We knew the third day of our trip would involve some hefty driving, but we clearly didn't understand how much. Google Maps predicted 6.5 hours to the edge of Yellowstone and then we figured another two hours to get to our campsite. (Yellowstone is an enormous park - much larger that you even imagine.)
We set out early (8:30 a.m.) from Theodore Roosevelt, with a quick stop in Medora for gas and ice. The drive to the Montana border was fast and we stopped in a nearby town to pick up maps and brochures. We stopped in Miles City for coffee. We stopped outside of Billings to visit Pompey's Pillar, a rock formation signed by Clark during his expedition. We stopped in Billings to visit a family friend (who was so kind to the kids, giving them homemade muffins and fresh-squeezed orange juice), and stopped for gas and groceries.
By the time we left Billings, I was starting to panic. Scratch that. I was panicking. It was 3:30 p.m. and I knew we still had a couple hours to the Yellowstone entrance. Without stops. My mind raced. What if we didn't get to our campsite before dark? What if we had to pitch the tent in the dark - with grizzlies nearby? What if they gave our campsite away? You can't just get another campsite or easily drive to a hotel.
Everyone else was calm and happily enduring the drive and after downing a couple muffins, I pulled myself together. We had planned to drive through the Beartooth Pass and enter the northeast entrance. Jason started doing some calculations and discovered we could shave off an hour by driving south to Cody, Wyo., and entering through the east entrance. (We had no idea how GOOD of an idea this was until driving the Beartooth Pass several days later. I would NOT have made it that night. I'd probably still be parked up there.)
As we approached Cody we were in awe of the mountains. I love mountains and their sight made me immediately happier and more hopeful that we would indeed reach our campsite. Cody is a fun tourist town in honor of Bill Cody and we enjoyed our ride through.
Then the fun began. We turned onto the Buffalo Bill Cody Scenic Byway.
We soon were weaving through roads on and around the mountains. Rivers streamed past us. Tunnels loomed up ahead. Mountains towered, covered in trees or rock. A huge basin gleamed with blue waters. The curving roads took us from one stunning site to another, as we tried to capture a few in photos.
As the land leveled out a bit we saw a sign ahead.
The Yellowstone sign! I've never been so happy to see a sign!
We hopped back in for another hour's drive to our campsite. As we came down from the mountains we passed through forests, some of them filled with dead trees from fires. We saw Yellowstone Lake from high in the mountains and worked our way down, closer to its shores. Driving around the lake we saw very few other cars, thankful for the quite roads and beautiful first drive through the park.
Arriving at Bridge Bay, Jason checked us in. We were given very specific instructions for our campsite, as a grizzly had passed through the campground just three days prior. We've camped around black bears before, never bring food into our tent, and never leave any food or dishes outside except when we're using them. But it's a very different story when camping with grizzlies at Yellowstone. You are allowed yourselves, sleeping bags and a flashlight in your tent. Period. Everything else, from extra clothes, water containers, etc., all need to go back in your vehicle or the food box at the campground. You can't wash dishes at your site either or dump any liquids. (This took a couple nights to get used to the best way to haul out everything and cram it all back into the van after each use.)
We set out to find our site, totally prepared for camping in a field. As we drove past one field and approached a forested loop, I couldn't believe it. We drove through the loop and found our site. Nestled among the towering pines, our site faced the lake - and the beautiful mountains we had driven through a couple hours ago. We could even see the pass! The sun was lowering as we unloaded our tent and started dinner. We finished eating and setting up camp just as the sun set. I couldn't believe the timing and was incredibly thankful.
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