Jackie - you and Steve were great friends that will last a lifetime, and I really hope to see you guys again. Your dry sense of humor matched mine to a tee and we seemed to have a lot in common. The next time we meet, let's do drinks instead of lunch.
On Saturday, we stayed at the coach until 3:30 on the advice of the above named party to do at least one evening tour through the park to see the different colors from the sun being in a different position in the sky. We drove up to north of Gardner into Montana to see some of the most beautiful scenery I have ever seen in my life. I told someone afterward that what I saw reminded me of an old John Ford western starring John Wayne or the opening credits of Bonanza. Douglas firs, aspen, mountains, sometimes snowcapped and valleys in between the mountains and the forests, herds of cattle and elk, and a lot of prairie gophers dotted the landscape and the road. We didn't see anything larger than a cow as we were hoping on finding a grizzly or a moose, but we still have two weeks in Glacier for that.
On the way back between 7 and 9 PM, we drove through Yellowstone and saw what had been explained to us. We had taken the northern loop road a couple of times but this time, it looked completely different because of the different shadows and colors from the sun being in the western sky ready to set rather than straight up in the middle of the day. The sights were incredible and I wish I could have taken a video of the entire drive because I know I won't remember much of what I saw due to older age.
We ran into the worst traffic backup we have seen thus far due to the difference in hours of our visit. From 1/2 mile from the west entrance road on the north loop to getting into W. Yellowstone, we averaged 7 mph. What should have taken 30 minutes took over two hours. There were no animals to slow us down and no accidents. This was simply rubberneckers trying to see if one of the fishermen standing in the middle of the Madison river had caught anything. And people thinking that the boulder in the middle of the field was a live animal, stopping in the middle of the road and staying there waiting for the rock to move. We got back to the coach at 9:15, fed the dogs and had a late dinner. It was our last foray into the park and still a very enjoyable one.
The above comments must be phrased as advice for those who are thinking of visiting Yellowstone. It has been discussed before that early starts are better than late ones. If you want to avoid as much traffic as possible and see as much as possible, not worrying about finding parking spots, sacrifice your early morning vacation hours and get up about 5 or 6 AM and hit the entrance between 6 and 7. It will already be daylight and you'll have a better chance of seeing wildlife on the loop roads, particularly in the Hayden and Lamar Valleys. You'll also have a much easier time finding parking spaces at the major attractions, giving yourself considerably more time to enjoy them. You'll also beat the rush getting back out of the park as well as trying to get in. At 6AM, there is no line. At 7AM, there will a car or two in front of you. At 10AM, the line to get in the gate extends back to the main street in West Yellowstone, about a 1/2 mile, and then down the main cross street for another 1/2 mile or more. That means waiting in line for no less than an hour just to get in. Go early and avoid the hassle.
We rested on Sunday and got the coach ready for travel since it hadn't been moved in two weeks. We dumped the black tank and refilled it 1/3 with water, checked and filled the tires, checked the fluid levels and added a 1/2 quart of oil. One thing I forgot to do that slowed me down Monday morning was wiping down the jack rods and spraying them with WD-40. That cost me almost an hour the next day waiting for one recalcitrant jack to retract completely.
On Monday, we got up early for our 200 mile drive to Garrison, MT. Even though it was going to be a short drive, we knew it would be a longer day because we planned to do our monthly shopping at the Walmart in Bozeman on the way and also catch a PetSmart to buy a collar for Toby after he lost his a couple of weeks ago. Between the driving on city streets and the time in the stores, time got away from us and we didn't get on I-90 until almost 4PM.
The drive on US191 from Yellowstone to Bozeman was a difficult one. Forget about it being a mountain road; it was badly in need of road work with potholes a foot deep that had to be avoided at all cost. Due to the road condition along with the fact that it was very winding with a variety of grades, it took a lot longer than one would think when simply looking at the distance.
When we got on I-90, we had no issues other than quite a bit of roadwork being done that forced one direction into the other lanes for several miles. Aside from the work areas, the speed limit on this highway is 80 mph. That means nothing to me since I won't go over 65 anyway, but you do have to be aware of people running up on you quickly from behind unaware of your slower speed and trucks passing you at high speeds. We arrived at our RV park a little late but with no problems.
A couple of recommendations are in order regarding visiting Yellowstone. First, I will recommend Buffalo Crossing RV Park if you don't mind a city park that has few trees or grass and won't allow fires due to city ordinance. It is less expensive than Grizzly, which is taking advantage of Fishing Bridge being closed for the season and raising their rates from $64 per night last year to $94.50 this year. BC charges $65 per night and gives a Good Sam discount. Book your trip and make your reservations well in advance. I took a picture of one of the north entrance signs into the park showing a list of all the campgrounds with notations on every one other than Fishing Bridge indicating they were full. If you wait until you get there thinking you'll get lucky, you probably won't and then, you won't know where you're going to sleep while you're there. The RV parks outside the park will have openings for one or two nights during peak season, but you won't be able to book a week or two.
Second, if you're thinking of taking a whirlwind trip through Yellowstone, you'll miss most of the park and what there is to see. Someone else on the forum stated that you should figure on doubling whatever time you think of spending in the park, and then, you still won't see it all. He is right. I was very glad we decided to stay for two weeks rather than one, and we still ran out of time, needing another week. And don't think you're going to drive from one side of the park to the other averaging a mile a minute like you do on the highway. The speed limit is 45 at most and it drops to either 25 or 35 when you near attractions. Trust me when I tell you that you will not, under any circumstances, average more than 40 regardless of how reckless you drive simply because there will be too many things getting in your way, including rubberneckers and animals you really don't want to hit going any speed, much less 60 mph. Imagine what a 2,000 bison will do to your car if you hit it head on. There are many sharp curves that will offer you unexpected surprises in the middle of the road and if you're going too fast, you won't have time to slow down and avoid hitting something.
Tomorrow, we drive to just outside Glacier National Park and set up camp for two weeks at North American RV Park in Coram, MT.