Then, it was back into Cody for lunch and a stop to pick up supplies at the local Wal-Mart.

The day ended with Ellery and I watching Close Encounters of the Third Kind (love that Amazon instant streaming) in light of our recent stop at Devil’s Tower.

written by  shoshtrvls on July 22, 2011 from Wapiti, United States
from the travel blog: All Around The Country (2011)
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

Woah. Masses of people. I’m thinking there are people who come to Yellowstone, see this geyser, and then leave. Which is, honestly, what we did. We arrived just after it spouted so had lunch and waited the 75 minutes or so for the next eruption. As did lots and lots of other people. And while Old Faithful didn’t disappoint, I have to say it was a bit anti-climatic. But, it can now be checked off the “been there, done that” list.

Much more interesting and impressive were the pools a Midway Geyser Basin, a bit further up the road. Beautiful blue steaming turquoise ponds surrounded by red and orange clay. Really beautiful to see.

We then headed back, stopping briefly at Kepler Cascades, a very picturesque little Waterfall.

After about an hour break at the cabin, we headed back into Cody for dinner and the rodeo. We had a really fine meal (truly) at a restaurant near the stadium, and then headed in for the evening’s festivities.

Another disappointment. The “show” was corny and at time offensive (Brokeback Mountain jokes the prime offenders), and the riders themselves were not that good or graceful. It was like seeing a bad bullfight, but without the bill dying. We were more than happy to leave after the bull-riding, back to our cabin for the night.

written by  shoshtrvls on July 21, 2011 from Cody, United States
from the travel blog: All Around The Country (2011)
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

So today, we finally made it to Yellowstone. What an incredible place. I’m not sure, overall, the beauty exceeds what we’ve seen so far on this trip, but the sheer number of sights and views and wildlife is incredible. It can take over an hour to go 10 miles, because every few miles there’s something to pull off the road to see, whether it is a herd of bison or a bubbling cauldron or a raging waterfall (or two or five or ten). After a while, there’s so much of it, there’s no more pictures you can take, you just have to take it all in.

The thirty mile drive to the park entrance is as majestic as the 22 miles from Cody, jagged rocky peak after peak. Then, once inside the park, it is a winding road along Yellowstone Lake to the first major intersection, at Fishing Bridge. There we stopped to buy sweatshirts as it was below 60 degrees (and to think we were in 110 degree heat just two days ago) and to buy provisions for lunch.

From there, we decided to head north to Mammoth Hot Springs, but there was so much to see along the way. First, it was two Elk just off to the side of the road; we probably should have stopped to take a closer look but instead we pressed onward, hoping it wouldn’t be our only sighting of the day. Just a bit further, we spotted our first bison up close, just two of them, waiting for us – and for the dozens of other cars pulled off to the side of the road.

And not much longer after that, an entire herd of bison, grazing along the Yellowstone River. OK, bison. Check. And this wasn’t the last herd, but as one of the kids staying at the ranch said last night at the campfire, “At this point, a bison would have to be doing a cartwheel for me to stop and take a picture of it.” They are ubiquitous. And getting stuck in the pile up of cars that slow and pull off to the side of the road at every sighting gets very old, very fast.

Our first side trip out of the car was to see the mud volcanos. Yep, mud. Yep, they bubble. Yep, they stink of sulphur. But they’re still fascinating to see from the raised wooden walkways that wind through them.

Just a little further along, near Otter Creek, we stopped for our picnic lunch. Very lovely setting, but we were clearly outgunned. We had some bread, peanut butter, and chips. Other families had prepared a bit better, with coolers and salads and feasts fit for kings (or a family of six living out of a camper for 2 weeks).

We continued along to Canyon Village, through Hayden Valley, where every guide book assured us was prime wildlife viewing. Um, no. Beautiful rolling hills and valleys of purple and pink and yellow wildflowers, but no wildlife to speak of.

After Canyon Village we pushed north toward Roosevelt, through Dunraven Pass (which still had a fair amount of snow on it) and past Mt. Washburn. We declined to hike up to the peak, at 10,250 ft., admitting to ourselves that we might just be the laziest visitors ever to make it to Yosemite. But, just before arriving at Roosevelt, we came to Tower Falls and did some hiking along the path down to (and up from) the lower falls. The upper falls could be seen crashing down in the distance; the lower falls were crashing down directly below us. The walk was well worth it.

From here we also had remarkable views of the Yellowstone River and the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.

Well, our day was barely half over … but now, I’ve got to get some rest. July 20 will be continued ….

written by  shoshtrvls on July 20, 2011 from Yellowstone National Park, United States
from the travel blog: All Around The Country (2011)
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

After this Wilderness adventure, we finally made it to Mammoth Hot Springs. Interesting enough – several levels of pools of water, creating a Terrace effect.

We also stopped at the service area at Mammoth Springs for ice cream, a nice diversion. Mammoth Springs was definitely the nicest tourist area in the park that we had seen to date. And, it was only 2 Miles from the Montana border, so a quite side trip was definitely in order.

From there it was down to the Norris Geyser Basin, a large grouping of steaming hot pools which evidently erupt every so often – like every five years or so for the largest of them. Definitely an interesting sight, and a teaser for tomorrow’s trip to Old Faithful.

It had been a long day, and we were ready for home. Driving back was much quicker – no need to stop for those pesky buffalo or elk sightings. And, unlike literally dozens of photographers, we were not on dusk grizzly bear watch.

We arrived back just as the nightly campfire was taking shape. Wisely, earlier in the day we had purchased all the makings for s’mores, so that’s what the girls, along with their new friends before heading off to play somewhere in the dark before we all collapsed in bed around midnight.

written by  shoshtrvls on July 20, 2011 from Yellowstone National Park, United States
from the travel blog: All Around The Country (2011)
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

The road from Gillette to Cody, while mostly boring highway, crossed through Bighorn National Forest. We spotted our first (and possibly last) moose, but for the most part the beauty was in the scenery, ranging from rugged mountains still covered in snow in mid-July to massive fields of wildflowers. The highest pass is nearly 10,000 ft., and you can really feel the altitude. And, most remarkably, there were cyclists – dozens of them – making their way through the mountains with us. Really, I can’t imagine anything more insane (yes, I’m talking to you Michael and Kevin).

We made it to Cody around 2 p.m., had lunch at a local diner, then found our way to our home for the next four nights, the Rand Creek Ranch. The scenery along the way was even better, if that was possible, as we crossed over the Buffalo Bill damn and into what is known as "the fifty most beautiful Miles in America."

The girls immediately found their way to the stables and went for an hour trail ride as I relaxed from a week of driving, and made onward plans (Jackson Hole – in; Santa Fe – out). Then it was back to Cody for dinner at Bubba’s Bar-B-Que (where none of us had bar-b-que) and a wind storm that came from nowhere and disappeared the same way. Then a bit of time was spent at the campfire before we settled in for the night.

written by  shoshtrvls on July 19, 2011 from Wapiti, United States
from the travel blog: All Around The Country (2011)
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

We started the morning with a spectacular drive through the Black Hills, which offered amazing views of Mt. Rushmore and the mountains. The smell of pine was overwhelming, and I loved every minute of it. But, it was a slow, winding road and much to my frustration, the girls showed little or no interest in any of it – Jordan was texting and Ellery was reading. There was dead silence in the car and the only time anyone spoke up it was to ask for something. My frustration started to build.

Jordan wanted to see one of the caves, so we headed out to Jewel Cave National Monument. And we decided to take the long way, the “wilderness loop” through Custer State Park. And, much to my surprise, we did see some bison, and some (not very) wild donkeys, and a few pronghorn sheep (or maybe they were antelope – they were in the distance).

But, it was a two lane road and we were stuck behind several cars who thought that driving 10 miles an hour was a good pace. It wasn’t for me. And Jordan refused to get out of the car when, for example, we stopped to pet the donkeys. For some reason, this really bothered me.

Still, we continued on to Jewel Cave where, much to my surprise, almost all of the decent tours were sold out several hours in advance. What we were left with was a short trip into just one cave, and even that required an hour and a half wait. Jordan wanted to wait for a longer tour, but I just didn’t have it in me.

After the cave, we hit the road again, back up through the Black Hills where the continuing beauty was completely lost on the girls.

Finally, we reached Wyoming, and our next destination – Devil’s Tower. What I thought would be a quick look and go turned into a really lovely mile walk around the base. Lovely, except Jordan surged ahead because she did not want to do the walk. Yes, we had each reached our breaking point at Devil’s Tower.

Things did not improve measurably after Devil’s Tower, except the scenery, which did take on that classic red rock look of Wyoming. But dinner at an Appleby’s was complete silence and when we did eventually settle in at a roadside motel, I told the girls that it we were going to put the day behind us and move on, and that tomorrow would be better. At least, I was hoping it would be, because we have two more weeks of this.

written by  shoshtrvls on July 18, 2011 from Gillette, United States
from the travel blog: All Around The Country (2011)
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

But very quickly, we realized that it wasn’t the same because, unlike those other states, South Dakota has … WALL DRUGSTORE! And not just Wall Drugstore, although that was the most ubiquitous of the road signs, but also Reptile World! 1880 Town! Old MacDonald’s Farm! Petrified Forest! In short, we had come upon a portion of I-90 that has more roadside attractions per square mile than any other place in the world, or so I’m guessing. And there’s a reason for that – the number of families doing this drive through South Dakota to Yellowstone as a summer roadtrip is astounding. From packed tiny Toyotas, to SUV’s, to pickups hauling airstreams, to truly massive tour buses, there are hundreds of them … thousands of them. And squished in between are bikers, many of them on their way to Sturgis. But, there’s a good reason they are all here. There’s amazing stuff here.

First, a brief turn-off in the middle of the Grasslands National Park. Who knew there was such a thing?

Then, not much further ahead, we got our first glimpse of a few bluffs, but there was no doubt that we were arriving at the Badlands. Another hour or so and there it was, the turn off for the Badlands National Park. And it was spectacular – first, from a distance, the wall of jagged mountains and then, closer and closer, until we were upon them.

The drive was spectacular, and we stopped a few places along the way, but not too often because we were driving through the hottest part of the country during one of the hottest heat waves ever.

Immediately after the Badlands we finally arrived … 250 miles of road signs couldn’t be wrong – Wall Drug! Free Ice Water! Lots of people! Many things to buy! OK, it was cheesy, but fun.

Motoring along, our next stop was Mt. Rushmore, which we reached around 4:00. It was still over 108 degrees out, so I confess, we didn’t take the interpretive walking tour, or ohh and ahh over it for long. Rather, we came, we saw, we ate ice cream, and we looked for a hotel in Keystone to spend the night.

But the day was not over yet. First a stroll around Keystone where we ran into the one person at the Hertz counter in Sioux Falls who stood up for me during my struggles, and then,after one of the worst meals I have ever had in my life (always beware of the buffet), at dusk we headed to Crazy Horse to see the monument that’s been more than 50 years in the making, and will most likely be another 100 before it is done. That was followed by a cheezy laser show which became absurd when it ended with Lee Greenwood's "Proud to Be An American" (somehow, I don't think the native americans would appreciate much of the lyrics) and a quick trip back by Rushmore to see it lit up at night.

written by  shoshtrvls on July 17, 2011 from Keystone, United States
from the travel blog: All Around The Country (2011)
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

There was one truly amazing site that we passed, though, and that’s the Mississippi River. It is really awe-inspiring coming upon it – it is huge, and I did not expect it go be so vast, and so populated with lush, green islands, Huck Finn’s Story notwithstanding. It is definitely a mighty River.

Unfortunately, Jordan was the only one able to get a shot of it, which doesn’t do it any justice. You see, we expected to be able to take photos at the Tourist Info Center just over the Minnesota Border but … thanks to the budget impass and MN government shut-down, all the rest areas in MN were closed.

Oh, one other unexpected adventure – the bottom of the car fell off! Well, almost off. Fortunately, we made it to Sioux Falls with a bit of assistance from some duct tape (the wonder invention), where a wonderful hotel clerk, seeing our bedraggled faces, gave us a beautiful room and directions to the Hertz car rental location where, after a few hours of exasperation while the girls went swimming at the hotel, I finally got a replacement vehicle.

written by  shoshtrvls on July 16, 2011 from Sioux Falls, United States
from the travel blog: All Around The Country (2011)
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

We walked down Michigan Avenue, stopping briefly for breakfast, then over the river, eventually arriving at Millennium Park, where we dutifully visited the Cloud Gate and the Pritzker Pavilion.

Then it was on to the main attraction of the day, the Art Institute. I had forgotten just how much amazing art is there. Trying to do it in a few hours is impossible, but try we did. We may even have succeeded (as long as you ignore the fact that we skipped everything but the highlights).

By the time we left the museum, somewhat after 1 p.m., life in the park and along Michigan Avenue was in full swing.

Jordan was dazed by it all, ready to pack her bags and move to Chicago. And I have to say, I don’t blame her. It was a beautiful Chicago day – sunny and bright, but not to hot. People were lively, musicians were everywhere, and everyone had a spring in their step. (By the way, have I mentioned that Jordan is a slow walker? She is, or maybe the Schillers are fast walkers).

Much as we wanted to saunter, there was no rest for the weary (which I was) because we had tickets for a 3 p.m. architectural boat tour. Unfortunately, our docent was less than thrilling, and the girls were bored by the narration, but as always, the amazing buildings of Chicago were enough to keep us going.

After such a busy day, then, it was nice to return to the hotel and find that, yes, they really did give us a nicer room. Not just two beds, but a mini-suite, which was a welcome respite before dinner and a movie. Yes, indeed, I had the poor judgment to schedule our vacation for the very same week that the last installment of the Harry Potter series was released. We couldn’t get tickets to see it last night, but I managed to get what I believe was the next best thing – tickets for tonight, so the girls can at least say that they saw the movie on the day it was released. (This seems to be important, but I know not why).

written by  shoshtrvls on July 15, 2011 from Chicago, United States
from the travel blog: All Around The Country (2011)
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

I expected this to be at most a two hour diversion, but the museum is overwhelming and we spend nearly four hours there. It’s sensory overload, but well worth it. Really, the only disappointment was that someone decided that Taylor Swift deserved to be included in the “Women of Rock” exhibit. (Oh, and someone tell me, what do they have against Elton John? He’s nowhere to be found).

written by  shoshtrvls on July 14, 2011 from Cleveland, United States
from the travel blog: All Around The Country (2011)
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...