fairly recently.  But there obviously is not anyone doing any mowing because the place was run over with weeds, sage, and grass.  It was very disappointing and Western Township Cemetery groundskeepers would have a fit!  The old stones are wonderful to see.  One was even made from a piece of petrified wood!  It was awesome!

We did a very unhealthy and easy breakfast of doughnuts this morning.  We have been much better about eating well, but sluffed off today.  We were in a hurry to get on the road in our church van.  We headed to the Tetons and Jenny Lake which is nestled inside the mountain range.  While driving there we visited a beautiful log cabin Catholic Church along the road.  It faced the beautiful Tetons across a gorgeous blue lake.  Surprising to me, the church was open and we stepped inside to have a look around.   This beautiful log church holds two masses there each Sunday and I wish we had been there during mass time.  A gorgeous round stained glass is the centerpiece of the altar.  After our short visit I was happy to leave a small donation in their very sturdy donation box.

Part of our group chose to hike part of the way around it but Dan and I chose to take a boat cruise around.  Tim, Gin, Sierra, Sandy, and Dane took a boat half way across and from there hiked the final 3 ½ miles back to the beginning.

Dan and I hopped aboard a boat and cruised in comfort around Jenny Lake and learned so much about the lake and the area.  Jenny Lake is 259 feet deep and was a cool 55 degrees today.  Wouldn’t want to stay in very long!  It is a mountain run-off fed lake and there is a beautiful cascading waterfall that has dwindled to a small stream.  Our guide told us that just two weeks ago it was flowing so strongly that he could not take the boat in nearly as close as were today.  He pointed out the only glacier at Jenny Lake.  To be termed a glacier it has to be 100 feet thick and moving.  Gravity is constantly moving it downward.  There is still quite a lot of snow on the peaks and it certainly is beautiful!! 

We looked and looked for a mama bear and her cub that are often seen in a particular area that suffered a fire in 1999 because it is much shorter.  But we did not see her.  Our guide told us that he has seen both bears and moose swim across the lake.  He pointed out an osprey nest and shared that the osprey are better fishers than the eagles and sometimes the eagles will wait until the osprey have caught a fish and then they try to steal it and has watched them fight over it.

After Jenny Lake we headed to a cool spot for lunch.  In the shade of some trees we ate quickly and headed off to our home cabins.  We wanted to find Huckleberry Hot Springs that we had heard was in the area.  We suited up and headed to where we were told it was.  We found the small path and started to follow it.  Soon we saw a sign reminding us that this was a bear area and to take caution.  After quite a ways, we found the creek we were supposed to cross and followed the next path.  It was even further but finally found hot springs water flowing across the land.  Touching it, we knew that we could not possibly sit in it and headed back to Polecat Creek. 

We splashed and played in the creek while Dane and Sierra built a nice little rock dam.  But the days are not long enough here and we knew we had to get moving and make some supper.  Sandy made a delicious chicken and rice casserole and we had salad with it.  Around the campfire it was delicious for this starving group!

Now we find ourselves sitting at the fire and talking and I am writing my blog.  Soon it will be bedtime.  And let me tell you, I have never ever seen a darker place or heard more intense silence than here anywhere I have ever been!  This may be way too much info to share but I am going to anyway…Our campsite is the very last one in the campground and quite secluded.  Butting up next to it is forest that is occupied by moose, bears and other wild creatures.  There are lots of piles of moose (we think) poo in the trees next to us.  The bathroom and showers are quite far away and a pretty decent walk.  Now, back to telling more than I should…last night it was overcast and really, really, really  dark.  There are not any lights in the campground.  Not a very safe situation in my opinion.  But late night I had to piddle.  I was facing quite a dilemma…walk in the total dark far away to the bathroom or go round to back of the cabin and risk the bears and moose and other wild life.  What should I do?  I did not take the long hike.

Enough stories for tonight.  Hopefully, tomorrow I will have internet access again and catch up with the world.  Good night.

Yellowstone - Day 8

June 29, 2013…We broke camp in West Yellowstone and headed south in the church van.  As we left the city I spied some awesome trash receptacles.  They are all painted beautifully with lovely artwork.  An idea to tuck away in the brain for another time.  We made a quick, three mile side trip to Idaho to add that state to our travel list of states traveled and photo op at the Entering Idaho sign and were off to another day in Yellowstone.

Cruising through Yellowstone we made several stops at waterfalls, look-outs, and various other awesome sights. All of a sudden we came upon lots of parked cars and knew something good was happening!  It was bison.  A big mixed  herd of bison were to our left in a big meadow.  We pulled up and got out to take pictures.  As we were admiring them, all of a sudden they decided to cross the road.  Right in front of us!!  There was some distance between the car ahead of us and the church van.  Many of them crossed directly between our two vehicles.  We were all out of the van at that point and just backed up and huddled close to the side of the church van.  Bison crossed and crossed.  Bulls, females, young ones, and the cutest little calves you ever did see! 

They crossed in front of us for several minutes and headed to the meadow to our right.  Some made cute little grunting noises and some made what I would call a moo in cow-talk.  We were enchanted!  I filmed and snapped photos over and over.  After most of them crossed into the meadow they headed to the small river and crossed it into the next meadow.  We just couldn’t get enough of watching them!  Sandy and I counted and both came up with about 70 adults and 20 claves.  How lucky we were to be in exactly the right place at exactly the right time.

Soon we were back in a paint pot area and walking the boardwalk amongst bubbling mud, small geysers, and lots of thermal features.  There is just so much for my eyes to see and I can’t get enough!  What must those early pioneers have thought when they came across this extraordinary landscape?  It boggles the mind to imagine.  Perhaps, if they were overly religious or quite superstitious that they may have thought they had reached Hell.  Hot, dry, bubbling, scalding, water that stinks, burns, and cascades everywhere.  Wow!

At one of the three Continental Divide stops we crossed we saw a little pond with lily pads. In this little pond were lots of leeches and no fishes. Ewww!  We looked and took pics and headed on to the next stop in Moran, WY at our next campsite.  On the way out of the park we came upon an accident scene.  A white Blazer-like car had crossed the center line and went nose first down an extremely steep embankment and some pine trees stopped it from going down into a lake.  Rather scary because a few minutes later and he may have hit us crossing over.  I hope there was no one hurt.

We arrived at Flagg Ranch campsite and I gotta say, we are disappointed in this campsite.  It has no electricity, no lights, and no wi-fi, and the biggest mosquitos we have ever seen!  They are deadly!  The bathrooms are not nearly as clean as we want them to be and some of us wish we were not staying here but there are not other options. We will live through this!  But not having internet is about killing us!

We ate a delicious supper of cheesy, broccoli and potato soup and called it a day.  In the darkest place on earth I have ever seen, without lights in our cabins or street lights on their drives!  Not darkest Africa, but certainly darkest Wyoming!

Yellowstone - Day 7

June 28, 2013...Waking up in West Yellowstone, we knew we would be in for a treat today!  Today is the day we get to see Old Faithful!  So after a camp breakfast we headed back into Yellowstone in our church van.

The thermal features of the park are remarkable!  It was chilly when we started out and they seemed to be steaming a bit extra for us this morning.  Dane and I would like to try an experiment, (of course we never would do this), take an egg, put it in a tea strainer, and dip it in the boiling spring and hard boil it!  I bet it has been done before and I have read how occasionally large animals fall in and are scalded.  I am especially annoyed to read some people go off the boardwalks and are hurt or killed.  I hate to sound  harsh, but they deserved it.  I saw a couple a few days ago, deliberately walk off the path to have their photo taken.  My sister, Gin yells at them when she sees them. I will also say something to those I see disobeying the park rules.  You know me, I'm kinda bossy and not afraid to speak up.  Fortunately, almost everyone complies because we understand how one little footprint could change things forever.  You know...the butterfly effect kind of thing.

Gorgeous waterfalls are on the agenda today too and I can't seem to ever fill my eyes enough with them.  The sounds and splendor and the beauty of this place amazes me. I am so glad to have seen all of this up close and personal!

We saw a huge herd of elk today as well as an awful lot of bicyclists.  Oh, to be young again and train to do this kind of thing.  They are amazing up and down the hills.

The Artist's Pain Pots feature are beautiful.  When you finally climb up to the top of the feature and look down, you see why exactly why it was named this.  Bubbling pools of liquid in all colors, blue, turquoise, yellows, purples, oranges, it was fabulous! What must those early peoples to this continent have thought?  It boggles the mind.

We ate a picnic lunch and headed to the Norris Ranger Museum.  I found this quite interesting.  In the old days, the soldiers kept outposts in different remote areas which were stocked and ready to hole up in if you happened to be in trouble and needed a place to stay during a blizzard or some other emergency.  They were quite well-equipped with food, cooking utensils, a cot and blankets, snowshoes, skis, matches and many other items that would be needed to survive.  I have heard of such a thing, but seeing it was great.  There even was an itemized list of what a person was to do when they left the cabin so that it was ready for the next person.  One of the instructions read to hang the mattress and blankets on a suspended wire so the mice would not get in it.  Oh, and to empty and reset the mouse traps.  Good idea!

Our next stop was Old Faithful and the Old Faithful Inn.  This grand building is a sight to behold and it is easy to sit on one of the benches and imagine wealthy people in the early 1900's pulling up here for a stay in the wilderness.  The Inn has retained much of the grandeur of that era while modernizing with quite nice bathrooms all tiled with modern plumbing as well as air conditioning in the shops and even an ice cream shop.  A huckleberry ice cream cone was delicious!  Huckleberries, looking a lot like a blueberry,  are native to the area and are a favorite food source for birds, black bears, and grizzlies.  Oh, and humans too!

Finally the time had come to see the infamous geyser, Old Faithful!  We waited in the hot sun with many hundreds of other people, on benches surrounding the feature  partially around it.  The day was clear with beautiful blue skies and I was eager to see it!  Gin was telling me that she had read that in years past, the army men would toss their dirty clothes down in the geyser hole and wait for it to erupt and spit their clothes back out, all perfectly steam cleaned!  How fascinating!

Suddenly Old Faithful seemed to be starting to get ready to explode and she did!  Steam and water shot out and the sight was breathtaking!  A spectacular sight filling the sky and my heart!  For some reason this sight really spoke to me!  After it called down I continued to watch as finally the water trickled down in rivulets to near where I was sitting and made its way to a stream.  What a sight!  Please do not miss seeing this for yourself!!

Some of the group decided to take the long hike around some of the features.  Because it was nearly a three mile hike and hot, Dan, Gin, and I decided to hang around the Old Faithful Inn and watch the people and the world go by.  I am fascinated by how many languages I have heard spoken here from everywhere in the world.  It seems to me that the Oriental nationalities especially, are here in force enjoying our National Park and spending lots of money.  Wonderful!!

It wasn't too much longer after some tine was spent in the gift shops and poking around the Inn waiting for the others that it was time for another eruption.  We strategically places ourselves to watch it again and I was not disappointed in the second eruption one bit!  It seemed to have more force this time and went higher and longer.  Others agreed with me about this and I was pleased to catch some of it on video on my camera. 

But finally it was time to head back to the campground to supper of leftovers we wanted to get eaten up; Italian beef, hotdogs, brats, and salad.  What a great day in the American west!

Dan and Tim went to their cabin and went to sleep so Dane was bored and came to hang out in the girls cabin with us.  He is quite funny and smart and was able to very quickly convert my video so it would not have to be viewed sideways!  I had filmed it with the camera longwise and so, of course it showed up on the screen sideways! I sure didn't know how to change it, (and still don't) but Dane had it fixed rather quickly.  What a guy!

Off to sleep to prepare for another adventure tomorrow!

Yellowstone - Day 6

June 27, 2013...WOW!  What a day!  Yellowstone is absolutely one of the most awesome places on this earth!  From the beautiful lakes, to the bluest skies ever, the green forests, and the rocky terrain everywhere!  I absolutely cannot say enough about it!  Today was a day of wonders!

Waking up in Gardiner this morning we packed up quickly and ate a cold cereal or sandwich breakfast.  We are making great time now with the packing and really have found our rhythm. Our little group and our church van headed into Yellowstone to see what we could see.

We stopped at a store to buy ice and Dan came out with a cupcake with a candle stuck in it.  You see, today is Sandy’s birthday.  We sang to her as she made her wish and blew out the candle.  The cupcake was not nearly large enough for all the candles we would have needed, had we used one for each year!  Happy Birthday, San!

Bison were plentiful today and we saw many of them while viewing thermal features.  At one particular sighting three big males were grazing near a water feature.  Most of our party headed to the right along the roadside.  But I had spied a trail to the left which took me out closer to the bison.  I snapped away until he decided to amble towards me.  I backed up some and he stopped.  I waited.  He began to walk toward me again and I backpedaled.  He stopped.  I took pictures.  He started towards me again and seemingly was headed right to me.  That was it!  I got outta there fast and my loving family, down quite a distance, laughed and laughed!  I guess the picture of chubby Debbie running from a bison was a sight to behold!  They  were  wishing they had video.  I was glad they didn’t!  But I got some great photos!

At another stop we encountered three buffalo grazing pretty close to the road and stopped to watch them.  That’s the funny thing about Yellowstone…people just stop everywhere, all the time, wherever they want, to watch what’s going on.  Anyway, one of the buffalo started to wallow in a dirt patch.  He rubbed and scratched and finally was satisfied and got up and ambled off.  Gin was all excited and ran across the meadow over to that spot and snatched up a handful of buffalo fur.  A prize for sure!

Soon we encountered three large male elk placidly eating foliage under some pine trees.  They were beautiful and their antlers were in full velvet.  The largest one was a twelve pointer and he came so close to me I could have reached out and touched him.  We had a sturdy fence between us but I was ready to back up at a moment’s notice!  It was almost difficult to remember that he is not a cow in the barnyard that I am able to pet if I wanted to, but a wild creature that has simply become accustomed to lots of people staring at him.

The wildlife here is abundant.  We saw brown jays, pelicans, osprey, and much more.  We are looking for moose as we have yet to see that and of course, wolves.  That elusive creature is still on the wish list!

Now let’s talk about the mud pots.  Oh my gosh!  I cannot get enough of looking at these features.  Some of the blurping, bubbling, mud looks just like stuff Dan buys in buckets and slaps on walls.  It was really fun to watch and we all wished that we could feel it….minus the burning hot part!  Waterfalls and more beautiful scenery than I can possibly describe to you completed our tour for the day.

Supper took us to town in search of supper and shopping.  It was Sandy’s birthday and she got to choose the place.  It was a pizza and pasta place and I had buffalo ravioli.  It was yummy!  Then, going along with the buffalo theme, Gin and Tim purchased a buffalo hide to place on their floor in the great room as a rug. Very nice!

We finished off the evening with ice cream cones.  I had peach cobbler ice cream.  What a great day in this little piece of heaven on earth!

Yelowstone - Day 5

June 26, 2013...Another beautiful day awaits us as we leave camp in the church van headed off to new experiences.  We will be staying here in Gardiner for another night and were happy not to pack up everything.  We decided to skip the breakfast cereal today and headed into town to a hot breakfast.

We soon were on the road to Yellowstone and in a few minutes were passing under the famous Roosevelt archway.  We took the obligatory family photo of us all of us together.  Gin sets a camera and runs like the dickens to get in the shot!  This time it was just to far to make the run and Dane was called in as substitute runner.  But we got it done!

We weren't in the park but about ten minutes and we spotted people stopped and gawking across the way.  Of course we stopped too, and a man with a powerful telescope allowed us to peek through it and see a grizzly bear!  How exciting!  He told us he had been following her with her cub for several hours.  She was quite far away and as you couldn't really enjoy seeing her without the scope we moved on.  But getting to see a grizzly was very special as many do not get to see one.

Our first major stop was the famous Mammoth Hot Springs.  What a spectacular sight!  It is a huge formation of thousands of years of mineral build up which comes from the ever-flowing water that boils out from the earth.  The boardwalk took us all around it and we marveled at all of it. It is always flowing, changing, and growing and I am eager to compare my photos with Grandma Alice's.  What must she have thought when she came upon this in 1932?  I have had the pictures and videos of this marvel in my life always.  She would not have had that privilege and perhaps have only heard stories of it.  Gosh, I wish I could hear her memories of it!

The colors and shapes and enormity of Mammoth Hot Springs is truly spectacular and I hope you all may have the opportunity to see it at least once in your life!  Go west my friends, go west!

As we headed for the next park feature, Dan spotted a cemetery tucked back in the pines.  Tim turned the church van around and we all clamored out for a look-see.  It wasn't terribly large and was surrounded by a sturdy metal fence to keep the animals out so the stones would remain upright.  As sexton of a cemetery I am always interested in them and find the old monuments beautiful.  As always in the old cemeteries, may of the stones were for infants and several of them were surrounded by a metal child sized bed frame.  The most elaborate one was black metal with curly-q's at each corner and dangling ornamental balls.  The stone itself was topped with a baby lamb, which was commonly done during that time period. Rest in peace, little one.

Waterfalls were next on the agenda and not too far from the turn-offs.  Beautiful sights to behold!  Back in the church van we headed down the road and ran into a lot of cars parked.  I saw what appeared to be a big black stump of charred wood.  But as I was pointing it out it  moved!  A bear!  It was a black bear meandering through a grassy meadow and was easily seen from the roadway.  We stopped with the rest of the gawkers and watched it going about its business of life. It was a black bear and we were really excited to have two bear sightings in one day!  Awesome!

Our next stop was at the famous petrified tree.  This was especially important for us to see because Grandma Alice had taken a photo here in 1932.  We stood in the exact same place Gram stood to photograph the tree 81 years ago.  It was a very special moment and I again found myself wishing she was here to talk with her about it. I wish I had taken this trip with her about 20 years ago when she could have enjoyed it with us.

Back into the church van we went and viewed a few more pretty sights.  Pretty soon we ran into another traffic jam and bailed out.  Not far off of the road was a black bear although its color was more brownish.  It was hunched up with its shoulder against a tree just sleeping. It was so close to the road that there were rangers there keeping folks away and keeping the traffic moving.  We were allowed to stand there just a minute or two and take a few photos and had to quickly move on.  What a great sighting!

Up, up, and up we went and traveled through Dunraven's Pass.  It was quite cold and windy.  We marveled at the views and could see the damage and the restoration that has occurred from the huge 1988 forest fires.  There are so many downed trees here in Yellowstone and it bothers me.  I told my fellow travelers that I would love to have a huge work crew of convicts clean up some of this.  We have had huge discussions of the pros and cons of this plan.  We know that the forest needs to be allowed to regenerate itself in a natural way but as we travel along we often see things that the convicts could be improving!  It has become a running joke amongst the travelers...we see work that needs done or something that need improving and someone will pipe-up and say, "Let Deb's convict crew take care of this."  And we laugh and laugh. It seems the stupidest things are the funniest!

As our afternoon progressed we saw several male bison, some of them very near the roadway.  We see the small herds of females and babies further off in the distance.  They are staying in a protected group while the males hang out elsewhere.  Wish we cold see the babies closer up.

We headed back to our cabins and rounded up supper.  The kids played put-put golf and I did some housekeeping and organizing of pictures on the computer.  It was soon time to head to bed 'cause another adventure awaits tomorrow!

Yellowstone - Day 4

June 25, 2013...Waking up in Greybull we hurriedly ate a camp breakfast and headed to the church van.  A pretty good drive was ahead of us and we wanted to get an early start and head to Montana.  The drive was pretty uneventful as the landscape became more hilly and desolate.  Our conversation centered on, "What do people do for jobs here?" and "Where are the stores to buy groceries?" and "That house way over there doesn't have a neighbor in several miles!"  Not the life for me...I need the conveniences closer at hand and certainly would miss the daily interaction with friends.

Soon we were in Red Lodge and made a pit stop for some shopping. However, we were a little early and some of the shops were not open.  Also, the main street was torn up with construction and the shopkeepers told us that business was off by over 90%.  Ouch.  That could make or break it for them and I'm sure it really hurts.  I did see a bench on Main Street that I liked.  It was just a plain bench but it had a plaque on it with "Class of 1985" or whatever year and the names of all the classmates.  I really liked this idea because it allows a lot of folks to be involved and keep the individual cost down.  Orion's main street could use some new benches....just saying.  We also found a little shop called Haydan.  And as you can see, Tim took the opportunity to do a reflection photo-bomb!  Silly guy!  Why do the stupidest things make us laugh?!

We soon found ourselves winding down the Beartooth Highway.  All mountains are beautiful and these were no exception.  We were so excited to see the snow above us and the air got colder and colder as the church van carried us into the clouds above treeline.  We stopped and fed some begging chipmunks at an overlook but learned they are so fussy they don't like bread and hold out for nuts and seeds! 


Soon we were at the top and snow was everywhere!  I know it's weird to be excited about snow because of how we all dislike it in February, but in June it is an event!   We all got out and played in it and threw snow at each other and mugged for the cameras.  Also at the top was a ski company that had one tow rope.  The hill had to be a double/double black diamond (is there such a thing?) because it was straight down!  But extreme skiers were enjoying a few more runs for the season.  Crazy fools!

We had an altitude event we all found fascinating...it seems that when you buy chips at home and take them to the mountains the sealed bag gets fatter and puffier as you get higher.  We put it up front so we could keep an eye on it and all of a sudden...poof!! The bag exploded and we all cheered!  It just sounded just like a mylar balloon blowing up.  What an event!

At one roadside stop we came upon a whole bunch of birds that were quite unhappy that we were near their nests.  They looked like swallows and made a mud nest.  Here is a photo of them poking their little heads out of the nest.  I have a peculiar feeling that the wild life is soon to get a lot bigger!

We have arrived at the north entrance to Yellowstone and are staying in a campground in Gardiner, MT.  It is really quiet and nice and we like it a lot.  Two nights here while we explore the north portion.  Looking forward to it!  Bye for now.  Deb

Yellowstone - Day 3

June 24, 2013...Waking up in Custer State Park was a delight!  Our cabin here is roomier than the last and the bathrooms were quite new and sparkling clean.  The scent of pine trees is everywhere and we have a spectacular view of a mountainous terrain.  We would like to visit here again and spend several days exploring the area more.  But after breakfast it is off we go!

In Custer are beautiful rock formations and we drove the highway named Needles Highway.  There is one that has a large hole in it which makes it look like a giant needle, thus the name. 

We hiked around here a bit and took photos and quite enjoyed the scenery. We know from Grandma Alice's scrapbooks, that when she visited here in 1932, she walked in the same area and touched the same formations we were playing on today.  I so wish that she were still with us to ask questions of her like, "How long did it take to drive here? " and " Did you see many bison?" because they were quite scarce in 1932. 

We are saddened by the massive amount of pine trees that are standing dead.  A beetle infestation is killing thousands of them and there is seemingly, nothing anyone can do about it.  In many areas dead trees have been taken down and stacked for burning in winter when weather conditions are right.  This will help in the future with forest fires by removing some of the kindling.  But it seems like a never-ending project that humankind will never totally get accomplished.

Of course, shopping was on the menu in Custer and I purchased a beaver skull and a bear skull to add to Eric's skull collection.  I especially liked the beaver because of the large yellow/orange teeth.  I know he will be tickled to have them!

I loved all the tunnels we are driving through.  Some are one lane and we honk before we enter in case someone is coming the opposite direction.  Here is Dan and I posing inside one of them. 

Piling back in the church van we headed west to our next destination which was Devil's Tower.  It is awesome and huge!  What must the pioneers have thought when they came across this awesome formation?  It boggles the mind!  I was especially curious about what was on that very flat  top so when I got my passport stamped in the visitor's center, I read all about it.  The top is nearly the size of a football field.  It is mostly flat with a slight dome.  There are some grasses and small shrubs growing there and an occasional chipmunk, squirrel, or snake makes their way to the top.  No how would a snake climb all the way up there?  Maybe they are dropped there by raptors. 

Devil's Tower is a favorite climbing spot and many people do this climb.  However, during the month of June, the Native Americans make pilgrimages here and leave prayer cloths attached to trees.  Because of this, most climbers do not do Devil's Tower during the month of June out of respect for the tradition and I did not see a single climber on the tower.

We ate a lovely picnic lunch on the grounds amongst the pines and enjoyed an ice cream cone as we mugged for the camera at he sign for the tower.  Yummy!

The drive to our next destination of Greybull, Wy was long and we stopped a few times to take pictures and mug for the camera.  Lots of beautiful wildflowers were in the roadsides and we were able to identify some of them with an app on Gin's phone.  WePretty cool!

Settling in or cabins in Greybull, we found them to be a bit smaller than before but clean and comfortable.  Supper was a polish sausage, peppers, onions combination and we scarfed!  It was time to do laundry and I did three loads between all of us.  There was an inconsiderate lady who wanted to hog all the machines and I had to politely, but firmly tell her that I would be using two of them.  She countered with she had four people she was doing laundry for and I replied I was doing laundry for seven!  I won and got my two machines so it took longer than it should have but I got it done.

I did not have internet service that night and was getting reports via phone how things were going at home.  It seems a lot of damage occurred in Orion and surrounding area but my house was not in the path of destruction.  Thankfully, Greg is home holding down the fort and caring for Vega and Vali. 

Tomorrow we will arrive in Yellowstone!  I can hardly wait!

Yellowstone - Day 2

June 23, 2013. I can honestly say that I probably just had the worst night's sleep in my life! After the wind, rain, and hail stopped, I could not get comfortable on the hardest mattress in the world. I tossed and turned and finally it was 4:30 and nearly time to get up! At 5:30 Gin was up too, so we started our day. But the rental van had a tire that was going flat! Oh, brother!

Camp breakfast of cereal and fruit, repack the van, and we were on our way. Mitchell had a small flea market we girls shopped at while the guys got the tire repaired. Wonderful and kind men at a service station let the guys use their building and tools to plug the tire and we were again on our way.

We stopped at a great Lakota Indian Museum and School. This picture is me sitting in front of the fountain in front of the school. 
Their culture has always fascinated me and I enjoyed the stop. They house some of the props from the movie, Dances with Wolves, one of my favorite movies of all time. It always makes me cry when Wind in His Hair yells down to John Dunbar as he and Stands with a Fist are leaving that he is his friend and will always be his friend. Gets me every time.

We piled back in the van and headed to the Badlands. Beautiful weather of mid- 70's and sunshine is surrounding us and we hiked and laughed and took pictures throughout the park. It is a piece of this earth that seems to be from another world. I wondered to myself as we were driving through it, how the pioneers must have felt when they came upon this stretch. I can't help but think that they must have been totally bewildered by what they came upon. Would I have had the fortitude to cross this desolation? I am not certain I would have. What brave people they were.

The Badlands is something that I vaguely remember visiting as a kid and it truly is as wonderful as my memory tells me it was. I don't know, there is something about rocks that calls to my soul. We had a great time and the varying ages of our group makes for interesting conversations! We took lots of photos and did some major photo-bombing with each other. Silly fun with family is simply the best!

Also, in the Badlands I purchased my National Parks Passport. Each time I visit a National Park site I will have it stamped with their special stamp with the date. Eric has one and I will have to race him and see who can fill it first!

Next stop...Wall Drug! What a menagerie that store holds! It has so darn much stuff in it that is almost sensory overload. Happily, I am easily finding the stick nails that I collect and picked up another there. A picnic lunch under the shade of a tree next to, of all things, a train, completed the afternoon.

Carved into the granite hills of South Dakota was our next stop, Mount Rushmore. It truly is something that everyone should experience once. I loved seeing Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt, and Lincoln all in a row in that order. But I found my eyes wandering to Washington's right and looking at the rock that I knew had originally been intended to be Jefferson. Grandma Alice visited this sight in 1932 and her photos clearly show the beginnings of Jefferson on Washington's right. But the granite proved to be flawed and he had to be blasted off the mountain and put to the left of Washington. I know that I truly hold a piece of American history in that photo. Thanks, Gram.

Back to the van we go for a trip to Custer State Park for a stay in the Blue Bell Campground. This is where we spent the night in a really nice cabin which was larger than the last one. It was very new and the bathrooms were great too. The quiet and darkness is a bit unnerving for this city girl, but after popping a few Tylenol PM, I was pretty certain I would sleep. Living in Orion I am used to street lights in the window and the noises of the night drifting. But the moon was brilliant! We were able to experience it with the scent of pine trees and the sounds of frogs. Wonderful!

I could not get reservations in the same campground as ours so the guys left us for French Creek Horse Camp which was not very far away. But the next morning they told us they had been awakened by the whinnying of horses and when they stepped out they found that a small herd of bison had stayed the night right next to their cabin! And we were off for new adventures!

 

Yellowstone - Day 1

June 22, 2013. Ahhhh....finally vacation day! After the "Celebrate Illinois" event in Orion on Friday night I stayed up, made the banking deposit and decided to pack. Of course, there were still two loads of laundry to do and food to be gathered. Being to tired to face packing, I threw dirty clothes in the machine and went to bed! Waking up about 4 am, I finished the laundry and packing and Dan and I were soon on the road to Gin's house about 6 am.

Loading a 12 passenger van for seven people was easier than I anticipated and we had plenty of room for all our stuff. Our rental van has had many nicknames througout the day and probably will have a few more before we are done! The final thing to do before leaving was put the "Yellowstone or Bust" magnet on our van and take a photo. But that wasn’t really the final thing...I still had to get up and into the van. The very high off of the ground van! Now, my legs are not as nimble as they used to be, and my legs are quite short. Laughing, I hauled my carcass up and into it but something was going to have to be done to make it a bit easier in the long haul. Dan and brother-in-law, Tim talked a lady at a gas station somewhere in Iowa into giving them a cement block to use for a step! It works great! Dang, it stinks getting old!

Laughing and talking for the next four hours, we headed west. At noon we stopped at a very nice roadside stop in NW Iowa. We bailed out for a picnic lunch of sandwiches, Sandy's yummy potatoe salad, and chips. The sun was shining, there were several trees near the picnic table and the warm breeze brushed our faces. It was beautiful and lunchmeat sandwiches never tasted so good! This pull-out had a tower to climb to see the view, and from the top, we could see seemingly forever! Iowa has had plenty of rain and everywhere you look are varying shades of green from lighter limes, to the deepest emeralds and it was beautiful! Piling back in the van we were on the road again and Mitchell, SD was our next destination.

Arriving in Mitchell we went to our KOA and checked out our little kabins. They are small but we don't plan to spend much time in them. Off we went to the first thing that comes to mind of when you think of Mithchell, SD...The Corn Palace! The new mural for this year is currently receiving its grasses and some seeding that looked to this former farm girl like sourdock. New corn will come later when the harvest comes in. I ate an awesome popcorn ball - raspberry white chocolate. That thing was huge and oh, so good! It was made with marshmallows and butter similiar to Rice Krisopie treats so it was soft and sticky. I need to try making them that way, but my recipe with flavored jello is awesome too!  This is Dan enjoying his popcorn ball next to his birth year photo of the corn palace.

 

I was interested to learn that the corn for the palace all is grown within a 100 mile radius. They too, are concerned with buying locally. They grow the corn in seperate fields away from each other so that the corn does not cross-pollinate and muddy up the colors. Some of you may not know that there are different colors of corn from blue to yellow and many other hues.

The Corn Palace idea was dreamed up by a man who wanted to create something to put Mitchell on the map! I found myself wondering what could Orion do to become a destination for the masses. I have lots of ideas....I just need more time and LOTS of money! My winning a huge lottery would sure be good for Orion! Come on lottery!

Poking around the souvenir shops is always fun and we spent some time doing that and headed back to the KOA for supper. The traditional campfire supper of weiners and S’mores along with a couple of adult beverages rounded out our day and soon we found ourselves headed inside our Kabins for some much needed sleep. we had hoped to see the "Super Moon" tonight but as it turned out, it was just to cloudy.

About 20 minutes later we were congratulating ourselves for the smart decision of not tent camping because of the rain pouring from the sky! Not just little rain but a LOT of rain! And HAIL! And WIND! Locals told us the next day we had received 2.9 inches!

As exhausted as I was, I was certain that I would sleep like a baby. But that was not to be! I was on the hardest mattress ever created by human hands! Certainly leaves, brush, and pine needles gathered from the forest and then thrown on the ground would have been softer! I rolled and rolled the night away trying to find a comfortable spot. Yawn!

Enough for now, Sunday is ready to be experienced!