DAY 17

 Today is the day that we go to see "Old Faithful". We stayed in West Yellowstone which is just over the border in Montana. Got on the road after breakfast and the day started out a little chilly. I guess the fact that we're up in the mountains and riding through some shaded roads is the reason for that. On the way we saw some elk roaming in the fields. they caused a slight traffic stop but then we were making good time.

"Old Faithful' seems to be a very popular tourist attraction. As you ride through Yellowstone you're usually on a two lane road and ride with only a few others. But as you get near the geyser the traffic builds considerably and there is a separate lane for "Old Faithful" traffic.
The parking lot is huge and there are two lodges and a clinic. I guess we got somewhat lucky because after the walk to the geyser viewing area we only had to wait about twenty minutes for the show to begin.

There are times when it could be about an hour and a half between eruptions. It's amazing how many people were there sitting patiently waiting for nature to decide when to do its thing. We actually had two "false starts" when the geyser gave a little teaser shot. But then we finally got to see what we came for. It's really quite a phenomenon when you think that this thing can be so predictable.

As we were leaving through the lodge, we saw the big clock that tells when the next show should be. A smaller sign below it warns that it could be plus or minus 10 minutes. But it's still unbelievable that this thing has been happening for years and we're so sure it will continue to happen that we've built roads to get to it and buildings selling "Old Faithful" stuff and the traffic to the site never seems to end.

 After our morning trip to "Old Faithful" we took a ride that was supposed to give us a look at various wildlife like eagles and moose and bears and elk. Someone told me about this 60 mile loop from West Yellowstone so we figured we'd kill the afternoon and check it out. We ended up going into Idaho for a short time and then back into Montana.

This lake that we passed along our route is called "Earthquake Lake". I don't know why but thought it was very interesting that the trees are still rooted enough to still be standing in all of that water.

By the way, we did the whole 60 mile loop and saw not one creature stirring. No buffalo roaming or deer and antelope playing.

So when we got back to town, before calling it an evening and going for dinner, we went to a Grizzly and Wolf Preserve. It was the closest that Faith was going to get to a bear. It was a nice park like setting with large enclosures for the bear and the wolves.