Last week we went camping up at Yellowstone National Park with Dominic's brother and his wife. I took a day trip there nine years ago, and I've always wanted to go back.The children were great in the car; not too much squabbling and lots of sleeping (yea dramamine!). We camped for 3 nights, which was just right.
Wednesday, our first full day, we explored West Yellowstone, MT and bought supplies we had either forgotten or didn't realize we needed. For instance, did you know that even in July the nighttime temperature gets down to the 30's? I didn't know, so we needed to buy some warmer clothes. We also visited a museum - they've had some fascinating natural disasters. There were dozens of buffalo like this one around the town, each painted by a different artist.
Thursday, we stayed in the park. I jogged in the morning, and it was beautiful! We saw geysers and colorful hot springs. We went to a visitor's center and down to Yellowstone Lake. The adults played several games of "Rook," while the kids were happily getting dirty. Everyone took naps in the afternoon, so I took the boys under a nearby bridge. We talked, threw rocks in the stream, and found an elk footprint. That night we roasted marshmallows. Benjamin didn't want to go near the fire, so he ate the untoasted marshmallows off the stick. FYI: when children are covered in sticky marshmallow goo, they collect much more dirt on their faces, hands and clothes, which is a pain to clean off.
Friday, we came home. We passed a field of flowers, so we stopped to give the kids a break and to take cute pictures. Dominic and I were exhausted when we got home. I unloaded the necessities from the trunk, such as clothes, toiletries, and cooking supplies. Hm, I think the tent is still there. I needed to go grocery shopping but was too tired, which is why we had no food last Saturday (see "Party crashers"). Sammy didn't sleep all weekend: he went to sleep after me, woke up before me, and didn't nap. Fortunately he's back to his regular schedule.
Animals we saw: a bald eagle and its nest, coyote, squirrels, some buffalo and a bunch of elk. We saw an osprey and a moose just outside the park. Although the boys wanted to see bears, I'm glad we didn't.Sammy is now begging us to go camping again.
3 comments:
That's a fun vacation. We want to do it next year depending on how things go. I heard about a place in Idaho called Yellowstone Bear World (I think). It's all about seeing the bears up close without the stress of having them crash your camp site. Whenever we go camping, I take a picture of the kids in the car just as we are leaving--they are usually unrecognizably black. Camping is fun.
Benjamin and Elisa liked to play with the ashes in the fire pit. Good idea to get a picture before leaving. We passed Bear World to and from Yellowstone. It looked fun, but the kids were all asleep, so we kept going.
What a fun place to camp! I've never been there before.
hilary
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