From Yellowstone

Day 21: I may be on a sleeping pad, but I could get used to sleeping indoors. It’s nice getting up and getting ready in a temperature controlled environment.

First on the agenda today is whitewater rafting on the Snake River. We head over to Jackson, before the company shuttles out to the start about 30 minutes away.

Our guide is a Billy, a 40 something originally from Wisconsin, who has guided for 17 years while working at a ski resort in the winter. We decided he is at least part hippie, based off his gauge earrings and long hair. All around a very cool dude.

Jonathan and I end up as the front of the boat. I’ve whitewater rafted before, but this is the first time in the front, and I am excited for what should be a better ride. It did not disappoint.

We went through around a dozen sets of rapids with the largest being Kahuna Falls. Jonathan and I took a lot of water to the face, but it is exhilarating.

A few of us even hopped in at a calmer section of the river (thank God for wetsuits), including Adam who was on his first whitewater rafting trip and was initially a little nervous.

After rafting we began the drive to the Yellowstone. The drive took us back through Grand Tetons, which was a great way to see those mountains again. We even passed by a herd of a buffalo.

Our first destination was Old Faithful, which we made it to a little before 4. A stop by the visitor center tells us the next show should be at 4:27, give or take 10 minutes, so we make our way out to the boardwalk to grab a spot.

There are not many seats left, but we secured a great standing room spot and she goes off right on schedule. We cheered her on as she sprayed forth water and steam for several minutes in a show a commercial fountain could only hope to replicate.

Following the display put on by Old Faithful, we checked out one of Yellowstone’s many waterfalls then drove up to Grand Prismatic.

Although I fail to understand the science behind the geothermal features, it is not difficult to interpret the beauty of this place.

Following Prismatic, we started the drive out of the park, but ran into some major traffic on the way out.

I joined everyone for dinner this time, even though I have some food of my own I’m planning to eat later.

After we get to the hotel everyone else heads down to the hot tub, while I eat and start prepping for tomorrow. By the time I make it down, they are on the way back up. After all of them shower it is past 11 and sufficiently past my bed time, and I’m starting to look ahead to tomorrow night when I can catch up on some sleep.

Day 22: I can see light peaking through the curtains, hoping I was able to sleep in, I check my watch to see it’s only 4:30. Great. I toss and turn for about 30 minutes, but get up a little after 5 and go for a walk around town before the hotel breakfast opens at 6:30.

I down a couple plates of food, before Jonathan arrives, then I eat a couple more. By the time everyone is up and has eaten, we are on the way back to the park at 8:30.

Our planned first stop is Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, but we stop by a separate waterfall on the way, whose name I can’t recall (seriously, there are so many here, I’m not sure how they named them all).

On the way to the canyon we saw a buffalo walking by the road and stop to take a quick picture. We are mere yards away and closer than we should be as Jordan reminded us, but could not resist the temptation.

The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone includes a couple waterfalls as well as the canyon, and there are multiple viewpoints. We hiked around to about all of them covering roughly 4 miles in the process.

The final viewpoint is the best if them all and with the wind blowing we can feel a hint of spray from the falls.

Following the canyon, we lunched on peanut butter sandwiches before heading to Lamar. Known as America’s Serengeti, it is the best part of the park to see wildlife.

We drive an out and back stretch of road through Lamar Valley and are able to see multiple bison herds, including one crossing a river through the rain, as well as pronghorns. We wanted to see some wolves, but those are mostly out at dawn, so maybe next time.

From there we have a one hour drive to Mammoth Hot Springs. The springs are not too dissimilar from Grand Prismatic. There is a lot of steam coming out of the ground and a boardwalk that claims the hill taking us to various overlooks.

Following the springs the group heads to their AirBnB in Gardiner and I head to my campsite. After 5 nights indoors, I’m ready to get back to the simplicity of camp life.

I’m able to set up pretty quickly and am in bed before 9. All feels right in the world.

Day 23: After a good night sleep, I packed up and head for Mt. Washburn. It’s a pretty moderate 7 mile hike and I do the majority of it with a couple from Germany (Mo and Jazelle) who are currently living in Canada, and are doing a 3 week trip through the western US.

It is really windy at the top, but there is a weather station that has an indoor space for hikers.

On the way down we talk a lot about sports and the different models in the US and Germany. Jazelle actually majored in Sport Management and worked the Climbing World Championships a few years ago. It was really cool to hear about her experiences in the sport industry, as I am about to renter it.

Following the hike, I start driving down to Lake Yellowstone to meet the rest of the guys for lunch. Along the way I stopped to see a Black Wolf that was off in the distance then a Grizzly Bear that was foraging near a buffalo. From the road the animals were mere dots, but could be seen with a pair of binoculars.

Finally, I made it down to Lake Yellowstone and we all ate lunch at Gull Point.

It was fun seeing everyone before they return home. They even left me with a bag of leftover food.

From there, I drove up to my campsite at Tower Fall and set up camp early. Some wind ripped my tent stakes out and my tent blew over a few feet, but I was able to re-stake it plus add some rocks to the corners of the tent. The wind died down as it started to rain and a hush fell over the campground.

I’m planning to go to Lamar Valley at dawn tomorrow and hope to see more wildlife.