Day 21 - Visiting a friend in Buffalo Wyoming

Bob and Dee decided to visit a friend in Wyoming...a 10 hour round trip drive.  Sara wasn't all that enthused about being in the car, so she opted to have a day to herself.  Luckily, we had moved to the Lake Yellowstone Hotel and cabins, so she could walk to gift shops and grab food.

Bob and Dee headed out of the park, through Cody, over a mountain pass.  Our friend Tom was thrilled to see us.  Tom took us on a grand tour of th area.

Had a Hugh tumbleweed blow across us (see it between the 2 trucks)

Went through a big storm, with cottonball clouds

Day 20 - Yellowstone: Grand Canyon & Lamar Valley

On Friday, July 8, we went back to the Grand Canyon and hiked down (and back up -ugh) to the lower falls.  The view of the waterfall was beautiful, but the power of the water was impressive.

We then headed back to Hayden Valley to search for more bison.  We found one near one of the geyser features across the Yellowstone River.  We went in for a closer look, but had to be aware for bison coming up the rear.

We then headed back up to Lamar Valley to seek out more wildlife.

We joined a group of wolf spotters who were kind enough to point out the wolf den.  We set up our scope and grabbed the binoculars.  We had to sit for an hour, hour and a half, but we finally did see them, with their cubs.

Unfortunately, we couldn't get good pictures, they were to far for our equipment.

 Sara did find animals, just not the wild kind.  Notice the wolf spotters in background.

Sara searching for wildlife

The Vista we looked at looking for wolves...yes they are in there, can't you see them?

Later that evening, we finally spotted herds of bison, with the baby visions that Sara so desperately wanted to see.

Day 19 - Yellowstone's Norris Basin

To quote the National Park Service website "Norris Geyser Basin is the hottest, oldest, and most dynamic of Yellowstone's thermal areas. The highest temperature yet recorded in any geothermal area in Yellowstone was measured in a scientific drill hole at Norris: 459°F (237°C) just 1,087 feet (326 meters) below the surface! "

My words, beautiful, colorful, hot, amazing!!

After we left Norris, we took a spin through Hayden Valley. Where the buffalo roam

After a long day, we decided to hike from our cabin to the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.  This was about a 10 minute walk through bear country....hmmm....they say to make noise. HEY BEAR, clap, clap, clap, HEY BEAR!!!

Day 18 - Leaving Grand Teton and off to Yellowstone

Wednesday we had to pack up our gear and tents again, say goodbye to our new friends from the tour company OARS and fellow travelers.

As soon as we got in the car, we drove immediately to the public showers....Best $5 I have ever spent...for a 7 minute HOT shower.

Then Hello Yellowstone

Day 17 - Grand Teton

We slept under the stars Monday night, and woke up to a beautif.....NEEDING COFFEE.....

Surprisingly, it wasn't too cold overnight in our tents....and the views were just amazing.

After breakfast, we had to break down camp, as we were sleeping in another area Tuesday night.

Sara enjoyed breaking down the tents and became a pro...well except for the fasteners on the dry bags

We kayaked throughout the day, and hiked up to Leigh Lake.  About 3 hrs round trip with breaks.

At Leigh Lake, we had a curious deer come in close to check us out.  

We landed in our camp for the night and had to set up tents again...but the view got even better.

Camp life was fun, we had a kitchen, wash station, fire pit, and one must not forget the groover...

Best bathroom with a view!!!

Day 16 - Monday July 4th

To those of you following this blog, our apologies!!  We didn't have internet for most of the rest of the trip.  I heard the parks had service, but bandwidth, when you could get it was slow.

Welcome to Grand Teton!!

We celebrated the 4th of July kayaking on Jackson Lake.

We saw a pair of bald eagles soaring while we kayaked. The wind was up, so it made paddling difficult.  After we stopped for lunch, the tour company decided that it would take too long to get to camp, so they piled us on the chase boat, and towed the kayaks.

Here is Sara and I around the campfire.

And sunset that night.  No fireworks, but nature had it's own night colors!!