A Steamy Time in Yellowstone

 
     Getting to each park and destination can take so much time and energy that we sometimes don't spend much time researching what to do when we finally arrive. I feel like this was definitely my truth for Yellowstone. It’s obviously one of the big ones with lots to offer, but outside of Old Faithful and Grand Prismatic Spring, I didn’t have much of a concept as to how we would be spending our time. I quickly learned: driving.

    Yellowstone is big, like Rhode Island and Connecticut combined big. It takes a long time to get from point A to B, especially on slow mountain roads constantly under construction and filled with van-life a-holes blocking traffic so they can try and get themselves killed posing for the perfect Instagram photo of them hugging a buffalo.  We spent hours in the car, which, I know, was our choice, but the reality of it all still took some mental adjustment. Anne figures the best way to see Yellowstone is to camp at a few different places in the park over the course of at least a week, so your drives won’t be so long to get to the different attractions, and I think she’s hit the nail on the head. Us, having just a few days and being locked into one hard-to-get site, could not follow this plan. Maybe next time.

    There’s no way I can remember everything we did in the right order, so I’ll just hit a few highlights and let the photos do most of the work.

 

     Old Faithful: A great experience, not overly crowded, easy to see, and while definitely not a ‘get away from it all’ experience, it was actually nice to have a shared positive moment with so many people, waiting in anticipation and applauding when it finally erupted. The old lodge nearby is also worth a visit in itself, an amazing piece of rugged architecture.

    Hot Springs, Geysers, Mud Pools, etc: Too many to list, it was super cool to explore and learn about their differences. Wild colors, atmospheric clouds, bubbling pools of mud, and the smell of sulfur everywhere. Yes, the price to pay for all of this wonder is waves of hot, moist, sulfurous air, the likes of which I haven’t experienced since my days of changing diapers. But, as you can see, well worth it.

    

    Grand Canyon of Yellowstone/Upper and Lower Falls: This was an area I’d like to spend more time in. The cliffs were stunning, and combined with the drama of splendor of the falls, it was truly a spot I will never forget.

    

    Wildlife: You know those stories we’ve been hearing about tourists getting gored by wild bison because they got too close? Well, there’s a difference between hearing those stories and actually applying what you’ve learned from them. We literally saw parents dragging their kids off the road so they can get closer to the grizzly. Closer. To. The. Grizzly. I’m not going to waste any more space on these morons except to say I’d never wished harder for a bear to do a bluff charge so I could see fifty idiots run screaming to their cars. Maybe next time.

    Other than that, wildlife was great.

    Like I said, I think it’s best to just let the photos do the heavy lifting on this post. What can I possibly say to match them?