Yellowstone Part 1 (Sorry it's a Travel Log)

We have decided to make Yellowstone in the Fall, a tradition.  Fall is my favorite time of year, I love seeing the leaves of the trees changing and it is a great time to see the animals.   This year was really fun because the previous year that we went we only went to Old Faithful, we didn't realize there was so much more to Yellowstone.  We still didn't see it all but we had such a fun time! We decided to stay up there, and Jake found us a great little place that rents out cabins. Its not what you think cabins, they are all close together and nestled right next to a huge hotel, but non the less still just as fun.  We had 3 huge beds and each had their own TV plus a kitchen and big cozy fireplace! It was so fun, and something we will do again for sure. We had Jake's brother Max with us, so that was an added bonus.  

Right when you come into the park is a prairie where you can always find Elk.
First time seeing a Bull Elk! 

Old Faithful
Ben showing off his new camera.
Hangin with Uncle Max and the Thumb Geysers.

  This is Yellowstone Lake, it was my favorite Part of the trip. It was so peaceful and beautiful. We went and checked out West Thumb and found this little gem of a place.  We sort of went off the beaten path a little bit, and did some exploring of our own. Not sure if thats aloud, but it was a blast.  The water was so clean, it made me miss our Missoula Lakes!

Checking out the Lake
Giving Thumbs Up to Thumb!! =)

Learning From the Pros...

Nate's favorite thing to do is throw Rocks in water. He could do it for hours.

The First Buffalo encounter was great!

Mammoth Hot Springs

Strikn a pose!
For those of you that don't know, Benjamin is NOT a walker.  We were definitely the rookies going to Mammoth because we walked quite a ways around these pathways and stairs, and Ben was getting really restless.  It was a pretty long walk, but as soon as we got to the top Ben goes, "MOM there's CARS UP HERE!!" (He was pretty ticked.) Low and behold we could have just parked at the top and then walked a few feet to hit all the good spots.  Sorry Ben, we will know for next time! =)
Thats my Gracie Girl!!  Actually we had to start counting every stair on the way down, it was the only way to take Ben's mind off how much we had to go.
Natey taken the free ride