Home, Sweet Home

We made it home tonight by about six-thirty, after stopping at the car dealership to get an oil change for our vehicle, then at the grocery store to pick up some milk for our cereal tomorrow morning, and then at the pizzeria to get carryout for our supper.

We don't like driving through Chicago, so we decided to take U. S. 24 from Peoria, Illinois to our city. That took us through the Illinois city of Fairbury. I have a second cousin who lives in Fairbury; but, although I thought that sounded like the name of her city, I had the idea that she lived closer to the Chicago area. So we pushed right on through. Then, when I got home and checked my address book, I felt badly that we hadn't tried to look her up. It's been years since we've seen each other, although we do e-mail occasionally.

It was a pretty drive along U. S. 24, and more relaxing than the interstates we had been traveling, although it was a little hard to adapt to the slower pace.

We thoroughly enjoyed our trip, but it is nice to be back home. The vehicle has been unloaded; the laundry has been sorted; and some of it is being washed right now. We still have things to unpack and put away, but we're making headway.

Tomorrow, we'll pick up our mail and life will begin to return to normal for awhile. Probably not for long, though. Doug is thinking about a trip to the Smokies within in the next few weeks.

In Nebraska, 900 Miles to Go

Tonight, we're in North Platte, Nebraska and one time zone closer to home. There were some things I would have enjoyed doing near where we stayed in Rock Springs, Wyoming last night; but, when Doug is headed for home, there's no stopping him. Besides, the wild horse viewing that really interested me involved a drive of about 50 miles, 24 of which were unpaved.

The literature I saw about the horse viewing trip said that high-clearance vehicles were recommended, and drivers were cautioned to be sure to have a spare tire on hand. It also talked about how quickly the weather can change up on the mountain and advised preparedness. We decided we just weren't prepared for that kind of adventure. We had seen a few wild horses at Theodore Roosevelt National Park last week, but the literature looked as if there were larger herds of them at the Rock Springs location. Maybe another time. In a Jeep.

We're still about 900 miles and at least two days from home. I'll probably not post again until I can do it from there.

Homeward Bound

We left Yellowstone this morning and drove down to Grand Teton National Park.

Horses and Teton Mountains

It wasn't our intention to spend any time in the Tetons, just to pass through. Our main goal was to locate and photograph the T. A. Moulton Barn, possibly the most photographed barn in America. You may have seen pictures of it on calendars and postcards.

T. A. Moulton Barn

T. A. Moulton Barn

T. A. Moulton Barn

My photos don't look like those calendar shots. It couldn't be the photographer. Let's blame the weather! The time of day could also have something to do with it. I guess most true photographers arrive at dawn to get the best pictures. Unless I sleep next to the barn, it's unlikely I'll ever get a picture at dawn. Even then, it might be questionable. Those who know me know that I'm not an early riser. Night time is my time.

After getting our pictures of the barn, we drove south on U. S. 191 to where it meets I-80 at Rock Springs, Wyoming. That road passed through some beautiful countryside. But we're homing, so there are no pictures to share of the scenery. I did, however, manage to get Doug to stop for some antelope that were right beside the road.

Pronghorn Antelope

And that's about it for today. As always, thanks for sharing our trip with us.

Yellowstone (Continued)

The weather finally turned on Monday. We have had hot sunny days since the start of our trip. Monday, however, the temperature dropped by about 20 degrees, not going over 60; and the skies were overcast and threatening.

We hadn't gotten far into the park before we spotted this coyote:

 

After the coyote sighting, we went to see Old Faithful. The geyser put on quite a show for us. Unfortunately, I shot most of the pictures in portrait mode; and I don't know how to rotate them to landscape on Blogger. So the one I'm posting was taken as the eruption had begun to wane.

 

Old Faithful Geyser in Yellowstone National Park

Later in the day, we went to a place known for wildlife sightings and found a crowd of people with spotting scopes and high-zoom cameras.

 

At first, the draw seemed to be a couple of bald eagles that were sitting at the edge of a stream, too far away for me to get a good picture.

Soon, though, attention shifted to some wolves that the folks with the spotting scopes had located. They, too, were out of the range of my camera and almost out of the range of my binoculars. But people with spotting scopes love to share what they see, so we were able to view one of the wolves through their scopes.

What we WERE able to see was a hawk that had landed in the top of a tree and was spreading its feathers to dry them after a storm that had included rain, thunder, lightning, and sleet.

 

And after the rain, a rainbow. Well, okay, it's not the best rainbow you've ever seen, but isn't the setting pretty?

 

It was getting pretty dark as we returned to the condo, but I had to try for a picture of this bull elk, standing next to a burned-out tree:

 

This morning, we'll be heading down to Grand Teton National Park; and, from there, we'll begin our trip back home.

Yellowstone National Park

We chatted with Jeanine and "Dee-o-gee" Sunday morning, before going into the national park.

Jeanine and "Dee-o-gee"

Among other topics, we talked about the big 1959 earthquake. The topic went to Quake Lake, and she told us that the odd pattern of lines that appear on the lake are due to ongoing tremors under it. We had wondered about them. In case you didn't see the picture in yesterday's post, I'll include it again here:

Isn't that interesting? I knew that Yellowstone National Park and the surrounding area experienced ongoing small quakes, but I had never seen the effect on a lake like that.

Just down the road from our condo, we spotted this bald eagle:

Here are some of the things we've seen in the park since we arrived in the area on Friday:
 

Yellowstone Canyon

The ever-present raven...raucous, smart, and comical

Lower Falls of the Yellowstone River

There is a wildfire, possibly two, currently burning in Yellowstone. The park's policy is to not interfere unless the fire threatens park structures.

While we were watching the fire from an overlook, this fellow and his human companions joined us. His human was a former firefighter, who was able to add some interesting commentary as we watched.

These two guys were firefighters whose job it was to monitor the fire and to act as public relations representatives to park visitors. They were doing a mighty fine job on the PR thing. Hopefully, they were doing as good a job on the fire monitoring thing.

This lone coyote was waiting its turn to feed on a carcass that was currently providing a meal for two other coyotes who apparently didn't play well with others.

Finally, it got its turn.

These are just a few of the many people who had gathered to watch and photograph the coyotes.

A beautiful bull elk resting peacefully on a small island in a stream.

Firehole Falls

A herd of buffalo near some of the steaming features of the park

Another herd of buffalo. You'll be happy to know that I'm not posting a picture of every buffalo I see.

And now I think you're up to date on our trip. We're enjoying our stay here so much that we've decided to spend an extra day. The plan now is to stay in Yellowstone today, then go to the Tetons on Tuesday. Then we'll probably start home after that. I'll do my best to keep you posted.

Leaving Glacier, Heading for Yellowstone

We enjoyed our stay at Glacier so much that we left reluctantly on Thursday. We enjoyed a final breakfast at Luna's and said our good-byes to Doris at Mountain Pines.
 

This is the interior of Luna's Restaurant. It's not fancy, but the food is good; and the folks are warm and friendly. It kind of reminds me of the bar in the TV show, "Cheers," where the slogan was "Where everybody knows your name."

There were some portraits of American Indians in this corner, but the primary decoration throughout the restaurant were colorings by children, each signed with the child's name, age, and hometown.

 

This shows Doug paying our restaurant bill at Luna's.

Here, we're checking out of the Mountain Pines Motel and saying our thanks and good-bye to lovely Doris.

In East Glacier, we found the same kind of relaxation and camaraderie that we used to find at the old Wonderland Hotel in the Smokies, starting with Doris' welcome and sightseeing advice when we checked into the motel.

On our first night in town, we ate at a Mexican restaurant. We were told there would be a 15-minute wait, so we went out to sit on the porch and wait for our name to be called. Well, the wait turned into an hour; but we hardly noticed because we were enjoying the company of the other people waiting for tables.

At Luna's, where we ate our meals during the remainder of our stay, it was commonplace for strangers to strike up conversations with each other. Most everyone was there because they love the outdoors and enjoy the magnificent scenery of the national park. They would share tales of sights they had seen or hikes they had taken.

Here are some other scenes from the town of East Glacier:

This is where we bought gasoline for our vehicle. The transactions were cash only, and change was given in Sacajawea dollar coins.

This is one of the many dogs that seemed to roam freely around town. We wondered whether they were safe from grizzly bears, but they all looked like they could take care of themselves.

Every place has to be known for something. I guess East Glacier's claim to fame is the World's Largest Purple Spoon. The lady we bought our gasoline from told us that the guy who owned this place used to be a stagecoach driver. We never got around to making his acquaintance, though, in spite of the gasoline lady's urging.

We left Glacier on Thursday and headed for Yellowstone. We hadn't gotten far when Doug spotted this horse, apparently posing for a picture. And, yes, it is a real horse and not a statue.

 

We spent Thursday night in Bozeman, Montana, then drove to West Yellowstone, Montana on Friday. We hadn't been able to get lodging in Yellowstone National Park, so I had done some internet searching (while we were in Bozeman and actually had high-speed internet).

We found a really nice place about 15 minutes north and west of West Yellowstone. It's called Hebgen Lake Mountain Inn and was apparently originally built as a condominium complex. For whatever reason, the condos were not sold as individual units; and the complex became a motel. It's a bit off the beaten path, but it's a perfect place for us to spend a few days while enjoying Yellowstone National Park.

 

Hebgen Lake Mountain Inn

The manager is a lady named Jeanine, who has a dog named D-O-G, which Jeanine pronounces "dee-o-gee," with the emphasis on the "o."

Jeanine told us about an earthquake zone a few miles up the road from the Inn, which had been the site of a 7.5 earthquake in 1959. It had blocked the Madison River and created a new lake, now known as Quake Lake. Twenty-eight people had died in the quake. The bottom of Hebgen Lake had tilted and sloshed water back and forth. Anyway, Jeanine suggested that we might enjoy a drive up to Quake Lake. We did.

This is Quake Lake. Even 51 years after the earthquake, there are still dead trees standing in the water.

This is the section of the Madison Canyon wall that collapsed and blocked the Madison River, creating Quake Lake.

My next post will include photos of Yellowstone National Park. What a great place it is!

 

Our Third and Final Day at Glacier National Park

We were so grateful to Doris, the lady who checked us in at our motel in East Glacier, for her suggestions on how to see Glacier National Park. Her suggestion for our third day was to drive over to the western entrance to the Going to the Sun Highway and drive eastward to the road closure. Doris' other tips had proven to be well advised, so we followed her tip for this day, too. 

The western half of Going to the Sun is all paved and is without the sometimes harrowing driving conditions of the eastern half. It goes through thick forest and follows McDonald Lake much of the way. It was different from the eastern half of the road but just as beautiful in its own way. And there were no porta-potties involved.

At the road closure, there was a seven-tenths-of-a-mile loop trail through some large cedars. We decided a walk would do us good, so we started down the cedars trail. Halfway around the loop, another trail took off, going two miles up to Avalanche Lake. We hadn't planned on taking that one, but other hikers told us we shouldn't miss it.

So we finished the Cedars loop trail and returned to our van to eat some sandwiches for lunch and gather up some extra camera batteries and an extra tape for the camcorder, as well as water and snacks, and started the hike to Avalanche Lake. 

It took us a little over an hour to reach our destination, but it was a lovely spot. The lake itself wasn't quite what we had expected, but it was surrounded by mountains; and there were four waterfalls streaming down the mountain faces. The trail was, at times, difficult, especially considering that we flatlanders have few opportunities to practice uphill walking; but we were glad we had decided to make the trek.

This is a roadside waterfall that we found on our way to West Glacier.

These low-hanging clouds were beautiful against the green forests on the mountains.

McDonald Lake was graced by this low-hanging cloud.

A short trail led from Going to the Sun Highway to this waterfall.

Okay, so maybe I was a little obsessed with these clouds.

This was another pretty stream along Going to the Sun Highway.

This was a scene on the western half of the Going to the Sun Highway.

Avalanche Lake

I zoomed in a little on this shot, to show two of the four waterfalls at Avalanche Lake.

Toadstool (or mushroom) growing along the Avalanche Lake Trail

After our hike to Avalanche Lake, we had to retrace our route, which brought us again to McDonald Lake and this lovely scene:

Reflections in McDonald Lake

More Reflections in McDonald Lake

We had visited Glacier National Park in 1988, but we had spent only a day or a day and a half there. The weather had been cold and dreary, and Doug had been white knuckled and weak kneed as he drove the cliff-hanging Going to the Sun Highway. This visit was so different that it was as if it was the first time we'd ever been there. And it was so great that we look forward to going again some day.