West Trip Day 7 - Yellowstone National Park

     On our last full day at Yellowstone, we planned to visit and explore the Lamar Valley, and take a couple of shorter hikes in the vicinity. The Lamar Valley is often described as the North American Serengeti. It is a place where bison, pronghorn, elk, wolves, coyotes, grizzly and black bears can be seen right from the road. During our trip research,  in the winter months, we watched documentaries on the valley and its inhabitants. I found the wolves particularly fascinating, especially The Druid Pack, a wolf pack that was a great success story for the park. In 1995 wolves were reintroduced to the Yellowstone ecosystem, setting off a small storm of controversy from local ranchers, but garnering support from naturalists and the general public. The wolves brought a balance back to the Yellowstone ecosystem that was lost for years. I really hoped to spot a wolf today.
     We awoke quite early ( 6ish ) to make sure we were ready for the day. The animals are most active in the cooler morning hours, tend to lie low during the hot afternoon, and become active again at dusk. After a quick  oatmeal breakfast, we made our way North to the valley.  We passed by the Mt. Washburn trail-head of yesterday's adventure, and continued north into new territory for us. The road immediately started to become more complicated, sharp curves and climbing in elevation. We continued on and made it to Tower junction, although we did not stop to look around, we were intent on making it up to the valley as fast as we could. Turning right we were heading east, and noted a considerable change in the landscape. Gone was the mountainous terrain, replaced with rolling hills filled with sage-brush meadows and scattered stands of trees.
      One of the planned hikes we had for the day was to a group of petrified trees, on the top of a Specimen ridge, not far from the valley itself. There was an unmarked trail to the top, and I wanted to take a quick look and survey the scene before continuing on. We pulled into a pull-off where a sign simply said "trail", and there was a faint outline of a trail continuing off to the south. I could make out the ridge in the distance and it didn't seem that far away. Suddenly to our right we heard a snort and looking in that direction, not 30 yards away, was a gigantic bull bison. At this point we were sitting in the car, about to leave, and just stayed put. We watched the bison continue on and cross the trail moving east near the road, walking across the same trail we intended to hike on later in the day! The animal was immense and powerful looking, and not something to be trifled with, as a woman found out last week, when she was gored and thrown. These are not slow, weak animals like a cow. This is an animal that is incredibly lean and muscular and has an ornery disposition. We were both amazed, yet slightly concerned about hiking amongst mega-fauna such as this.

      We continued along the park road and saw a simple sign along the road that said "Lamar Valley". Pulling  down a hill, to another pulloff, that had a few cars and some excited people viewing something in the distance. There was a small tour bus, with Japanese tourists all speaking excitedly and pointing across the road to a hill. I got the binoculars out and scanned but could not see anything. Then one of the men came over and said "Prong...horn" and pointed. I thanked him but could not see what he was talking about. In broken English he tried explaining where it was and I said "OHH I see"... when I had absolutely no clue. He was very excited and I didnt want to insult him. Heather and I walked back over to the car and scanned, and we finally spotted the Pronghorn sitting on the hill. Pronghorn are interesting animals because they are the fastest land animal in North America. They can reach speeds of 60 mph at a sprint. They evolved to evade a particular predator that has long become extinct, the American Cheetah.

      Moving down the road, heading east we noticed that to our right was a river and a wide open valley along it, nestled between the road and the hills. This is what we came for. We pulled over to a large pull-out with around 10 cars and lots of people gathered gazing at the valley below. A few of them were using spotting scopes, mounted on tripods, and others were using binoculars. "There's a grizzly down there right near the river and another across the river in the distance!". I was filled with excitement, got the binoculars out, and started scanning. Sure enough, there was a large grizzly right near the bank of the river foraging for food. We were quite a distance away, and had a chance to use one of the spotting scopes to get a closer look. He was fascinating to watch. Along the river bed we spotted many bison, some solo and others in small groups. Looking further off to the east we then spotted large clouds of dust. There was a very large herd of bison in the fields below. It was amazing to watch them kick up clouds of dust, chase each other and do what bison do, graze.

       After viewing the drama unfold for a while we got in the vehicle and made our way to a small hike I had picked out, called Trout Lake. As we drove near the top of a hill we had to stop as a large herd of bison decided to cross the road. At this point we were stuck. They moved slow and sometimes just stood in the road, motionless, bellowing out calls to the rest of the herd. As the herd moved among us we were able to get a very close-up look at them as they surrounded our vehicle and the subsequent line behind us. In this situation you dont want to agitate them by beeping or trying to move forward. You'll end up with a smashed up vehicle. This time of year the males are getting ready to mate. They are aggressive and want to hit things. We didnt need to give them an excuse.

      After about a 1/2 an hour, the herd moved off the road and traffic began moving again. We pulled into the parking lot for the trail-head to Trout Lake. This was a short 2 mile round trip hike to a small lake. The lake is famous for its large number of cutthroat trout. Its a fly fisherman's dream. This lake was actually a large source of food for a small town outside of the park in the early 1900's. The hike was about 1 mile straight up a large hill and a ridge and was strenuous. We made it to the lake and watched a couple of fly fisherman casting in the cold water. The lake was surrounded by a beautiful meadow and a mountain behind it. Very picturesque setting, as most of the park is anyways.

    We continued west, passing by the Lamar valley, and making our way back to the trailhead for the petrified trees. The hike was described as having a section that was "inhumanly steep" and we had a laugh at this. Setting out on the trail we slowly climbed in elevation and could see the ridge off in the distance and the steep section. Along the way we passed the remains of possibly an elk right near the trail. This put us slightly on edge. We passed by a family on their way down, I asked whether the hike was worth it and the father said "arrhhgggg not the way down".   We soon found out what he meant. The "inhumanly steep" section was quite steep but the biggest problem was the lack of traction. The "trail" was so traversed that it was a smoothed down slope of loose dirt. We had a very tough time getting up it and I knew getting down would be tricky. After making it to the first petrified tree-stump we were spent. We could not truly appreciate the fact that the tree before us was millions of years old and frozen in time. Looking to the west the sky looked dark and was coming in quickly. All of a sudden it started sprinkling and we were in a very bad position. If it down-poured the steep section would have turned into a muddy mess

and we would have to scout another way down.  We made our way gingerly, but as fast as we could back down without any problems.

         It was around 5pm and we were spent. Heading back to the Canyon village we grabbed a good meal and enjoyed a celebratory beer. We then packed our gear and prepared to leave the next day. Later in the night we attended a campfire chat with a ranger. The topic of his presentation was on the park wildlife. We learned a number of things we didn't know, and had many questions answered. Its to bad this presentation wasn't available when we arrived. However, it was Friday, and many were arriving for their first day in the park.After the talk we settled in for the night and were eager to move on to the next phase of our trip. But we weren't completely finished with Yellowstone yet. There was still a bit to see on our way out...

West Trip Day 6 - Yellowstone National Park

    We awoke around 7am to a rather fog-filled morning. The weather up to this point has been completely clear, warm during the day, but dropping to almost freezing at night. During the night we were hit with some rain and as a result, a thick blanket of fog enveloped us. Today we planned to do a big 6 mile hike up Mt. Washburn. We decided that rather than rush out the door, and do our hike in the fog, we would take our time and let the sun burn off the haze around us.
    Leaving the cabin around 9:30am, we made our way north along the main park road to Dunraven Pass (Click for MAP).  The road was steadily rising in elevation at this point and the views to the south were amazing. At the top of the pass, 8,859 ft., we saw the parking lot for the Mt. Washburn trailhead. The parking lot was quite busy with groups getting ready for their hike up the mountain. We wasted no time preparing ourselves for a great hike.

     Mt. Washburn is and has been a very popular tourist attraction in the park since its inception. In 1870, during the Washburn-Langford-Doane Expedition, Henry Washburn did a solo climb of the mountain to find Yellowstone lake to the south. When the rest of the expedition eventually joined Washburn the view from the top was described as "beyond all adequate description". The mountain became so popular in the coming years that a road was built to take cars to the top. Model-T Fords ascended the mountain in reverse, since it was the only way to keep gasoline pumping to the carburetor. Eventually the road stopped being used, but what remained, was a great trail to the summit.

       During the summer there are a couple of weeks that the wildflowers are in full bloom in Yellowstone, and apparently we were there at the perfect time. The Washburn range is famous for having fields of wildflowers at lower elevations and it did not disappoint. The beginning of the hike had us traversing along the trail, slowly climbing in elevation amongst brilliant fields of wildflowers. We saw yellow violets, blue lupines, yellow balsamroots, indian paintbrush, cow parsnips, bluebells and many others. The flowers simply pop-out against the dark green of the surrounding hills and along the edges of the trail up the mountain.
      The hike itself was a bit strenuous but very enjoyable. There were a number of long switchbacks ascending up the mountain, which helped alleviate the slope. We stopped at just about each turn of the switchback to catch our breath. We were slowly rising in elevation which naturally reduces the oxygen in the air. Since we eventually would cap out at 10,200 feet, this would be a good test to see how our bodies react to such elevations. Some individuals can develop Acute Mountain Syndrome ( AMS ) when they get in the 10k range, which can manifest itself with a host of symptoms: headaches, nausea, dizziness, fatigue, etc. The only cure is to get back down in elevation.

        After 3 miles of steady uphill hiking we made it to the fire-tower at the summit of Mt. Washburn. The view was a panorama of the entire park, and was breathtaking. To the south we could see the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone river and further down, the Teton range, to the north, the Absaroka mountain range. Just prior to the summit we saw a rare sight, a female mountain goat. In fact this particular mountain goat was standing right on the trail. She did not move, and was not phased at all by our presence. She was staring down the cliff. We got to within a couple feet of her and she still did not move. I was amazed she could live in such a barren and harsh environment. Gone were the lush meadows and wildflowers of the lower elevation, replaced with rocky, craggy slopes. We even saw a patch of snow.

        The fire-tower at the top was a multi-level building, with a level for hikers to view the surrounding area via scope and an observation deck. The top level was off limits, and is actually manned for the season by a ranger. Yellowstone is one of the few parks that still have live-in firetowers. This person spends from June till October living up in the tower and is sent supplies every 2 weeks. They spend their time scanning for any signs of a forest fire and have a rather meager and I assume lonely existence.
         The hike back down the mountain was naturally much faster, and

easier than the hike up. We passed by quite a few groups making their way to the top. The views on the descent were quite amazing. A few times we could actually see Old Faithful going off to the south. The perspective on the way down  made it feel like a completely different hike, though it was the same trail. When we made it to the trail-head, it was very packed and bustling with groups getting ready to hike. I think our timing was impeccable once again since we had the trail mostly to ourselves on the ascent.
        After leaving Mt. Washburn, we made our way south and decided to visit the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. This was a short distance away from our cabin at Canyon village and is possibly the 2nd most visited area of the park. There are two waterfalls( upper and lower ) in a massive canyon carved out by the

mighty Yellowstone river. The canyon walls are a shade of yellow. The falls are probably one of the most photographed features in the park, from a viewpoint at the end of the canyon, called Artists Point. There are two trails on either side of the canyon, the north and south trails. We decided to take the south trail, since it brings you close to the river and has a side-trail that brings you to the base of the upper falls.
       Heading out on the trail we were amazed at the enormity and power of the Yellowstone river. The trail edged its way precariously along the river bank and in certain sections became quite steep. There

were multiple rapids and one in particular really caught our attention for its depth and power. Along the trail we hit a clearing with a few trees that played host to 2 very large bull elk. They were both laying low in the grass beneath the shade of the trees, aware of our gawking presence, but unaffected. Continuing on up the trail we arrived at the side-trail that would take us to the base of the lower falls. The trail was called Uncle Tom's Trail. In 1900 a man named Tom Richardson took groups down the "trail" which was a mixture of 528 steps and rope ladders. Today it is a set of 328 metal steps and it brings you 3/4 of the way down the canyon.

       We descended down the stairs and Ill admit it was quite nerve-wracking. The steps were basically metal grates and some were bent in. Below you could see 500 feet to the canyon floor. A bent stair was all that prevented you from plunging to the bottom and the stairs did not seem like they were standard width, slightly thinner. Going down was a slow process of holding onto the railing and watching your feet carefully. We were told that a 1/3rd of the way down was an incredible view of a rainbow and the person was right on target. The rainbow was beautiful. We made it down to the bottom and started climbing back up. We had to stop at a few landings to catch our breath, and our leg muscles were absolutely burning partly from the climbing and partly from the adrenaline and anxiety. We hit the top very tired but happy we actually did it. The 2 mile hike back was tough, our legs had endured quite a workout today.
       We returned back to Canyon village and had a meal at the buffet. The bizzare thing about this particular buffet was that you could only make one trip to fill your plate. The plates they sold were in various sizes and prices. We piled up everything we possibly could on each plate, it was quite the sight. On the table the food seemed like a mountain range of its own. We needed all the calories we could get, tomorrow would be a big day. The day I have waited for since arriving in the park. The Lamar Valley!

West Trip Day 5 - Yellowstone National Park

     Our reservations had us spending one night in Grant Village, and then three nights at a "cabin" in the Canyon Lodge area. The Canyon section was North of us. ( Click on this to get an idea of the park layout ) 
We planned on taking the long way around, heading west to Madison and Norris, and ending at the Canyon area. With this in mind, we could visit many park features and make it to our next location before dark.

       After quickly packing the vehicle, and checking out, we set out northwest along the park loop road. We started climbing in elevation until we reached 8262 feet. Here, there was a small lake and we noticed a sign for "The Continental Divide". We pulled over and checked the area out. The lake was called Isa Lake, and had a plaque explaining exactly what the continental divide was. From Isa Lake the lake drains in two directions straddling the divide. The east outlet of the lake drains into the Snake and Columbia rivers and eventually to the Pacific. The west outlet feeds the Firehole river on its way to the Mississippi and the Gulf of Mexico/Atlantic. Thinking of this as the peaked roof of the country, and you get the idea of how it works. Water falls to either side in separate directions. I have read about the Continental Divide trail itself but did not fully understand it until we reached this spot.

      Continuing northwest we came upon a pull-off for Keplar Cascades. This was a designated viewpoint for a beautiful waterfall courtesy of the Firehole river. This also happened to be the trail head of one of the many hikes we had picked, Lonestar Geyser. After gawking at the waterfall and the power of the river for a bit, we started prepping for our hike. We have a mental checklist of things that we do at each trail head to ensure that we are totally prepared. Sunscreen, bug spray, fill water, get snacks, verify pack contents, camera, set way point on the gps, tie up the boots and trekking poles, re-read any trail descriptions and survey the maps, etc.etc. . It takes some time to do this but it works for us and we help each other in the process. The trail started in another dedicated trail-head parking lot that we somehow missed on the way in. It was just a short walk away. At the foot of the trail there was a sign stating "WARNING: BEAR FREQUENTING AREA . There is no guarantee of your safety while hiking or camping in bear country". We were already aware of the dangers of being out in the wild here, but seeing a sign like this has the tendency to put you on edge.
      The hike itself was easy. It meanders along the Firehole river on an old logging road. The sound of the river was soothing, but we also had to keep in mind the wild-life that could possibly be lurking around. We still were talking loud around bends in the trail where we could not see, although the river was pretty much drowning our voices out. We became relaxed a couple of miles in and could truly enjoy our surroundings. We passed a family walking towards us on the trail and we asked if we missed the eruption. They said it was supposed to go off in about a 1/2 hour, no idea why they didnt stick around for it. Lonestar geyser is slightly predictable and erupts every 3 to 4 hours and is supposed to be magnificent when it does. The great thing is that you get to share the experience with only a few other people as opposed to the throngs of people that will view Old Faithful.

       The trail ended and a sign was there with a warning about thermal features, and burns that can result if you get to close. There in a clearing sat the geyser, an odd looking rock structure jutting from the earth. As soon as we started walking near it, as if a switch had been turned on, it started erupting. It was amazing to see and hear so much water and steam come out of the top. At times im sure it reached over 50 feet and it lasted for a good 15 to 20 minutes. There were 3 or 4 small groups gathered around and we all took moments to chat and to offer picture taking services.
      When the geyser stopped erupting we all gathered ourselves, and made our way back as a large group. Safety in numbers I suppose. There was a man, who was with one of the groups, that I had a conversation with the whole 2.5 mile hike back. He was from northern Utah, and led a boyscout troop up to Yellowstone for an outing. We chatted about home, and where he was from, and what we could expect for the remainder of the trip. Its great to learn from someone with experience.

      We arrived back to the trail head in one piece and were feeling great about the hike. We continued along the park loop road and decided that we had to see Old Faithful, the famous geyser. It was right on our way north, so why not. Pulling into the crowded parking lot the scene was completely different. Throngs of people and buses were everywhere. People were fighting for parking spots and it was quite chaotic. We found a parking spot and made our way to find a viewpoint of the famous geyser. The place was absolutely packed with people, at least a few thousand. When the geyser did go off ( right on time I might add ) it was magnificent for sure. But it was not an earned experience like we had at Lonestar Geyser.

       After the eruption and a quick PBJ sandwich we went into the Old Faithful Inn. The Inn is an amazing lodge built around the time that the park first opened, and rebuilt after it was destroyed by fire a few years later. The great hall of the Inn was magnificent, made from lodgepole pines, you could see 5 floors up. In the middle sat a massive stone fireplace. We went outside on the second floor and sat on the big open deck looking out at Old Faithful.

       Continuing on the park loop road we came to a one-way road called "Firehole Lake Drive". We took the road and viewed quite a few thermal features at small pullouts along the road. Near the end of the drive was FireHole lake and we got out and walked along the wooden walkway. In this area, and in a few areas of the park, there was the familiar sulfur smell that we got used to. Viewing the lake and the small geysers and pools boiling around was wild. The earth just feels like a living, breathing organism here. Its very hard to describe without actually being there. From here we drove to the Lower Geyser Basin. This was another walking boardwalk loop where we viewed a number of thermal features, including the famous Fountain Paint Pots. The paint pots are basically boiling mud pits, and if you have any sense of humor at all, you cant help but laugh. The mud makes some very funny fart type noises and gurgles. The mud also spits out in drops that fly 10 feet or more in the air. We were transfixed for a while at this section.

        We then drove further north and were getting close to Madison when we saw a possible "bear-jam". A bear-jam is lingo in the park when there are a number of cars just stopped and pulled over on the side of the road. You see people running with cameras in hand, sometimes haphazardly in the direction of the animal. Tourons indeed. In this instance it was not a bear, but a big bull bison and a female( cow )  across a river on the plain. It was our first time seeing a bison in the wild and it was quite a sight. We used my binoculars to get a closer view and the big male began rolling and throwing dust over himself. We learned that this time of year is the time of year when the males are getting ready to mate. During this time they basically want to hit things, each other, and try to create big clouds of dust to attract females.
      Feeling happy that we finally saw some mega-fauna we continued north. We arrived in the Canyon area of the park around 6:30 pm and the place was bustling with activity. Canyon is another small village near the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone river. We checked in and found our small cabin. The cabins are one room cabins with a small bathroom and stand-up shower. There are 4 rooms per building and it should work out great for the 3 nights that we are here. We went back to the village area and had a nice dinner at the Canyon Lodge Dining room. We really started to love this place and the services that they offered. Next to the restaurant there was a good sized grocery store and a camping supply store. Everything we could need was here. We hit the sack early and got ready for our planned adventure in the morning, Mt. Washburn!

West Trip Day 4 - Cody, WY to Yellowstone National Park

   We awoke early and were totally ready to be in Yellowstone National Park. I wanted to get the car washed, since the bears from the previous day ( ok one bear in particular ) loved licking the bugs off the front of the Xterra. Knowing we were going to be in grizzly territory I wanted to leave nothing to chance. After giving the car a good washing we made our way on Rt. 16 to the East Yellowstone entrance. On the way we stopped at the Buffalo Bill dam. The dam was built in 1905 and was the tallest dam in the world until the Hoover Dam was built around 1931. Sitting on the Shoshone river it creates a reservoir behind it named of course, the Buffalo Bill reservoir.
      Continuing on the route to Yellowstone we noticed once again that the landscape was changing. We were slowly rising in elevation and would cap out around 8,200 feet into the Yellowstone Caldera. Along the way we were treated to our first Hoodoo's. Hoodoo's are really cool rock formations created when sedimentary rock wears away due to erosion. They form some amazing shapes and we will be seeing many more of these later in the trip at Bryce National Park.
    We arrived near the entrance to the park, and had to wait in quite a line of vehicles to get in. This surprised me since it was Tuesday, but I wasnt too concerned. After showing our pass and my ID we were given the park newspaper and a map of the park. The newspaper is a seasonal publication describing various hikes, ranger programs, and details regarding ecology and what to expect for each area of the park during the particular season.

      Following the east entrance we made our way through Sylvan pass. This is a high mountain pass that brought us near 10,000 feet in elevation. The driving was a a bit slow and tricky. There is no shoulder and in certain spots there was no gaurd-rail. A quick jerk of the wheel and we would test the Xterra's ability to fly 2000 ft. to the bottom of the pass. After topping out on the pass we started ascending down through the remains of a burned out forest. Forest-fires are a continual and essential component of any large forest ecosystem and it was very evident here. In fact while we were at the park there was a very large fire in the northwest section, but we saw no evidence of it. The park is so large that none of the roads or trails were affected.

  As we continued on we were treated to our first glimpse of Yellowstone lake in the distance. Yellowstone lake is the largest fresh-water high mountain lake in the United States. It is also bitterly cold as a result. The majority of medical emergencies in the park are directly related to the lake and hypothermia. We pulled off to a section of the main road called Lake Butte. Drove up a precarious  road to a viewpoint of the entire lake and of the park. After a quick PBJ lunch and some photo-ops we descended down to Fishing Bridge, a small village at the northern-most section of the lake.

      On our way to Fishing Bridge we came upon what I had planned for our first Yellowstone hike. It was a short 2 mile hike called Storm Point. It would meander through some dense forest and meadows with a section traversing along the lake. We were a bit apprehensive since this would be our first hike into grizzly, bison and elk territory. Not 1 week prior a woman was gored and thrown by an angry bison. Getting ourselves prepared for the hike we strapped on our bear-spray and our usual hiking gear. We walked through a beautiful meadow and passed by a family on their way back. The father was decked out with a canister of bear spray and even had bear bells, this made me feel more at ease for some reason. In our pre-trip research we learned that most incidents with grizzlies could have been avoided simply by making your presence known. In sections where we could not see the trail ahead, we would make noise. It was rather comical since we had the most banal conversations during these times. “HI HEATHER”. “HI MIKE”. “NICE HIKE”. “I LIKE CHEESE”. This along with some 80's rap and we were guaranteed to annoy any animal and hiker in the area. During the hike my head was on a swivel constantly scanning the forest and meadows for any movement. We were paranoid for sure.  When the hike was over, and we realized the forest wasn't out to eat us, there was a sense of relief and accomplishment. We could do this.

   The park is setup exceptionally well. There are 4 entrances from the north, west, east and south and the park interior is setup as a figure-eight , with the bottom section encompassing the lake. This allows fairly easy access to all areas of the park. At Fishing Bridge there is a gas station and a bunch of facilities including a store and gift shop. We visited the small museum that was dedicated to the lake and its ecology. We are always looking to learn more about our surroundings and what we are going to experience.
    We continued along the park road to our first destination for the evening which was in Grant Village on the western side of the lake. Prior to reaching this location we pulled off to the West Thumb Geyser Basin. This would be our first thermal section of the park. It should bear explaining that the entire park is an active volcano. The middle of the park is called the Yellowstone Caldera. 650,000 years ago there was a massive eruption, blowing off the mountain from Mt. Washburn in the north to Mt. Sheridan in the south, roughly 34 miles long. A massive lava-dome was created and fell under the weight of itself creating the Caldera as it is today. To this day it is still thermally active and we are due for another eruption. When and if that happens, civilization as we know it will end.

      The West-Thumb basin had a number of great thermal pools and hot springs. There were signs all over to strictly stay on the wooden walk-way. There have been incidents where individuals have been severely burned by walking off-path and breaking through what they thought was solid-ground, into boiling water. They also stated that it was strictly forbidden to throw any objects in the pools. There were a number of people viewing the pools and we witnessed a teenager throwing an object in the pool to the delight of his friends. I came very close to saying something, but decided it wasn't worth any sort of confrontation, since they were part of a large group. Again the parents said absolutely nothing to this kid.  Heather and I adopted a name for these individuals...”Tourons”. Tourist morons.
       After leaving the geyser basin we continued to our hotel for the evening at Grant Village. The room was quite nice and setup well. There were two restaurants in the village and we ate at the lake-side restaurant. The food was excellent and the staff was pretty funny. We realized that in most of these parks they hire individuals from other countries for the season. They place the name of the person on the name-tag and a description of where they are from right under that. Our waiter was from an eastern-blok country( the name escapes me now ) and he acted like Heather didn't even exist. Not sure if he got the memo that women rule the USA.

West Trip Day 3 - Rapid City, SD to Cody, WY

    Woke up in Rapid City at 5:30 am. It seems my body has already adjusted to the early 5:30am wake-up call and it doesn't take mass amounts of caffeine to get going. Great. Had a fantastic continental breakfast at the hotel.
     We made our way from Rapid City south heading towards Mt. Rushmore through the Black Hills of South Dakota. On our way we saw a few billboards for Bear Country U.S.A, and usually I am not interested in a tourist trap, but we decided to pull in and see what it was about. The girl in the ticket line said it was $15 PER-person, which immediately turned me off, but we decided to just go for it. Man I am glad we did.
       The park was basically a drive-through "safari". We knew we would see bears, but I was expecting them to be in cages and for the experience to be slightly cheesy. It wasn't. Pulling into the park entrance the signs said keep windows up and DO NOT GET OUT OF THE CAR under any circumstances. We continued into the park entrance and were pleased to see huge Elk just roaming about. Each animal species seemed to have its own enclosed area, but each habitat was quite large. They were separated by a grate that everyone just drove over. Continuing on we went through various sections and saw reindeer, big horn sheep, and white and gray wolves.

    Then we continued to the bear habitat. WOW. There had to be at least 100 bears roaming around this area. All black bears, but black bears here can have a cinnamon coloration. It was amazing to see them literally 5 feet from the car at times. Until we got to the bear that just loved the dead bugs on the front of the Xterra. He licked the front and you could feel the front of the vehicle being tugged on. Yup he was trying to eat it! The bear eventually sauntered off to the car behind us to molest their vehicle.

      After the black bear section we parked and walked through more of the park where they had large grizzly bears among many other types of animals. This section was very nice and the enclosures seemed to be large enough to mimic the animals wild environments. The most popular section was the bear cub section. There were around 15-20 bear cubs all playing and rolling around. We were able to watch a feeding and saw them playing in a pool of water.

After Bear Country USA we made it to Mount Rushmore, which was a short distance down the road.. It was surreal being at one of the most visited monuments in the United States. The place was absolutely packed with tourists from all over the world. There was a museum that showed a scale model that the original sculptors used, and we learned some information on how they achieved such a monumental task. There was a foot path to the base of the monument, and we walked around the entire thing. After seeing the monument from different angles, you could really get a feel for how amazing this place was.
     We then drove through the black hills of South Dakota to get back to I90. The landscapes were quite amazing. There were remnants of forest-fires all over the hills, charred trees and blackened fields with new growth popping up around them. There were piles of dead-fall neatly gathered to eventually limit the spread of any future fires. Fire is a very important part of any forest eco-system. Some trees even require fire to reproduce, we will be seeing these trees later in the trip.
      We reconnected with route 90 from the black hills route and continued west. Our goal was to make it to Cody for the night and have a relaxing first day in Yellowstone National Park. We drove across 90 and made it to the Bighorn Mountain Range in eastern Wyoming. This is where the roads started to get tricky. We had to cross over the range and eventually rise 5000 feet in elevation. The road needed much attention. There were switchbacks with hairpin turns and drop offs down the mountain on either side of the vehicle. If I was tired and bored of driving this woke me up. We made it to the top of the pass and there was road construction all over the place. The roads were ripped apart, and there was dirt and mud for a few miles. I saw a guy in a sporty car with a look of sheer terror on his face. This was not the terrain for a vehicle without a 4x4.

      On the other side of the Bighorn range we ascended down into an amazing valley and canyon. There was a creek running through the valley called Shell Creek and we stopped to take a look at Shell Falls. We met a man there that was asking where we were from and where we were headed. He stated that we really should have reservations if we want to stay in Cody since he worked in the area for years and was very familiar. Great. We did not have any. This could be our first night sleeping in the vehicle. After checking out the view we descended into a large canyon and the driving became quite complex. We had to slow down to 10 mph on some corners and were very close to the edge of cliffs during most of the drive. It was nerve-wracking to say the least.
     We continued on Route 14 across a very wide open and windy plain. There was actually a town that had a population of 10. It consisted of 3 houses and a post office. Wyoming just seems so vast and empty, yet somehow it was beautiful. This being the longest day yet, we were filled with the fear of possibly sleeping in the car. Heather got a crash-course in using the Droid and was able to find a place to stay, complete with positive reviews online. It was bizarre using technology in such a way in such a primitive environment, but it really saved us. We ended up at the Americ-Inn in Cody, Wy. The place was quite nice and right next door was a BBQ place called Bubba's. You cant really get any more stereotypical than BBQ, Bubba's and Cody Wyoming. There was even a beat up truck outside. The food was very fair and the pulled pork that I had was not so good. But, the beer was tasty, cold and refreshing after an exhausting day. We crashed early and were very excited to visit our first planned destination, Yellowstone National Park.

West Trip Day 2 - Iowa City, IA to Rapid City, SD

    We awoke in Iowa City, IA at 6:45 am and had a small continental breakfast. Taking our places in the vehicle, we began driving for the day. Made it to Interstate 29 from Interstate 80 and headed north to intersect with route 90, ultimately bringing us into South Dakota. Along the way, we noticed an abundance of farm-land. Particularily, there were wind farms and numerous gigantic wind-mills filling the sky. So right on cue, we started experiencing high wind gusts. There was a speed limit of 75 on route 90, which was quite nice, however, due to the winds, we could not go much faster than that. Prior to leaving for the trip we decided to invest in a Thule cargo carrier. It fit perfectly on the Xterra, without any modifications. The only disadvantage was that the vehicle lost some of its aerodynamic properties.
     Continuing on, we were quite ahead of our schedule and the time allotted for each section of the trip . We decided we had plenty of time to visit Badlands National Park. Since this was sort of an off the cuff decision, we really had no clue what Badlands was, or what we should see and experience there. Heather was able to search out and find basic park information using the online capabilities of the Droid-X. Purchasing a new smartphone prior to the trip was really working out to be a great descision.
    We made it to the Badlands Park loop road around 5:30 pm. On the way, we saw various signs for a Prairie Dog ranch store. We decided to go and see what it was all about. Pulling into the parking lot there was a large effigy of a Prairie Dog. We went into the store, and each bought a bag of peanuts for 50 cents each. We then went into an open field near the store and fed them, throwing peanuts into their holes in the ground. They were funny little buggers. Standing and staring curiously at us, playing with each other, and just doing what prairie dogs do.
    After being entertained by the prairie dogs we continued onto the park entrance and used our America the Beautiful pass for the first time. I had purchased this pass a few months prior and for $80, this would allow us entry into all the parks. I would highly recommend anyone visiting a couple of parks to purchase one of these passes. It is good for a year, and could end up saving you quite a bit of money.

    We pulled into the first parking lot, and went to the first overlook, and were blown away by the rock pinnacles and spires before us. George Armstrong Custer called this area “Hell without the fire”. The area boasts a large number of fossils and they were on display in a few areas of the park. The heat was something that we would have to get used to. This was not like the heat you feel out East, when the air is soupy and heavy. This was more like what I think an oven would feel like. Dry and uncomfortable, but somehow, tolerable. While we were viewing the area there was a teenage kid that was climbing all over the rock structures, waiting for his parents to take pictures. He was climbing on the edge of 200 to 300 foot drop-offs. They said nothing to him, almost encouraging him to go closer to the eroding edge. I had the camera all ready to get my 15 minutes of fame, had the kid inevitably slipped and fell into the canyon. Some people are entertaining, and stupid.
      We moved to a couple of spots where they had overlooks of the rock structures, specifically called, the door and window overlooks. We did a bit of scrambling around, and some of it was a bit precarious. Not having the proper footwear on to walk on the loose sandstone we decided to lace up our boots and really get a feel for the terrain.

    After hiking off-trail, we were hot and tired and decided to see the rest of the park from the vehicle. We continued the beautiful drive along the park loop road until it connected back to interstate 90.  Badlands is just a surreal place, probably as close to being on the moon as you can get.
    Earlier in the day during the drive along I90 we saw billboards for "Wall Drug" for at least 400 miles. The loop road for Badlands actually ended right in the small town of Wall. We had to check this place out. It was a huge mix of stores all built into a giant building with fake streets inside. Heather bought a really cute cowgirl hat. There was an obvious western feel to the whole place. The whole area felt like we were in an old western movie.
     It was late in the day, around 8:30, and we had around 55 miles left to Rapid City South Dakota. We felt this would leave us in a great position to head to Mt. Rushmore in the morning and continue onto Cody Wyoming. We made it to Rapid City, quite exhausted from a long, productive day, found a Howard Johnson,  and crashed for the night.