We all woke up at about 4:30 – cold, thirsty and needing the bathroom but there was no way I was stepping out of the car – it was 42 degrees outside! Too cold for me but the perfect temperature for the grizzlies to do a little hunting…. As I lay there not able to fall back asleep, Aidan suddenly announced he felt like he couldn’t breathe (I had been lying awake for some time listening to Abby panting, and I too felt I was working extra hard to fill my lungs) Was it the altitude? (We were spending the night at 7,000 feet.) Was it that the 5 of us were beginning to tap out the oxygen supply in our little car-coon? (Unlikely.) Or was it just so damn cold?! (Probably not…) Hmmm… Anyhow, we ended up cracking some windows and managed to make it through the night. We woke early, leaving the campsite by 8 and drove along to see Old Faithful. Along the way, we saw a family of bison (3 adults, 2 babes) munching on some grass by the river. Driving along the loop road gave such a wonderful overview of the park. Steam rose from the ground like thin wisps of cotton and further along, great clouds hung in the air, blanketing the trees and walkways around them. We thought we’d tuck in to some breakfast on the boardwalk along side Old Faithful as we waited for the next show. We didn’t have to wait too long and when Old Faithful erupted, she went for about 3 minutes (a fairly long eruption as Old Faithful eruptions go). After a quick stop in the Visitor Center and the shops which had far too many t-shirts to choose from, we snuck on to the back of a tour at the historic Inn, which was built in 1904. The rustic interior, done up with wood on the floors and walls, is so dark and the lighting so dim, I felt as though I could lose the person walking next to me if I wasn’t careful. The grand foyer which elevates 5 stories above your head has the most amazing exposed post-and-beam structure which includes a ‘Tree-house’ at the very top (Sadly, due to the fire code, people are no longer allowed to climb to the tree-house. Sorry kids.). All-in-all, the Inn is well worth a look if you’re ever in the area. Yellowstone Park is massive and we wouldn’t be able to do it all during our stay, so we identified some places we’d like to see and hit the road. At the Fountain Paint Pot Area, we saw geysers, as well as hot springs, fumaroles and mud pots. The geysers were very active, especially Fountain Geyser and in my opinion, the display rivaled that of Old Faithful. The colors in the hot springs shone a beautiful turquoise blue, even in the clouded, mid-afternoon sun. As we trotted along, we could hear the fumaroles hissing loudly while the steam danced delicately in to the air (and what a stink that sulfur has…rotten eggs anyone?), and finally, the mud pots, a beautiful brilliant white that bubbled and belched as we strolled along the boardwalk. Along the same route we saw bacterial mats of bright orange, yellow and brown which glistened under a thin layer of water. As my mother-in-law put it, the hydrothermal features at Yellowstone make you feel like you’re on a foreign planet. We stopped at the ‘Grand Canyon’ of Yellowstone, which was rather picturesque, and from the walkway, one could see a beautiful waterfall cascading down to a narrow river below. We camped the second night at Bridge Bay, setting one of the tents up just a few feet in front of a sign which warned hikers not to enter due to the ‘bear danger’. We managed to improve upon the sleeping arrangements in our ‘car bed’ (found the space blanket that I couldn’t put my hand on last night. Those things are loud but warm…) and had a wonderful warm nights’ sleep!
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