From West Yellowstone we wind along the more remote, less visited western border of the park. We start out through rolling grasslands then enter the Gallatin River Canyon. Towering cliffs rise on either side for miles before opening up into another wide valley where wheat and potato fields share a patchwork with range land. We come to the headwaters of the Missouri and the chain of lakes created at the many dams along this stretch of the river. Home for the next night or two is at White Sandy Campground on the shore of one of those lakes, Hauton Lake. Maybe a half dozen sites are occupied and it is a very quiet spot, except for the occasional military flyby and a fair number of gulls!
Toward Helena
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ridden this one before. Kent reminded me after verifying this in our 2014 blog. I never said I would limit myself to one visit on any carousel! Today I ride the bear, the bison and big horn sheep are tempting too. No luck grabbing a brass ring. Still, it is great fun. I can’t leave without just one scoop of butter pecan ice cream!
errands and chores (check out this cute laundromat-those are words I rarely use in the same sentence) then head back to camp to kick back.
breakfast at the Inn. Mike and Tracy’s pictures reminded us how cool the old structure is and we feel the need to check it out. It’s a buffet with food a bit better than average but the cozy setting makes up for anything it lacks. We are back out in plenty of time for Old Faithful’s show. Even against a cloud filled sky it is spectacular. The weather holds off long enough to walk the entire upper basin boardwalk including catching a Daisy geyser eruption.
We make it back to the geyser hill just in time to see Old Faithful a second time. It looks more powerful from the view on the top boardwalk! It is misting and still in the 50’s. We check out the gift shop. I must have another Yellowstone medallion, a bison this time. Plans are to check out Grand Prismatic and the Norris Basin thermal area if the crowds aren’t awful. No such luck, traffic is spilling out of the parking lots as folks are vulturing for spots. We head home with a couple detours; The Firehole River Canyon Drive, it is spectacular, then a loop along the Madison River, lovely but no elk or bears on that section of the grassy banks today. The elk from this morning are still out along 20. It is definitely a favorite spot for them. We are back in camp sipping hot tea to warm up in the rainy and chilly weather. It’s a great chance to catch up on the blog and naps!
this time to Hidden Falls and Inspiration Point above Jenny Lake. We start with a ferry ride then there is a lot of “up”, we sort of expected that with a destination like Inspiration Point! Willa is anxious to mountain climb – not just walk a trail- and to maybe get to the snow. Above Hidden Falls she gets at least part of that wish. The trail gets rocky and steep just perfect for her hands and feet climbing on up to the point. She is thrilled to meet the beggy trail chipmunks. She calls them “chicky” and is adamant that she be allowed to adopt one and take it home. I get in trouble for swatting at them as they try to climb into my backpack and steal food. They are very people habituated! Just as we get her to move no an unusually brazen pica scurries right by Willa’s feet in a hurry to stash his mouthful of grass. We climb a bit higher onto Cascade Canyon trail hoping to see more wildlife as the crowds thin out. No luck with that but it does take us to an alternative, shorter, less steep return route back to the lake. Here are fewer hikers so it makes for a perfect place to try out Willa’s rescue chain.
Check out the pic. Her stated purpose was so the test of us could help Daddy when he got tired carrying Hazel the whole time. More on its origin later. The return ferry trip is a welcome opportunity to sit down for a few and by the time we make it to the car everyone is about done for the day. Hazel was a great sport (Mike too) through all her time in the carrier. She even caught a bit of a nap.
We go for one traditional waffle =brown sugar butter and one Belgian= cookie butter, caramel and powdered sugar. So delicious. The sun breaks through and we head out to explore. Our goal is the Top of the World trail. We are still looking for snow to play in but we are still not quite high enough for this time of year. 
We have to be content to check out the glaciers above us. We stroll and take in the view then board the tram for the trip down. Its clear skies all the way down so views are better than ever. The grounds in the resort are grassy and a great place to play. Willa discovers a bungie trampoline. She is going to try it. I’d rate it as a somewhat tense but overall fun adventure.
Check out the pics and you be the judge. We grab some lunch, play a bit longer as Grampa and Nana relax in our Adirondack chairs then we head off with the kids while Mom and Dad try to squeeze in one more hike. Fun day for all.
Once back home she paints, makes Dad a birthday card, and gets a traditional brown tub bath. It is a full day for all of us too.
like neither of us have ever seen before. Check it out. It is an amazing view of a broad rolling valley brought to us by fault uplift, glaciers and the powerful Snake River. We continue to several suggested moose and bear viewing sights. They are not as productive but the drive is still lovely. Near home at antelope flats we see the local bison herd. It is a great morning.
in the Roosevelt Preserve. A doe and fawn tolerate our presence long enough for a good look and there is a report of a bear near the visitor center. We must have walked just feet from him on our way in off the trail. We check out the soundscape rooms. In one room, wildlife and wild setting images rotate on four screens accompanied by a sound track. My mind scrambles to match them. In the second space, only the sound track plays. I close my eyes and block out all but those sounds.
We stop in at Mormon Row, a preserved and partially restored 1880s settlement. We make rope, try on period clothes, and play some of the kids’ games. It is a fun stop. I even get the bug to maybe get involved in living history here or somewhere as we contemplate a more settled life in the coming few years.
Clouds shroud the top-most peak of Grand Teton but the view is worth the climb. We relax and lunch watching the clouds advance and rise on the mountain tops until it seems wise to head back. Clouds are thickening. We keep a good pace on our return (down-hill always helps with that) and in one check behind us see the very place we had been standing completely shrouded in dark grey clouds. Good timing. We keep moving and make it back to the truck wet with sweat but ahead of the rain.
or maybe bear but no such luck. Pika scurried on the scree piles near the top of the hike. We heard but did not see marmots. Kent spotted a different little rodent fellow – might be a prairie dog, at 8,000 ft?
The pika are working hard collecting flowers and grasses and stacking them in large piles to dry in the sun. This one fellow has two heaps each much bigger than he is. 
We come upon one nearly black marmot perched in a tree…pretty bear-like isn’t he. The view from the saddle is spectacular as well. We hang for a while just taking it all in and hoping the haze will clear a bit more.
Our ticket is good for as many as 3 trips up and we want to see if it has cleared off. Another smooth ride up and a short walk and we find it, a not-quite-crystal-clear but marvelous view. Well worth the trip back up, especially since we rode the lift back down this time!
Today, early in the walk, the trail takes us up the walls of the canyon well above the creek bed. The views are lovely as we cross meadows interspersed with treed areas and open rocky outcroppings. We first hear the waterfall exiting the cave then spot the opening in the cliffs above us. The last half mile or so is a steep mix of rock steps and tree root tangle that takes us to just over 8700 feet in elevation. There is a bit of puffing but we make it. Folks claim they scale the slope up to the entrance to walk then crawl to the back of the cave where the opening reduces to a couple feet in each direction. It looks like today water would be running around our feet the whole time. 
We settle for the gurgle and splash of the falls and the lovely view from below. We scan high meadows for wildlife both going and returning but none make an appearance. Guess there are too many places to hide. It is great to spot whatever is out there but it is even fun to look for them.
Teton Canyon along the south fork of Teton Creek. We set out along the creek through towering pines with a much lighter understory than other recent hikes. It is cool and lovely. There is a fair amount of traffic on the trail but Kent and I are alone on a stretch and we hear a loud huff.
Maybe 100ft to our right along the creek bank are two moose, a mature bull with a good start on a rack and a juvenile. They browse with an eye on us for a bit before moving on when more hikers arrive. We get a good look and some nice pictures. We move on too. Pines give way to wide open mountain meadows backed by majestic cliffs, blanketed with wildflowers, and often cut through by a ribbon of willows lining the banks of smaller streams. We find a perfectly placed butt rock and relax taking in the view. 
Kent muses that it seems a perfect moose spot and not 5 minutes later a cow moose emerges from the willows moving nervously and even challenging a pair of hikers who are on the trail fairly close. She runs at them, not really charging but seemingly telling them not to get any closer then turns and collects up her young calf that has been hidden along the creek. They both head upslope and disappear into the denser undercover. All is well and it is a great encounter, for US.
one more lovely meadow and a lunch stop at the intersection with Devils Staircase 
trail before we reverse course for a nearly all downhill stroll back to the trailhead.