Arrival Sunday, June 14
159 Miles | 5 Hours plus 4 Hours of excursions through Yellowstone and Canyon Village
We pack up the night before and decide to get wheels on the road by 8:30am. This gets delayed by about an hour while Datta clears up a plumbing stoppage at the dump station, where we meet a friendly couple from (of course) Michigan who gives us some good tips on Yellowstone (Grand Prismatic, Lone Star) and also the Upper Peninsula (Taquanamen falls and Pictured Rocks). Datta recalls that he’s got a fund partner Mark who runs boat rides to Picture Rock and makes a note to call him to see what unfold.
Upon entering Yellowstone, it’s a whole new ballgame vs. lush green of Grand Teton. We are immediately wowed by formations at Lewis canyon. Sibri shows Bella her first snow and Datta and Sibri take a bouldering excursion up Lewis falls.
There’s very little cell service throughout Yellowstone but we get to see a large herd of Elk under the watchful eye of a ranger who did part of her studies at UCSC and lived in Boulder Creek (which is just in Santa Cruz County, of all places!). We get tips from volunteer Mike to get a spot outside the West Gate where there’s good coverage and services.
As we make the loop counterclockwise, we check out Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone hiking both the upper and lower falls. That day we log 18,000 steps according to Mari's watch. On our way down the mountain, the real magic starts as we spot our first bison hanging out by a geyser, looking very prehistoric. We stop there to explore the nearby Geyser Basin walk. Sibri likes the mud pots best, but says they should be called clay pots.
Datta and Mari like the Dragon's Mouth geyser best, but all of it is spectacular. A little hail amidst the steam of the geysers along with the brush with our first bison adds an extra touch of magic for our official welcome to Yellowstone.
Along the way back around we meet some full-time Airstreamers at the Canyon Village gift shop and hear about boondocking up in Gardiner near Mammoth Hot Springs but we don’t have a big enough inverter yet for the electric heater so we head towards the west entrance, stopping along the way at another basin, and Datta has a flashback of visiting it as a kid.
We get an up-close bison encounter on our way out the park with a dark bull peacefully ambling alongside the road. As darkness starts to fall, we stumble upon the Grizzly RV park which Datta recalls had been recommended by the folks who ran the Virginian, back in Jackson.
It’s pretty suburban but with full hookups for $71 and reliable coverage it’s a means to an end. Plus we get a good spot at the edge of the park opening up to the meadow that also serves as the dog walking trail for the park.
Datta and Mari work through the morning and manage to clear the slate from the afternoon onward. After downing a quick lunch of grilled cheese sandwiches, we head back out to Yellowstone with our bucket list in hand to see Old Faithful, the Grand Prismatic Spring and Lone Star Geyser (which volunteer Mike has recommended as a must-see).
We encounter our first Bison Jam, getting some great footage on our way to see Old Faithful. We eventually arrive at a parking lot and a pair of big lodges that look a lot like Disneyland. It’s packed with a crowd of observers but the landmark still delivers, starting her eruption right as we walk up.
The Old Faithful Inn is open and is pretty grand as well. Datta gets food at the Café while the girls make a stop at the gift shop, picking up a bison stuffy as a secret Father’s Day gift for Datta. As we are unloading our bikes to take the fire road out to Lone Star a couple who have just finished the ride inform us that we have just enough time to get out to the geyser to see its next eruption which will be happening around 6:30. They thankfully offer us some bug spray to keep the mosquitos at bay. The three and a half mile bike ride is beautiful, following a mountain stream, and as the geyser comes into view over the crest of the trail we see Lone Star start to erupt with the entire setting to ourselves.
We all agree it’s our new favorite and marvel at the natural sculpture of its cone with multiple vents and a tall plume that keeps going for at least 10 minutes. An experienced biker walks up toward the end and recommends we check out Fairy falls and the Imperial geyser as well if we have time.
We encounter another bison jam on our over to Prismatic. Datta spots two bison hanging out by a geyser basin. We also spot our first grizzly bear from a distance and take some long distance pics. The magic continues when we hit the Grand Prismatic when we meet a pair of pre-med students from NY and NJ (Kristoph and Wyatt). This only happens because Sibri insists on circling back for a second look at the spring stating she has "waited her whole life for this" and that she heard about it "years ago at school". Our soon-to-be-friends are flying a drone and the aerial footage blows away anything we were able to see from the ground.
We end up getting a recording of their recording and then bump into them driving alongside of us nearly an hour later, they follow us back into town, and we we feed them pizza in appreciate for them letting us download the video which actually shows Datta carrying Sibri on his shoulders as they walk beside the spectacular landmark she has heard about for so long, and the lighting is perfect.
There’s a storm front coming in so we put out the awning and café lights to enjoy a fun outdoor dinner as the rain starts to fall.
There’s nothing like going to sleep to the sound of rain on an Airsteam roof. Datta has tarped up the bikes but the system is expected to last for 3 days so we deliberate about our next move as we head toward Montana.
Departure Tuesday, June 16
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