Hitch Hikers

One of our most memorable experiences in Yellowstone was the people. We were surrounded by tourists from all over the world and immersed into many different languages, customs and fashions. Everyone showed a common joy and excitement at seeing all the wonders of the park.

As we drove around, we began to notice groups of young people with cardboard signs indicating they were in need of a ride to various sites within the park. Curiosity got the best of us and we pulled over to ask if they were indeed hitch hiking. Within minutes we were taxiing two young ladies to Old Faithful and by some quirk of fate, met up with them again in the evening. We stopped at a couple of places along the way to our respective lodgings and enjoyed sightseeing and conversing with them about their home in Belarus. A group of two boys and three girls from Taiwan rode with us another day. It was from them that we learned about Stinky Tofu and a fascination with our fast foods.

These young people were participating in an international travel program that connects participants with summer job opportunities. We didn't get a lot of details on how the program works, but all of them were very excited about what they were seeing and learning. All were university students, each in different programs but all with high goals for success. They represented themselves and their countries well and it was a good feeling to be able to help in this small way.
We've been in several National Parks but this is the only one where we've seen this program. If you travel to Yellowstone and you have room in your vehicle, stop and offer a ride. You will be richly rewarded and maybe even asked to be in a photo with your passengers.

Animals in Yellowstone

It became very apparent very quickly that people want to see animals in Yellowstone. If you want to draw a crowd, stop at one of the pull outs; get out of your car; stand and stare across the landscape. Within seconds other cars will pull in and you'll be asked what you're looking at. Mention a wildflower or a bird and you get strange looks as folks hurry back to their cars. Mention something as mundane as a squirrel and children and grandparents are hurriedly ushered out of the car to get a look and have their picture taken with the animal. (If you see cars pulled over, please slow down because there will be animals and/or pedestrians).

Bison seem to be the most sought after. Even if it's just one standing a half mile away in the meadow, people are stopping in the middle of the road or parking helter-skelter to get a picture. There was not a single day or a single road where we did not see bison, so if you can't safely pull off, just keep going and get your photo at the next opportunity.  I even saw evidence of bison on the sidewalk in front of the general store near the campground. Spotting elk and prong horn is not hard either.

Bison can cause major traffic jams when they decide to feed close to the road. Always figure in extra time when you're driving, especially in the evenings. We witnessed two vehicles that came within tire squealing inches of hitting bison in the dusky dark. It's exciting to see them up close and personal as they parade down the middle of the road or on the shoulder, but don't be like the woman who reached out the window to pet one. She got a car full of bison head and a citation from the Park Ranger. Luckily, there were no injuries.We tried very hard not to be "those people" who stop in the middle of the road, park in unauthorized places, get too close, walk off trail to get closer or in any way be an obnoxious tourist. (Insert smilie)

We did manage to see a lot of animals throughout the park.
Bison-everywhere
Elk-Mammoth Springs on the lawns of the lodge and visitor center, meadows in Hayden Valley, Pelican Creek (mostly females with calves but toward the end of our stay the males were moving back down from the high country for mating season.)
Wolves-meadow between Madison and Midway Geyser Basin. White alpha male and female in this pack.
Prong Horn-many open meadows
Otter-Yellowstone River in Hayden Valley
Mountain Goats-barely visible with binoculars on rocky face in Lamar Valley
Moose- Standing in Floating Island Lake in Lamar Valley
American Dipper-Feeding in the stream at the top of Virginia Cascades
Sandhill Crane-Madison River
Golden Eagles-Steamboat Point on NE shore of Yellowstone Lake
Great Blue Heron, Sora, Virginia Rail, Sharp-shinned Hawk Pelican Creek
Osprey and Bald Eagle-Yellowstone River in Hayden Valley

Cody to Yellowstone

The drive from Cody, WY to Yellowstone NP is about 53 miles but it is a beautiful, scenic drive. Not far from Cody you enter the Shoshone National Forest and follow the Shoshone River almost into the park. Towering rock cliffs surround you at points then everything opens up to meadows with fly fishers lining the banks of the river before you climb back into the rock lined passage.

Several campgrounds are available within the Forest offering a variety of amenities. Drinking water and pit toilets are usually available but no showers or dump stations.  I'm sure they are used a lot by those who fish and hunt the area but they're a bit far away from Yellowstone.

I didn't make opportunity to take a lot of pictures along the drive but this guy did catch my eye

 

and here's a view of the Shoshone River and the canyon it has carved.

 

YELLOWSTONE

It’s almost a given that anyone with an American vacation bucket list has Yellowstone National Park in the top ten. I can enthusiastically say that it will not be a disappointment. We just finished a 14 night stay and it took all that time just to see the highlights. We didn’t even attempt any of the backcountry hikes. (There’s bears out there-big ones!)

For anyone planning a visit, I would encourage making reservations early for any of the campgrounds or lodges and boat tours of Yellowstone Lake. There are many options both inside and outside the park for lodging, many tour buses if you don’t want to drive and lots of other activities like rafting if you get tired of geysers. I would also encourage a lot of pre-planning and research. I had no idea how much driving would be required  to get from one feature to the next.

We stayed at Fishing Bridge Campground, the only full service campground in the park. It’s a good base for making the rounds of Yellowstone but there are no fire rings or picnic tables. The sites are only big enough for your camper and a vehicle and all are back-ins. It’s supposedly (we saw nary a one) in a high traffic area for bears, so only hard sided vehicles are allowed.

Getting Started

This is a post I drafted some time back with the intention of catching up on our travels. Rather than delete it, I will post it and ramp up my intentions to post everyday.

We’ve been living in an RV for a little more than 6 months now. There was a trip to New Orleans and back to South Carolina in the small camper then, sitting for 2 or 3 more weeks until the new fifth wheel arrived. Then we waited for bicycles, then the rack for the kayaks and bikes, then Christmas with the families and finally got on the road December 31^st only to have a flat tire on the camper within the first 10 miles.

The flat tire was a true learning experience. We learned how to navigate Roadside Assistance. We learned that truck drivers can inflate a tire with the compressors on their trucks. We learned that camper dealerships do not install tires on rims but they will take the flat off your camper, sell you a tire,  take it all to a tire business to have it put on the rim then, reinstall it on your camper and send you on your way-all on a New Year’s Eve.  This is a big shout out to Sonny’s Camp and Travel in Greenville, SC.

Time Warps

Seems I forgot to post this draft from March 10. Please note it is not time to reset any clocks as this gets posted on August 24th!

Today is the beginning of Daylight Savings Time. Thankfully, the computers and phones changed automatically leaving only one watch, the microwave and the truck clocks to manually change.
The time change in November really wound us up. We had crossed 3 time zones, turned around and headed back toward South Carolina and then needed to fall back. My son thought my mind must be ticking down when I called to ask for the correct, east coast time.
We learned our lesson about changing the clocks in a timely fashion instead of trying to do the math in our heads, all the while wondering why it should make a difference. We are retired after all and there are no schedules to adhere to but as long as the rest of the world marches to the beat of a second hand or a flashing digit, I guess we should at least pay some attention.
As I write this, there are Pileated Woodpeckers entertaining us with their wood boring skills. It reminds me that even wild animals have a sense of time and place for migrating, mating, nesting. They just don't have to worry about time zones and the silliness of losing or gaining an hour.

Test 1 2 3 Test Test

This is a first post meant as a test to make sure everything was working.
We are Sandy and Dianne from South Carolina and we began our RV experiences with a 25 foot tag along and an F250 truck in 2008. Now we are towing a 36 foot fifth wheel with an F350 diesel and our full time adventure started December, 2012.
Follow along with us as we experience the RV life, learning as we go.