our final adventure to yellowstone.

Since we are leaving Idaho at the end of July, we are trying to get in our last bit of adventures in the Wild West. A few weekends ago, we took our final trip to Yellowstone. It’s easy to complain about Rexburg’s weather and how cold it can get come winter, but when summer rolls around, I can’t help but feel spoiled from being so close to Jackson Hole, Mesa Falls, Grand Teton, and Yellowstone. Speaking of that awesome summer weather, it was suppose to rain in Yellowstone late afternoon, but Jason was intent on going because he knew how few Saturday’s we have left.


When we arrived at Yellowstone, we were greeted by the bison grazing near the meadows and streams. It never gets old to pull your car over to the side of the road and take pictures with childish excitement. I’m actually okay with seeing bison because, unless you get too close, you’re completely safe around them and they hardly notice you anyway.I feel like every time you go to Yellowstone, you’re almost guaranteed to see wildlife. Jason is still waiting to see a Grizzly Bear fishing in the streams for trout. I can definitely tell you that I won’t be getting out of the car for that one. 

This little guy was just crossing the street - no big deal.

We did our usual tour of Old Faithful, and like clockwork we arrived exactly after the last eruption. I swear every time we visit the geyser we have to wait an hour and a half from the Ranger’s prediction, but we took advantage of it and ate some hot dogs for lunch. Of course, in a place like Yellowstone, one hotdog is going to cost 6 bucks. After we ate, we headed back toward Old Faithful where we still had a little time left. The last time Jason and I watched the geyser erupt, it didn’t go very high and we were a little disappointed. Luckily, this time it redeemed itself and shot up really high! 

Hot Dog!

Old Faithful

Next we headed to Yellowstone’s Lower Falls. It took us a while to drive there so Jason and I started playing the license plate game from the cars that would pass us. We seriously got to 34 plates before arriving at the Lower Falls viewpoint. This waterfall is almost twice as high as Niagara Falls and is the largest volume waterfall in the Rocky Mountains. Lower Falls was absolutely amazing and now THE best waterfall we’ve seen together. It started to get chilly as the wind picked up, but we stood there admiring anyway. The sun even came out briefly so we could take some perfect pictures.

Finally we drove to Artist Paint Pots which wasn’t as majestic as the hot springs or pools, but it was bizarre to see the muddy water come gurgling up to the surface. We took a tour around the boardwalk and made sure to stop and take in the sun setting over the beautiful mountains, valleys, and rivers of Yellowstone one last time.

Hot spots