La Grande to Yellowstone

Monday morning we caravaned with mom to Baker City where she works. From there Stacy and I sped on to Idaho. We stopped in Idaho Falls to eat left over enchilada and Spanish rice.

The small gorge created by the Snake river at the edge of town provided our first chance for scenic photos.

It wasn't until 8:30pm that we finally arrived at Old Faithful in Yellowstone. Once we entered the park, buffalo were in abundance. The landscape was a bit bleak from the wide fires that charred much of the park a few years back. We splurged for dinner at the lodge before wandering over to the famed geyser.

A few dozen people were waiting for the next eruption on the boardwalk and benches skirting Old Faithful. We took this as a good sign that we didn't just miss it. The geyser goes off approximately every 90 minutes. Our timing couldn't have been better. We had barely found a spot on one of the benches when water and steam began spraying tens of feet into the air.

Tourist destination checked, we drove another 40 minutes to our campsite along the west thumb of Yellowstone Lake. Our REI half dome tent set up in minutes and we were soon dozing off to the distant howl of wolves.