Yellowstone National Park #17

Tuesday July 11th we arrived at Yellowstone, entered in on the east side. I had managed to secure a campsite at Grant Campground by consistently calling the reservations phone line ( the website claimed to be fully booked for the next 3 months). Just after passing though the gate we saw our first Buffalo , magnificent creatures. Big brown eyes and look almost cuddly.

After setting up camp we took off on Piglet and went to Old Faithful. Who erupts approx every 90 minutes, expelling 3,700-8,400 g of boiling water reaching heights of 106-184 ft. From here we went on walk and saw some amazing Hot Springs , small geysers and mud pots.

Next day we packed up and moved to Canyon Village campground . On the way we stopped at West Thumb Thermal Basin on the edge of Yellowstone lake. The lake is so large it creates its own weather system. It has 141 miles of shoreline, is 20 miles long by 14 miles wide and is 410 ft at its deepest spot.

Came across some stunning waterfalls too.

Thursday was an early start, 6am . Couple of tips when camping in Yellowstone if you have not booked 6 months in advance. The reservable sites do have spots come up through out the day , so keep calling the same day reservation line. The first come first served sites, you need to be there by 7am to get a spot. So this was the reason for the early start. Also were hoping we would see more wildlife early in the morning too. But was a little disappointed in that dept. We did see Coyote,  Buffalo,  Elk and Musk deer. Got a campsite at Mammoth Hot Springs at 7.30am. After breakfast we set off to Mammoth Hot Springs and Travertine Terraces,  Ice cream for lunch and back to RV .

Another early start to secure a campsite at Tower Falls. Tower Falls was the place to see bears, but unfortunately we were never quick enough with the cameras ! Between us we have 4 , you would think we would get to one ! At this site one bear calmly strolled right though the middle during dinner ! Anyway today we headed to Lamar Valley and saw herds of Buffalo. What an amazing sight . Just truly incredible, just how you imagine they should be.

None of our photos do any of the park justice. It is truly stunning and by far my favorite  due to the diversity of the park.

That night I had picked up a stomach bug, lets just say thank god i was in a RV and not a tent !! Next morning , Saturday July 15, we discovered the house batteries were flat , due to the fact we had been dry camping for 7 days without hookup. (and the bathroom had been working overtime, chris) Thankfully the camp host was opposite us and we could plug into his electric to bring the slides in and get us on the road. This time heading into Idaho #28 !!!

Hope everyone is well and we will be with you again soon xxxx