The Army years

Currently in Victor Idaho
Heading to Colorado next


As our oldest National Park, Yellowstone was established in 1872.  But immediately, keeping control of poachers, souvenir hunters and tourists proved to be an issue so the US Army was brought in to protect and preserve.  The Fort Yellowstone presence remained for 32 years.
Most of the buildings constructed during the Army era are still standing and used as administration and residence buildings today.  We took a quick walking tour to see them.
The Bachelor's Officer Quarters is the Visitor Center today.  All decked out for the 4th!

Scottish stonemasons constructed this and several other buildings in the Colonial Revival style popular in 1909.  The stone came from the northern part of the Park near Gardner River.  The Captain's Quarter's below was built around the same time.

Below are the first buildings at Fort Yellowstone and served as Officer Quarters.

The last of the structures to be built was the chapel.  It was considered to be the most beautiful.

The building below housed the Cavalry.  Many of the soldiers stationed here became the first Park Rangers when the military turned over the administration of the Park to civilians in 1918.

On our way out of the Park that day, we did stop by other geological points of interest. The travertine terraces are very unique!

New Blue Spring

Mound Spring

Minerva Terrace

And I couldn't resist this shot of the landscape when I looked on the other side of the main road.

We ate lunch by Sheepeater Cliff to see this cool rock formation.  The cliff is lava that cooled into these columns about 500,000 years ago.  The Shoshone Indians used a lot of Bighorn Sheep and this cliff was named after them.  Kids love to climb them today.

Roaring Mountain was a quick stop.  The sulfur gas spewing from this formation is home to billions of thermophile organisms that turn the gas into sulfuric acid that eats away at the Mountain.  It is huge and quite a sight!

We walked along a boardwalk at Artists Paintpots to view Blood Geyser, so named because the iron oxide makes the area around the geyser red.

There are also little hot spring pools that look like an artists' paint palette.  They may be a bit hard to see in the upper right hand side of this photo.

These bubbling mud pots are really cool.  They are formed when acid from the volcanic gasses decompose the the rock and then mix with water to make the clay and mud.

It was a full day, no doubt!

I should've learned to rope and ride

Currently outside of Grand Teton National Park
Heading to Colorado for rest of July and early August


Happy 4th everyone!

We headed to a small town rodeo last Saturday night in Island Park, ID.  Meadow Vue Ranch is a riding camp that showed off the talents of the girls who were training there that week.

This guy MCd the rodeo.  The ranch has been in his family for generations.

They invited all the children to compete in a ribbon pull.  They tie a ribbon on a calf and the children try to pull it off.  They win candy!

We saw a barrel run, rope and tie, and a bucking bronco.

After the rodeo there was a cook out and a good ole country band.

And the proverbial line dancing in a country town!

It's a geyser!

Currently In: Victor Idaho (outside Grand Teton National Park)
Next Up: Loveland, CO and then a few locations in South Colorado
We will be in New Mexico in late August


In addition to the wonderful wildlife, Yellowstone is known for its abundance of hydrothermal sites that started from a super volcano eruption 631,000 years ago.   The center of the volcano collapsed forming a 45 mile wide caldera.  The heat from the several eruptions still fuel the geysers, hot springs and mud pots today.

The most famous of these features is Old Faithful.

My Old Faithful Geezer

They can forecast the eruption within 20 minutes and it is magnificent when it happens!

We took a walk along Geyser Hill and then we continued on the boardwalk up to Morning Glory Pool.  I think there are over 30 hydrothermal sites along this route in the Upper Geyser Basin.  Much of it has this yellow/orange color since the hot water runoff is a good breeding ground for microbes.

Here are a few of my favorite geysers, pools, and the like.

Blue Star Spring

Pump Geyser

Doublet Pool

Crested Pool

Castle Geyser

Morning Glory Pool

We passed the Grotto Geyser on the way up when it was quiet.  Look what happened a few minutes later when we passed it again!

It was time for a lunch (really dinner) break!   Not all of our lunch spots have a great view!

We also took this opportunity to look at the historic lodge and hotel at Old Faithful.  The best parts about the lodge were the expansive windows and the light fixtures.

The Old Faithful Inn, dating back to 1903, was much more interesting.

The high ceiling and fireplace(check out that clock!) were awesome!

There was a lot of detail, especially with woodworking.  The stairs here are an example.  And the walls made out of logs!

We decided to get a drink at the Bear Pit - the lounge at the Inn.  Also some really great decor and detail. The wood carving above the bar and the window etching behind it were really special.

On our way out of the Park, we decided to stop at the Midway Geyser Basin to see the Excelsior Geyser Crater.  We were there in the early evening and the steam was really really pouring off the hot water!

Boiling water!

And the hot water runs right out of the Crater and into the Firehole River.

It started to rain so we did not get a good look at the Grand Prismatic Spring.  But we were treated to a double rainbow instead!