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Yellowstone National Park
The past two days driving around Yellowstone have proven how limited my own words are. God really never runs out of fresh ideas for decorating our world. Colors & color combinations here are indescribable. Just when you can't imagine mountain peaks & rivers being more beautiful, He throws in the element of light & shadows to provide new accents & focal points. Saturday was filled with sunshine, but yesterday's sky puffed with storm clouds all day, so the vistas changed constantly. We drove many of these roads multiple times, but there was always something new in sight. So far, we have seen bison herds, a bull elk, a mama moose, a coyote, many deer, and a black bear. You usually can tell when an animal is in view because of the traffic jam ahead, and the brake lights going on. Of course we all get out of our cars to ask, "What are we looking at?", and then the cameras begin to click. Wonderful wildlife viewing here, and I wondered how THEY view US.
Saturday, we drove the North Loop in Yellowstone. We took our time, parking in the "pullouts" to look, listen, and smell the beauty. At one stop, we had just come out of the restroom, when a big buffalo ambled past the area, just as if no one was around. What a massive animal. We saw waterfalls, and twisting rivers. Being a weekend, there were scattered fishermen standing in the riverbeds.
Saturday night, on returning to the camper, we decided to go to Cody so Marlene could see her very first RODEO. This is a nightly event in a large outdoor grandstand/arena. What a treat! Marlene was not disappointed as she saw bucking broncos, barrel racing, calf roping, team roping (one cowboy ropes the horns, while the second ropes the hind feet), and bull riding. There was even an event of "peewee" barrell racing where the cowpokes were under 12 years old. One little guy (about 5 yrs.) couldn't reach his heels past the saddle to kick the horse. The horse walked... and how we laughed.
Sunday we drove the South Loop of Yellowstone. This area was our favorite. I think it was the water features that made the difference. We circled the edges of Yellowstone Lake, and saw so many rivers & waterfalls. The sights and sounds just magnified the beauty. It was in this drive, that we saw the famous "thermals". While remarkable in sight, these areas also smell SO BAD of sulfur (rotten eggs)! For those of you that know Marlene's nose, well, they weren't our favorite places to be. But Old Faithful, while sitting on a geological thermal, was different. No noxious smell. We arrived just after the Old Girl had blown her stack, but we waited around until her next spouting (about 90 minutes). Marlene had developed some serious motion sickness Sunday morning from reading our devotions in the car. Old Faithful became the spot that we got out of the car and just relaxed. Met a Park Ranger in a wheelchair that had broken her ankle while hiking. She was a wonderful resource as she talked to us about the Park while waiting for Old Faithful's eruption. We also met so many dog owners, and Molly had a chance to meet and sniff a 7-month old Schnoodle from Florida. They got along famously.
All in all, our Yellowstone touring has been very enjoyable. It was also prime time to continue our latest book on tape. We are both fully captured by our current book, "The Amber Photograph". We'll probably finish it on our trip to Grand Teton National Park today. Storms are in the forecast through Tuesday with a possibility of snow. Whoopee!!!! (Marlene is getting her winter clothes out as we speak.) The furnace in our little camper and our electric blankets are keeping us toasty warm at night. Of course, I have Molly as my bed warmer, too.
Gas in Wapiti: $3.94/gal. We got 27.5 mpg while touring around without the camper.
We both cannot believe that September begins today. These last two weeks have been packed with so many new experiences. We give God thanks for allowing it and for His guiding us to wonderful encounters with people and places. Stay tuned.
Saturday, we drove the North Loop in Yellowstone. We took our time, parking in the "pullouts" to look, listen, and smell the beauty. At one stop, we had just come out of the restroom, when a big buffalo ambled past the area, just as if no one was around. What a massive animal. We saw waterfalls, and twisting rivers. Being a weekend, there were scattered fishermen standing in the riverbeds.
Saturday night, on returning to the camper, we decided to go to Cody so Marlene could see her very first RODEO. This is a nightly event in a large outdoor grandstand/arena. What a treat! Marlene was not disappointed as she saw bucking broncos, barrel racing, calf roping, team roping (one cowboy ropes the horns, while the second ropes the hind feet), and bull riding. There was even an event of "peewee" barrell racing where the cowpokes were under 12 years old. One little guy (about 5 yrs.) couldn't reach his heels past the saddle to kick the horse. The horse walked... and how we laughed.
Sunday we drove the South Loop of Yellowstone. This area was our favorite. I think it was the water features that made the difference. We circled the edges of Yellowstone Lake, and saw so many rivers & waterfalls. The sights and sounds just magnified the beauty. It was in this drive, that we saw the famous "thermals". While remarkable in sight, these areas also smell SO BAD of sulfur (rotten eggs)! For those of you that know Marlene's nose, well, they weren't our favorite places to be. But Old Faithful, while sitting on a geological thermal, was different. No noxious smell. We arrived just after the Old Girl had blown her stack, but we waited around until her next spouting (about 90 minutes). Marlene had developed some serious motion sickness Sunday morning from reading our devotions in the car. Old Faithful became the spot that we got out of the car and just relaxed. Met a Park Ranger in a wheelchair that had broken her ankle while hiking. She was a wonderful resource as she talked to us about the Park while waiting for Old Faithful's eruption. We also met so many dog owners, and Molly had a chance to meet and sniff a 7-month old Schnoodle from Florida. They got along famously.
All in all, our Yellowstone touring has been very enjoyable. It was also prime time to continue our latest book on tape. We are both fully captured by our current book, "The Amber Photograph". We'll probably finish it on our trip to Grand Teton National Park today. Storms are in the forecast through Tuesday with a possibility of snow. Whoopee!!!! (Marlene is getting her winter clothes out as we speak.) The furnace in our little camper and our electric blankets are keeping us toasty warm at night. Of course, I have Molly as my bed warmer, too.
Gas in Wapiti: $3.94/gal. We got 27.5 mpg while touring around without the camper.
We both cannot believe that September begins today. These last two weeks have been packed with so many new experiences. We give God thanks for allowing it and for His guiding us to wonderful encounters with people and places. Stay tuned.
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