So after 15 hours in the truck, we unpacked in our room (we had to share two twin bed mattresses placed on the floor with Cole but it was FREE lodging so we certainly would just figure it out) and began the process of unwinding. That wasn't easy to do with so many people around, kids running to and fro in someone else's home and about 250 animal heads peering down at you...no joke, Larry and Matt are prolific ,and I mean that with a capital P, hunters. They eat everything they kill, hence we were in for a menu of elk, buffalo and antelope. Good thing I am adventurous and our meal discussions didn't go into detail about what we were eating, so we just ate. Game is actually very healthy and lean and the reality is that though they actually shot their prey, it is probably a more humane death than the slaughterhouses that the chicken and beef that grace our plates often comes from.
Lion's Ledge sits on a beautiful parcel of land...the backside looked out over Tom Miner Creek which gushed plentiful from all the summer rains, it was a steady hum that relaxed us as we had some drinks and caught up with our friends that first night. The laughs and conversation flowed but we were bone tired so retreated before midnight. The cool night air wafted in and we fell asleep with a full moon shining in the big picture window in our bedroom.
Cole was up early as usual, so we were up with him and before everyone else. I think the most difficult part about vacationing with others is trying to keep a toddler quiet at the crack of dawn in consideration of the others still asleep. He wanted to play with the girls who were still in la-la land. He wanted to be outside running around which we weren't ready for quite yet as we stretched our stiff bodies. Luckily we had a 7:00 am departure for Yellowstone National Park. With 7 adults and 5 kids we managed to get on the road by 7:20 which we were proud of. With a Suburban and Dave's truck we all fit in, carseats included!
The sun was shining when we turned South on Route 89 and followed the Yellowstone River (which is one of just a few rivers that flows north). By the time we got to the town of Gardner which was 20 miles away, the clouds swirled angrily overhead and thunderheads loomed over the mountains. We entered the park about 8:00 with Matt our tour guide. He is Kelly's brother who is a professional outfitter/guide for a living and lives at Lion's Ledge year round. Matt had mapped out our itinerary knowing which "tourist" spots to forgo and those that were worth the time (or energy) to see. He also knew the less visited but spectacular pull over points that were slightly off the beaten track. We drove into the park about 45 minutes before we reached our first sighting of buffalo. It had rained the first 30 minutes of the drive so our timing was perfect as we began to see herds of the buffalo right off the road. It was early enough too that we had beaten the crowds and pretty much had the park road to ourselves. We stopped for some beautiful vista shots of the hot springs up on the mountain side, the steam pouring off as the sun broke through the clouds. We continued on and saw more and more and more buffalo, some males were as large as our truck. They were shedding their coats and thus many of them had no coat on the back half of their bodies but the coat on the front half remained, it was a strange sight on an already strange looking creature.
We parked our cars to visit Upper and Lower Springs and the tremendous waterfalls. We had a steep hike up and down on a zig-zag trail. Cole was put in the backpack which he fought but there was no way he would have been safe any other way. You could hear the roar of the water but to turn the corner and see the water rushing at such an intense pace was absolutely breathtaking. There was still snow on the north side of the rocks and the water sparkled an almost blue/green in the sunlight. You could see the water cascade and pound the rocks below. It was nature in one of its most powerful forms.
Cole had taken a liking to Morgan, the 10 year old daughter of the Mershons and wanted to hold her hand anytime he was able to be walking rather than in the pack. We stopped to take the walking loop around the Mud Volcano and some of the hot springs and he held her hand the entire 20 minutes. The buffalo lounge around these hot springs and were literally within striking distance should they decide they were irritated by the human gawkers. One had risen as we strolled by and we calmly but hurriedly continued on our way. Of course there are always the tourists who remain behind to snap pictures as the 2 ton creature eyeballs them. Oh, and I wouldn't want to be remiss in mentioning the man and his dog (which was the size of a large cat) who was straining to run after the aforementioned buffalo, barking wildly at it. Its owner was like "oh isn't that cute, he just wants to play, allowing the dog to inch closer and closer". Seriously?? Now we know why signs were posted warning of people being gouged to death every year. Stupid people are a pet peeve of mine, seriously!!
We stopped to take group photos of the kids with Yellowstone Lake and the snowcapped mountains as the backdrop. It reminded me of being in Lake Tahoe without all the development. Thousands of fir trees rimmed the lake and the color of the water was an amazing blue. There were HUGE piles of buffalo dung everywhere which we attempted to keep ourselves and the kids from stepping in. Ed picked some dried dung up and threw it in my direction as I shrieked. Cole thought that was the funniest thing and his giggle became infectious as we all dodged the dung minefield.
Our lunch time stop was Yellowstone Lodge and the infamous Old Faithful geyser. Cole had fallen asleep in the car so Dave stayed with him as the rest of us went to buy lunch and find out the schedule for the next "blow" of Old Faithful. Dave was smart to bring walkie talkies which kept our two cars communicado the entire day. The kids and guys got us seats by the geyser and the gals went to fetch eats/drinks. Yellowstone Lodge was immense. A huge log cabin with a lobby that was four stories high with huge stone fireplaces. It was something out of a movie. You could actually stay there during the summer months (the interior sections of the park are closed from late October-late April because of the snow). Dave and Cole met up with us just as Old Faithful gave us her show. In all honesty, as beautiful as it was, it didn't go as high as I had expected it to. We all expressed the same thought afterwards but it was still an experience that was a MUST SEE!
At this point, the kids had had enough so we decided to begin the trek back. Once the young ones have reached this point, it can be touch and go, so Matt was told to take the rapid route OUT of the park. Of course as fate would have it, traffic came to a standstill about 10 minutes after we left the Lodge. Wildlife has free reign and if they block the road, you wait. So we waited and waited and waited. People had gotten out of their cars and slowly down the line of cars came word. Brown Bear, Brown Bear!! People were freaking out and whispering as we inched past. The bear was up on the left hand side of the road but cars had stopped to take photos.
We snapped our requisite shot and continued on as the kids couldn't have cared less plus now the Kawashiri girls had to pee and we were nowhere near a rest stop. So we pulled off the road and the ladies ventured down the slope a bit where they promptly got stage fright as they have never before had to go potty in nature with a bunch of strangers (us) essentially watching. Needless to say, it was a rough ride home. Cole was a trooper and nodded off a few times. As long as he has snacks and water, he is good. Remember, he was used to be in the car for hours on end.
Two more posts to come on our Montana adventure...
