We had a warm continental breakfast at the motel. It was better than the previous morning, even though nothing was hot. We stopped at Subway on the way out of town and got sandwiches for lunch. We were heading out of town by 9:30. We stopped in Mammoth on a scenic drive loop at the hot springs at the upper level and saw some beautiful springs and didn't have to do all the hiking that the uninformed tourists had to do by stopping at the lower level. How lucky we were! Remember all those levels of boardwalks and stairs and walkways? You stayed in the car and worked on the blog. The next stop was Sulphur Caldrons and buffalo - 3 of them laying in the dust/dirt near the caldrons of boiling mud. Then we went to Dragons Mouth. The awesome steam venting out of a cave with the boiling water escaping and roaring as it exited the mouth of the cave. Mud Volcano was next. It used to erupt 85' in the air. Now it just bubbles at ground level, but it's still amazing to see that.
We drove the road running along the Yellowstone River and saw geese, buffalo and lots of elk. We stopped about 12 for lunch and ate on a log next to the beautiful Yellowstone River. I put my toes in the water and it was COLD. Next was Yellowstone Lake and it was huge. Surrounded by mountains and trees. The rivers and creeks and lakes are all still so crystal clear. Reminds me of Lake Mead when we were kids and we could see down to all the rocks and the bottom below.
We went to the visitor center and beach at the lake and then went to the Lake Hotel. The bathrooms had nice, old tile floors and MARBLE toilet stalls. Very elegant! The lobby had etched glass windows and doors that were gorgeous and had scenes of nature and wildlife. We went to one of the boat marinas and I took pictures for Bob because he likes boats. We crossed the continental divide at 7,988 feet. We also were at the 45th parallel today. Then we went to 35 foot Lewis Falls and then left Yellowstone behind. But, we drove right into Teton National Park. Very different than Yellowstone but certainly has it's own beauty.
We saw Jackson Lake and the Colter Indian Museum. It was a very interesting stop. We went to the beach at Jackson Lake and the water there seemed warm and there were actually people in the water there. There was still a lot of haze in the atmosphere from all the fires, as there was in Yellowstone, so seeing the crystal clear view of the mountains wasn't possible. We went to the old soda fountain/cafeteria at the Jackson Lake Lodge. You and Beverly had chocolate malts and I had a lemonade.
We drove out of the park and on to Jackson where we had Mexican dinner at the Merry Piglets. Service was terrible and slow but the food was pretty good. You drove the rest of the way home. When we got to Pinedale you showed us the new Pinedale Clinic medical and care facilities and the aquatic center and Fremont Lake. We got to your house about 9 and unloaded everything and let the mosquitoes in the house. I noticed the stars again when I put the light out in my bedroom. They show up so brilliantly in your sky because there are no lights to turn off their twinkling!
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