Rocky Mountains or Bust

          After our trip to Mt. Rushmore and the Wind Cave, we rested up and then set out towards the Rocky Mountain National Park. The drive through Wyoming is always a treat. Here's a couple shots from the passenger seat.

              

              We had reserved a campsite at Moiraine campground a few months earlier for about $20 a night. The smaller size of the park means fewer campgrounds to choose from, but Moiraine was pretty spacious. We had more room between us and other campers then we had at the Madison campground in Yellowstone. This year we splurged on a larger tent so we could actually stand up straight while changing. We were even able to fit a fold-out table in the tent! The front part of the tent also had a screened-in "patio" that we could zip up if it started raining. The weather was iffy when we got there but we managed to beat the big rain and get the camp set up.

            Not too bad on space! This is the view from our tent. The nice thing about this particular part of the campground is that the sites were staggered at different levels so it still felt like you had some privacy. The bathrooms weren't too far away either. I ran into a young male deer on my first trip to the facilities. He ran right by me and then came back a few days later to eat lunch by our tent (photos of that later).

          The following day we did the hike to Alberta Falls. Unfortunately, along the way we missed a sign and wound up on a not so fun, steep and rocky trail. After turning around, we got hit with more rain but here are some photos from the hike.

              We had a really nice lunch at some picnic tables by a river. Wish we had this view at home!

             My next blog will be on the Trail Ridge Road where you can spend the day stopping at 12 beautiful spots ranging from subalpine, alpine tundra, alpine lakes and rock glaciers.

Last Day at Yellowstone

  Thursday night would be our last night in Yellowstone and we definitely celebrated. Like I knew it would, the week was over with in no time. We spent about 2 months planning and buying the gear we needed and the time just flew by once we got there. But that's the way it is. There's a lot to see in a place that spans just over 2 million acres.

   On our way out, we got to see the Grand Tetons. I'd have to agree with their name! Just driving past them and taking photos from the car window was awesome.

Grand Tetons, Wyoming

Grand Tetons, Wyoming

Grand Tetons, Wyoming

Pinedale, Wyoming

Nebraska Sky

     I have to admit the drive back was not as fun as the drive to Yellowstone. We were exhausted and the last place we wanted to be for 2 1/2 days was on the road. But we made it back home to two very affectionate cats and a real bed! Despite the long drive, the trip was totally worth it. Our main expense was gas. The Yellowstone entrance pass was only $25 per car and our campground was about $20 a night. We packed way too much food so we didn't have to go grocery shopping when we got back. Bonus! And the money we spent on gear we won't have to spend again (hopefully). All in all, an amazing and wonderful trip. We only saw a fraction of what's in Yellowstone which means one thing...second trip back next year!

Yellowstone: Grand Canyon & Virginia Cascades

    And now the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone! Thursday morning we drove 26 miles northeast to Canyon Village where we parked and walked around the Upper Falls area. Talk about feeling small. All you had to do was look down! Everything in Yellowstone is on a MUCH larger scale than what I'm used to seeing in Georgia. Every place you turn you can see the history. Being surrounded by something that has been around for so long kind of puts you in your place. Here's a photo from the Upper Falls of the Grand Canyon:

Upper Falls, Grand Canyon, Yellowstone

   Then we took a short hike on the North Rim Trail and arrived at this lookout point of the Grand Canyon:

North Rim Trail, Grand Canyon, Yellowstone

Me and my honey! (representing our home teams)

    After a few hours seeing the Grand Canyon, we made a couple stops on the way back to our campsite. The first was the Virginia Cascades. There's a few different pullouts along the Cascades and it was a really peaceful place to read and take photos.

Virginia Cascades

Virginia Cascades

Virginia Cascades

    After Virginia Cascades, we stopped at Gibbon Falls. Leaning over the rail to get a good shot was definitely not the most comfortable feeling in the world...it's a LONG way down! But I sucked it up. About 50 photos later, we got back into the car and headed to Madison campground where we celebrated our last night in Yellowstone with a warm fire and some nice whiskey :)

Gibbon Falls

    The next morning we would pack up camp and say our goodbyes. Our route home took us through the Grand Tetons (BEAUTIFUL!). I'll be posting one last blog with photos of the trip home. Thanks for reading!

Yellowstone: Artist Paint Pots & Full Moons

   After our trip to Lamar Valley, we stopped off at the Artist Paint Pots (located between Norris and Madison campground). It was one of those stops we had been meaning to make because we had absolutely no idea what a "paint pot" was. A short hike into the area showed us a small collection of hot springs, mudpots and geysers. The hike itself is about 1 mile along a boardwalk (with no incline!). It was a really enjoyable walk all in all. Here are some photos:

Trailhead at Artist Paint Pots

About 10 minutes later

Small Geyser at Artist Paint Pots

                                  

      The mudpots were pretty cool because it looked like a giant puddle of milk. The smell wasn't quite as bad as Old Faithful Geyser, but there was still some stink. Despite that, I was glad that we had decided to stop at the last minute and see this area.

End of hike at Artist Paint Pots

Driving back to Madison Campground

     Later that evening, my friend Patience and I walked down to the Madison River and watched our first full moon in Yellowstone. I set up my tripod and took a good number of photos before I hit the right shutter speed and got this one.

Full Moon at Madison River

   

       Wednesday was definitely a beautiful day and evening! Although we didn't get to see any wolves in Lamar Valley, we saw plenty of buffalo to make up for it. The coyote was icing on the cake and we finally got to see the Artist Paint Pots and settled the much-argued bet that it wasn't just a bunch of artists painting pots...although that would have been fun too :)

      Thursday is Grand Canyon day so don't go too far!

Yellowstone: Close Encounters of the Buffalo Kind

    On our drive back from Mammoth Hot Springs, we stopped along Gardner River and did some walking. It was a beautiful place to walk and take photos and the weather was perfect. I kept forgetting to keep my eye out for large and small critters because the scenery was so distracting. Here's some photos.

Gardner River

Gardner River

    However, it was the trip from Gardner River that was the real gem! While we were driving down the road, we came across a bit of a traffic jam. A lone buffalo was ambling down the center of the road with both lanes stopped. And he did not care how long it took! And he definitely was not concerned about being surrounded by vehicles. It was pretty cool to come that close to something so massive and powerful.

............

Whoa!

     Here's a few more shots on our way back to camp:

    On Wednesday, we drove 45 miles northeast to Lamar Valley where there's even more buffalo. That's supposed to be one of the best places to see buffalo, bears and wolves. No luck with wolves, but we did see one bear from REALLY far away. We did happen upon a young and slightly curious coyote though. 

On the way to Lamar Valley

And, oh, wait...more buffalo...

   After Lamar Valley, we drove to Slough Creek and hiked part of the trail there. We didn't make it too far because of the incline, but we tried!

Slough Creek Trail

Up to no good: Karl, me & Patience

Leaving Slough Creek

Leaving Slough Creek

   The Artist Paintpots was our next stop after Slough Creek, but that will have to wait until the next blog.