July 9: Camp at Bridge Bay

Camp flowers; tough to keep the kids from picking them when they are all around.

  

This big boy was just across the road.

And then he was behind the camper.

And then he was RIGHT in front of the camper.

July 9: Old Faithful and West Thumb

Couldn't stop to see it but you know the water was really blue when you can see the color in the steam.

Old Faithful.

Sophie in front of post-eruption Old Faithful.

Tom and Max after their little shopping trip.

...and here's the moose that Max picked out.

My little sign reader.

Colorful pools.

All decked out in Yellowstone gear.

The whole gang.

Colorful pools.

Max thought this one looked like Toodles.

Day 7: A Day of Rest (Kinda...)

Our last night in Yellowstone and today was much more laid back.  When I was planning the trip I really loaded the activities at the beginning and then tapered off as the trip continued.  Partly  a conscious effort to judge interest/energy levels of our happy campers, but also out of necessity because we do a lot more moving around in the first days.  The kids are holding up well - getting along as good or better than at home.  Max was coming to bed before Sophie tonight and on her way out of the camper she kissed him goodnight on the forehead and said "When you fall asleep, just tell me."  That kid.  :)

Before we left Madison this morning, Sophie and I went to the Junior Ranger program there.  She did wonderful listening to the ranger talk about the animals in the park.  She was shy at first about answering questions, but she did pipe up when she recognized the wolf hide.  As we left the talk and were walking on the path through the woods back to the camper she was telling me all the stuff that she had just learned.  It was really neat to see her so engaged and to learn some stuff on this trip.  This Junior Ranger program really is great - I probably would either be talking over her head about stuff or just neglect to discuss certain things at all.  We did turn in her book today at Grant Village and she earned her Yellowstone Junior Ranger patch to hang on her compass sash.  She was pretty proud of herself - even if she was shy with the Forest Ranger.  Those guys really do a good job focusing on the kids turning in their packets - they never seem rushed, give the kids their undivided attention, and really make a big deal out of it.  Kudos to the Rangers.

Once Sophie finished up her program in Madison, we headed south to Old Faithful.  We were going to try and stop at the Fountain Paint Pots but were unable to get a parking spot.  Pretty sure this is the busiest two weeks at the park.  There are RV spots in the lots but cars end up using them because there is no other parking.  So, after a drive through the parking lot, we just continued south to Old Faithful.  I didn't realize how not busy this was until we left and the sparsely populated parking lot that we started in was filled right up when we left.  We walked up to the most famous geyser in the park just as it erupted.  I remembered it being taller...  So, eruption over, we turned around and did the Visitor Center (Sophie got another stamp in her Passport) and Tom took Max to the Gift Shop to find a stuffed animal.  He's been feeling left out while Sophie has her prairie dog.  He took to this giant moose head that he liked to hug so that's what he got.  See what happens when we send Dad in to get a toy, they come out with the biggest one!

We also decided to eat lunch in the little cafeteria at Old Faithful.  Sandwiches have been a staple and even though the chicken sandwich I got is technically a sandwich, it was a nice change of pace from the turkey and ham in the camper (and I'm sure the bologna eaters amongst us enjoy these hot meals.)  Lunch over, we headed out of the now very busy parking lot and on to West Thumb Geyser Basin.  Mostly unspectacular (I'm more impressed with snow capped mountains and valley views), there were a few interesting and colorful features.  We even caught a little big of a Ranger talking about why Black Pool is actually blue (used to be dark green, so they called it black; then the next year there was a mini eruption underground and hot water came in and killed the bacteria that thrived in the previously cooler water and new microorganisms populated the pool.)  The kids were disappointed that with all this talk about pools that they couldn't go swimming.  After some very busy days and lots of hiking for little legs, these two sites with minimal walking was a good change of pace.

Since the day was loosely scheduled, we opted to strike from the itinerary an afternoon hike and instead allocate that time to showers since there was a facility at Grant Village, just south of West Thumb.  Not sure if the facilities have changed because of Xanterra control but it was nice to not have timed showers - the unlimited time was nice (as was the fact that kids 5 and under are free).  After getting everyone through the showers and getting Sophie her Junior Ranger badge, it was time to drive the 20 miles or so north to Bridge Bay.  I would have preferred to just stay in Grant Village but to be honest, we were lucky to get the sites we did.  It was slim pickings when I was making reservations online and showing up each night every campground has had a full sign on it.

The trip north to Bridge Bay may just have been worth it though (isn't it funny how things like that work out?) since we were lucky enough to be entertained by 4 bison strolling through our camp near our site.  When I say near our site, I mean one could have chosen to use our motor home as a scratch post if it had so chosen.  Very cool indeed.  We must have watched them for more than a half hour just meandering back and forth (and maybe getting a little annoyed with campers) before moving on to another grazing ground.

Now I've got the kids in bed - Max is sleeping and Sophie is tossing and turning - and I'm wrapping up the day.  Tomorrow we leave Yellowstone and head south to Jackson and Grand Teton National Park. We have a minivan lined up so fingers crossed that the rental agency actually has it for us (Seinfeld episode anyone?).  Not exactly sure what's in store for us tomorrow.  I know that we hope to get into Signal Mountain early to get a site before we pick up the van.  Other than that, everything is just general ideas of what we can do and how much time it might take.  I'm definitely looking forward to setting up camp in one spot for a few days - hopefully it will work out at Signal Mountain and we won't have to drive all over trying to get a spot.  Some of the highlights (perhaps) of our Jackson/Teton trip include:

* Time in Jackson - including the gunfight at night

* Tram to Teton Village

* Boat ride across Jenny Lake 

* Mormon Row for pictures

* Chuck wagon dinner

* Swim in the COLD lake

We will also try to hit some scenic views of the Tetons and Jackson Hole and may even try to get out to Camp Davis to show everyone where I was fortunate enough to spend a summer (though it had changed even when Tom and I came last time...they had insulated the cabins and you didn't have to fill those little fireplaces to keep your tin contraption warm...kids these days have it so easy.)

I know that there is so much that is missing from these blogs but I hope that when I look back on them it's enough to jog my memory and remind me of what a wonderful time this has been as a family.