The Great Experiment

So we have had an unusual family situation for the past 3 years.  Rob has been really sick mentally.  He has been making progress and so we decided to try a family trip.  All of us in the same car (including Annie) went to Yellowstone.  Ambitious yes but totally successful.  There were a couple of rough patches and some time without Rob while he calmed his brain but we did it.

Our first stop was the Tetons and the tent cabins at Coulter Bay.  This is a Wells' family tradition and I have been a bit wimpy about it in the past but we had a lot of fun and I am reconsidering my previous insistance that I have four solid walls and a bathroom adjacent to my room. 

 The view from Jackson Lake Lodge.  We were there at the wrong time of day to see any moose but the view is still breathtaking.


Fishing in Jackson Lake.  What would a Wells family trip be without a little fishing.  We didn't catch anything which is also a Wells family tradition.

The first night in the tent cabin we all settled down.  the boys were asleep and Holly and I were reading.  Holly got really upset about a dead spider she could see from her bunk.  After much frustraition I told her she could sleep on the floor.  The next morning she said while sitting on her bunk bed that the dead spider wasn't bothering her as much anymore.  I came in to see the dead spider and saw this. 

My first reaction was horror until I realized it was a pine cone.  It looked at first glance and I am sure from the dim light of a flashlight like a huge dead spider.  Poor, brave Holly.  Had I seen that right before going to sleep I would have kicked up a huge fuss and I definitely would not have gotten back on the bed to "get used to the dead spider" the next day.



Our next stop was the Old Faithful Inn.  I am not sure why we have no pictures of the Inn.  Unless it is because we were so satisfied and pampered that we didn't even think about it.  Our room was right off the main lobby area just a couple of floors up.  At night they have a pianist playing music from the second floor landing.  The Lobby's ceiling is the roof of the building and the different levels are all open to the lobby and the great fireplace.  I was lulled to sleep by the beautiful piano and then later a guy with a guitar.  I want to live there someday. 

These are some nature pictures I took while Holly, Max and I walked the trail around some of the geysers. 

 

Mammoth Hot Springs

We spent one night at Mammoth in the cabins.  Once when Holly was little we stayed in the hotel at Mammoth.  It is super nice but it reminded me of the hotel in The Shining.  At night if you need to use the bathroom you have to go down the hall to the community bathroom.  I stepped out into the long hall and knew for sure there would be some twins holding hands down a corridor or a boy riding by on his big wheel.  so creepy. 

 The elk herd that hangs out on the lawn next to the Mammoth hotel.

                                                                            Ice cream!

 I took the kids to see the petrified tree.  Somewhere in the park there is a forest of petrified trees but it is a hike into back country and I am chicken when it comes to the back country in Yellowstone.  (Wow this is turning into a post about everything I am afraid of.  Yellowstone should inspire some terror right?)

 I kept hyping in up that we were going to see a tree that had turned into rock.  When we took the 20 minute drive and hiked the little trail up Sam said "It looks like a tree".  I said "I know but it's rock" in my isn't geology cool voice.  Sam said "But it looks like a tree". Me: "Yes it looks like a tree" and we turned around and drove back to Mammoth.  

The elk herd headed out to where ever it spends the night and Rob and the kids got a parade right in front of the cabin.  I had gone to the store to get a few odds and ends so I missed the show. 

 The next night we spent at a cabin in Canyon.  On the way we stopped to see Tower falls.

 At Canyon I took the kids on my favorite hike.  We hiked down to see lower falls.  All of the smiling was before the hike

The falls amaze me and inspire a bit of fear (what doesn't, maybe I need to check some of the dosages of my medication).  They are gorgeous and the amount of water falling over the cliff is unbelievable.  Pictures never do it justice.  Just know that the canyon is a lot deeper than it looks in the picture and the water is massive. You can't help but stare and be in awe.

It was on the hike back up that I learned my children are whimps (sorry loves but you know it's true).  The hike down is a switchback trail all down so the hike back up is. . . well . . . up.  I totally kicked the kids tails coming out.  At one point I said how sad it was that their mother was beating them up the trail and Holly said "No Mom the sad thing is that grandma (points to old lady in front of her) is beating us up the trail."  When we got to the top I suggested we take the hike to see upper falls and there was a mutany.  Time to whip some lazy summer bums into shape.  

One of the best things about Yellowstone is the wildlife.  We saw a grizzly bear on this trip and lots of buffalo.  Buffalo are Rob's favorite animal.  I took the kids on a short ride to Hayden Valley after our hike.  We saw buffalo.  I love when the buffalo walk down the middle of the road.  As if they know they have all the power and they are just making sure we know it.  

 This particular buffalo was huge and right in front of our car.  In fact we had just gotten out of our car to see a geological feature and the kids said "Uh mom we need to get back in the car".  down the sidewalk trotted this beast.  We watched as people gathered around and edged closer and closer.  More people are hurt by buffalo in the park than by water features or any other animal.  They look like big cows but they are mean. 

 Don't these people look at the signs.  I have seen one of these charge. 

One of the things that makes Yellowstone so cool is this.  A geologic feature that appeared sometime after the parking lot was laid.  Makes you wonder how stable the ground is underneath.

 I love geology.  I love Volcanoes and plate tectonics.  I bought a book in Yellowstone Super Volcano the ticking time bomb beneath Yellowstone national park.  Did you know that Yellowstone is a weird hot spot in the middle of a plate?  The plate is moving so eventually Yellowstone will be in a different state.  the whole of Yellowstone is a cauldron that is miles and miles wide.  Stuff like that just makes me happy. 

 The last day we drove through Hayden valley so Rob could get a proper buffalo fix before we left the park and then we left through West Yellowstone. 

Woohoo for our experiment working (mostly).  

Rob started a new medication while we were on this trip and it is making a huge difference.  More to come on that later.