Yellowstone National Park

We spent the summer in Grant Village. My mom was working, so we got a site all season (late May to mid-September) at the employee’s campground. We also got a discount on our bear spray- which is super expensive for seven seconds or less of pepper spray. In Grant, there’s a general store and a mini store, a visitor center, a few restaurants, everything within a few moments’ drive. There’s a marina down at the lakefront as well, too. It’s a really great place to work and spend your summer at.

On my mom’s days off, we were free to explore the park. We did the loops, saw the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, Mammoth, Old Faithful, Grand Prismatic, Norris, Lamar- and Hayden Valley…there was a lot to see and the summer passed quickly!

Wildlife…we saw an abundance of bison and elk, and then some bears, too! We were annoyed with how well the wolves eluded us, but we saw foxes and coyotes, and enjoyed the rut in the early autumn. (The really annoying thing was that we could hear the wolves howling some nights.)

My favorite thing we did…well, I enjoyed everything we did. One of my favorites was a trail we took to Fairy Falls and on to Imperial Geyser, then back to Grand Prismatic. It was a really beautiful hike and not too long. Everyone thinks it was a good trail and it was really pretty- definitely one of my favorites! Grand Prismatic is totally something I’d like to see again if we ever go back. There were a lot of people at the Grand Prismatic Overlook and on the boardwalks, but Imperial Geyser was one of the most secluded trails we took this summer! (If my site ever got popular and anyone decided to take random advice, it wouldn’t be secluded any more, haha…)

Someone’s been feeding the chipmunk up at Fairy Falls! Well, okay, I thought it was a chipmunk, it’s a ground squirrel. Anyway, he was pretty friendly! I like to bring dolls along with me on hikes…some people say I’m too old to play with dolls, but I’d like to enjoy being a kid as long as I can, even into adulthood if I can! This is my doll, William. His hair needs trimmed. The chipmunk- ground squirrel, seemed a little bit curious about him (although, in the picture he’s looking at the camera, LOL) and it cracked us all up!

Yellowstone is an incredible place and definitely a top favorite of ours. It’s also been a great place for me to really learn things that are hard to remember out of a textbook- like the science behind an erupting geyser and how you can tell how hot a thermal pool is by its colors! It’s definitely one of the most beautiful national parks I’ve ever been to.