Well, after much delay, I have the details from the last leg of our journey. We left off with our first day in Yellowstone. So, we’ll pick up with the second day in the amazing park.

The first day did allow us to see much of the park and the wildlife at a rather quick pace. So, the second day we decided to concentrate on the northeast section of the park and take a little more time to explore outside of our vehicle (which is not easy with two children). We headed towards Tower Falls first and checked out the gigantic waterfall and the beautiful canyon area. On the way, we did manage to catch a quick glimpse of a black bear wandering in a  swampy valley in search of food. As for the canyon and waterfall, it was awesome to see a “different” side of Yellowstone. Shortly after checking out the falls we made our way to the Lamar Valley area, which thanks to my brother’s recommendation, was probably the highlight of the day for us. The valley is absolutely stunning when you first see it. Bison are everywhere grazing and the mountains provide a picturesque backdrop. We did catch a glimpse of a wolf. He seemed to be scoping out the gigantic herd of bison, but was too far away for our simple camera to pick up.

It is hard to take all scenery in while moving in a vehicle so we made our way to a little creek called Pebble Creek. We spent a little bit of time outside the vehicle and the kids enjoyed all the rocks at the creek (for one kid specifically, water was more of a thrill than rocks!). It was a great little break from the car and it made us realize that just being barely off the road was very tranquil and peaceful!

Next, we made our way back to a little trail that led to a somewhat secluded lake, called Trout Lake. The hike itself was not very long, but the incline that we had to hike at made it very difficult for not only the little legs that were with us, but also the out-of-shape people too. I know this sounds crazy, but the lake might have been the highlight of the trip for me. It was awesome to get off the “beaten path”, so to speak, and retreat to such a place. And, to make the views even more spectacular, I quickly noticed that the lake was full of some nice rainbow trout! The only negative is that some little legs did, indeed, become exhausted and make the journey back down a little bit of a hassle.

By this time our journey to Yellowstone was near its end. We decided to make our way back towards the north entrance so we could relax and get ready for the early departure that would greet us the next morning. We had one problem. The animal that I most wanted to see, a grizzly, had not made an appearance for us yet. Well, things were about to change! As we were rounding a corner in the road we noticed that up ahead the traffic had come to a halt and there was a police officer and several park rangers directing traffic. Our first thought was that an accident had taken place. To our surprise the closer we got, the more people we saw scampering all over with giant cameras in tow. I looked directly at my wife and told her this HAD to be it! This much commotion would not take place for a bison or elk. Sure enough a grizzly and four cubs had been spotted in a valley down below the road. After a long attempt at trying to find a place to park we made our way to the scene. Sure enough, the grizzly and four little ones were wandering and feeding in the valley below. They were probably at least 400 to 500 yards away, so it did make viewing kind of difficult (not that I wanted them ANY closer!). But I had seen the giant, elusive bear, and my one goal was now accomplished. Our trip to Yellowstone was now complete.

After an exhilarating couple days at Yellowstone we were in for a long drive to Seattle. We did manage to make one interesting stop in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. It is a very scenic city nestled right on Lake Couer d’Alene and the views are stunning. The weather was not the greatest but we still managed to get some glimpses of the beautiful terrain in Idaho. After crossing the short northern stretch of Idaho we were finally in the state of Washington. If you have never been to the state, it is extremely unique. The east side of the state is somewhat flat and almost reminds you of the Midwest. The west side is completely opposite and has towering mountains and hills everywhere. It made for an interesting journey across our last state.

I am glad to say that we did arrive safe to the Seattle area. After spending a few days with some family on Mercer Island, which again, has some breathtaking views of the city of Seattle overlooking Lake Washington, we boarded for the very last leg of the trip – the six hour flight to our new home, the Big Island of Hawaii.

Well, I know that this has been a long series of posts, but I hope this gives you some insight into the journey we took. Thanks to Arthur for allowing me to share these long winded posts. Also, thanks to all our family and friends, we will miss you guys, but will definitely stay in touch!

Hopefully in the near future I will have some more posts and updates on the outdoor activities that I find to do out here in beautiful Hawaii. I already have a list of things I want to check into (recently I discovered there is actually fly fishing for largemouth, smallmouth, and peacock bass on the island of Kauai!!!) and hope to give you, the readers, a different perspective from Simply Outdoors!

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