Yellowstone National Park

Limited internet access so I will be quick. We went to Yellowstone National Park three times during our stay in Montana.  An amazing spectacular place. Pictures don't do it justice. Here are a few. I'll do more tonight at the Hotel in Kansas City. Gina
**I can't seem to get the kids interested in blogging or journaling on this trip. Bummer.

Montana at the Lumsden's place

We left the Grand Tetons on July 18th and drove north thru Yellowstone. We went back to Yellowstone two more times during our stay in Montana and we will do a separate post for the Park. Our friends, Stan and Andrea Lumsden, have a home near Emigrant, Montana which is about 45 minutes north of Yellowstone. We stayed for 6 days in their guest cabin and you will have to agree when you see these pictures that it was absolutely one of the most beautiful places in America. Stan and Andrea were wonderful hosts. Their college age boys were also there and our kids enjoyed playing music, playing pool, and camping with them. They had a music room with all kinds of instruments. Stan also plays guitar and it was wonderful listening to the guys jam! We went hiking, ate meals together, went horseback riding, helped some USGS biologists with Grizzly bear tagging (we aren't allowed to post any pictures of their research - sorry), bike riding, Stan took the guys down the Yellowstone river in a drift boat fishing for trout, they took us to their neighbors cocktail party, and on and on. We had a fabulous time with the Lumsdens. They have Grizzlys in their back yard frequently! They also have sandhill cranes, elk, white tailed deer, wolves, coyotes and gazillions of little ground squirrels and small mammals around on their property. The cabin was precious - one room with a loft and very attractively furnished. We loved it and it was hard to leave their wonderful piece of paradise. Gina



Our sweet cabin!

On a hike in Grizzly country with our Bear spray

Phenomenal sunset! This is the view from Stan and Andrea's house looking down the valley

Wyoming

We woke up in Carbondale, CO and had breakfast and spent some time at a bike shop getting our bikes repaired. We left Colorado and drove all day thru Wyoming and landed in Jackson, right outside of Grand Teton National Park. We had called ahead and reserved the only room we could find......at the Pony Express Motel.  It actually was a really cool place and they were very nice and let us all squeeze into a tiny Queen suite. This time we put Joe on a cot in front of the stove/refrigerator, Jamie on her air mattress and Quint on the floor in a sleeping bag.  It worked since we were only there for about 9 hours!  In the morning we drove into the park and claimed our campsite at Colter Bay Campground. We were able to camp on a loop that was only for tents.

We spent that first day setting up camp and relaxing. That evening we drove around the park and looked for wildlife. We saw two moose, elk and mule deer. The next day we went fishing and the power steering went out on the truck while we were on the river. We limped back to camp and stayed there the rest of the evening. Gordon got up early in the morning and drove the truck to Jackson. It was only a hose, thank goodness. He got back by 2pm with a full load of groceries! My hero!  We spent the afternoon fishing and looking for wildlife. We saw bison!

One shot from the road on the way thru Wyoming.

Out of time. I'm using Stan's aircard to get internet in Montana. We have had almost no access to the internet for a long time except for my phone occasionally. It takes awhile to upload these photos. I'll try again to finish Grand Tetons and post some Yellowstone and Montana as soon as I can. This morning we were able to watch and assist some biologists that trapped a grizzly bear on Stan and Andrea's property. It was so exciting!  more later..........

Colorado

Colorado was breathtaking!  The Rocky Mountains were everything that John Denver told me they would be. I have wanted to see Colorado and the Rockies since I was about 9 years old. We spent the night in Durango, CO at a really funky Econo Lodge. The building had been around for about 100 years as an Inn and it had a lot of character. We all bunked up in one huge room and it worked out great. Thank goodness for mom's single air mattress that she lent Jamie for this trip. It fits in the tent and in tight spots and give Jamie a comfy bed for her back. We started the day grocery shopping and then drove to Mesa Verde to see the Pueblo cliff dwellings. We only had half a day there but it was spectacular. Then we drove thru the Rockies, picnicking along the way for lunch and supper. The Aspen trees just blew me away and the whole Rocky Mountain experience moved me to tears. We stopped in Carbondale, CO and got the last room in the town at a Comfort Inn and Suites. We all bunked up again in a king suite.  It works but no one is crazy about all sleeping in one room!
Gina

Several Shots from Mesa Verde

A stand of Aspen trees

Lizard Head Pass way up in the Rockies, over 10,000ft

Travelling thru New Mexico!