Trip - Day 8

July 20, 2017

Today we drove into Colorado Springs, Colorado https://coloradosprings.gov/ from Casper, Wyoming.  It was a much shorter driving day than we had been doing, but still put us in comfortable range to reach Lubbock tomorrow.  We saw antelope again today!

We were able to take the bypass around Denver, E470 https://www.e-470.com/Pages/PayingTolls/Paying-Tolls.aspx.  We kept waiting to see toll booths, and were ready to pay, but no booths were present.  We figured out, finally that we were a License Plate Toll customer, and my traveling companion would receive a bill in the mail about the toll.  It looked like it might only be $1.55, but I assured her if it was more, I would be willing to pay my fair share.  

We took a tour around the Garden of the Gods http://www.gardenofgods.com/, after a brief stop in the visitor’s center. We had a picnic in the free city park, donated to the city by the founders.  I had a left over salad for my picnic.  I had never even heard of the Garden of the Gods, so if my traveling companion had not known about it, I would have missed it. 

On our way out, we went through Manitou Springs, which was an awesomely interesting looking town, touristy and old west combined.  The Manitou Springs http://www.manitouspringsgov.com/ and Pikes Peak Cog Rail starts in Manitou Springs. 

We had an early night in the motel tonight.  For dinner, I had the rest of the Indian Taco I had ordered the night before, and could not finish!  Once again, it was nice to have internet access. 

Trip - Day 4

July 16, 2017

We started our day traveling toward the West Geyser Basin http://www.yellowstonenationalpark.com/westthumb.htm, and were able to see some elk there.  Then we went on to Old Faithful https://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/exploreoldfaithful.htm, and were in time to see an eruption.  We forgot to bring water, and became too hot walking around a small section of the boardwalk.  When we returned to the Visitor’s Center, we had to sit outside in the shade for a while.  It seems someone has released some bear spray https://www.nps.gov/yell/learn/photosmultimedia/minute-bearspray.htm, and the building needed to be aired out. 

I ate leftovers from the day before, and my traveling companion snacked on trail mix and an apple.  We went on to see other things, including the Museum at Madison https://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/madisonplan.htm, and several waterfalls, including the Upper http://www.world-of-waterfalls.com/yellowstone-upper-falls.html and Lower  http://yellowstone.net/waterfalls/yellowstones-waterfalls/lower-falls/Falls of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone https://www.nps.gov/yell/learn/nature/grand-canyon.htm.  We also saw the Virginia Cascades http://www.youryellowstonevacation.com/index.php?p=region&region_id=3&category_id=37&member_id=224.  We took some scenic routes that were not even on the map!

I was concerned the cabin would be too warm to rest comfortably, and suggested finding a shady spot near some water with a breeze.  We returned to the cabin for some quick chores, and were pleasantly surprised at how comfortable to cabin was.  We did find a spot to sit near Lake Yellowstone https://www.nps.gov/yell/learn/nature/yellowstone-lake.htm, and the breeze was so strong, we had to move from the shade to a sunny spot. 

In addition to the elk at West Geyser, we saw Bison at various places, and at the North Rim Drive Lower Falls overlook there was an Osprey’s nest with a female and 3 babies in it (someone let us look through their spotting scope. My traveling companion could see the birds, I could not.)  But without my binoculars, I could see the nest and an outline of the adult.

We ate dinner at the cafeteria at the Lake General Store, Fountain and Grill https://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/stores.htm .  We actually sat on stools and the counter ess curved several times through the area, which made efficient work areas for the wait staff, each of whom had one loop of the counter to work! The food was adequate, much of it was pre-prepared.  I suspect for the crowd they serve, they have to do that.

It has been a long day, with many stops along the way.