Before we left the Tetons we went on a bear hunt. We left early in the morning, for us, and drove around to look for all the bear people have been telling us about. I mean everyone we run into tells us some great bear story. The campsite we were at has a sow grizzly and two cubs that were spotted in the crossroads no more than a quarter mile from our RV not more than two days ago. Have we seen anything ursine-like? Except for me in the morning, no.
We drive for a while and end up at Jenny Lake. There is a ferry that will take you across the lake to a short hike up to a waterfall. Its a nice day and we decide to do this. We board the ferry and on the way the guide tells us that while the waterfall is accessible due to the late breaking winter the trail to Inspiration Point is closed under several feet of snow. We hike a quarter mile to the falls which are bloated with runoff and roaring loudly. When we get back to the RV we say good-bye to the Tetons and head for beautiful Yellowstone.
When we reach the south entrance of Yellowstone we are greeted by newly opened roads with four feet of snow pack on either side. This does not bode well. If this is the southern part of the park what in the hell does the northern part of the park, where we are to camp, look like? I try to hide my growing disappointment at every rise as more and more snow covers the ground. The roads are clear but all the features of the park are buried. We drive past Lewis Lake, it is completely frozen over. Parts of Yellowstone Lake are iced over. Again, this is not the SUMMER trip we had planned.
As we head further into the park we drop in elevation and the snow abruptly disappears and we are treated to some amazing views of the park. I call it a park but it is one quarter of Wyoming and it is hard to get your head around the fact that everything you see, the mountains in the far distance, the valleys all around you, are part of a national park.
On our way to the campsite we pass Old Faithful. We are lucky and only wait for about 20 minutes before the eruption. I think everyone is duly impressed and we take a quick spin through the new visitor’s center before we need to leave for the campsite.
As we drive we pass signs labeling the sights and points of interest on our way. "What is this lake called?", asks Teresa. "Ummmm...here's the sign... Nez Perce Creek," I say. "That's a creek?"
There is water everywhere and the snow pack has just started melting. The Snake River is full and every other river or stream we pass has overflowed its banks and inundated the meadows.
We pull into Madison Campground and get our lot number. After three attempts to back the RV into this space with Lodgepole Pines six inches from the side of the road we give up and head back to the office to ask for another space. They move some reservations around and find one that will accommodate a 31’ vehicle. The campsite is very nice. It is a little close to a road in the park but on the other side there is a beautiful river that runs through this small valley. With the sun beginning to set it really is a picture.
As we set up for dinner Samantha and Bryce begin to kick the soccer ball around. In a matter of minutes 6 children have shown up to play with them. There is a ten year old boy from Australia and three kids from Indiana and some others from who-knows-where. After cooking dinner we call the kids in to eat. Bryce wants to invite the three kids from Indiana over after dinner to roast marshmallows. Samantha is feeling shy and does not. We say it would be very nice to invite them over since they came over to play with you first. After dinner Bryce screws up enough courage to head over to their campsite and ask them over. The kids are excited and the parents say yes. We invite them over for beer and wine and the Australians as well. In a matter of minutes we have a gathering of people all sitting around a fire roasting marshmallows and talking about various experiences until 11 p.m. It really was an RV commercial.
Our kids want to play again tomorrow but we have a tour of the park scheduled for most of the day.
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