We survived our first night in West Yellowstone without any animal encounters and after some bike adjustments and advice from the rangers, we headed into the park. In our first three miles we were greeted by the Yellowstone wildlife, including a Bison walking in our bicycle lane. Our first night at Morris Junction we met Pablo and Clem- the Spaniard and the Frenchman. They were also touring Yellowstone by bicycle so the next day we headed off together to see the geysers at Norris Junction. We were amazed by the beautiful colors, the smell of rotten eggs and the scorching heat of the sulfuric steam. We parted ways with Pablo and Clem at the Canyon (but ended up running into both of them again in the next couple of days!) The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone and Yellowstone Lake took our breath away. We decided on a daytrip down to the Tetons so that we could still go out of the eastern entrance towards Cody. The scenery changed dramatically as we headed east towards Cody and the heart of Buffalo Bill's Wild West. In Cody we stayed with our 'fairy godfather od the west' who we had first met in Cathlamet, WA. We couldn't have asked for better hosts. We still don't know how we will ever repay all the amazing hospitality and kindness we have been offered over the course of this trip. After coming out of the bighorns, we left the rocky mountains behind us and were officially in the Great Plains, finally! In Buffalo, WY we had the incredible luck of meeting another amazing host, fellow bicyclist and environmental historian. Unfortunately, Elisabeth's knee problems had been getting worse and worse over the course of the trip and she had to face the incredibly difficult decision of whether to continue the trip or not. Ultimately, she realized that the knee most likely would not be intact by the time she reached the east coast and so, faced with the hard reality, she and Lindsay parted ways in Buffalo, WY.
snow capped view over the roofs of West Yellowstone
entering Yellowstone!
reflective lake coming into Yellowstone from the west entrance
precarious bike riding when the Bison walks in the bicycle lane
Lindsay and Pablo and the crowd of tourists at Norris geyser basin, Yellowstone
porcelain basin, Yellowstone
geyser!
geothermal smoke, scorching heat and the smell of sulfur
Lindsay at the Yellowstone Canyon
unbelievably gorgeous Grand Canyon of Yellowstone
Elisabeth at the Canyon
Bison on Yellowstone River
Yellowstone Lake!
The bicycles posing
elk on Yellowstone Lake
elk love on geothermal grounds
at the top of a canyon on the way to the Tetons
the bikes posing en route to the the Tetons
the Tetons rising out of the lake
unbelievable wetland scenery out of the eastern entrance of Yellowstone
on the road between the eastern entrance of Yellowstone and Cody
looking back on Shoshone national forest outside of Cody
crazy rock formations on the way to Cody
more beautiful rock formations coming into Cody
Buffalo Bill's wild west
storms brewing over the Buffalo Bill Reservoir
share the road
Cody- Rodeo capital of the world
Chugwater formations coming toward the Bighorns
our fairy godfather, the marshmellow queen and Lucie
coming down out of the bighorns
our first view of the Great Plains coming down from the Bighorns
our wonderful host's house in Buffalo, WY
A real he-man cookbook with recipes that use dead things, and hot stuff, and parts of pickup trucks
waterfall through Crazy Woman Canyon
top of Crazy Woman Canyon
lowest town population so far
coal train coming from Gillette,WY- town that hosts the second largest coal mining operation in the United States
Hey Guys! Glad to hear the travels are going well. Beautiful photos! Sorry to hear about your knee Elisabeth! That stinks, I hope you both make it back safe and sound. We miss ya'll! Much Love, Brit and Sean
ReplyDeleteHi! This is Janelle, of the 3J's you met in Yellowstone. Just wanted to say thank you so much for all of the information you gave us! We ended up staying with Brad in Clarkston and Genie in Dayton (AND at the Bike Camp)... all were great recommendations. Thanks so much, and I hope your trip is going well!
ReplyDeleteHey, did you guys finish the tour? Ran into yinz at Multnomah Falls in the Columbia Gorge.
ReplyDeleteMontana is indeed beautiful! I've only been once, to Great Falls to visit my friend Nora; looks like you weren't going through that way. I'm sad to hear that E Wolfe couldn't keep going, though. I hope you find more things to blog about here later!
ReplyDelete--Elizabeth.
Seriously. Did y'all finish the tour? Is this thing on?
ReplyDeleteHey ya'll, Lindsay here. I am writing to you from my home in New Jersey. Here is a long overdue update of sorts: Elisabeth dropped off the trip in Buffalo, Wyoming due to knee injuries. I continued across through South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, ferried across Lake Michigan, and stopped in central Michigan due to knee injuries. This August(2011), I will finish the tour, with a lovely ride from Detroit to Boston. Anyone care to join?
ReplyDeleteWe were both incredibly lucky to have met so many interesting and supportive people throughout our journey across. Thanks for being a part of it! I will blog here for the journey from Detroit to Boston. Cheers!
-Lindsay
Lindsay, that's a bummer to hear. Was hoping you made it across. But now you'll be trying this year, and that's good to hear! I'd love to join, but my girlfriend and I happen to be on our own cross-continent tour as we speak. We are in Missoula, Montana after a month of being on the road. We'll make it that way at some point, but I don't think I'll be getting to near Detroit until later August. Best of luck, -Shawn
ReplyDeleteLindsay, did you ever finish this ride? I'd be interested to hear about it!
ReplyDeleteStill wonderng what happened...
ReplyDelete