Brenda, Tim and Yellowstone

I used to live a block and a half away from my sister. We used to do Sunday dinners together. We would see each other at Church. We would go to the store together. We would just hang out.

Then I moved away. I don't get to see her very often anymore.

This past weekend, she was going to be in Yellowstone. Yellowstone is about 2 hours away from where we live now. So we loaded up the boys, Brittney, and what ever else we thought we might need and headed to see Brenda and Tim.

We met up just after 8 and headed to Old Faithful. Brenda had never been to Yellowstone, and she wanted to see the most famous geyser ever.

I snapped a picture at the beginning, but then I switched to video mode. But still, you can see the beautiful day and Old Faithful is looking good.

We stopped at a little geyser basin and got out and walked a bit.

A few pictures, these include the people.

The morning was still cold, so the steam obscured the great colors. This geyser looked to have a beautiful blue color with a nice yellow frame. The yellow indicates sulfur, so imagine the smell of eggs.

I'm going to have to teach Josh about baseball caps, in that they protect the eyes. Less squinting that way. This is a good picture to see that he is clearly taller than me. He loves that. Boaz is still stretching, but he will get there soon.

Brenda and Tim. I love these two people.

She is smiling in this one.

I liked the name of this one. But we figured out that Spasm Geyser is the hole in the front. I didn't bother to even remember the name of the pretty one behind.

An advantage of me being the photog, I get to get what ever picture that I want of other people. :) Brenda and Tim are good together.

I am happy to have Boaz follow in the footsteps of his dad and Uncle Tim.

We went into the old lodge at Old Faithful. This clock was about three stories high. I loved it. Brittney took some pictures, but I haven't gotten them from her of the inside of the Lodge. It is an amazing building. We loved it.

In this picture, if you look hard enough, you can see a little black bear wandering through the brush. He is just below the beginning of the mountain in the back ground. I wish I could circle him for you. My tablet does not have a zoom - sorry.

The last bear we saw. A kind lady lent us her binoculars so we could get a up close and personal view. He just ambled away, up the draw.

We saw four bear this trip. All in about 30 minutes. We were very excited. Bear are shy and not always obliging for the tourists.

This little group of about five buffalo decided to take a walk on the road. Cars were piled up on both sides of the road to give them room. They had no worries in the world. In Yellowstone, wild life have the right of way, always.

Just peeking out behind the big one in front you can see the little legs of the calf they were protecting. The calf was herded to the outside always. Kind of like when I am walking with my boys on the road. They are on the outside, and I am on the inside - closest to traffic. Good parents, those buffalo.

Saying goodbye to our little buffalo family -- actually, they are huge animals.

This time we went through the north eastern corner of Yellowstone. Not as much hydrothermic action, but beautiful country.

I am fascinated by Mammoth Hot Springs. They are immense! And they are growing everyday. I like to see the yellow stain of the minerals in the white.

The bright white and rust show the active spring next to the grey of the older run. The stark skeleton trees add drama.

The plants grow verdant green right next to the poisonous flow. The plants thrive until they are engulfed by the encroaching spring.

A little island not ready to submit to the poison of the caustic waters.

The terraces, brilliant white while they live.

My boys named this feature the Fountain of Youth. It looks a bit like a baptismal font -- all white with clear, blue water in the middle.

Two views of the huge terraces, cascading down the mountain. The dark tree skeletons framing the springs.

The steam rising off the almost boiling waters trickling down the steps they have created for themselves.

We rushed through Mammoth Hot Springs just before a summer thunder shower dumped on us. The boys were happy to head back for home.

Craig and I were happy to have seen bear and spend time with the Bayers - Tim and Brenda.