Day 12 – July 11 (with pictures)

Today I spent the majority of the day driving in Yellowstone National Park. I covered most of it on the two man loops. One loop is 90+ miles and the other loop is 70+ miles. When I went to watch Old Faithful, there was another geyser (named Bee Hive) that only goes off once per day that was getting ready to blow so I got to see it blow off some steam. It actually shoots higher in the air than Old Faithful does. Old Faithful was right on schedule with its blast of hot water as well. Both of them were pretty impressive. From what I saw of Yellowstone the east side has the most scenery. Much of the other area is just heavy forest. In the forest areas, you could see how the various parts are recovering from past fires. In some areas, the new trees are 5 – 7 feet tall and the new forest is well underway. In another area that I believe burned more recently, the green grass has returned, but no new tree growth is yet visible.

The next item for the day was to ride Bear Tooth Highway which is Highway 212 going east out of Yellowstone to Red Lodge Montana; which is where I’m spending the night in a KOA. This road is described by many as the most scenic roads as it winds up and over the Saw Tooth Mountains. This road is also known for its many sharp hair pin curves – a biker’s paradise! The road lived up to its billing. The road was both a constant challenge to ride and also provided beautiful views. When I reached the summit this afternoon around 5:30, the temperature was 46 degrees. Much of the snow on the mountains has melted but I did manage to find a few larger snow banks and got a few pictures by them.

For my campsite tonight at the KOA, I have my own special little bridge over a stream to get to my campsite. I feel special. I hope the babbling brook isn’t to noisy!