# Yellowstone, Here We Come (almost)!



## Herbicidal

Weâ€™re leaving on the 19th and driving from Roseville, CA to Twin Falls, ID (thatâ€™ll be a long day!)







. Weâ€™ll spend two nights at the local KOA and do a day trip to Craters of the Moon on the 20th. On the morning of the 21st weâ€™ll finish up the drive to Yellowstone. We are staying at the Grant Village campground next to Yellowstone lake. They allow generators and have a dump station. Iâ€™m not sure about how we fill up with water, however. Has anyone stayed at this campground before?

Weâ€™ll spend 7 nights and start heading back home on the 28th. Weâ€™ll split the return drive up by spending one night in Wells, NV., then onto home the following day. At least Iâ€™ll have the weekend to recover before returning to work.

Iâ€™ve just replaced our old dual 12 volt batteries with a pair of 6 volt Trojan 125â€™s. That should to the trick when we can't run the generator!

Let the countdown begin!


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## wolfwood

*Tick....

Tock.

Tick....

Tock.*








Have a GREAT trip, Herb !!!


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## OBOregon

Very cool-We too are leaving on the 21st for Mt. Rushmore for 2 weeks. We are driving Portland to Garrison MT day 1 then Day 2 we are headed to Garryowen, sp, and doing the Big/littlehorn trip and then day 3 headed into the Black Hills region for all the sites to see there. And a possible side detour to Omaha NE for possible College World Series Game.

Lots of fun this Summer and look forward to this trip. Have fun and look for some great pics of the trip.

OB ORegon


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## Herbicidal

Thanks Wolfie!









OBOregon - Wow!







That's some serious driving! I hope your new Tundra handles the trip with ease. For the 1st day out, you have us beat by about 50 miles.







Have a safe journey and have a wonderful time!


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## NDJollyMon

Herb...
Enjoy Yellowstone!
There is water available at Grant Village Campground. I'm not seeing it's location on the map, however.

I just love that truck by the way!


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## bentpixel

Herbicidal,
I wish you and yours a great time at Yellowstone. Vacationed there last July (before OB). Stayed a Norris CG. BTW, the sulfur cauldrons did stink but we did get a break from the bugs.









Happy Camping,
Scott


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## h2oman

Have a ball dude. Bringing the rods?


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## Lady Di

Have a wonderful trip. We were at Yellowstone for 5 nights last week. What a beautiful, varied Park. It would take months to see all of Yellowstone, and then the next year it would be different. Enjoy your time there.


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## 4ME

Have a Blast!
Let us know how it goes.


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## summergames84

My favorite place on the planet..Yellowstone. Enjoy your trip and be safe.


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## Herbicidal

Thanks everyone! These last 3 days at work are going to be tough. I'm starting to get a little







!

NDJollyMon - thanks for the compliment.









h2oman - sorry, not a fisherman. Nothing against it, just didn't pick it up as I grew older. When I was a young kid, I used to ocean fish with my grandfather between Mendocino and Albion, CA. Salmon, Red Snapper, Lingcod and the like. Great memories!

Lady Di - where did you stay?

I'll post up pic's of the campground plus some of the wonderful sights at the park. Be safe in your travels everyone. Don't forget to check your lugnuts!


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## bcsmith4k

Herb,
Maybe we will meet up in Yellowstone...we will be in Yellowstone and Grand Tetons from June 24th through the 29th. Looks like we're taking almost the same route through Nevada and Idaho...will actually be in Twin Falls on the 18th and 19th. Hope to see you sometime. Have a safe journey.

Bill & Carol


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## Herbicidal

bcsmith4k said:


> Herb,
> Maybe we will meet up in Yellowstone...we will be in Yellowstone and Grand Tetons from June 24th through the 29th. Looks like we're taking almost the same route through Nevada and Idaho...will actually be in Twin Falls on the 18th and 19th. Hope to see you sometime. Have a safe journey.
> 
> Bill & Carol


Bill - how wild is that? Where are you staying in the park? I'll keep an eye out for your tow vehicle. Look for a lifted green Tundra with a winch on the front. Not too many of those around!









Have a safe trip too! At least you'll know we're behind you somewhere!


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## JimO

[We're thinking of a September trip there. Let us know how it goes. Have fun.


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## skippershe

Have a great time and a safe trip








Photos please!

Enjoy your adventure!!


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## RizFam

Have a wonderful trip, Enjoy & Be Safe!!








Looking forward to hearing all about it & seeing the photos.

Tami


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## dgross3910

Please post photos! We are going to Mt Rushmore/ Little Big Horn and Yellowstone in August. Have a safe and fun trip!!!!

Don


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## Herbicidal

No worries everyone! I will take and post the best photo's upon our return.







In the meantime, here's a link I found for the Old Faithful web cam. It refreshes automatically every 30 seconds. Enjoy!

http://www.nps.gov/archive/yell/oldfaithfulcam.htm


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## Herbicidal

Well we have a bump in the road...my daughter was at a friend's birthday/swim party and while she was jumping in the pool, banged her lower jaw on top of her friends head as she was coming up. Long story short and after 3 hours at the E.R, she is now sporting a lower lip the size of New Jersey along with 4 stitches! Her top teeth punctured all the way through her lower lip! Poor kid.







She is hanging in there like a real trooper. She can barely open her mouth and she has to eat small bites of soft food. Drinking is a bit of a challenge too. She can't really get her lips to seal around a straw, so she does the best she can with the edge of the cup.

The stitches will need to come out in 5 days which puts us at Yellowstone. Weâ€™ll need to find a clinic to remove the stitches. The E.R doc said he knew for sure that Jackson Hole has a clinic. I suspect that somewhere within the park, there must be a place that can remove the stitches too.

Her spirits are still high in spite of everything, and now weâ€™re concentrating on keeping the injury clean. Her two top teeth took quite a hit. Weâ€™ve been in contact with her orthodontist and she has an upper retainer that sheâ€™ll be wearing 24/7 except when eating. Not quite the way we wanted to start the trip, but accidents happen.

Still planning on heading out at 5am, Tuesday morning.


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## skippershe

Ouch! Your poor daughter!
I sure hope she's feeling better soon...Her injury could have been so much worse








I guess the bright side is that she is still able to make the trip


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## Camping Fan

Herbicidal said:


> The stitches will need to come out in 5 days which puts us at Yellowstone. Weâ€™ll need to find a clinic to remove the stitches. The E.R doc said he knew for sure that Jackson Hole has a clinic. I suspect that somewhere within the park, there must be a place that can remove the stitches too.


Ouch, sorry to hear about your daughter's injury. Sounds like she's a tough kid though if she's still excited about your trip.

Here's a link to the Yellowstone NP website that lists medical services available in the park. There are three clinics in the park, I would imagine any of them could remove your daughter's stitches.


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## California Jim

Ouch! Sorry about that Herb. Hope all goes without any surprises, and I look forward to getting all the details when you get back.

We will be doing a 2-3 week trip from California to Yellowstone next year, so I'm especially interested!


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## N7OQ

Herb we did a similar trip we stayed at the Craters of the Moon campground, hiked and explored the lava tubes and hiked to the top of a cinder cone had a great time there. Because all the ground and lava rocks are flat black the campground is extra dark, I had a great time using my Telescope there.









We then went to Tetons NP stayed a week then on to Yellowstone and stayed at Grant Village campground. Great campground we had a site right next to the lake, I use to sit by the lake every morning and watch the Osprey catch fish. We also stopped at the falls in Twin Falls.

This was one of our best ever vacations, we want do do the same trip again. When we went there it was the end of Sept. and the Elk were in rut, fun to watch the big bulls. There are way to many Buffalo there now.

I hope you have a great time, take lots of pictures and let all know how if went when you get back.


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## Sluggo54

Sorry about your daughter's lip wreck, Herb. That has to hurt!

Water is available at the dump stations. Hint: At Grant, there is a "hidden" dump station behind the service station. It is much less busy than the ones on the CG road.

We are meeting up with PK's sis tomorrow, and heading into the park on Wednesday. The plan is to stay at Indian Creek CG - no gennies allowed there. You're right, that's what those two big sixers are all about. If necessary, we can hitch up and pull out on the CG entrance road and charge up. The hosts there last year were real nice; they let folks bring batteries to their trailers and to the office and put them on a charger. I don't want to be carrying those guys around, though.

My truck is a dark red 05 Chebbie CCLB, but will likely be traveling in a dark blue Chrysler minivan.

Ok, as of tomorrow, we will be off the commo net for a while!

Sluggo


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## Herbicidal

Hello! Thanks everyone for your concern about my daughter. She is doing better every day. Thank you too Camping Fan for the link. Looks like the clinic at Old Faithful will do the trick. I appreciate the tips and tricks about the dump station and H2O. We hope to explore some lava tubes at Craters of the Moon tomorrow.

I've been up since 3:30am. We left the house @ 6am and arrived in Twin Falls, ID about 12 1/2 hours (540 miles) later. Whew! No problems whatsover. The kids were fantastic! They pretty much just read their books, colored and played with some Hot Wheels. Not even any bickering between the two! Amazing! We had the Dramamine on standby just in case...









We're staying at a KOA in Twin Falls and obviously they have an internet 'hot spot'. I brought my laptop with the DeLorme software for navigation and other fun stuff. It can also play DVD's and I picked up an extra set of headphones for my youngest with a Y splitter so they could both watch a movie if it became a matter of self preservation. Theirs or mine.







But they did so well, it was never even brought up.

I'm ready for a shower and bed. 







Take care everyone.


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## California Jim

Awsome deal H. Glad you made the first leg without any trouble. Good luck and take notes! I'm looking forward to any tips or attractions when you return


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## skippershe

Sounds like you're having a wonderful trip so far








Glad the kids are treating you well...
Looking forward to some stories and photos,

Enjoy!


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## Herbicidal

Got'cha covered Jim (congrats on the new ride!).







Thanks Dawn, so far so good. The kids have been amazingly well behaved. Except just now the youngest bit through a glo-stick and ended up with the non-toxic stuff in his mouth.







No harm, no foul.









Spent a good chunk of the day at Craters of the Moon (90 miles each way from camp). The weather was a little warm, but tolarable. All the lava formations are incredible to look at. I'm not sure the pictures will do it justice. Probably the favorite part was exploring some of the lava tubes. We brought a 4 cell Mag light and that made it possible. Nice and cool inside the 'tubes' as well.

Checking our route for tomorrow has us heading to Idaho Falls and over to Jackson, WY and up through the south entrance of Yellowstone. It still looks to be a 7 hour drive with some breaks thrown in.

This may be my last night with internet access until we return home. Time for some zzzzzz's. See ya!

PS: my daughter's lip is almost back to it's normal size, however, she still has a nasty scab across the top and that will probably come off in a couple of more days. The stitches will need to come out no later than Friday.


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## wolfwood

I'm a little late on this Herb, but so sorry to hear of your daughter's accident. I did that very thing when I was a kid and - yup, it hurts! She's trooper!!!!! Glad to hear your vaca is shaping up to be all that you had hoped....sounds like even the kids knew Daddy needed a break. Have a GREAT time & don't forget to sift that Yellowstone soil to the East









See ya' next time around!


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## Sluggo54

Herb - where are ya? Did getting your DD's stitches out go ok? See any interesting critters? I watched for the lifted green Toy, but didn't see it. I did see an Outback at Indian Creek CG...

Sluggo


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## Herbicidal

We made it back in one piece. Whew! Just over 2,600 miles, but man it was worth it!!!







My daughters lip is pretty much 100% now. She never complained once.

We had six (very) full days at Yellowstone. We took two days to get back. Yellowstone to Wells, NV. The next day was from Wells to home, about 450 miles. We did see (in passing) a couple of other Outbacks, no opportunity to talk to anyone though. We did pass by Indian Creek CG, but didn't pull in.

I believe we covered the entire park. We saw Buffalo (some within 20' of the truck, wouldn't get that close on foot!), Moose with a baby, Grizzly bear with 2 cubs, Black bear with a cub, white Pelicans, Osprey, Bald Eagles, Mule Deer and the list goes on!

Hayden Valley provided the most views of the most animals. We took almost 300 pictures plus video. It will take me some time to wade through them and figure out which ones to post.

I just can't quite believe we are back home and I go back to work tomorrow, my kids and wife (5th grade teacher) are still on summer vacation. Sigh. It's taken almost the entire weekend to plow through the laundry and get everthing unpacked and put away. Ya'all know that drill.

Take care everyone and I'll try to post some pictures within the next few days. Have a safe and happy 4th!


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## Camping Fan

Welcome home Herbicidal.







Glad your trip went well, can't wait to see some pictures.







Sorry about the going to work tomorrow thing - the only bad thing about a great vacation is eventually having to go back to reality.


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## Sluggo54

Glad you made it back okay and DD's wound is just a bad memory.

For the 8th straight year, we were skunked, so to speak, on bear. We did pass the griz and 2 cubs just north of the summit of Mt Washburn, but the ranger there was being a *&$^head and she wouldn't let traffic stop. Yeah, I know - but people save for months, even years, to be there and see these things. It doesn't seem right that they won't let you stop and look.

Also passed a bear sighting at Madison Junction, but had the 5er on at the time and traffic was not allowing for a place to stop.

Did you see the same moose and calf we did? They were just south of Canyon Junction, on the west side of the road, in a little pond. The rangers there were much more accommodating. We saw pelicans, bald eagles w/two good-size chicks, wapiti (elk) with calves, bison w/calves, pronghorn, no goats or sheep. We did see sheep outside the park. Also, of course, pika, multiple types of ground squirrels, and even - I think - a pine marten. Man, they are quick.

Sluggo


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## campntn

Glad you had a great trip. We had a wonderful time there as well. Sounds like we saw the exact same animals. I"m thinking they are paid animals to go to those spots and smile for the tourists. LOL. 
Post your pictures when you can. Like you, I'm still sifting. 
Mark


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## RizFam

Welcome home Herbicidal! Glad your daughters lip/jaw is almost all healed.

Sounds like you all had a Blast. Can't wait to see your photos. Hope you were able to get a shot of the Momma & baby bear.









Tami


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## wolfwood

PERFECT! Sounds like the trip was all it was meant to be!!! Can't wait to see the photos....from all of you!!

Think of that nasty 'work thingy' this way.....gotta pay to play and the work-thingy makes that possible. I know that's how I get thru every day, especially these days when the sun is out and it seems that _everyone _ else is on vaca









BUt soon....VERY soon.....it'll be our turn!!

Welcome home!!!


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## Herbicidal

Sluggo54 said:


> Glad you had a great trip. We had a wonderful time there as well. Sounds like we saw the exact same animals. I"m thinking they are paid animals to go to those spots and smile for the tourists. LOL.
> Post your pictures when you can. Like you, I'm still sifting.
> Mark


I was thinking the same thing! Animatronics has sure come along way...could it be...no...it couldn't...could it?







All those 'service' roads get me to thinking... How about those geyers? Are they really that random or that predictable?









Almost forgot, we hooked up the kids with a brand new program called the Junior Scientist at the Old Faithful Visitor Center. It was like $5 or $10 to "rent" the science backpack for the day. It came with all kinds of cool stuff including an infrared thermometer gun thingy. It was a fair amount of work for the kids and us to work our way through tasks, but they earned a patch at the end. The infrared thermometer was a huge hit! We had lots of people asking about it and where they could buy one. We used it to take the 'temperature' of the mud pots, fumerols and just about anything else they could point it at. They also did the Junior Ranger program (not quite as difficult as the Junior Scientist) and earned a patch for their efforts.

Pictures...I've gotten as far as downloading them off the camera. I haven't even looked at them yet. Sheesh!


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## wolfwood

I love those Junior Ranger/Junior Scientist programs!!! Anything that'll get the kids REALLY involved in how the world around them works is, in my book, top notch!!

Our facilities guy uses an IF Thermometer ...and I had the same response the first time he let me touch it! Had to check the temp. of - - well - - just about everything! Here's a link to 1 kind...but it seems there are many options out there!

IF Thermometers


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## Chabbie1

Glad to hear you had a great time and your daughter is doing well. Can't wait to see pictures as we are planning a trip there next summer. Welcome home!


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## Herbicidal

wolfwood said:


> Glad to hear you had a great time and your daughter is doing well. Can't wait to see pictures as we are planning a trip there next summer. Welcome home!


Thanks Chabbie1. I just noticed you are right up the road from me. How about that? Please let me know if I can help as far as where we stayed on the way there and back, etc.


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## Lady Di

Herbicidal, where did you stay at Yellowstone?

I have started sorting photos. Have the best group 'down to' - 367.

Gotta downsize some more.


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## Herbicidal

Hello Lady Di! We stayed at the Grant Village campground near West Thumb. 400+ campsites, a store, gas station, dump station with fresh h2o, laundry and showers nearby. Showers cost $2 for 6 minutes. We made our reservations back in January, but there were still sites open while we were there. It was an easy walk down to Yellowstone lake.


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## California Jim

Herbicidal said:


> Hello Lady Di! We stayed at the Grant Village campground near West Thumb. 400+ campsites, a store, gas station, dump station with fresh h2o, laundry and showers nearby. Showers cost $2 for 6 minutes. We made our reservations back in January, but there were still sites open while we were there. It was an easy walk down to Yellowstone lake.


Campground info saved for next year. Thanks


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## Herbicidal

Hi C.J, feel free to drop me a line if you would like any more specifics. Both my wife and I felt that 6 full days allowed us to pretty much see and do all that we and the kids wanted. Any more time there would have been more along the lines of actual relaxation.







As it was, our days were pretty full, sometimes not returning to camp until after 9pm. The benefits of that were seeing more animals in the evening and it was not as crowded at the major features as people were returning back to their campsites. One day we even brought a change of clothes and towels and used the showers at Canyon (an hours drive or more from Grants Village) at the end of the day. It cost $3.50 per person, BUT, the showers were not timed. It felt so good! Everyone felt revitalized and then we had dinner and saw more sights as the sun began to set on our way back to camp.

As you probably already know, pictures will be more dramatic with the sun at a lower angle in the sky. Like backlighting Old Faithful and the various geyers, etc.

When can I go again?


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## Sluggo54

"The infrared thermometer was a huge hit! We had lots of people asking about it and where they could buy one. We used it to take the 'temperature' of the mud pots, fumerols and just about anything else they could point it at. They also did the Junior Ranger program (not quite as difficult as the Junior Scientist) and earned a patch for their efforts.
Herbicidal"

What a hoot! I worked in the park in '84 (water and wastewater plant operator at Grant Village). Bob was 14, and loves to fish, so he kept pretty busy. Even so, eventually he got a little bored. I gave him a map of the features at West Thumb, a lab thermometer, and a long fishing rod. He was doing his assigned by me task of making a thermal map when a ranger spotted him. "What the cat hair are you doing...?"

Ranger hooked him up with a uniform, badge, and VIP (volunteer in the park) status. He spent the rest of our time there leading tours at West Thumb.

Back then, the campground at West had just closed. The photo shop, store, cafeteria, and employee housing was still there. Now there is next to nothing - just a bookstore run by the YPA. !984 was the first year the facilities at Grant opened. It was quite the cluster.

Sluggo


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## California Jim

Thanks Herb. I may just do that.







I'm just now gathering info so I can plan some form of itinerary for next year. We're departing on 6-14-08 and will be out for at least 2 weeks, maybe more. Yellowstone will be our "signature" destination.


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## Chabbie1

Herbicidal said:


> Glad to hear you had a great time and your daughter is doing well. Can't wait to see pictures as we are planning a trip there next summer. Welcome home!


Thanks Chabbie1. I just noticed you are right up the road from me. How about that? Please let me know if I can help as far as where we stayed on the way there and back, etc.
[/quote]

Thanks, that would be a great help. We would like to drive and stay somewhere about halfway or more the first day. We would then head on out to Yellowstone on day 2. Once inside Yellowstone we thought about staying in Norris. Did you checkout the campgrounds there? I think generators are welcome there, but not sure about a dump station and the availability of filling up our water tank. Any info would be great. 
Happy 4th


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## Herbicidal

Hello Chabbie1! On our trip out to Yellowstone, we spent the first night a KOA located in Jerome, ID. This town is about 5 miles or so north of Twin Falls. The drive took just about 12 hours (my kids are bookaholics and read almost the entire time!), including the pit stops for the potty, food and fuel. It is approximately 590 miles from Roseville. We spent two nights (full hook upâ€™s) and used the day in between to go to Craters of the Moon (http://www.nps.gov/crmo). It is about 90 miles away to the N.E. A great day trip if you have the interest and the time.

Then we continued on to Yellowstone. The second travel day was about 8 hours. We opted to come in the south entrance (this took us past the Grand Tetons), you may want the west entrance depending upon where you end up camping.

Unfortunately we did not look at the Norris campground, sorry. Hereâ€™s a link I just found for Norris: http://www.yellowstone.net/camping/norris.htm

For our return trip, we went from Grant Village Campground in Yellowstone to Wells, NV. That was also about a 12 hour day. Spent 1 night at Mountain Shadows RV park www.mountainshadowsrvpark.com. It was very clean and we just pulled in, left the truck and trailer connected and the next morning, pulled out, easy as pie. There is a main line for the railroad about an 1/8th mile away, so there was some train noise, but not too bad in my opinion.

Wells, NV to home was about 9 hours (453 miles according to Google maps).

I hope this helps!


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## Herbicidal

The pictures are HERE!

Enjoy!


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## Chabbie1

Herbicidal said:


> The pictures are HERE!
> 
> Enjoy!


thanks for the information! Your pictures are great.
To change the subject, how do you like the mckesh mirrors? We have a Sequoia with the suction type mirrors from camping world. They are ok, but would like something a little larger.


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## Lady Di

Herbicidal, the photo looks just like Fishing Bridge. Is that where you stayed?

By the way, the photos are great.


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## Herbicidal

Chabbie1 said:


> Herbicidal, the photo looks just like Fishing Bridge. Is that where you stayed?
> 
> By the way, the photos are great.


Thanks Lady Di! I included a photo of the Fishing Bridge campground just to show folks kind of what it looks like. We stayed at the campground in Grants Village.


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## wolfwood

Herbicidal said:


> The pictures are HERE!
> 
> Enjoy!


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## Herbicidal

Thanks Wolfie!


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## Herbicidal

I was searching around the internet trying to find the height of Lower Falls (308') and stumbled across this pretty cool link to the waterfalls in Yellowstone. Maybe something useful for those future Yellowstoner's.


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## skippershe

Herb,

Your photos are beautiful! Thank you for including descriptions, I love to know what's what


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