HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!

Monday, July 3 – We had a very long day of driving, but it was worth every penny. When we left Livingston, MT, this morning we intended to stop about six hours down I-90 at the Gillette, WY, Walmart. Well, after getting fuel at the nearby Flying J and then grocery shopping at Walmart, we looked for a secure place to park in the Walmart lot. Unable to find a good spot, we decided to head down the road and stop at a Montana rest area for the night. Upon arriving we notice the “No Overnight Parking” sign so we continued East in search of a place to stop.

Upon entering South Dakota, we notice smoke up ahead.

As we got closer we heard a helicopter.

We couldn't image that was good news. As we got very close this is what we saw out of the driver-side window.

We heard on the radio that there were three grass fires in the area. They were all contained. That was very good news.

Continuing down the road, we checked quite a few places out but ended up driving the entire distance to Broken Arrow Campground and Horse Park in Custer, SD, our destination – we thought for Tuesday night. A total of about eight hours driving and 465 miles.....W-A-Y more than we have driven in a couple of years!

We tried to call Jerry, the owner of the campground, to see if we could arrive a day early, but were unable to reach him. We left several messages but were unfortunately out of cell phone coverage much of the day and were unable to make a connection. Upon arriving, he quickly set us up for one night in Site #21 for NO CHARGE! (His golfing today was the real cause of our inability to reach him, so he said, "Wait until tomorrow to start your week stay.") Now there's a great businessman that wants to please his customers. He wants us to move to a different site tomorrow with a view of the mountains. (That site is taken tonight).

This is an amazing campground. It's beautiful, with large gravel sites, gravel roads, picnic tables at each huge site, thick, green grass between each site, and a gorgeous view of the mountains to boot! And the best part is we are near Mount Rushmore and all the points of interest in the area.

Our new Site 24.

Looking right down our road.

Looking left.

Marsha thinks she is an Indian because she can say "How."

Even though there are several horse barns and corrals, we smell no horse.

They have four new full-service cabins that sleep four.

Due to the very dry weather and high fire warning, we are not permitted to use the fire pit or even a grill that uses charcoal. The only acceptable grill is a table top with a lid.

The weather forecast today includes…Areas of smoke. Please say a prayer for safety for all those in the fire's path.

We will be here a week (actually eight days) and have a great deal to see, so stop back and visit the Black Hills with us.

We wish all our USA readers a very Happy and safe Fourth of July.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!

MEETING UP WITH FRIENDS, PAM AND JOHN

Sunday, July 1 – Carrie, our daughter, had to head back to Billing, MT, this afternoon. She had a memorable experience here in Yellowstone, and we really enjoyed sharing the weekend with her.

We had one more exciting adventure. We were meeting long time blogger friends, Pam and John, Oh The Places They Go, for dinner. We met at a restaurant along the Yellowstone River midway between their campground in Gardiner and our site here in Livingston.

Pam, John, Paul, Marsha

What a great time! We felt like long time friends instead of first time acquaintances. They are full-timers with two children and retired educators just like us, so we have a lot in common. We visited for three and a half hours before calling it a night and heading home. Maybe next time we can spend some time camping or exploring together. Glad we got to meet you two in person! Enjoy Yellowstone.

Pretty short post for us.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!

 

WE LOVE YELLOWSTONE!

Friday, June 29 -- Carrie arrived around 6 Thursday evening and the nonstop fun began.

This is our second time here but Carrie's first. This park has a little (or maybe a lot) of everything. It just gets better and better.  We spent twelve hours in Yellowstone National Park today and left tired and in AWE!

We saw so much beautiful scenery. The geography changes at every turn. There's the mountains, lakes, rivers, waterfalls, forest, meadows, geysers, mud pots, aqua blue steam pools, and more.

Norris Geyser Basin.

The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.

Grand Prismatic Spring. These are the true colors, no enhancing done. GORGEOUS!

Mammoth Hot Springs

Old Faithful was right on time.

Yellowstone Lake

We had great expectations of seeing some wildlife and those expectations were exceeded by a huge margin! We saw the following wildlife:

• Bison by the thousands
• Elk by the hundreds
• Several Pronghorn
• A WOLF.....yep, a wolf.
• A Silver Fox
• A GRIZZLY BEAR with 2 cubs
• A Black Bear
• Mule Deer
• Big Horn Sheep
• Trumpeter Swans

This Black Bear was no more than 15 feet from our car.

Pronghorn

This walked in front of our car for several hundred feet.

Bison everywhere!

Wolf

The Grizzle Bears were far off in a meadow. The Ranger would not allow us to get any closer, AND we didn't want too!

There is so much to see that we just have to let the photos tell the story. To see so many more photos of this fantastic 14-hour day, click here.

Saturday, June 30 – We returned early this morning to Yellowstone to do some hiking. Yesterday was a tour marathon to see as much as possible, today is more tranquil with hiking as our goal.

We chose to hike the Slough Creek Trail.

It is rated moderate with a strenuous first 1.5 miles uphill. We were huffing and puffing a little but overall it wasn't that difficult. Actually, we were surprised on the return hike how steep it actually was. We only hiked a portion of the trail because we wanted to do several shorter hikes, as well.

This trail is a dirt road which leads way out into the wilderness. We encountered two horse-drawn wagons coming into the park for supplies.

On this trail is where we encountered the famous Anise Swallowtail Butterfly. WOW is it big and beautiful.

We then walked the Tower Falls Trail and the Wraith Falls Trail.

Tower Falls

Wraith Falls

After those hikes and a short ride to see more of the park, we stopped at a pullout for a picnic lunch. It was another delightful day weather-wise as we sat near the babbling brook and enjoyed our sandwiches and fruit.

Each time we saw a group of vehicles pulled off the side of the road, we stopped. Each time we were rewarded with another glimpse of nature.This time is was a Black Bear and a cub. We sat and watched for a long time. The cub was in a playful mood rolling around on the hill and running around mom.

We caught this guy taking a swim.

Another grooming himself.

Our daughter, Carrie, had a memorable experience here in Yellowstone. We are happy we changed our plans. We really enjoyed sharing the weekend with her.

Another day full of memories. Again, the photos must tell the story. To see so many more photos of this exciting day, click here.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!