We left Mt. Rushmore and headed to Cody, Wyoming to spend the night. We arrived at our motel and were pretty wiped out. A motorcycle rider had yelled at us too – so I was not liking them as much as I had previously stated.
We left early in the morning and headed the short distance into Yellowstone National Park. We got to the gate and paid our entrance fee and were just driving through it when lo and behold – a moose crossed the road in front of us! We were all so excited as we didn’t even know if we were going to get to see one much less on the lower loop. And there he appeared – right at the entrance gate! I had the camera at my feet and I quickly grabbed it, took off the cap, turned it on and aimed – and still barely caught him.
The moose wet our appetites to see animals. We were on the hunt.
We stopped at some neat things. We saw Old Faithful, some hot springs, geysers, mud pots, waterfall and more. It really is amazing to see (and sometimes smell) in person. Yellowstone is beautiful. You have forest one minute then meadows and creeks or rivers. You have a huge lake and steep canyons. It’s breathtaking. But my favorite thing of all was the animals.
We saw a bison or two. Up close. One so close my husband and daughter could have reached out their windows and touched him as he walked by snorting. Except for the fact that we were all so nervous. Ha Ha Then we saw a meadow FULL of bison. Hundreds of them. It was so cool. They are big and they are really neat to watch.
We saw coyote, a mountain goat, lots of elk in the distance and a couple finally up a little closer. And we saw a grizzly. Barely. A lot of cars were pulled over with cameras and binoculars so it was our habit to pull over and see what they were watching and looking at. We had to ask because we couldn’t see anything. The grizzly was way out in this meadow – so far that he was really tiny on binoculars. He was grazing on berries. He’d sit and only when he’d move could you make out his shape and what he was.After we all finally could spot him (which took at least 20 minutes) we were happy. Would loved to have seen him closer. At least close enough to get a picture – but we still were aware of his presence out there and it was fun.
I didn’t think that I would enjoy Yellowstone as much as I did but the animals made the experience for me. Seeing all those bison out there and the moose and grizzly – well it was just an awe-inspiring time.
We stayed out late and got to our motel just as dark was setting in. At this point the girls and I were starting to get excited about going home. One more stop – Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
We hit Jackson Hole on Saturday. It sits down by the Grand Tetons Mountains and it is very beautiful. I loved it. The town is so cute and touristy with lots of antlers for sale. We went to eat lunch at Billy’s Hamburgers which I had heard was good. There was a line and it was a small little place with only about 20 stools. We stood in line for about 45 minutes before our turn to wait for seats. Two were open on one side and two on the other. My youngest was about to collapse she was so hungry. We’d gone to eat lunch a little on the later side as it was. So we split up and my husband and oldest daughter took two seats on one side of the counter and my youngest daughter and I took two stools on the other side. She was bummed we weren’t all together but at least we had seats. We ordered and got our drinks. The guys in the kitchen were swamped. They were serving burgers to people in the bordering restaurant as well and people were getting upset that their food was taking so long. The people next to me finally left after each eating two orders of burgers and my daughter and husband were able to reunite with us and come sit with us.
After over an hour and a huge to-go order of 10 burgers went out (that ordered after us) my husband checked on our order which hadn’t even started yet. Something got messed up. To make a long story short it took us an hour and a half to get our food. But they gave us one of the burgers free. And it was the best burger I’d had on the whole trip. I think the day was out of the ordinary for them. I would give them a second chance because I really did like my burger.
We went in some stores and checked into our motel – Buckrail Lodge. Cute little loggy place just outside of town. It was refreshing after all of the stark motel rooms we’d been in.
We are now on our way home. We should be home in about 5 hours or so – we do have to stop for lunch.
I’m tired. I can’t wait to sleep in my own bed and not get woken up by loud neighbors, ice machines or cars driving by. I can’t wait to have clean clothes that aren’t in a suitcase. And a home cooked meal. My girls and I LOVE to eat out but we are really ready for some home cooked food. We can’t wait to see and hug our kitty. And to have internet service – daily – that I can count on.
I’ve got to get the girls ready for school in just a few weeks so I will have to do mounds of laundry and get some school supplies. I will have to get caught up on my ministry work.
But what a trip. What an experience. I can’t believe all that I saw or experienced. I’m so thankful we got to do this. I’m thankful no one got food poisoning or other sickness. I’m thankful we had no car accidents (except the rock that broke our windshield and we’ll have to take care of that soon.) I’m thankful for all of it. And barring a few adjustments, I’d do it again. There is so much to see out there!
But for now, I’m looking forward to being home. Getting some much-needed sleep.
Thank you for covering me and my family in your prayers the last month. Who knows what you protected us from. Maybe an angry motorcycle driver and a rock that could have come through and nailed one of us in the head. Maybe many car accidents or forgetting a laptop, camera, or MP3 player somewhere.
Thank you.
It will feel so good to be home. Home IS where the heart is.
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