July 5: On the road again

July 5:  On the road again

I love when I smell like campfire.  Last night we had our bon voyage bonfire.  I have to say this spot has been a great camping spot.  Much better than anything we saw in Yellowstone.

 Woke up early to the sound of thunder... that is the thundering paws of Rudy tearing up and down Hannah.  He is full of energy in the morning... unfortunately, his morning started a little earlier than our morning!  Up, down, oh you moved your feet, and your hand, I must attack... and on it went.  We figured we'd let him have his fun as he was going to be in the car on the road again, all day.  The skies are somewhat cloudy and I would expect some rain today.

 We readied Hannah and were heading to the dump station by 7:15.  Did our thing and started up through Yellowstone one more time.  As we left Grand Tetons, we passed a big black bear.  We couldn't stop with Hannah behind.  We passed some elk and buffalo.  Oh, ho hum... same old critters!

Our drive took us up the east end of the Yellowstone loops, past Yellowstone Lake and the Yellowstone River, past West Thumb, Lake Village and Canyon Village.  Once we passed Canyon, the mood of the park changes.  We are now in the area less traveled.  It goes through a mountain pass, but the mountains are not the rugged type mountains like the Sierras or the Tetons.  They are grass covered rolling hill like mountains with stands of pine trees.  Make no mistake, we are at high altitude but it doesn't look like it until you look over the side of the road with no guard rail! 

 We are now in the area that the wolves roam.  They are shy animals so we never expected to see them, but their terrain is a glorious eyeful.  The altitude in this part of the park is a bit lower.  They get less precipitation and as a result, more varieties of animals.  We didn't see any of them but we enjoyed the ride immensely.  We stopped at a nature walk area and had a walk and some lunch. 

Spouse got a pad for the center console in the truck for Rudy.  He used it quite a bit.  He also used Annoy-O-Boy's lap, and my lap, and the backpack.  It amazes me how easily he travels.  HE IS A CAT!  When we stopped for lunch, we closed him in the bathroom of Hannah while we went in and out.  We kept hearing noises.  When I opened the door, he had jumped all the way from the toilet up onto this tiny shelf about 6 feet up.  How he did it is beyond me and I wish the camera was around.  Annoy-O-Boy tried to rescue him but he recoiled.  He ultimately jumped on Annoy-O-Boy's shoulders and we got him down.

We traveled on through Mammoth Hot Springs, heading north to exit the park into the charming town of Gardiner, Montana.  Hannah is mighty proud to be in Montana.  Up Hwy 89 we go past beautiful pastures and farms and the Gardiner River with the mountains as a backdrop.   When we hit I90, we went west.  We went through the cute town of Bozeman, did some grocery shopping and ultimately settled in the town of Three Forks for the night.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Why am I calling Crew 'Annoy-O-Boy'?  Because he is a major hemorrhoid.  He farts for fun and they can kill you, he whines when he has to get his head away from reading, he will take a book into the bathroom and disappear for years (he must be on a milk carton somewhere), and if he knows something annoys you, he capitalizes on it and tortures you.  One thing he hasn't learned... He is not the one with the ultimate power... he is the low man on the totem pole... and he is reminded of that regularly.  Want him?