Yellowstone Day 2

Monday morning we woke up, had breakfast, then loaded everyone (including Grandma and Grandpa) into our 9 passenger suburban (with every seat filled), and started on our great Yellowstone adventure.

Our first stop occurred just a few miles into the park, when we spotted some elk grazing in the distance. The kids were pretty excited to be seeing actual wildlife, even if they were just specks in the distance.

Our next stop was just after the turn at Madison Junction. This time we got a little closer look at wildlife. There were some buffalo just off the road. Park rangers were there making sure everyone kept a safe distance.


Next we stopped at Firehole Falls.



Next we saw some deer just off the road.


Then we stopped at the Midway Geyser Basin. The kids were happy to be able to do some walking around.

(I love Nate in this picture. There was enough wind to blow the spray from the geyser over to the board walk. The kids weren't quite sure how they felt about getting sprayed with geyser water.)





Then it was back into the car to drive to the next attraction. We stopped at Biscuit Basin.





While at Biscuit Basin, Nate decided that he wanted to walk instead of being in the stroller. He's such a determined and independent kid. Having an almost 2 year old walking freely along a boardwalk makes for a very anxious mother, but Nate did great at staying where he was supposed to be.





And then we finally made it to our main attraction--Old Faithful. We sat outside the lodge and ate the lunch I'd packed while we waited for it to be time for Old Faithful to go off. As we were eating, I spotted my 7 foot uncle from Texas walking through the parking lot. What a small world! He was there with his wife and son, and so was another uncle and aunt (from Salt Lake). After visiting with them for a bit, we headed out to watch the eruption of Old Faithful. Savannah, Josh, and Sara were pretty fascinated. Nate and Aaron could care less about the geyser, but had a great time striking up a friendship with a 20 year old girl sitting next to us.


We made our way around the long boardwalk that winds it's way through geysers and springs. All the kids were exhausted by the time we made it to the end. The little boys decided to nap in the stroller.







After all the walking at Old Faithful, we were all very happy to load into the suburban and dive back to the cabin. We didn't have as much trouble getting the kids to bed that night--they were all exhausted.