Chad's adventures of shaving, officiating, and life

[CVargo]

Day 5 in the park.

It's cold still and tomorrow looks warmer. This is my 4th time in the park in my lifetime, realizing I've never done much around Yellowstone Lake. Which is the highest altitude natural lake in north America. It had depth of over 400 feet, and thermal features that causes the ice to appear like Swiss cheese in the winter. It's a beautiful lake. So the goal is to explore the lake, hit fishing bridge visitor center, West thumb geyser basin, and grant village.

This post will be 3 again.
We got a fairly early start and wanted to go to the lake and drive around. We saw elk and some Bison. But the views of the lake were spectacular. So great in fact we stopped for breakfast.




We then continued our trek around the lake and ended up at Fishing Bridge. We needed to fill our propane tank and we have been using a lot of propane to keep the motorhome warm in the fridgid nights so a small stop there. Also of course the gift shops. In the over flow parking where the RVs park a guy clipped my mirror with his rig. He was very apologetic, no damage, and minor paint transfer. He had some stuff on hand and had the mirror looking good. We shook hands and there was no way I was going to let something small ruin my vacation.

We went over to the visitor center which the kids were able to feel the water. Which is currently 41 degrees on shoreline.



We then went to the fishing bridge which was originally where you did a lot fishing. But due to overfishing and lake trout being illegally introduced the cutthroat numbers have diminished drastically. This is their spawning ground so no fishing allowed. The views though.

 

[CVargo]

We continued our drive along the lake now towards West Thumb. There was small turn off called Gull Point Drive. This was awesome! It's a natural bridge across a bsy on the lake that park rangers turned into a road. So you can drive slim natural bridge across the lake where you feel surrounded by water! Awesome aquatic birds on both sides. No pics sometimes the best memory is kept in your mind.

We made it to West Thumb Geyser Basin which is a neat place where the hot water of these features meets the cold lake water. Kind of interesting. One side you have boiling hot water. Other side freezing cold water! We parked and ventured around to explore. First lunch. I look out the windows and I immediately start searching for @BarberDave but I must have missed him. He left his stool behind.


The features are amazing. Mud pots, pools, and geysers. Here take a look!



My sons favorite thing was grabbing a map at each location we stopped to tell us all the facts!


My daughter well...


One feature I want to talk about is called fishing cone. Currently under water due to run off and snow melt. But it's a very famous feature. Up until the 1960s it was a main attraction for fisherman. You could fish near it. Catch a fish keep it on your line and then dunk it in the pool and cook your fish and have lunch. This was very popular to do. Rangers eventually wised up and stopped it.

 

[CVargo]

Our trek continues ona day that has been very cold but not a lot moisture. We went to Grant village and visitor center. The newest center in the park. Named after President Grant.

This one Pic is not mine but I realized I didn't snap a Pic of the awesome fireplace. We spent a lot of time around it.


There was a scheduled ranger talk soon which my son loves! So we went on their patio and got a seat. The baby was tired, hungry, and cold. So Megan took her back to the motorhome. So the older kids and I learned about porcupines! Kinda neat critters!
Kids needed their pics taken near the sign.



After this we had maybe 45 min drive back to camp. But we are feeling well so we ventured to Hayden Valley. To look for animals. Found a great spot and I'm outside with binoculars watching Bison herd, elk herd with babies, and just chatting with Megan. When what do we see right in front of us not in our scope?!



A coyote! Hopping around hunting. Actually saw him get a rabbit... Gone in 3 gulps. And what. I assume to be a ground squirrel gone in one. We watched him for a good 45 min.

Rain is threatening, kids are tired, and alas it's time to head back to camp. Rain did start so no smoke tonight. So we cooked dinner inside, relaxed, and taught the kids yahtzee.

More tomorrow.

 

[BarberDave]

You’re lucky I wasn’t there or we would’ve had boiled Chad as I threw you in the morning glory pool

 

[Graybeard57]

My sons favorite thing was grabbing a map at each location we stopped to tell us all the facts!

As a Junior Ranger he has certain responsibilities. Appears he was in uniform and on duty.

taught the kids yahtzee

Yahtzee is how I learned to play poker.

 

[CVargo]

You’re lucky I wasn’t there or we would’ve had boiled Chad as I threw you in the morning glory pool

The Rangers are pretty adamant nothing allowed to thrown in the pools.

 

[fhalden]

These posts are fantastic! Thanks so much for sharing your trip!

Sent from my Pixel 6 Pro using Tapatalk

 

[Fenster]

These posts are fantastic! Thanks so much for sharing your trip!

Sent from my Pixel 6 Pro using Tapatalk

Agreed.

 

[CVargo]

Day 6 in the park. Today is two posts.

Sadly my friends this is our last full day in Yellowstone. And the weather while cold it's clear skies for now and we have plans to get to up to Tower-Roosevelt area which takes us over Dunraven pass. A mean 9000 ft. And then we want to get into Lamar Valley which is where wolves are usually seen and other animals as well. So off we go!

The pull outs on Dunraven at the peak are nothing short but spectacular!



We make it to Tower falls which is another beautiful slender water fall.


Back in the motorhome and I we 5 min to Roosevelt and the turn over to Lamar Valley. And I think the kids teamed up on us. They asked about it being our last day. We affirmed it was. And they both stated they NEEDED to see Old Faithful one more time.

How can you say no?



I continued to short drive to Roosevelt so we could see the place President Roosevelt hung out. And Megan and I began to talk and we both agreed that while we would like to see the animals the kids don't like sitting around. So grab your Yellowstone maps and please look at the distance from Roosevelt to Old Faithful... We couldn't have been further if we tried! But this vacation is for our kids! So alas we at Roosevelt we turn around drive back over Dunraven (it starts snowing), get to Canyon, cut across to Norris, down to Madison, and over to Old Faithful. The nicer weather caused the park to be VERY full! We got parked got over and watched Old Faithful one last time and it was just as magical. Sorry no pics. I kept the camera in my pocket and just took in God's beauty and honestly thanked the lord for granting my family this experience. We went back to lodge at Old Faithful and had to partake in Huckleberry Ice Cream it's purple after all!

We then got back in the motorhome and drove from Old Faithful to Grant Junction, and finally back to camp at Bridge Bay. We made a stop as Cascade Falls. Gorgeous!!

 

[CVargo]

Back at camp what do we have right near our site? A deer and her fawn.






I get a pipe going.



And decide to have a meal cooked old school. Got the fire going and put the cans on the fire and we roasted Hot dogs.



Knowing we leave in the morning for the next leg of our adventure we opt to all shower and get the kids clean. The sun is setting and the temps are dropping rapidly. Can't have the baby out in that cold. We let the kids for the first time really sit and watch a movie on our portable dvd player.

More tomorrow.

 

[Graybeard57]

And they both stated they NEEDED to see Old Faithful one more time.

Of course, they're duly deputized Junior Rangers!

 

[Majorrich]

 

[CVargo]

Day 7 of our trip. Today is two posts

First thanks for the comments and feedback.

Today's agenda empty tanks, add fresh water, drive to south exit, and explore Grand Teton National Park, end at our next Campground in thr Gros Venture pronounced gra vant.

So last night got real cold and we ran the heater pretty much all night. Which uses our built in propane tank. Gonna need a refill soon, but we are heading south and temps will warm. But when we aren't plugged in the fridge also uses propane. But the goal is to not refill the tank again until we are home. Now I haven't gone into a lot of details about our on board tanks. But for those that don't know. When you own a motorhome or a trailer you have on board tanks for fresh water, gray water, and black water. When at a campsite without hookups you rely on your batteries and these tanks. If you have hookups you usually have a place to plug your rig in to get full electric, and you have water hook ups so you aren't limited to what's in the tank. And some sites have access to dump your tanks right at your site into their plumbing. In Yellowstone we stayed at all sites without hook ups. What this means is that we had to use their water filling stations and dump stations. Thankfully our campgrounds had these at the entrance and using them was included in our fees.

I go through all this because like I mentioned yesterday we all showered. All 5 of us last night and that filled our gray tank. It also depleted our fresh water. We are showing 1/3 of a tank remaining on fresh.

We want as much time as possible in Teton so we are up early and it's cold outside below freezing! We get to the dump station and I won't go into all the details but I emptied the tanks. We then drove another 200 yards to fresh filling station. I hook my water filter and hose and set it up go to turn on water and nothing is coming out. A worker near by says it froze and hopefully will thaw by afternoon. Oh boy. Guess we are going today on limited fresh water.

Alas we are off. Driving to the south entrance of Yellowstone which takes you along Lewis lake, Lewis canyon, Lewis river, and Lewis river. Who is this Lewis guy you ask? The one and only Lewis of the Lewis and Clark excursions. The views are beautiful but no stopping remember we want as much time in Teton as possible.

We leave the park and I must say Yellowstone provided my family with amazing memories and arguably the best vacation as a family we've ever been on.

But hey look we made it!



Now we only have one full day here and the kids want to be Jr Rangers here also. So a quick stop at Flagg Ranch a quick chat with the ranger who provides us a map, the Jr ranger info, and wealth of info to enjoy the day to the fullest. This park is significantly smaller.

We stop at Colter Bay take in the scenery, do some Jr ranger activities and on the way I did see one bear but no Pic as no safe place to stop. Here's some pics of Jackson Lake from Colter Bay.



While at Colter bay it's 10:30 and we are a little hungry. We were recommended to have pizza for their wood fire oven. It was so good. Arguably some of the best pizza we've ever had... Or maybe it was the views.


Back in the motor home and on our way to Jackson Lake Lodge. And this place is amazing! Megan and I are already planning a trip just her and I to stay here. Highly recommend this as a destination for couples.



Now on our way to Jenny Lake. Jenny lake is a very popular place in the park. And it took us 40 min to get a parking spot in oversized area but we got one. We walk around the visitor centers talk to some rangers for the kids. And the go get them sworn in as Jr Rangers... Success! Now to talk about these mountains. They are different than other ranges because most mountains create valleys. These not so much. Everything is very flat then BOOM giant mountain 13k feet!

In order to fully take in the beauty the kids want a boat ride, we want a hike. So we agree to take the boat ride across the lake, then we will hike back which is roughly 3 miles.



More in the next post.

 

[CVargo]

The hike brought us along this beautiful waterfall.





The hike was wonderful we really enjoyed it. It meandered along the shore and also back up into hills a bit and showed us some other smaller lakes. Absolutely beautiful hike here. Not a lot of pics as we just enjoyed the hike. But my son wanted this pic



Those are caterpillars.

This hike took us away from the crowds which was nice. But my son made sure to use his Jr Ranger training and scream Hey Bear... Regularly so we were mauled lol.

We made it back to where we boarded the boat. And my daughter asks to get right back on we explain we would need to walk back. She changed her mind!

Back to the motorhome and it's getting late for the visitor centers so we head down to the next area called Moose. We get there and only have 15 min til it closes. Daughter is tired and a little grumpy... Son wanted a Pic



A really neat visitor center but we are hungry and need to drive 25 miles still to get to our campground and I still need water! So we continue on down to Gros Venture campground.

We get there get checked in, fill our water tank, cook dinner, and enjoy our views from camp around a campfire.







Well that's all for today. Tomorrow will continue. Just two more days of posts!

At this point I want to recommend the app called Guide Along. This was Ana amazing app that you download a large amount of Content before your trip. Then it uses GPS while in the park and has pre recorded info. So while driving around Yellowstone and Grand Teton we named him Fred. He would tell us info about the park, recommend when to stop, what to pass on, and recommended must do things. Was a awesome app.

Any ways until tomorrow.

 

[CVargo]

Sorry i'll add this. Grand Teton is a hikers park! Amazing views, beautiful lakes, but not necessarily ideal for two tired kids under ten years old. Megan and I have a plan to fly into Jackson Hole Airport, rent a car and spend a long weekend in this park so we can truly appreciate the beauty of this park.

 

[Graybeard57]

You never explained "black water".

 

[CVargo]

You never explained "black water".

Well it's from the toilet. Emptying the tanks is the worst job about the motorhome. Elbow gloves are what I prefer.

 

[Fightingillini22]

Some amazing pictures and family time - it's a dream of mine to take our kids on an RV trip out West when they're a little older.

Guide Along sounds like an app we found for Hawaii called Shaka Guide which offered the same thing for the various driving tours on the islands. It's super nice and adds a lot to the drive!

 

[heysi]

This all sounds like fun.....and I've always wanted to do a road trip....but my wife hates anything outdoorsy and won't sleep anywhere that doesn't have room service.

 

[Graybeard57]

Well it's from the toilet. Emptying the tanks is the worst job about the motorhome. Elbow gloves are what I prefer.