Mick'nSarah
Junior Ranger
We just got back from 12 days on the raod and here is what our trip looked like. It isn't as eloquent as Jim and Sue, but it was quick and dirty (kind of like us) and came off our log.
07/08/13
Portland, OR - Couer d'Alene, ID
Met up with our friends at their lakehouse on Lake Couer d'Alene. Had fun playing badmitton and pickleball. A nice dinner with a great visit. Last time we saw them was on our way to pick up Dottie, so it was fun to come full circle.
07/09/13
Couer d'Alene, ID - Lewis & Clark Caverns, MT
Went on a boat ride across the lake the next day and Laddy got to ride the innertube. Then we drove drove drove. Had some nice play time at the playground before showers and lights out.
07/10/13
Lewis & Clark Caverns, MT - Madison Campground, Yellowstone, WY
Went in the Caverns (fantastic!), had lunch at the deli, then loaded up the trailer which we left at the campground and drove 2.5 hours to Yellowstone. Landed at the Madison Campground.
07/11/13
Madison Campground, Yellowstone, WY
Went to Old Faithful, and regret not stepping foot in the lodge, but watched the geyser 3 times, and did not only the Jr. Ranger Program, but also the Young Scientist program with the Lad. On the way back to the campground we also stopped at Biscuit Basin and Paint Pots. Saw one Bison. Laddy decided this was the night to learn to ride his 2-wheeler and he hasn't looked back. He was a terror on the campground roads.
07/12/13
Madison Campground, Yellowstone, WY
Went to Mammoth Hot Springs and did the Upper Terrace Drive and walked the boardwalks. Picnic lunch at the tables across the road then ice cream at the general store. Also did a short walk at Norris Basin and an even shorter walk at Artist Paint Pots. Laddy was DONE after that. Went back to the campground where Mick joined us! Yeah!
07/13/13
Madison Campground - Canyon Campground, Yellowstone, WY
Moved on to Canyon in the morning. Stopped at Gibbon Meadows to have a look at 3 massive 12-point Elk Bucks with full velvet. Just gorgeous. Got to the campground, set up all lines of defense against the mozzies who decided we were breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. High-tailed it for the day to Roosevelt Lodge. Grabbed a quick ice cream to keep us going and had a nice hike up to Lost Creek Falls (the falls were unimpressive by our standards but a pretty and short walk-it was about 3/4 of a mile roundtrip). Then did the 2-mile round trip to Lost Lake. It was gorgeous and serene. Laddy whined the whole way, which we figure must have benefitted us because we didn't come across any bears. Turns out scientific studies prove the bears don't want to hear it either. Having worked up a sweat and appitite, we had dinner at the Roosevelt Lodge. The ribs were great Mick says.
07/14/13
Canyon Campground, Yellowstone, WY - Bay Bridge Campground, Yellowstone, WY
Bugs got the better of us, and we left for Bay Bridge where there were fewer but Laddy had a good collection of bites the next morning. We started the day by checking out the Canyon Visitor's Center before hitting the road. Nice exhibits and beautiful new building. Then did the South Rim Drive to Artist Point. That waterfall IS impressive by our standards and the canyon is breath-taking. We checked out both the upper and lower falls and Mick checked lines for Kayak runs and decided you wouldn't make it out alive. Handy that, especially since you are not allowed on the river. Had a look at Sulfur Caldron and checked out Mud Volcano. Watched a Bison roll around in the mud. Must be the Bison Spa! Had a picnic lunch in the parking lot while digging slivers out of Laddy's hands (we warned him not to run his hands along the rails which were really rough...lesson finally learned). After checking into the campground headed up to Fishing Bridge for ice cream, to see their fantastic visitor's center and have a look at the lake/ocean. It was blowing like stink (as my dad would say)!
07/15/13
Bay Bridge Campground, Yellowstone, WY - Grant Village Campground, Yellowstone, WY
Mick left us early to catch his flight home, so Laddy and I continued to Grant Village for the night. It gave us a chance to have a low key day, get laundry done, a little grocery shopping, refueling the car, got ice cream then had a wander around their visitor's center. Checked out the Lakehouse for dinner. It was ok. Took our third shower of the trip and it was awesome. Early turn in for us as we were up early the next morning!
07/16/13
Grant Village Campground, Yellowstone, WY - Signal Mountain Campground, GTNP, WY
Got up early to get to our campground to secure a site. I was really starting to run low on battery power (go figure with Mick, right?), so decided to splurge on an electric site at Signal Mountain. $45/night was a heavy price, but I had 3 full batteries for the rest of the trip. We spent one night as I wasn't as fond of the campground. Lucky we got there early. The campground filled by 10:04a according to the Ranger Station. Had a late breakfast at their restaurant and it was good. We then headed out to Colter Bay to visit their Visitor's Center and to pick up the Jr. Ranger Packet. We had a nice time, ran up to the grocery store for a few lunch items, and then went to Jenny Lake. Did a short hike along the lake trail. It was getting late, so we headed back with a detour driving up Signal Mountain.
07/17/13
Signal Mountain Campground, GTNP, WY - Gros Ventre Campground, GTNP, WY
Had a leisurely morning, taking our time with breakfast. Then hopped in the car to get a spot at Gros Ventre (pronounce Grow-vont…I was corrected several times). On our way out we saw a grizzly lazily walking across a meadow, that was exciting. Dropped .e off and headed to Mormon Row where we got caught in a Bison Traffic jam. It was actually pretty fun. Just before that we saw 1 pronghorn. Had a look at the famous barn, which was being refurbed for it's 100 year old birthday and Laddy learned about old irrigation lines and water diversion. After that we headed to Dornan's for an early lunch (we had a light breakfast), and went to the Craig Thomas Discovery Center. Finally finished the Jr. Ranger Program and checked out one of the family backpacks for our tiny hike around the area. Laddy earned both the badge and the patch, which was fun. Drove into Jackson for the afternoon to have a look around. Grabbed some fresh bread at Great Harvest Company (love that stuff!), ice cream at Moo's (it was suggested by a local and was AWESOME!), picked up a cowboy hat to go with the cowboy boots Laddy currently lives in, and had a look at Teton Toys, which is a fantastic toy store (and gave me 3 minutes to have thoughts of my own - Brilliant!).
07/18/13
Gros Ventre Campground, GTNP, WY - Three Island Crossing SP, Glenn's Ferry, ID
Got up early-ish, hooked up, and headed to Kelly on Gros Ventre, which is 3 miles down the road from the campground to get what had been touted as Jackson Holes best espresso. It was very good. They also had fresh mini waffles (with your choice of toppings…my choice: nutella with raspberries and a sprinkle of powdered sugar) and amazing views of the mountains. She also made up some sandwiches for us to take with us on the drive. They were tasty! It was a great send off and gave me the energy to get over Teton Pass at 8431 ft. That WY-22 highway is no joke! Holy cow. I have been over a LOT of mountain passes, but this one seemed to go straight up and then straight down again. They said 10% grade. Crazy! We drove and drove and enjoyed amazing views until they were gone and we pulled into Glenn's Ferry, ID to stay at Three Island Crossing State Park. It was 103 when we got out of the car. We set up quickly, then headed for the Oregon Trail Intrepretive Center there at the park to seek some A/C. They were closing in 5 minutes but let us hang out for a bit and sold us ice cream. I meantioned several branches of the family tree passed through here, and that helped. We also were able to teach the nice lady about Bison Scat (thank you Jr. Ranger Program!). The heat was brutal and I was missing my valley home and the mountains I had just left. The sprinklers were on at the campground, so we played in them and then dried off in no more than 7 minutes. Went to bed early due to an early departure.
07/19/13
Three Island Crossing SP, Glenn's Ferry, ID - Portland, OR
Got up at 6:30 and were on the road by 7:00. Made a quick stop in Boise for coffee and breakfast and continued driving for home. It was a long day (9 hours driving) and we made it back in time to catch Portland Friday Summer Traffic which is not as fun as a Bison traffic jam. It was a good trip. And we got to check out our first Cracker Barrel!
Total Miles: 2091
Total Bison: around 2000
Total Nights: 11
Number of hours the child whined: about 6 days by best estimate, it might have been only 5, but felt like 12.
Total ground Squirrels: 25
Total Elk: 3
Total Pronghorns: 1
Total Grizzlies: 1
A couple of insights:
National Parks are full of stupid animals (the two-legged variety - man do I have stories!) but the wildlife is amazing.
Jackson has an amazing selection of kids cowboy hats and a SUPER toy store. Now if my toy store had been open (the ski areas), I would have been in complete heaven!
Nature is amazing and in our greatest effort to save it, I feel like we are destroying it. Case in point - call a place paradise, have people come, then sell things like the electric bug zappers to kids. If they were only going after the mosquitos I wouldn't care, but they were going after everything including the most amazing bumble bees who were just doing their jobs and not causing a problem. The kids felt "instant gratification" with every zap. I felt instant gratification turning them in to the park rangers.
Oregon has conditioned me with our fuel prices, to not even flinch at the 'high prices' in the National Parks. In fact, I was saving money per gallon. I was driving more than usual though.
I am falling more in love with the land I call home. I am not sure who said it, but our nature and park system is equivalent to the cathedrals in Europe. People go to Europe to see them, and Europeans come here to see this. This living, breathing, changing nature. I stood at the point where Ansel Adams took his famous Tetons/Snake River picture the other day. Things have filled in in 60+ years, but I stood in awe. I will remember that every time I look at the picture that has hung in my living room for the last 13 years.
My little "flame thrower" (my lighter) stopped working. I looked at fuel leveles, tried banging it (my inner-neanderthal got the better of me), and I futzed with the ignitor, before realizing the back said it probably wouldn't work over 5000ft. Most of the camprgounds we were at were well above 6500ft. I was thankful I also carry matches. Hadn't considered that before.
Will try to share a few photos later. Still uploading them.
07/08/13
Portland, OR - Couer d'Alene, ID
Met up with our friends at their lakehouse on Lake Couer d'Alene. Had fun playing badmitton and pickleball. A nice dinner with a great visit. Last time we saw them was on our way to pick up Dottie, so it was fun to come full circle.
07/09/13
Couer d'Alene, ID - Lewis & Clark Caverns, MT
Went on a boat ride across the lake the next day and Laddy got to ride the innertube. Then we drove drove drove. Had some nice play time at the playground before showers and lights out.
07/10/13
Lewis & Clark Caverns, MT - Madison Campground, Yellowstone, WY
Went in the Caverns (fantastic!), had lunch at the deli, then loaded up the trailer which we left at the campground and drove 2.5 hours to Yellowstone. Landed at the Madison Campground.
07/11/13
Madison Campground, Yellowstone, WY
Went to Old Faithful, and regret not stepping foot in the lodge, but watched the geyser 3 times, and did not only the Jr. Ranger Program, but also the Young Scientist program with the Lad. On the way back to the campground we also stopped at Biscuit Basin and Paint Pots. Saw one Bison. Laddy decided this was the night to learn to ride his 2-wheeler and he hasn't looked back. He was a terror on the campground roads.
07/12/13
Madison Campground, Yellowstone, WY
Went to Mammoth Hot Springs and did the Upper Terrace Drive and walked the boardwalks. Picnic lunch at the tables across the road then ice cream at the general store. Also did a short walk at Norris Basin and an even shorter walk at Artist Paint Pots. Laddy was DONE after that. Went back to the campground where Mick joined us! Yeah!
07/13/13
Madison Campground - Canyon Campground, Yellowstone, WY
Moved on to Canyon in the morning. Stopped at Gibbon Meadows to have a look at 3 massive 12-point Elk Bucks with full velvet. Just gorgeous. Got to the campground, set up all lines of defense against the mozzies who decided we were breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. High-tailed it for the day to Roosevelt Lodge. Grabbed a quick ice cream to keep us going and had a nice hike up to Lost Creek Falls (the falls were unimpressive by our standards but a pretty and short walk-it was about 3/4 of a mile roundtrip). Then did the 2-mile round trip to Lost Lake. It was gorgeous and serene. Laddy whined the whole way, which we figure must have benefitted us because we didn't come across any bears. Turns out scientific studies prove the bears don't want to hear it either. Having worked up a sweat and appitite, we had dinner at the Roosevelt Lodge. The ribs were great Mick says.
07/14/13
Canyon Campground, Yellowstone, WY - Bay Bridge Campground, Yellowstone, WY
Bugs got the better of us, and we left for Bay Bridge where there were fewer but Laddy had a good collection of bites the next morning. We started the day by checking out the Canyon Visitor's Center before hitting the road. Nice exhibits and beautiful new building. Then did the South Rim Drive to Artist Point. That waterfall IS impressive by our standards and the canyon is breath-taking. We checked out both the upper and lower falls and Mick checked lines for Kayak runs and decided you wouldn't make it out alive. Handy that, especially since you are not allowed on the river. Had a look at Sulfur Caldron and checked out Mud Volcano. Watched a Bison roll around in the mud. Must be the Bison Spa! Had a picnic lunch in the parking lot while digging slivers out of Laddy's hands (we warned him not to run his hands along the rails which were really rough...lesson finally learned). After checking into the campground headed up to Fishing Bridge for ice cream, to see their fantastic visitor's center and have a look at the lake/ocean. It was blowing like stink (as my dad would say)!
07/15/13
Bay Bridge Campground, Yellowstone, WY - Grant Village Campground, Yellowstone, WY
Mick left us early to catch his flight home, so Laddy and I continued to Grant Village for the night. It gave us a chance to have a low key day, get laundry done, a little grocery shopping, refueling the car, got ice cream then had a wander around their visitor's center. Checked out the Lakehouse for dinner. It was ok. Took our third shower of the trip and it was awesome. Early turn in for us as we were up early the next morning!
07/16/13
Grant Village Campground, Yellowstone, WY - Signal Mountain Campground, GTNP, WY
Got up early to get to our campground to secure a site. I was really starting to run low on battery power (go figure with Mick, right?), so decided to splurge on an electric site at Signal Mountain. $45/night was a heavy price, but I had 3 full batteries for the rest of the trip. We spent one night as I wasn't as fond of the campground. Lucky we got there early. The campground filled by 10:04a according to the Ranger Station. Had a late breakfast at their restaurant and it was good. We then headed out to Colter Bay to visit their Visitor's Center and to pick up the Jr. Ranger Packet. We had a nice time, ran up to the grocery store for a few lunch items, and then went to Jenny Lake. Did a short hike along the lake trail. It was getting late, so we headed back with a detour driving up Signal Mountain.
07/17/13
Signal Mountain Campground, GTNP, WY - Gros Ventre Campground, GTNP, WY
Had a leisurely morning, taking our time with breakfast. Then hopped in the car to get a spot at Gros Ventre (pronounce Grow-vont…I was corrected several times). On our way out we saw a grizzly lazily walking across a meadow, that was exciting. Dropped .e off and headed to Mormon Row where we got caught in a Bison Traffic jam. It was actually pretty fun. Just before that we saw 1 pronghorn. Had a look at the famous barn, which was being refurbed for it's 100 year old birthday and Laddy learned about old irrigation lines and water diversion. After that we headed to Dornan's for an early lunch (we had a light breakfast), and went to the Craig Thomas Discovery Center. Finally finished the Jr. Ranger Program and checked out one of the family backpacks for our tiny hike around the area. Laddy earned both the badge and the patch, which was fun. Drove into Jackson for the afternoon to have a look around. Grabbed some fresh bread at Great Harvest Company (love that stuff!), ice cream at Moo's (it was suggested by a local and was AWESOME!), picked up a cowboy hat to go with the cowboy boots Laddy currently lives in, and had a look at Teton Toys, which is a fantastic toy store (and gave me 3 minutes to have thoughts of my own - Brilliant!).
07/18/13
Gros Ventre Campground, GTNP, WY - Three Island Crossing SP, Glenn's Ferry, ID
Got up early-ish, hooked up, and headed to Kelly on Gros Ventre, which is 3 miles down the road from the campground to get what had been touted as Jackson Holes best espresso. It was very good. They also had fresh mini waffles (with your choice of toppings…my choice: nutella with raspberries and a sprinkle of powdered sugar) and amazing views of the mountains. She also made up some sandwiches for us to take with us on the drive. They were tasty! It was a great send off and gave me the energy to get over Teton Pass at 8431 ft. That WY-22 highway is no joke! Holy cow. I have been over a LOT of mountain passes, but this one seemed to go straight up and then straight down again. They said 10% grade. Crazy! We drove and drove and enjoyed amazing views until they were gone and we pulled into Glenn's Ferry, ID to stay at Three Island Crossing State Park. It was 103 when we got out of the car. We set up quickly, then headed for the Oregon Trail Intrepretive Center there at the park to seek some A/C. They were closing in 5 minutes but let us hang out for a bit and sold us ice cream. I meantioned several branches of the family tree passed through here, and that helped. We also were able to teach the nice lady about Bison Scat (thank you Jr. Ranger Program!). The heat was brutal and I was missing my valley home and the mountains I had just left. The sprinklers were on at the campground, so we played in them and then dried off in no more than 7 minutes. Went to bed early due to an early departure.
07/19/13
Three Island Crossing SP, Glenn's Ferry, ID - Portland, OR
Got up at 6:30 and were on the road by 7:00. Made a quick stop in Boise for coffee and breakfast and continued driving for home. It was a long day (9 hours driving) and we made it back in time to catch Portland Friday Summer Traffic which is not as fun as a Bison traffic jam. It was a good trip. And we got to check out our first Cracker Barrel!
Total Miles: 2091
Total Bison: around 2000
Total Nights: 11
Number of hours the child whined: about 6 days by best estimate, it might have been only 5, but felt like 12.
Total ground Squirrels: 25
Total Elk: 3
Total Pronghorns: 1
Total Grizzlies: 1
A couple of insights:
National Parks are full of stupid animals (the two-legged variety - man do I have stories!) but the wildlife is amazing.
Jackson has an amazing selection of kids cowboy hats and a SUPER toy store. Now if my toy store had been open (the ski areas), I would have been in complete heaven!
Nature is amazing and in our greatest effort to save it, I feel like we are destroying it. Case in point - call a place paradise, have people come, then sell things like the electric bug zappers to kids. If they were only going after the mosquitos I wouldn't care, but they were going after everything including the most amazing bumble bees who were just doing their jobs and not causing a problem. The kids felt "instant gratification" with every zap. I felt instant gratification turning them in to the park rangers.
Oregon has conditioned me with our fuel prices, to not even flinch at the 'high prices' in the National Parks. In fact, I was saving money per gallon. I was driving more than usual though.
I am falling more in love with the land I call home. I am not sure who said it, but our nature and park system is equivalent to the cathedrals in Europe. People go to Europe to see them, and Europeans come here to see this. This living, breathing, changing nature. I stood at the point where Ansel Adams took his famous Tetons/Snake River picture the other day. Things have filled in in 60+ years, but I stood in awe. I will remember that every time I look at the picture that has hung in my living room for the last 13 years.
My little "flame thrower" (my lighter) stopped working. I looked at fuel leveles, tried banging it (my inner-neanderthal got the better of me), and I futzed with the ignitor, before realizing the back said it probably wouldn't work over 5000ft. Most of the camprgounds we were at were well above 6500ft. I was thankful I also carry matches. Hadn't considered that before.
Will try to share a few photos later. Still uploading them.
