Rocky Mountain National Park- Day 20- Favorite Things

This morning we leave… there are mixed emotions for all of us. We are excited to get back to our family, friends, home and doggy. We will not miss all of our bug bites but we will miss the family time together in nature and the relaxed way of life. Here is a list of our favorite things:

Tim:

Favorite campsite: Yellowstone

Favorite sight: Bison in campground in Yellowstone, seeing bear in Yellowstone

Favorite activity: Mt. Rushmore at night

Favorite hike: Narrows hike in Zion

Kamisha:

Favorite campsite: Yellowstone- grass, meadows, wildflowers, lake view and wildlife- what could be better?

Favorite sight: Bears in Yellowstone, bison and deer in Yellowstone campsite

Favorite activity: White water rafting, alpine slide, Mt. Rushmore at night

Favorite hike: Navajo loop (Bryce), Jenny Lake (Teton), Sylvan Lake (South Dakota)

Noah:

Favorite campsite: South Dakota- Pool, store and arcade

Favorite site: Bison in our campground at Yellowstone

Favorite activity: Whitewater rafting, horseback riding, alpine slide, Mt. Rushmore at night

Favorite hike: The Narrows in Zion, Sylvan Lake (South Dakota)

Megan:

Favorite campsite: Zion (the river), South Dakota (the pool and store)

Favorite sight: Deer and bear in Yellowstone

Favorite activity: Horseback riding, alpine slide, whitewater rafting

Favorite hike: The Narrows in Zion, Sylvan Lake (South Dakota)

Leah:

Favorite campsite: South Dakota (the pool and playground), Zion (the river)

Favorite sight: The deer in our campsite in Yellowstone

Favorite activity: Alpine slide

Favorite hike: The Narrows in Zion

Most memorable things are: Mommy screaming at deer running toward her at Jenny Lake, car troubles in Jackson, Old Faithful in the rain, Megan's mangled bike and hay coming at us on drive in Wyoming, being in constant awe of God and His creation, countless hours of family time, watching my children in their imaginative play (stuffed animal campfire), priceless memories that will last forever!

That is the end of this blog until our next RV adventure!

Rocky Mountain National Park- Day 19

Our last full day of camping… what shall we do? We decided to go into Estes Park and walk around… it is the town outside of the park and it is set up well for tourists. We spent a couple of hours going through T-shirt shops and Christmas stores, and then we had lunch on the river at a restaurant called Poppy's. It was really tasty. Then it was back to camp. We spent the afternoon playing a new monopoly game, well the kids did, I don't have the patience for that but it kept the kids busy for hours while Tim and I sat around and reflected on our trip and did some packing up and cleaning. Dinner came next then it was back to the amphitheater for our nightly ranger program. Tonight it was about the pine mountain beetle which is destroying a lot of the forests in the west. They made it like a play where the ranger was a beetle telling her story and they played a lot of Beatles songs… the girls got to be beetles and were dancing on the stage. Rocky Mountain has to have the most creative and fun ranger programs; we were so excited for them every night. Then it was off to the RV for bed. We will leave first thing in the morning, done with camping and soon this trip will be a treasured memory…

Rocky Mountain National Park- Day 18

This morning we went for a hike. Tim was anxious to get going so the hike was not planned as well as it should have been which lead to a very long morning. We started from our campsite to the Cub Lake trail. It is a nice trail meandering through meadows with lots of wildflowers. We planned to hike the 2.5 miles and then there would be a shuttle to take us back… but once we go to the lake, there was no shuttle. We also had no map and we were running low on water when we found out from another hiker that we had to go another 3.5 miles! That was hard to swallow but that part was a lot nicer, mostly downhill, and shaded. We saw some nice waterfalls and walked next to the stream. Megan did cry most of the time again because of the forest but she made it. 4 hours later we were back at camp and I have never been so happy to have a drink! We learned some things, Megan and Noah have to bring their own water packs, always take a map, and plan ahead! The rest of the afternoon we just rested and hung around camp with a short jaunt to the visitor's center for the kids to get their Jr. Ranger badges.

After dinner we went to the ranger program and the topic was weasels. It was so creative, they put the weasel on trial to see if he was a guilty predator or not guilty because he is helpful to the environment. It was so cute and the kids loved it! We look so forward to our ranger programs; tomorrow night it is on beetles so we will be there yet again…it is our nightly entertainment!

The most magnificent gift from God came as I was sitting outside at 9 pm looking out from our campsite at the Rocky Mountains. All of a sudden I saw this orange glow come over one of the peaks and within 5 minutes the most bright, large harvest moon I have ever seen appeared. It was so beautiful I can't even describe it. Crowds were gathering in front of our campsite it was so amazing…we had the perfect view. What a great way to end the night!

Rocky Mountain National Park- Day 17

We left South Dakota this morning at 7am on our way to Colorado. The drive was not too bad, one of our shortest at 6 ½ hours but with all of the gas trips, lunch and the dreaded Wal-Mart shopping trip it is more like 8 ½ hours. We arrived at Rocky Mountain National Park and then right into our campground called Moraine Campground. It is nice but hard to compare with South Dakota and Yellowstone before that. We are camping in the Rocky Mountains so we won't complain. We quickly set up camp and then went for a walk around the campground. Shortly into the walk we did see a deer in our campground which was exciting for Leah. This campground has lots of pine trees and wildflowers. We had dinner and then went to the ranger program in the amphitheater right next to our campsite… it was about the alpine tundra. This park has a mountain that is over 14,000 feet high so the environment there is totally different including the wildlife and vegetation. It was interesting to hear how different it is. I don't think we will make it up to the tundra, they are doing construction on the road and the drive is 1 ½ hours at least and Tim is so done driving! So, even though we won't make it up there, at least we got to see the photos. After the program it was off to bed, a long day…

South Dakota- Day 16

Day 16… I feel like we have been gone FOREVER but I realize we are nearing the end of our camping leg. I could do another 16 days, easily… this is the life but I suppose vacations have to come to an end at some point. This was our last day in South Dakota and it was relaxing as well. We went this morning to a lake in Custer State Park called Sylvan Lake. It is a beautiful lake with lots of pine trees, and big huge rocks to climb on. We took a trail that went around the lake, most of it was easy but there were times when you had to climb through huge boulders. The kids loved it. After the hike we rented a paddle boat to take around the lake. The lake had a lot of people there, you could tell it is popular and people were pulling fish out of it left and right… Noah was wishing he had his fishing pole. I really love the Black Hills, there are so many trees on the mountains that they look black, hence the name Black Hills. The rest of the afternoon was spent at the pool and then relaxing a bit and packing up for the next leg. Tomorrow we leave early for our last camping spot, Rocky Mountain National Park where we will be for 4 days.

South Dakota- Day 15

Today we did a whole lot of nothin'. We slept in (becoming a daily occurrence), took walks, rode bikes, swam in the pool, played at the playground, and played games. It was a nice day of rest and relaxation for us and definitely needed. This campsite is a lot of fun… as we were sitting around the campfire in the early evening we heard a huge group of kids playing "Red Rover"… it seems like a lot of big family groups come here. We met some people at the pool who have come here every summer for 17 years. Here are some photos of our place here at J Bar Ranch Mountain Resort in South Dakota.

South Dakota- Day 14

Today we headed to Wind Cave National Park… we had to get a cave in for Noah. We took a scenic drive through Custer State Park on a highway called Needles Highway. It was very long, windy, narrow and had several tunnels that were quite narrow. The scenery was beautiful as we meandered through the Black Hills and forest areas. We saw a large heard of bison that clogged up the traffic for a while. We also saw prairie dogs, deer and pronghorn. When you get to Wind Cave it changes to prairies with tons of grasses and wildflowers. We finally made it there after 1 ½ hours and scheduled our cave tour. We did the Natural Entrance tour that had 300 steps and was about 1 mile long. The cave is the 4^th longest in the world at over 134 miles of caves. So, in we go to the cave with our Ranger Wendell who was quite the character, he is a school teacher so he talked nonstop, giving us lots of information. This cave was not fun to me. Within 5 minutes of entering, a few people decided it was not for them and asked to leave. Megan and I were close to doing that too. Especially as you stand in a cave, in a line with 20 other people, in a narrow, dark cave tunnel. But we made it through, Megan did cry a lot and I wanted to as well but we made a pinkie promise half way through that the 2 of us would never step foot in a cave again. I just have a fear that the cave is going to "cave" in. Most of this cave was just very narrow and we had to duck a lot just to get through. At one point he turned off the lights and we got to experience total darkness; that was neat. Then we were done and spent time exploring the exhibits so the kids could do their Jr. Ranger program. They were sworn in by Wendell and then off we went back to camp, which was only 30 minutes not taking the scenic route.

The best part of this leg of the trip and possibly the entire trip was the lighting ceremony we did at Mt. Rushmore tonight. At 8:30pm the Ranger did a stump the ranger program where anyone could ask him questions about presidents. He knew all of the answers and more! It was so much fun, we laughed so hard, and he was quite the comedian. The setting was great, the amphitheater is in front of the monument and it is huge. We started with the pledge of allegiance. They then showed a movie that focused on all 4 of the presidents on the monument in great detail… it was so inspiring. I cried the entire time they spoke about Lincoln, he is my favorite! After that we sang the national anthem and during that they turned on the lights on Mt. Rushmore; it is so beautiful at night. They then honored veterans by having them come on the stage as we clapped for them and then they retired the flag. What a patriotic night! It just made us all feel so patriotic and proud to be an American… we all loved it so much! On our drive home we saw a couple of mountain goats too. It was a great night!

South Dakota- Day 13

This morning we slept in, we were up until midnight doing laundry and setting up camp. We took a morning walk around the campground to get our bearings. This place is huge! It is a lot like a hotel but with camp sites instead of the hotel. It had the registration desk, arcade, gift shop, huge pool, and very nice playground. The kids are just loving it… there are families everywhere and so much to do here. But first things first… Mt. Rushmore. After lunch we headed there, only 10 minutes from camp. It is so neat when you see it for the first time; it is farther away than you think it is. We parked and made our way up to the main terrace and walked around. It was much more commercial than I imagined, everyone was walking around eating ice cream and it was packed! We headed to the visitors center and watched a movie on the history of Mt. Rushmore which was very interesting. I thought it was fascinating that 90% of it was carved using dynamite! We did a trail that lead near the mountain and then it was done! It does not take long to see it but it is awe inspiring. Bortrum, the sculptor, had such a vision and a dream to make these sculptors grand, as grand as America is and the presidents he chose to sculpt. We plan on going another night for the lighting ceremony… can't wait for that.

After we got back the kids wanted to hit the pool. So we did. Wow, it was packed… you could tell I am from Arizona because I am on the lounge chair with my jacket and towel around my legs drinking hot cocoa while all of the other parents were in their swim suits… it was cold, only mid 70's and cloudy. But the pool was heated so the kids had a blast. Then it was time for dinner, showers and wind down time. While making dinner I had a minor breakdown… I hit my head twice on an upper cabinet in the RV trying to get the plastic silverware out of the storage area. I was just done after that and had a good cry on the floor while totally freaking out my family. I don't know what it was… frustration of a tight space, tired, I just finished a book which always makes me emotional, I don't know. It really did hurt though so maybe it was just that. But ever since then the kids have been extra nice and protective of me… they said they had never seen me cry (really?) so they were sweet about it and ultra-concerned. But I am fine; a good cry always makes you feel better, right? I think it will be early bed tonight to gear up for a busy day tomorrow!

Yellowstone Day 8- More Geyser Photos

Here are some photos of more geysers by Old Faithful on our first day at Yellowstone.

Yellowstone Day 10- Bear Photos

Here are some photos of our friends the grizzlies!

Yellowstone Day 10- Horseback Photos

Photos of horseback riding in Yellowstone.

Yellowstone Day 10- Canyon Photos

Here are some photos of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.

South Dakota- Day 12

We just arrived in South Dakota after a long, eventful drive (I will tell about that in a sec) and are getting camp set up and finishing dinner. Oh, I miss Yellowstone! This place is nice but I miss that lake view. This campsite is at a ranch in the Black Hills Forest, only 10 minutes from Mt. Rushmore. The kids are so excited because it has a heated pool and hot tub. OK.. the drive here. About a few hours out of Yellowstone Tim notices a van honking behind him (never a good sign) so we pull over off the freeway and she states that our bikes are dragging off the back of the RV. So, Tim goes back and checks and pulls off Megan's mangeld bike. He throws them in the back of the truck and pull on the freeway and 1 minute later a truck passing us looses 2 hay bales coming right towards us. Tim stays in total control and they hit the ground before us... not without getting hay in our car. It was so scary! Anyway we are here for the next 5 nights so we hope to relax a bit and enjoy the sites and the camp. Off to bed!

Yellowstone National Park- Day 11

Today we went up to the Northwest part of Yellowstone and visited Mammoth Springs. We went to the visitor's center where the kids became Jr. Rangers… it was neat this time, the Ranger asked for everyone's attention and announced it out loud that they are Jr. Rangers. Then we had a quick picnic on the lawn in front of the center. We went on a short hike up to the springs. I felt like I was on the moon… there were lots of big white rocks and little white mountains with water flowing down from some of them. We were not there long because we had to go for our whitewater trip.

We crossed the border into Montana and went to the whitewater rafting company and got registered and changed for our trip. We were going to do 8 miles down the Yellowstone River. We got on the yellow school bus with about 50 other people and drove a few minutes down to the river. Then we were off… of course I had to fall in just getting on the raft… Tim steps on a wet rock and I follow, he is fine and I fall in… how embarrassing! We went on our boat with another family from Canada and they had a 6 year old girl that sat by Leah… they had so much fun playing and screaming. Megan sat in front with Daddy; she even took a swim at one point. It was warm but the wind made it quite chilly mixed with the wet of the rapids. We all got really wet and hit some good rapids. It was a lot of fun and very memorable!

We went back into Yellowstone, stopped at the General Store for ice cream and souvenirs and then it was a long ride back to camp… lots of driving here in Yellowstone but I feel like we got to see a lot of the park. The drive home was made much longer by all of the stops due to bison in the road. Tonight will be about dinner, packing up, and cleaning. It will also include our nightly ritual of taking care of bug bites, blisters, and owies… being in the outdoors is rough. Then it will be tuck in time and the kids will be playing noisily in their beds and we will tell them to be quiet about 10 times. We are slipping into a routine and enjoying our time. We will miss Yellowstone but tomorrow we are onto South Dakota for 5 days. See you there!

Yellowstone National Park- Day 10

Yellowstone is just amazing. There are so many different ecosystems here, at one point you are in the forest, the next in rolling meadows, the next in a big canyon, finally there are stinky bubbling cauldrons… all of them just as awe inspiring as the next. Every turnout and lookout point beckons you to pull over and see the beauty that God created with His imagination. There is nothing like driving down these roads listening to my favorite praise and worship music and worshiping God at each new site… I will NEVER forget this place!

Our first stop this morning was more stinky hot springs… the most famous called Mud Volcano springs. It just appears out of nowhere on the drive but its smell precedes it. The stink of sulfuric acid is so profound. We got out and hiked around the many cauldrons and hot springs and watched the steam fill the air. As we went along the kids were disgusted by the smell and at one point, Leah refused to go on in typical Leah fashion of screaming, crying and drama. We continued on our path and finished with great relief.

On our drive we went through Hayden Valley which is rolling meadows filled with Bison. One even crossed in front of us! They cause quite the traffic jam as everyone stops and takes photos.

Next stop was the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. We took a hike down the Lower Falls trail which was easy going down but quite steep coming back up with tons of switchbacks. The lower water fall of the Grand Canyon is grand itself… our hike took us right next to the top of the fall. The canyon appeared to us for the first time too. It is unlike the Grand Canyon in its vastness but still a canyon and is very pretty. After that hike we went to the canyons Inspiration Point and took in the view and then had a picnic overlooking the canyon.

Next we headed to Roosevelt lodge for our horseback rides. The most exciting part of our day happened next. As we were driving we saw a Mama bear and her 2 cubs! Everyone was stopped in the road as usual and I thought it was another Bison but I noticed the fur was different. It was a grizzly! She was just right off the road with her 2 adorable babies… we passed within 5 feet of her. It was ideal circumstances, being in the car and seeing them. I feel like I can go home now that we have seen bears!

We arrived at Roosevelt lodge and Noah, Megan and I went on a horseback ride. Daddy and Leah went on a Stagecoach ride. Both were nice as we meandered through meadows, up and down hills. I had to keep saying to myself "I am horseback riding in Yellowstone!" This was Noah's first horseback ride ever so he enjoyed it. After the rides it was to the general store for a quick snack and then a long drive through rain back to camp. It will be early bed tonight… we are tired!

Yellowstone National Park- Day 9

This morning we awoke early and saw some deer outside of our camp. There were at least 4 of them but a big one with antlers was chomping on the grass right out front. It was fun to wake up Leah to tell her that reindeer were outside her window!

After a nice big breakfast we went over to our campgrounds marina and rented a motor boat. We took the boat out for 1 hour onto Yellowstone Lake with Daddy at the wheel. The lake is so beautiful and huge… it is 20 miles by 14 miles. We all enjoyed the beautiful scenery and being out on the lake. After that it was a short hike to a picnic spot on the shore for lunch. Then the kids dropped their fishing lines in the lake from the shore. We did that until we had to leave because of all of the bugs. Then we decided to do a hike from there to a natural bridge so off we went. Megan is very afraid of the forest and bears so she was crying very early on. So, we decided to turn around 30 minutes or so into the hike. Give her any mountain or canyon hike and she is fine but her imagination and fears run wild in the forest. So we just went back to camp to hang out. Shortly after we were back a bison came into our campsite and we watched it most of the afternoon but at one point it was so close we had to be in the RV watching it munch on our grass. Nothing like viewing wildlife right from your campsite!

Yellowstone Day 9- Part 2

Our dinner was delayed a bit due to the bison in our camp but eventually after he had some food and took a rest in our grass he moved on. Finally it was dinner time and then we had a campfire with smores. We had a lot of fun playing games at campfire like telephone and just talking about our trip and experiences. After that it was time for a ranger program at the camp sites amphitheater. It was not until 9:30 at night so going there it was dusk. The talk was about the trout in the river and wildfires and coyotes. It felt different here at this site because it was just so dark, there were deer in the background and a storm was coming in so there was lightning. Then it was a very dark walk home. And of course, right to bed!

I have found a perfect retirement job for Tim and me… campground hosts. Our campsite is right across the way from the campground hosts and it has been so fun watching what they do. They have the most perfect site and a lot people stop and ask them questions. Tim could be the guy doing all of the security and safety stuff and I could answer all of the questions and talk to the kids. I cannot keep my kids away from them… Leah asks all day if she can go and talk with Lee. And they sit there and listen, they are very nice. Imagine spending the entire summer in Yellowstone, probably free of charge. Something to dream about! That is the end of day 9… tomorrow is horseback riding!

Yellowstone National Park Day 8

Tim's truck did not take as long as expected and therefore was a few hundred less than the estimate… yeah! So by 1:00 we were on our way to Yellowstone, about 5 hours behind schedule but we'll take it!

Wow… Yellowstone has to be the most beautiful place on earth! When you first enter is not unlike any forest but then as you wind down the roads the forest becomes denser and there are streams and lakes all around you. When we got to our campsite I was just so amazed. It was like going from Motel 6 to the Ritz Carlton. Our campsite has meadows, grass, wildflowers, tons of pine trees, and has a view of the lake! We set up camp and then it was off to Old Faithful and the geyser areas.

Yellowstone is so big; a drive to Old Faithful is 1 hour from camp so we got there about 6:30 pm. We went to the visitor's center and stopped by Old Faithful but it wasn't going off for another hour. We decided to eat at the Old Faithful lodge cafeteria (would not recommend it, the food was disgusting but the view was good). After dinner we sat on the benches to watch Old Faithful go off. The clouds stared rolling in and it was looking like rain and oh boy did it come in! Just when it was about to explode, the sky exploded instead with a bitter cold, windy rain. I had ponchos so we put those on, determined to watch it go off. Shortly after it did and I left with Noah and Megan to the cover of the lodge after about 1 minute. Tim and Leah stuck it out and I think were the last ones on that bench, everyone else were under cover. They joined us at the lodge when Old Faithful was done and we waited out the rain. Then we took a walk on the boardwalks where you can see tons of geysers and hot springs. The hot springs and pools were my favorite, they look like little hot tubs with clear water and the insides were at times white, green, orange, and just beautiful! I honestly felt like I was on another planet, here on earth you just don't see smoke coming from the ground, and bubbling water in natural pools, it was spectacular! We walked around until 9:15 and then went back to the lodge for a snack. Then it was back to camp and straight to bed! Tomorrow is lake day so we will see what that brings…