Finding Yellowstone - Saturday

Its been more than 2 weeks since I got home from my first semester away at BYU-I and couldn't be happier. Classes ended Wednesday July 18 for me but I couldn't leave yet, Mom and Dad were coming to pick my up Saturday and that was my one exciting event my whole last month. Thursday was spent packing the entire day. And Friday was spent cleaning ALL DAY, and ending in my apartment's clean check, and watching a great friend graduate. The next morning my things were packed, taken downstairs and separated into 3 piles: storage, take home, and in the car. I spent a good half hour of my morning sitting on my front doorstep, listening randomly to my ipod and waiting for Mom and Dad to arrive.

Last photo of me in Rexburg.

"Excited" does not adequately express my feelings of this moment.

However, our trip home didn't exactly start out with us going South. Instead Mom and Dad had planned a vacation for me, taking me to Yellowstone National Park for a few days and then meandering through other national parks on our way back home.

We first stopped by a dam in Idaho that had been washed out and destroyed many homes and farms that had stood beneath its reach. 

The Grand Tetons on the south side. They were our constant companions as we journeyed through the mountains and up to Yellowstone.

In Jackson, Wyoming, Dad was excited to show me the antler arches that stood at each corner of this park.

 Before Yellowstone, we traveled through Gran Teton National Park and stopped by Moose, Wyoming where this awesome, life-size moose statue stood outside its visitor center. When Mom and Dad aske what animals I hoped to see, moose was on the list and after this was made my tease for teh duration of the trip. "Keep an eye out for your moose, Lara." "Perhaps we'll see your moose if we go here." "Sorry we didn't see your moose, Lara." Yes, we never saw a moose, but I'm not sad yet, sometime, one day or another, I'll see one, you can bet on it.

We made it to our sad campsite at Flagg Ranch Campground just outside the South Entrance to the park in the evening and--with the light in the north not finding until after 9pm--we took the chance to go visit some of the park before the day ended.

The first of many waterfalls.

Before Picking me up, Dad suggested that I watch some Yellowstone documentaries to inform myself on what I was going to see. I was flabbergasted when through one documentary I learned that there are over 300 waterfalls in Yellowstone!

There was a visitor center beyond the waterfall that had a wonder view of one of the lakes, but as we walked past the information desks and small shop, I discovered the mother-load.Taxidermy animals were very popular in the visitor centers and in the first one was--that's right--a grey owl! Mom laughed at the freak out I had and immediately for my camera so she could take my bird next to spectacular specimen. Unfortunately there was horrid lighting and a thick glass box ruining the documenting images.

Kweee!!!

We reached our first thermal areas as the sun began setting. Mom and Dad, so unused to walking sat down at the first bench and let me continue on my own to explore the hot springs and so forth.

"Stay on the boardwalk" was the most common sign in the park.