Day 8, Saturday June 27: Yellowstone National Park

The night before we very hesitantly booked an all day tour of Yellowstone.  We would leave out at 8:30 and not return until almost six that evening.  After some thought, we decided to book it and now looking back it was the best decision we could have made to see the park in a day, without having to drive it ourselves.

We were greeted by a most friendly driver, the girls were gifted two coloring books and crayons to keep them busy, and our travel bus was quite comfortable.  An added bonus was that only two other parties were along for the ride totaling the riders at 7.  The bus could hold up to 20 so we were in for a comfortable ride where we could spread out.  Traveling with children makes this an important aspect!

We made a total of 9 stops that day: Lewis Canyon Overlook, West Thumb, Old Faithful, Midway-Grand Prismatic, Madison, Upper Falls, Lower Falls, Hayden Valley, and Yellowstone Hotel.

Each stop was a chance to stretch our legs, hike a little, see some beautiful sights and use the restroom.  Our guide was quite knowledgeable about each stop and gave us lots of info before departing.  He was also quite the wanderer and had many personal stories about his travels.  It has been very interesting to me to encounter the people that are employed in the National Parks.  I met several cashiers in the shops that were employed for the summer months only, and had traveled far and wide to have that opportunity.  For some it was their first season working, and for others it was an annual gig.  The guide we'd had the evening before, on the Snake River, and the guide on this day in Yellowstone, were both men who'd traveled and had many interesting stories of their adventures.  The river guide shared with us about traveling through southeast Asia and his adventures navigating Vietnam on motorcycle.  I think after this trip I've come to group people into three categories, those who spend their life wandering, those who are content to stay put, and those who root in a home life, but leave room to travel and see the world.  Whichever is fine, but the hidden treasure on this trip has been the people we've met and the friends the girls have made.  The world is big and there are many interesting people to run into with life stories to share.  Ok, I digress.

Our day was long, but when we finally returned close to six o'clock we agreed that it had been very worth it!

Some highlights were seeing Old Faithful again, face-timing with my Bald Mountain family who were having reunion in Asheville, NC, seeing a rainbow over a massive waterfall, encountering bus-loads of non-American tourist with selfie sticks that taught us patience and the value of personal space, and the Yellowstone Inn that had been completely restored to it's original 1891 decor .  That day we also saw many mule deer, a fox, bison, elk, and Katie Jo saw a black bear crossing the street.