Anna dissecting a cow’s heart at her NYLF camp
Last week was our big road trip to Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. But before that Anna finished up her STEM camp as part of the National Youth Leadership Forum. She loved it and wants to do it again next year. They did all kinds of interesting science projects including dissecting a cow’s heart and learning about snake bites.
Settling in at Brooks Lake Campground
Then it was off on our road trip. Last Sunday we rented an RV and drove to Wyoming, just outside Grand Teton National Park to Brooks Lake Campground inside Shoshone National Forest. It was a beautiful and secluded location. Our campground had just 13 spots, and was right on a lake surrounded by spectacular cliffs.
Family hike from our campground to Jade Lake and Rainbow Lake
Our first day we went on a family hike. There were several beautiful lakes in the area and we found a hike that visited some of them. We hardly saw another person all day, nor did we see any bears (but we had the bear spray ready just in case). It was a hot, dry hike that included parts of the Continental Divide Trail and we were all happy to be done after a bit over five hours on the trail.
Jenny Lake in Grand Teton National Park
Our second day we jumped in the car (sans RV) and drove into Grand Teton National Park. We had planned to go canoeing and hiking but soon learned that dogs were not able to hike inside the national park, only on the paved trails. And Jenny Lake was super crowded. So, we drove to Jackson for lunch and then came back in the afternoon when it was less crowded. Jude, Anna and I rented a canoe and paddled across the lake where we went for a quick swim, while Marcy walked with Olive where they were allowed.
Playing chess at the campsite
The next day we broke camp at Brooks Lake and drove through Yellowstone to an RV camp outside the western end of the national park in Idaho called Henry’s Lake State Park. We stopped a couple of times but many of the places were closed to RVs so we left them until the next day. Ojo Caliente was our first exposure to a Yellowstone hot spring and it was quite something.
The Ojo Caliente hot spring in Lower Geyser Basin
After receiving some advice from the RV park managers we decided to take it easy the next day and leave for Yellowstone in the afternoon. This meant we could go out in the kayaks on Henry’s Lake before heading to Yellowstone around 2:30pm.
Jude wins the “kayak duel” with Marcy on Henry’s Lake
Waiting until the afternoon proved to be a good move. There was no line to get into the park and it was not crowded at all. We saw the Upper Yellowstone Falls in the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone, the painted pots which were really cool and then we had dinner in Canyon Lodge.
Upper Yellowstone Falls, the largest waterfall in the national park
We were keeping an eye on the expected times for Old Faithful and we decided to head there right after dinner for the 7:38pm eruption. Sure enough, at right around that time Old Faithful erupted probably 100 feet in the air right in front of us. There was not much of a crowd so we had a great view.
Riding a see saw with Old Faithful still erupting in the background
Even though it was late we still wanted to catch one of the other real draws of Yellowstone. The Grand Prismatic Spring at Yellowstone’s Midway Geyser Basin is spectacular. We caught it right at sunset and the colors were amazing, rich orange, blue water and steam rising everywhere. It felt like we were on a different planet.
The Grand Prismatic Hot Spring was spectacular
We started the long journey home yesterday. Driving south through Idaho we saw the western side of the Grand Tetons. We drove almost 400 miles all the way to Saratoga Hot Springs in southern Wyoming where we set up the RV in the dark. Then today, after a quick dip in the hot springs we drove home the scenic route which ended up being longer than anticipated because of a mudslide near Granby. We got home around 7pm and in less than 24 hours we will headed to Keystone for our annual week with the Dahlens.