It's Gotta Be a New Record!

Our third day in the Teton area was spent going to Idaho Falls, some 65 miles to the west. It's a pleasant town and we did a few errands, some shopping, got lunch at Freddy's and a cup of coffee for the ride home! Short, but productive day.

Yesterday, Thursday the 16th, we took another trip into GTNP, since our time here is getting short. We entered the park at Moran, and immediately headed north along the east side of Jackson Lake, which we saw on Tuesday.

Driving through dense forest was very pleasant. We stopped occasionally to smell the pine trees and take a short hike. Before long we found ourselves at the South Entrance to Yellowstone National Park.

This particular sign came complete with Yogi Bear....Oh, Wait....No.....

Ok, it's decision time. Do we return the same way, or go look at some of Yellowstone? No brainer. So off we went toward West Thumb, an arm of Yellowstone Lake.

Just a short distance north we crossed over the western Continental Divide.

/and dropped down into the ancient volcano caldera to Yellowstone Lake. We ate lunch at Pumice Point and marveled at the size of this lake.

Now we're 22 miles into Yellowstone and need to make another decision. Return on the same road? No way. Short way past Old Faithful? Too many people, of course. Long way to Fishing Bridge, Canyon Village, Norris and Madison? Again....no contest. Off we go. Fishing Bridge is one of the iconic places in Yellowstone. It's centrally located, and up to recently, had a nice rv park. The rv park is closed this year, but the bridge and tourist stops are open.

Oddly, no fishing is allowed from Fishing Bridge! But the Yellowstone River is magnificent.

The road from Canyon Village to Tower-Roosevelt is closed for the summer, which was disappointing since it meanders through Dunraven Pass and past Mount Washburn, and is a lovely and breathtaking ride. So we turned west to Norris. We are truly committed to a long drive.

Somewhere near Norris we stopped at Mud Volcano to stretch our legs. Again we've got the people.

So, once again, our plan to see some mud pots up close was foiled by hundred of unmasked tourists. We did however, catch a glimpse of a male Bison munching green, tender grass. Shortly after this photo was taken, he showed his disdain for the crowds in a most unsavory, smelly, and noisy fashion, adding to the nitrogen content of the soil.

At this point, we had no choice but to continue on to West Yellowstone and work our way home. We had been on this road last week, but the choices are limited, so off we went. Donna took over driving and Sasha and I caught a couple of ZZZ's.

The ride home was uneventful and we arrived back in Victor at about 7 pm. Three hundred sixteen miles and eight hours later. My goodness, I certainly slept well last night! We'll be leaving here soon and heading south to Utah and Colorado. Stay tuned, 'cause the scenery will change!

BTW: at 2:30 pm on Friday afternoon, it's 84 degrees and raining.......