Old Faithful

June 25,
While at the Grant Village Visitor's Center, we learned that Old Faithful was due to go off in an hour. It would seem like that is plenty of time to travel 17 miles but these roads are not super highways and if there are cars pulled over, you must stop to see what's causing the excitement. So we made it to the Old Faitful viewing area with minutes to spare. The ranger's predictions are + or - 10 minutes and right on schedule Old Faithful erupted. The eruption probably lasted about five minutes and rose about 40 feet in the air. We road around the area to see more of the geysers, including Castle Geyser and Three Sisters. The water below the steam at Three Sisters is a beautiful aquamarine.

The ride to Yellowstone Park

June 25,
We started our day with the horses, in the field in front of us, coming out of the bushes and running across the field........Beautiful!!!!! We then left for Yellowstone, going by way of the northern area of Grand Teton NP, The Rockefeller Parkway and the south entrance of the park. Along the way we saw white pelicans,too far away to photograph. Once in the park we saw an elk family, a blue grouse and some buffalo--also in the distance. The male elk's antlers can grow as much as inch a day.

Jackson Hole

June 24,
We went south from Moran to Jackson through the Grand Teton National Park. The view of the mountains were just beautiful with the Snake River running in the vallley. The buffalo crossed the street just before we got there, giving us a great photo op. We stopped at the Moose visitors center and the Jackson visitors center. Both had wonderful displays of the wildlife and geology of the area. We took the Teton park Road home and saw the lone elk out in the field. As we got closer to home we saw a mother coyote and babies in Willow Flats and geese, blue heron common merganser in the Oxbow Bend area. They say everybody wants to be a landscape photographer here.

Going to Yellowstone

June 21 and 22,
On the way to Devil's Tower, the overheating problem reared it's ugly head again. We finally made it to Casper-fly fisherman in the Platt River. We were directed to a Peterbilt dealer by Cummings. There, a very nice shop manager theorized that the dust had clogged our radiator and power washed it---for free????? Though we really appreciated it, it did not solve the problem. We limped to Riverton and again were directed to a repair shop by Cummings. (The cow watched us as we waited for the engine to cool down. ) This time, we are hoping that Perry's has found the problem. We return there next week for the final touches (we hope). The coach did run at the best temperatures ever all the way to Yellowstone.

Devil's Tower, WY

June 20,
We left Mt. Rushmore and went north to Devil's Tower. The KOA there could not have been any closer. We followed the 3 mile road to the visitor's center and saw mule deer and a whole town of prarie dogs. They were running and playing and "barking". There were hundreds of them on both sides of the road near the entrance to the park. While in the park, we learned the legend of Devil's Tower, seven Indian maidens were chased to the top of the tower by a bear and the marks on the side were made by the bear's claws. We then followed the rest of the scenic loop and saw the Vore Buffalo Jump, a sinkhole where the Indians drove the buffalo over the jump for food and skins. We also drove through Sundance, Wy. and were disappointed.

Mount Rushmore

Jume 18,
Though we'd driven by Mt. Rushmore a few times during the daylight hours we decided to take advantage of the KOA bus and see the lighting ceremony. When you walk into the park, you enter through a display of the state flags, displayed in order of their entry into the union. Connecticut was right at the front. You can then follow a trail that allows you to get quite close to the faces. As dusk approaches, a very patriotic and informative movie about the four presidents is shown in the ampitheater. At the conclusion of the show, the monument is lit.

Badlands

June 18,
We had wanted to take the trip to The Badlands yesterday but the wind blew with such force, it just didn't seem like a traveling day. They say the best time to view The Badlands is late morning or early evening because the shadows give depth and color to the formations but we were too far away to do that. The grasslands that give way to the sandstone formations seem to go on forever as do the Badlands themselves. The bottom picture is another yucca-----the soft colors are beautiful.

Crazy Horse

June17,
After visiting the Crazy Horse Memorial, we decided that this is the ultimate work in progress. Started in 1948 by sculptor, Korczak Ziolkowski---formerly of WestHartford, Ct--there still is a lot of work to be done to accomplish his dream. The top photo shows his dream ---in white and the reality behind that.. However, they have on display a vast collection of Indian artifacts and clothing that make the visit interesting.

Chainsaw Art

June 16,
When we went through the town of Keystone---population 311--we noticed some interesting wooden sculptures by the river. We stopped and the work was being done by two brothers in their 20s. The older one said he had learned the craft from a man in Alaska. These were some of the nicest we've seen The bears had cute, not scary faces and the eagles were realistic. We did buy a small bear----our least demanding and best behaved pet.

Bear Country, USA

June 16,
Because we didn't see an elk or big horned sheep in the wild, we went to Bear Country USA to see them. It is a drive thru park where many of the animals roam freely. We did see elk and their antlers were very impressive. We caught a glimpse of the big horned sheep but by the time we got to their area, they were hiding here, too. But Bear Country's speciality is bears and lots of them. As we drove through their area, some were napping in the shade but others were at the pool or walking next to and in front of cars, and others were just hanging out.
After you finish the drive, there's a baby area with about 20 baby bears. Their job in life is to play. They were up on the logs, in the water, digging up the grass and just enjoying each other. When one of the caretakers went into the enclosure, they climbed all over her. They raise them to be friendly with humans. However, I'm not sure if I'd completely trust some of the big bears.
They also had other animals-porcupines and badgers are two I'd not seen. The badger just look mean with big teeth and very thick, long claws. When we first saw them, they were sound asleep and belly up. The porcupines were also asleep, their quills moved in the breeze and looked soft, not menacing.

Needles Highway

June 15,

We continued on the loop to the Needles Highway, named for the spiking formations along the route. These roads, just like so many we've been on in the last month, go up and down over the mountains, a new experience for two New Englanders. We found Sylvan Lake, a beautiful area with many rock formations along the shore. As we were leaving, three mule deer were grazing just in front of our car. They are similar to our white tails but have big ears and a longer, greyish coat.