Escapee's Escapade 2011

Quick update as we're located at the Gillette, WY CAM-PLEX attending the Escapees Escapade 2011.  We finished the Escapees Boot-Camp training, yesterday, and the Escapade opening ceremonies last night.  More RV training on the way this week.  Raining here in Gillette at the moment, so we're getting a slow start this morning.  Here's some photos of the CAM-PLEX area.  Later, David

Event staff parking at the CAM-PLEX

Buffalo, WY

Big Horn Mountains as seen from the Clear Creek Trail

Buffalo Wyoming.  Ya just gotta love a town who's motto is: "More than just a one horse town."  We're here to stock up, do laundry, etc, before the Escapee's Escapade 2011 in Gillette, WY (starts tomorrow, August 26th, for those of us attending the "Boot Camp" program portion).  We're attending the Escapade to learn what we're suppose to already know about full time RVing and continue to meet new people.  We're gonna be busy!

Buffalo is nice.  It sets just below the intersection of I-25 and I-90 and southeast of the Big Horn Mountain Range.  It's a horse town.  The town's history is of the Plains Indians and the Bozeman Trail.  Apparently, there are wild herds of horses near here.  It has two highly rated RV Parks plus one not so highly rated campground.  The RV Park's cable system brings in Denver, CO TV stations as local stations.  Oh, and we're told there are two good steak houses here, too. 

The town has also invested in a real nice bike/walk path called the Clear Creek Trail System.  The trail covers 17 miles, follows the Clear Creek, and transverses much of the town's historic district and wetlands developed to offset the wetlands lost due to the construction of a nearby dam.  We biked some of it.  Much of it too uphill for us (you're traveling to the Big Horn range when cycling west.)  We ran across a gaggle of kids (and their adult chaperone) with several bicycles piled in the middle of the trail (looked like the remnants of a NASCAR pile up).  Result was one skinned up kid.  A little further up the trail was a very young man on the ground with his bike on top of him and asking for help.  Seems his shoe came untied and the shoestrings wrapped around the pedal (sounds like something that would happen to me).  With more patience than I'll ever muster, Donna got it mostly unraveled.  Soon the adult chaperone shows up & finishes the project.  Kid ties his shoe and back on the bike he goes - proud of him!

So that's today's news.  We've got a thunderstorm overhead.  This town could really use the rain!  See ya! David

Grand Loop Road

Saw a lot of this today

Scene along Elephant Back Trail

Traveling along the Grand Loop Road wasn't the initial plan.  Unfortunately, it appears the bears like the same trails we do.  So, a plan to walk some easy trails along Yellowstone Lake turned into a ride around the Grand Loop Road.  We did stroll some of the Elephant Back Trail, but today was generally sightseeing day.

Fishing Cone

Since we'd last visited Yellowstone in 2009, the Old Faithful Visitor's Center and the Gibbon Falls Overlook are finished.  "State of the Art" is how I'd describe both.  The Old Faithful Visitor's Center is very entertaining and kid friendly.  Gibbon Falls Overlook is well worth the 30 minute waits we endured in 2009 as we traveled through the construction zone.  Of course I'm always impressed with Gibbon Falls.  If I remember correctly, the rock under Gibbon Falls is part of the old caldera.  I just think that's kinda cool.

Black Pool at West Thumb Basin

So here's some pics of our travels today.  I hope you enjoy them.  David

Exhibit at Old Faithful Visitor's Center

Gibbon Falls

Yellowstone Lake as viewed from Lake Lodge

More Yellowstone

Beaver Pond above Mammoth Hot Springs

Just an update.  We continue to check out the northern sections of Yellowstone.  Yesterday was a nice 5+ mile hike around the beaver ponds to the west and above Mammoth Hot Springs.  Today we drove out to Lamar Valley (where all those Yellowstone wolf documentaries are shot), Tower Falls, and lunch at Roosevelt Lodge.

Tower Fall

It turned out to be a good wildlife viewing day for us, today.  This is our second trip to Yellowstone, and today we saw our first bear.  We learned that what I thought were prairie dogs is actually ground squirrels that burrow and have communities similar to prairie dogs.  We got to go through the same bison jam twice - once traveling east and on the return trip west.  It appears that bison get in the middle of the road

Bison in Lamar Valley

and can't decided which side of the road now has the greener grass.  Then us tourist make it worst.  While someone is parked in the road shooting their hour long video through their sunroof for YouTube on the bear, bison, elk, pronghorn, etc, they're viewing, people in the back get frustrated, pull in the opposite lane run up to the (pick your animal here) site, realize there's something to see, stop in the middle of

Stay!

the opposing traffic lane, and begin shooting their version of the hour long video they'll post to YouTube of the same darn (pick your animal here) the guy next to them is shooting a video of.  Of course there's two vehicles coming from the opposite direction doing the same thing. Consequently, no one else can get by (a good thing if the animal jam is due to bison), and no one who is waiting patiently to get their hour long video for YouTube

will get their chance. 

So that's it from here.  Donna said something about climbing a mountain tomorrow.  Wish us luck!  David

Fort Yellowstone, Mammoth Hot Springs, Yellowstone Natl Park

The welcoming committee at Mammoth Hot Springs

Admin building

After a day of taking care of business on Wednesday, we got back to visiting Yellowstone.  Today was "Get acquainted with the Mammoth Hot Springs area of the park" day and get a double scope of Moose Tracks ice cream.  Both accomplished!

The Mammoth Hot Springs area is about a 15 minute drive across the Yellowstone River, through the Roosevelt Arch, say "Hi" to the ranger

The Gardner River just east of Ft Yellowstone

at the fee booth, and a scenic drive through Gardner (without the "i") Canyon to the herd of elk welcoming you to Yellowstone.  As a pre-teen, my parents had brought me here, but I don't recall much.  I don't remember being very impressed.  I now understand why.  Once you've been to the Yellowstone Grand Canyon and Old Faithful areas, there doesn't seem to be much action here.  The elk herd is neat - just watch out for the elk "droppings".

Yellowstone River as it enters Gardiner, MT

The Mammoth Hot Springs terraces are impressive, but it's not the action you see at Old Faithful or Norris.  We'll walk more of it over the weekend.  Today I can appreciate the history of the area, and there's a lot of that here in the Fort Yellowstone complex.  You see, it was here that the gov't saw just how important it is was to have a designated agency take care of our national parks. If the PBS special

Roosevelt Arch

on the national parks doesn't  get that point across, just spend a few hours here and it smacks you in the face!

We enjoyed our time here, today.  We start hiking some trails tomorrow.  Later, David

Just across the street!

...and they poop in this RV park, too!

Yellowstone Natl Park

August and there's still snow on the mountains in Montana

...Well, almost.  It's just across the Yellowstone River from our RV site here at Rocky Mountain RV Park in Gardiner, MT.  We left Priest Lake Monday morning with an overnight stop at Missoula, MT and continuing on today to Gardiner, MT where we'll stay for the next week.  Gardiner is on US 89 and is just outside the north entrance to Yellowstone and the Mammoth Hot Springs junction.  The stop at Missoula gave us a chance to restock the trailer and give us a break during the 11 hour ride from Priest Lake to Yellowstone.  We're already missing all those meals that Thom and Mary made, though.  Nice to be pampered!

Missoula was an interesting stop.  We spent the night at Jim & Mary's RV Park just east of Missoula on US 93.  It seems to be a staging area for those headed to Glacier National Park.  Both Glacier and Yellowstone are east of Priest Lake, but we're headed to the Escapees Escapade 2011 in Gillette, WY.  Yellowstone was along the most direct route to Gillette.  So we're back here, again, and hoping to visit the northern sections of Yellowstone that we didn't get to in 2009.  Hopefully, we can get our bikes to Old Faithful, too.  Glacier is on the "to see" list for next year.

More later, David

Roaming Priest lake

The marina at Hill's Resort

Granite Falls

Just a weekend update on our visit to Donna's cousin. After three days of full-on, tour guide duty, we thought we'd give 'em a break and go out on our own Thursday.  The hike from Elkin's Resort to Hill's resort went well until what we thought was a three mile hike turned into a seven mile hike.  Realizing we weren't going to make a planned lunch with Thom at Hill's, I turned on the GPS function of my smart phone to only have it show us in

Upper Priest Lake

the middle of Priest Lake at Luby Bay.  That didn't jive with the terra firma under our feet, so we called in help from Thom.  GPSs are remarkable.  They never list the road the way locals would.  So our smartphone's second attack was to list the name of the 4-wheeler road we were on vice the trail number that the locals would recognize.  Anyway, Thom found us and we had a great lunch.  We drove to Hill's for lunch today!

Hanna Flat

I have to give the smartphone credit.  At least it didn't give us the time, date, and weather for Santa Fe, NM! 

Let there be no doubt - we have seen a lot in the five days we've been here.  We've enjoyed a ride up the Thorofare between Upper & Lower Priest Lake complete with picnic lunch.  We've visited the upper and lower falls of Granite Falls.  Thom and

Thorofare between Upper & Lower Priest Lake

Mary have driven us up on Watson Mountain so we can get an overlook view of both upper and lower Priest Lake.  We've visited one of the oldest stores on the lake - the Leonard Paul's store here in Coolin.  Enjoyed a great walk through the virgin forest of Hanna Flat where Hemlocks still exist.



Finally, we've gotten information overload at a beautiful forest rangers' cabin (below) now used for a museum and visitors center.  Hope you enjoy the pictures.  There's more on facebook. David

Priest Lake Museum and Visitors Center

Priest Lake, ID

Donna, Mary & Thom

Priest Lake - the Crown Jewel of Idaho

A short update.  We arrived at Coolin, ID right at noon Sunday and was greeted by excellent weather plus a somewhat empty campground that's part of The Inn at Priest Lake.  We've had an excellent time with Thom and Mary as they play tour guide and allow us to lounge around their house.

Chimney Rock

It's our first time here, and it's gorgeous in this neck of the woods.

Today was boat ride day.  Thom & Mary took us around the lower half of Priest Lake.  Personally, I had a great ride, free lunch, nap, and home made roasted chicken for dinner.  It doesn't get any better than this!

If you have been to this part of the country, you need to come here and visit!  Oh, second half of boat tour tomorrow.  Later, David 

Deer Park, WA

Donna returns from a nice ride though the park and neighborhoods

After an overnighter in Richland, WA, we've arrived safely at Deer Park, WA.  We're parked here for the weekend to visit Donna's Uncle Larry & Aunt Lillian, Aunt Dorothy, and cousin Sandy before invading Donna's cousin Thom at Priest Lake, ID.

We're located at the Spokane RV Resort and Deer Park Golf Club.  This is a perfect example of why it's called

John Day Dam on the Columbia River

RVing instead of camping.  It's built for large Class A motorhomes, but we're seeing all types and sizes of RVs.  No tents, though.  If you're a golfer, this place was built for you.  Don't like RVs?  There's subdivisions and condos just down the street.  It appears the yards are professionally maintained.  Bet the HOA fees are steep!

Later, David

Mid-trip update

Mt Shasta

Grass Lake Rest Area about a half hour south of the Oregon State Line

Just a mid-trip update as we travel from Petaluma, CA to Spokane, WA.  So far we've travel through what's called the "High Desert Wilderness".  Not what I'd call a desert, but I'm no expert.

Redding, CA put us at the northern end of the mid-valley farming country and just south of Lake Shasta.  From there we crossed over the Cascade Range traveling north on US 97 to 

The stand off at Crescent, OR

Crescent, OR.  The landscape of this portion of the trip is very similar to Yellowstone Natl Park.  Looking at the map and based on what I can recall about the history of the Yellowstone hotspot, this may be an area of one of the eruptions of the Yellowstone hotspot tens of millions of years ago.

From Crescent, OR we traveled to Culver, OR (a short day that allowed for laundry to be done.)

Big Pines RV Park, Crescent, OR

From here it's on to planned stops in Richland, WA and Deer Park, WA where we'll invade anther part of the west coast Starks.  Later, David