End: Lewis Lake, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming... a day of touring
Distance: 181 miles (290 KM)
Gas: Grant Village, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, 2.678 gal @ 4.299 Total $11.51; Grant Village, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, 3.319 gal @ 4.299 Total $14.27
Campsite: Lewis Lake Campground, Yellowstone National Park
It was a very cool night, but we awoke early to take advantage of travelling before the roads got too busy. Today, we wanted to see the many unique things that Yellowstone had to offer.
After having a breakfast of scrambled eggs, baked beans and coffee, we set out, with Old Faithful being the first stop. We went down the road about 18 miles and just before we got to where Old Faithful was, we saw a puff of steam in the distance. Old Faithful had just blown it's stack, so we would have to wait about an hour and a half before the next eruptions.
We walked along some of the wooden walkways and saw very colourful hot springs of boiling water. The water was crystal clear and you could see far into the little bowls. Some appeared tourquoise blue, but the water was so, so clear. The smell of sulphur was apparent at each spring and geyser. We saw a man just setting next to a steaming geyser as it is thought to be therapeutic.
We saw many sizes and shapes of geysers and hot springs. We were told Old Faithful would spout at 10:25, give or take 10 minutes and it blasted at 10:39...a little late. I saw a sign stating that the ground was just a thin crust and below could be boiling areas. It said that in the past, there have been dozens of people that were scaled to death by venturing off the wooden trails. We saw evidence of a buffalo that was not so fortunate. We could see the bones and head of a boiled bison.
Once we left Old Faithful, we headed towards Madison on the west side of the park. The west side is full of sulphur beds, hot springs and geysers. All along the road, you can see them and smell them.
We stopped at the Midway Geyser Basin. Here, we saw a few small but beautiful hot springs. We walked about a mile and then climbed a huge, steep hill to see the Grand Prismatic. It's the largest hot spring in Yellowstone. The colours were magniicent torquoise with yellow, orange and gold patterns and you could see the steam rising from the surface. Later, we walked a boardwalk to take a closer look and you could see the bubbling steaming hot, crystal clear water, but also the array of colours from the chemicals in the springs.
We continued north between canyon walls, following a nice river that flowed at the base of the canyon. Still, along the way, you could see hot springs and geysers.
Once past Madison, we went north to Mammoth, which is in the north edge of the park. Here, we saw what appeared to be a snowy field, but actually, it was spectacular terraces of calcium at a huge hot spring area. In Mammoth, it was a very small but very clean and up-to-date little town with many elk feeding on the grounds around the motels and restuarants. Mammoth also has an old army barrack that is now a tourist site.
Leaving Mammoth, we started south towards Tower. This area is in the Blacktail Plains and is a large wildlife area for the feeding of elk and bison. The area was a huge area of rolling grasslands and meadows. We rode up Dunraven Pass that has an altitude of 8900 feet. There were colourful flowers in the fields and it was a bit chaotic near the top of the mountain when visitors were trying to take photos of some elk. You could see more miles and miles as we were so high up.
Continuing on, we zigzagged around the mountain, we tried to see the incredible scenery, but also tried to keep an eye on the road as the edge was unprotected and scary. It's always best to have the best vistas on the left so you can see the sights and traffic at the same time.
After Tower, we stopped for a few moments at Canyon, which has some big waterfalls and a river that runs down the base of the canyon. In Yellowstone style, it was stunning.
We headed back after an exhausting day. We were even a bit more exhausted because of dehyration. It's so important to keep hydrated since you don't necessarily feel overheated while riding the bike.
Back at camp, we had burgers and beans for supper, with a glass of wine. And, as the night before, we had a stunning view of the millions of stars above.
Tomorrow, we plan on heading south towards the Grand Teton mountain range and the resort town of Jackson, Wyoming
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