Keystone, SD
We left Yellowstone yesterday; the official start of our
journey home. I thought we would have mixed feelings about that but in fact we
don’t at all. We could keep going, living this nomad’s life and taking in all
the beauty and history around us – of course, I say this after having had my
first shower in 4 days. We would wish for fewer time constraints and more
meandering, but overall we are quite happy with the way the trip has turned
out.
A few recent highlights:
Gus has really enjoyed riding his bike around the
campgrounds and having projects that he knows are helping to make things run
smoothly and he has been very cheerful. He has also been instrumental in
finding our final license plates, snagging Hawaii, Washington, DC and Alaska in
the past few days. Yahoo!
The Grand Tetons and Yellowstone provided much-needed relief
from the sand and heat of southern Utah. The hills, lakes and forests have been
breathtaking. Sightings of bison, bear (grizzly and black), moose, pronghorn
antelope, elk, muledeer, sand cranes, the magnificent black-billed magpie and
Western tanager and my favorite, the pika, a prairie-dog like animal related to
the rabbit.
There is a reason Yellowstone is the oldest and most visited
park in the country. The size and diversity of landscape are amazing; the
hydrothermal features (hot springs, geysers, fumaroles) are fascinating; we are
learning so much about geology on this trip (special thanks to the ranger-led
talk at Norris Geyser) as well as both the durability and fragility of the
earth. The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River may not be THE Grand Canyon,
but it is still pretty good and the Upper Falls are gorgeous.
We were hiking near Inspiration Point in Grand Teton. I left
the boys to do the last bit on their own (heights are not my thing) and found a
good perch to admire the scenery. A young couple approached me and asked me to
take their picture; they had just gotten engaged and were bubbling with
excitement. Even in this day of instant
communication, I was the first person they told. They didn’t ask my name,
though; I thought they might want to name their first-born after me. Oh well.
It was a sweet moment anyway.
Go, Celtics!!!
Janet
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