Yellowstone

On a whim we decided to visit Yellowstone.  We were so impressed with the Oregon condo that we contacted the same lady again to help us set something up for West Yellowstone.  And the time she had available was July 5th through the 12th.  We invited Scott's parents to go with us and away we went!

On our way up we stopped at Bear World.  This place is awesome and if you blink before Rexburg, you'll miss it.  We had a great time checking out the wildlife from our car.

Then we went through the walking area.

Next were some rides. Then we continued on our way and arrived at the condo in the evening.

The next day we took it easy and relaxed.  Scott had a brilliant idea of using pirate coins as a reward for good behavior.  Then the kids turned in coins to buy treasures from the chest.  It actually worked really well for the week.  Sometimes our kids would earn 4 or 5 a day if they were getting along.  Other times, we would threaten to take coins away for rude behaviors.

We played games and let the kids run around outside.

Makayla happily caught some butterflies and let them go.

Monday we went into the park.  It was this day that we realized how much of peak season it really was.  We drove past several popular stops because of lack of parking spots.  Finally, our first stop was the Forest Ranger Museum.  Then we saw some views of the canyon.

Then we continued up the northern loop and visited Gardiner, Montana and found the North Entrance to the park.  The elk wanted to eat lunch by us and got surprisingly close.

Lincoln was so excited to find a drain. This kid is going to be a plumber or a mechanic when he is older with how interested he is in pipes and machines.

We hiked up to a petrified tree.

Tuesday we went back in the park.  This time we took the lower loop.  We saw several cool geysers and hot pots on the way.

We nearly hit a bison as it darted out in front of us from a steep wooded hill. It must have been being chased by a bear or something for how fast he was running!  Good thing Scott was a calm collected driver!

We visited Old Faithful and the Inn.

Wednesday we went shopping in the morning in West Yellowstone.  We limited the kids to $20 each which has worked out well for souvenirs.  Then they can choose to buy several little things, or a few bigger things.

Then we ventured out to Hebgen Lake.  We really enjoyed walking around and visiting Quake Lake too.  The museum lets you see right where the earthquake was that swallowed the campground and some cabins.

Thursday we went back in the park. This time we went to Fishing Bridge and then on our own to spot some bears.  We were gone all day long and didn't even return until probably 9 or 10 at night.  My favorite thing is the paint pots.  They remind me of a bubbling witch's brew.

It rained pretty hard for part of the day. We retreated in a visitor's center and the kids played with a rocking chair.

The sky cleared up and we were able to take in more scenery.

Sterling always volunteered to push Lincoln and all I can say is, wow, this kid is tough! He walked up nearly vertical walkways pushing his own brother who only weighs 4 pounds less than him.

This itchy bison was scratching next to the upper waterfall lookout.

Friday we visited the Bear and Wolf  Discovery Center and watched the bears happily play.  We went to lunch at Geyser Pizza and then played some games.

Saturday was packing and traveling home day.  We stopped at the Bear River Bird Refuge on the way home and saw some cool birds.  Who would guess that Utah has pelicans?

Three years ago was when we last went to Yellowstone.  We agreed that May is much better than July to visit.  I played a license plate game and checked off 34 out of 50 states that were there and also quite a few Canadians.  It was a fun trip! You never can tire of seeing God's masterpieces in Yellowstone.