Saturday in Yellowstone

Nate and I traveled again to Eastern Idaho for the weekend. We left Friday as soon as Nate got home from school and arrived about 9ish. It is about a 4 hour drive to Cheryl's and when we get there I am tired. Carma and My Dad came over to deliver me a box of potatoes he had gotten for me and an invitation for breakfast at Carma's was accepted. Ben was again in a very playful mood when we got there.

After breakfast with Carma and Dad, we stopped in Rexburg to pick up Jason and headed north to Yellowstone. It was a chilly, rainy day, but we still knew we would have lots of fun.

The leaves in Island Park were turning to the autumn colors and were beautiful. The "quakies" were turning golden and some even had a pinkish, orange tint. Beautiful.

After a stop in West Yellowstone's Visitor Center and MacDonald's we entered the Park. Out itinerary was to head to Mammoth and do the upper loop. We stopped at the Museum of the National Park Rangers. Very interesting. Then on the Mammoth where we hoped to see lots of elk.

It is rutting season for the elk and that makes watching them very interesting. But there weren't many to see on the lawns of the building. We saw a few, but not as many as I have seen before. The scenery at Mammoth is so wonderful to look at.

After a ranger program on the Elk Rut, it was on the road again--toward Tower and then on to Canyon. We saw some beautiful, breath-taking rainbows on the way. The drive over Dunraven Pass is spectacular.

After stopping at Canyon for refreshment, we went through Hayden Valley where we spied a couple of bison herds. Then to Old Faithful where we hoped to see the famous geyser erupt.

Our first stop was at the Lodge to see if the cafeteria was still open for a bite of dinner. It was and Nate and I dined on our favorite--Trout Almondine. It was great. I needed to learn how to fish for trout so I can have it all the time.

We ventured outside--in the rain--to watch Old Faithful go off. It was the ending to a perfect day.

It sure is nice to have another driver for the trip home. Nate took over the wheel and drove the last 1/2 of the way on Sunday. Now it's time to stay home and get the fall yard work done. (Dad, Roy, come home for General Conference weekend and Cheryl, Jason, and Ben are coming down for the weekend. Better get the house child proofed.)