Thermopolis, Wyoming

The largest natural mineral hot springs in the world. The pools and slides use water from the spring. Sam got daring at the pool! 

Hot Springs State Park

This is what an empty pool looks like.

View of the Tetons

We decided to bypass another crowded park. We stopped for the view of the mountains across Yellowstone lake.

Hitchhiking Bison

He was close enough to pet!

Soda Butte Creek

We stopped by the creek so the girls could play. They found ishy squishy mud at the bottom. Good thing they were not clean before they started!

Traffic in Yellowstone

A bison was in the middle of the road making a traffic jam! He walked onto the road and stopped. Must be what the bison do for afternoon fun.

Animal Viewing

We dedicated the rest of the day to animal viewing. Here is Ali's list:

Bison, elk, deer, mama bear and 2 cubs, coyote, fox, pronghorn antelope, pika, and mountain goat.

We were well rewarded with herds of bison and many other great spots. There are big herds in the north eastern part of the park. 

The pronghorn were close to the road and posed well for photos! The elk population in the park seems to have dwindled since we were here last. We saw the most just after dusk when we were on our way back from dinner in Gardiner. We saw a fox trotting down the road and a mountain goat hanging out on the shoulder. 

The bears were the highlight of the day! We saw a female black bear and her two cubs. They were not phased by all the people and as we stood and watched they got quite close to us. We were very careful not to get between the mother and her cubs. The cubs put on quite a show as they scampered through the meadow and over a log. They followed mom across the road so we could see them clearly. They scrambled up the hillside and out of sight. This was one of our  closest and best bear encounters ever! A lucky first sighting for Sam and Ali!!

All the animals were fantastic, but the bears were definitely the best!!

Sam: I liked the fox best.

Ali: I liked the coyote, fox, and bears best.

Tower Falls

We hiked down to the falls.

And then past the "hike at your own risk" sign to the Yellowstone River. There is much less water at this point so the girls played and threw rocks (one of their favorite pastimes). The rocks were interesting- the yellow rubs off the rocks. There must be sulphur in the water. It's like powder on the dry side. 

This adventure got a bit more exciting when a coyote wandered out of the woods and walked up the beach. He was less than 20 feet away and had no interest in us. He walked up the trail, cutting the switchbacks (I guess he can't read the "stay on the trail" sign). He went straight for the trailhead and the falls overlook. By the time we hiked back up he had a big crowd. We got the best view!!