Day 7: Yellowstone

On the way back from the Beartooth we drove through the upper part of Yellowstone. We were still really hoping to see a bear so we all had our binoculars out (even Brady!!!) We spied some mountain goats, a coyote, a buck mule deer, and some bison. The baby bison were my favorite...they were so cute and fuzzy looking- it just made me want to touch one!

These rocks can be seen all over Yellowstone and Idaho- the geological formation is called columnar jointing, which happens when the molten lava takes a long time to cool. The cracks are formed when it expands and contracts during the cooling process.

The Yellowstone River

If you look carefully, in the center of the picture, just above the river and to the left of the dam you can see small puffs of steam coming out of the banking. It's these small hot springs that are turning the sides of the canyon into calcium deposits.

Yellowstone is so beautiful!

Tower Falls

Just outside of Gardiner, MT there is this small village where the elk are always on the common ground. This huge bull elk was protecting his herd and would bugle when people passed by.

Mammoth Hot Springs: By the time we got there it was getting dark so my pictures aren't the greatest. These hot springs have left terraces of mineral deposits, creating incredible geological formations! Brady was so funny because he kept saying how much he liked the "hot geysers" and everytime he went to say it I thought he was saying "hot guys!"

Looks like a melted rootbeer float!

This is "THE MAMMOTH"

We had planned on going into the Boiling River for a swim but it was too late- maybe next year!