With all the driving and sightseeing we were looking for a different activity to start our third day. Our dude ranch was full for rides on this day, but we found that Pahaska Teepee even closer to the park entrance had trail rides available. It’s so fun that our family as a whole enjoys horses and riding and also fun to play cowboy out here in the West!
Here’s Jansen getting acclimated to his horse, Chase. He’s so brave on these big animals and on rough terrain!
We had some great photo opportunities…
And then a very exciting element…a river crossing! The river was deeper (and very strong!) than we anticipated. The boys were all brave and didn’t flinch at all. They listened well to the instructions, kicking their horses on the downstream side and leading them with the reins upstream to keep the horses motivated to get straight across and not wander with the current.
We wound upwards through the Shoshone National Forest until we got to the Wilderness marker (another photo opp).
Our cowboy trail guide told us the difference between the national forest and the wilderness. Do you know? In the wilderness you can only walk in or ride horseback in, no vehicles. Also, to break trail, you can only use hand tools, no motorized tools like chainsaws. So cool to be in such a preserved wild land!
In addition, we learned about Pahaska Teepee which is the historical site of Buffalo Bill’s hunting lodge! It’s listed on the US historical register. Also interesting is that we stopped at a marker on the trail where they had a plaque about King Albert I of Monaco’s visit/hunting expedition with Buffalo Bill. They named the place Camp Monaco where they set up their hunting camp. Cool to be amidst so much history! Here’s a few more pics from the ride.
On the first half of the ride, my horse, Preston, was a little pokey. It was cute and funny. But then on the second half when we were winding uphill he seemed to like to jump into a trot to get uphill. Then, when we were going through some long grass I think he got spooked because he reared up and took off at what was at least a canter or more! Surprising, exciting and thankfully I had both hands on the reins and pulled him to a stop eventually! After that it was like he had woken up to the day and he was spritely and would often break into a trot to get uphill, downhill or catch up. So funny! And definitely made the ride engaging as I really felt like I had to handle the horse!
So after our lovely morning on horseback it was time sit our sore bums back in the minivan and get back into Yellowstone. The big attraction today was Old Faithful, but on the way there and afterwards too we checked out many geothermal elements the park offers. (And of course we also kept our eyes peeled for wildlife…so, so much!)
We started at West Thumb Geyser Basin and took in the hot springs here. They even are in the lake!!
Then we made a quick stop to see the Kepler Cascades on our way to the Upper Geyser Basin where Old Faithful resides. The geothermal activity here in the park is incredible for sure, but man, I LOVE waterfalls and water features. So, we definitely stopped these past few days for quite a few of these views.
And then on to Old Faithful! So excited!
Although Old Faithful is true to its name, you don’t know the schedule until you get to the parking area where there is a placard with the next approximate eruption time posted. But then it can be a 20 minute swing either way from that time. Well, we hit the jackpot. We pulled up and it was 14 minutes until go time! And she blew right on time. We had a great spot on the platform and enjoyed watching the teasing splashes and all the steam for the minutes leading up to it.
And then show time was very impressive and it lasts for a good minute or more. Very satisfying. The boys were super impressed. Loved showing them this marvel!
We could see steam and small eruptions of other geysers in that same basin, but due to the time chose to move on to some more sights on our way back up to the cut over to the East entrance so we would eventually make it to our dinner spot before it was too late.
We did take a quick look in the Old Faithful Visitor’s Center…
First they checked out some elk teeth & jaw bones.
Then they loved seeing if they were as tall as a bison which can be six feet! Koen is getting close, he has surpassed my height on this trip (but not quite yet the bison).
Next we stepped into the Old Faithful Inn. So beautiful!! Wished we could have sat down for dinner there and gone to bed, ha!!
We drove past the Midway Geyser Basin which has the amazing Prismatic Spring running from the geyser and hot spring spouts colorfully down into the rushing Firehole River. It was a beautiful sight!
Now on to the Upper Geyser Basin! Hot springs, mud volcanoes, geysers, fumadores…all four geothermal types. Impressive and interesting!
Next up another waterfall to break up the sulphur smells and naughty minivan shenanigans (yet again!). This one is Firehole Falls.
We opted to drive past Norris Geyser Basin despite our tour guide “George” from the GypsyGuide app telling us it was incredible. We had taken in quite a few geothermal for one day and our stomachs were growling! We felt we had satisfied our geothermal education for the day and needed to satisfy our appetites!
It seemed to take forever to get out of the park. We hit some traffic and then it soon became evident why…the Yellowstone search and rescue team was on the side of the road and an ambulance was there. We would find out later that a rock climber on Avalanche Peak had to be rescued via helicopter. This wild land is humbling, definitely makes you feel a healthy scare for the risk here in the park. Between the sulphur and heat running underground to the wild animals to the elements and the high slopes. I certainly have a healthy fear.
We actually returned to Pahaska Teepee for our dinner as we spotted their menu that morning and we knew we wouldn’t make it to the ranch for dinner. I took the boys out to the original hunting lodge for a picture while we waited for our orders. Plus, they needed to be moving and get more fresh air!
We got back to the ranch and sped through bedtime prep and packing up. The next day (Saturday, the 23rd) we would do our final traverse of the park and on to Glacier National Park in Montana!
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