Yellowstone National Park

 June 10 - 14, 2026

We went into Yellowstone with the family on Thursday and Friday.  They had quite a trip on Wednesday.  With Alicia and family, and Jason's family, there were twelve of them.  They flew into Bozeman on Tuesday and drove to Billings to stay the night because they wanted to drive the Beartooth Highway on Wednesday.  They got up and there were reports of snow on the Pass, but they decided to drive as far as they could and see what they could anyway.  They got to the MT/WY state line and were turned around.  Since they couldn't get to Island Park through Yellowstone that way they decided to drive to Cody and come in the east entrance.  They got through the entrance, with the attendant saying nothing, and in a few miles encountered blizzard white-out conditions.  Once again they turned around (now there are road closed signs entering the park), headed for Cody again, and are now they're calling me asking about which way they should go.  Going south and around Jackson wasn't an option because there might be snow going over the pass on WY22.  So they ended up going back to Billings and Bozeman, then south to Island Park.  They got to their Airbnb a little after midnight, with many hours sitting in their cars.  What a day!

Since we went to Yellowstone in 2019 I didn't take a lot of pictures this time.  It was fun to see the park through their eyes.  Just a few pictures.

I barely got the Yellowstone National Park sign.

Gibbon Falls

Yellowstone Falls

Midway Geyser Basin

Alicia and Jason

Mud Pots

Grand Prismatic Spring

Can you tell it was a little windy?  Sometimes we were engulfed in the steam.  Not the smell I want in my hair though.

Alicia and Chloe waiting for Old Faithful to erupt.

Old Faithful
This was the best of all the times I've seen it.  It went for over three minutes.

There's something special about an 18 year old son that still wants to love on his mom.

Inside of Old Faithful Lodge

Alicia standing on the 3rd floor.

Bison!

Friday night we went to the Airbnb where they were staying and had dinner (they will be moving on to the Tetons on Sunday). I took these pictures on the way home.

We will be here until Tuesday, and then we will be visiting with Bill and Lisa, my cousin and his wife, and then we'll be...

Roving on.

By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
And all the host of them by the breath of His mouth.
Psalm 33:6

Cheyenne, WY to Island Park, ID

 June 5 - 9, 2026

Friday, June 5, we spent sightseeing in Cheyenne.  First we went to the Francis E. Warren AFB, where my dad was stationed. In 1941 the Army Air Corps was restructured and became the United State Army Air Forces.  It later evolved into the United States Air Force in September 1947, when Dad was there..  They have a museum with the history of the base from the time it was Fort David Allen Russell in 1867, built to protect railroad workers, and renamed in 1930 in honor of Wyoming's first state governor and Medal of Honor recipient.

This shows part of a timeline when Dad was there.

This is probably what meals were served on in 1947.

At the museum they also have information on the ICBMs.

I took a lot more pictures but didn't want to post them all.

After we left the base we drove by the house that my grandma and mom lived in when Mom met Dad.  Mom and Grandma were renting rooms in the basement.  The house was owned by two single ladies and they didn't know that Mom and Grandma could hear everything they said in certain parts of the house because of the vents.  It looks like they're doing some renovations on the house.  I have a picture of Dad and Mom after they got engaged standing on the steps.  If you're interested in how they met let me know and I'll add it to the next blog.

This is the Cheyenne Depot, where we got our Trolley tickets.  The depot was completed in September of 1887 and finished with the addition of the clock in 1890.  It's a beautiful building.  Dad probably came through here when he arrived in Cheyenne.

We took the trolley tour although I didn't get any pictures.  The guide gave us information on different buildings in Cheyenne.  We always like to take tours like this when we go to a city to learn more about it.

We went to the museum that's in the depot.

This train was all hand made.  It was beautiful!

We went and saw Big Boy 4004.  They moved it to a park and put it on display.  It is huge!

The Big Boy 4014 is the only one of the restored Big Boys that is operational.  It takes tours across the country and we would love to see it sometime.

On Saturday we headed for Rawlins WY.  Check-out in Cheyenne was 10:30 and check-in at the next campground was 2:00.  We needed somewhere to spend some time and the Wyoming Territorial Prison State Historic Site was on the way.  Fortunately they didn't keep us.

It looks like the warden and his family lived well.

An old western prison wagon with a familiar man not wanting to get in.

This prison was constructed in 1872 and restored in 1990.  Over 1,000 prisoners were incarcerated here. 

The Processing Room.  Looks like they have a nice supply of striped uniforms.

The Kitchen.  Prisoners helped in the kitchen to serve three meals a day.  Meals included beef, beans, potatoes, and bread.  They were well fed and ready to work.

Cell construction.  An archaeological study found evidence of the 1872 foundation, and shows how the cells were constructed.

Cell Block

One of the prisoners was Robert LeRoy Parker, aka Butch Cassidy.  He bought a horse for $5 and didn't know it was stolen.  The law found him with the horse and sent him to prison for 2 years.  It is said he was a model prisoner and was released early.  Click on the sign below,  Friends in High Places, for why.  However, prison didn't do much to reform him because we all know the stories of his bank and stagecoach robberies

Yes, it's true, families of the time period would only bathe once a week and they all got the same water.  I can remember my mom saying that's how it was when she was a little girl on the farm, but that was almost 100 years ago.

Can't you just see Butch Cassidy doing the laundry?

In the Prison Industries Building was where the prisoners made brooms, candles, and furniture.

I thought this table was beautiful with all the carving on it.

Prison Industries Building

We were on our way and spent the night at Western Hills Campground in Rawlins WY.  It was full hookups for $69.84 per night.  I didn't get a picture but it was a nice campground.  It was in the Wyoming desert so not many trees and all gravel, but it was very clean.  The wind was blowing really hard and I didn't go out of the 5th wheel until we left and I forgot to get any pictures.

On Sunday, June 7 we spent the night at Warren Bridge Campground.  It was a BLM campground with no hookups for $5 per night.  It was really quiet and I'd love to go back someday.

Many of the reviews of the campground said there was a lot of wildlife, but we only saw these Uinta Ground Squirrels.

It was a beautiful place.  The Green River flows right next to the campground.

Our next stop was Wakeside Lake RV Park in Rexburg, ID.  It was full hookups for $43.47 per night.  It's not a destination because it's right by Hwy. 20 so there was a lot of traffic noise.  Our water spigot leaked and they spent several hours fixing it.  Unfortunately there was a huge puddle around the spigot the next morning so I'm sure they were back at it today.  We used the water pump most of the time.

Today, June 9, we arrived at Red Rock RV Park near Island Park, ID.  We're here until the 16th.  It was raining when we got here so no campground pictures yet.   

We had a thunderstorm with lightning, thunder and hail go through.  This is John's truck looking like it has snow on it.  I did notice some snow on the mountains nearby.  Then we saw some blue sky.

Our daughter and her family, her husband's parents, his brother and family all flew into Bozeman this morning.  They're going to do the Beartooth Highway tomorrow and then we'll meet them in Yellowstone tomorrow afternoon.  Not sure how that's going to work with no cell service, but we'll figure it out.  They'll be staying in Island Park and then we'll all go into Yellowstone for a few days.  
We've been to Yellowstone but it's going to be fun to see it through their eyes.  They'll go to the Tetons but we'll stay here because we went there two years ago.

That's the latest (uh-oh, I hear thunder again and it's started raining).  In a few days we'll be...

Roving on...

By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
And all the host of them by the breath of His mouth.
Psalm 33:6