Advertisement
Published: August 15th 2007
Edit Blog Post
A lot to update on our trip since the last blog. Last mentioned, we were going to Salt Lake City to take a look at the Mormon Temple. We’ve seen pictures of the temple online and were trying to embrace ourselves for the massive building. However, when we got there, it wasn’t as HUGE as I thought it was going to be. However, Dave thinks that it’s by far the most beautiful temple of all the Mormon temples. I still thought it was extremely gorgeous, just not as monstrous as I had envisioned. That’s what I get for having high expectations.
When we arrived on the premise, there was a friendly gentleman that led us to two sisters who would be our tour guides for the next half hour. I learned a lot from them and it was really neat that one of them was from Oregon and the other from the Phillipines. I started looking around at other nametags and realized that there are people from many other countries. I saw a sister from Poland, another sister from Costa Rica. During the tour, we got to sit on benches made of the original pine that was used by Brigham
Mormon Temple - Assembly Hall
Original sandstone walls and pine benches make this gorgeous building. Young for the Assembly Hall. I also learned that the gold man on top of other Mormon temples are all facing/pointing East. They believe that is the direction that Christ will rise from again. That seems about right-where the sun rises too. I used to think that those gold angels were all pointing towards the temple in Salt Lake City.
The other buildings on the campus were also extremely beautiful. The tabernacle had a vast silver dome that could reflect light off from it for miles. The fountains, the gardens, and the museums were also grand. What I really liked learning was that they give up two meals per month and donate canned goods or the value of the their two meals so that the food could be used for food donations. Service is a huge value for the religion.
The next morning, we were on our way to Grand Teton National Park. First, we stopped in Jackson Hole, Wyoming - the last western town in the United States. It was definitely a neat town that looked like it was plucked out of a western movie! So…howdy!
So we enter Grand Teton National Park and boy were
Wyoming Welcomes Us!
We were excited to be near Grand Teton and Yellowstone. :-) the Tetons GRAND!!! Apparently the French had come over at one point and noticed the shape of the three mountains and their resemblance to “breasts” hence “teton.” Those pervert French! =P
Anywho, Grand Teton National Park is definitely a breathtaking place to be. Everything was perfect especially with the mountains in the background. The three highlighted peaks brought on a masculine feeling, while the lakes that lie within the park are pretty. I don’t think any other word can describe it better. My favorite was Jenny Lake. It is not the largest lake there but it held a feminine quality to it. The trees were light and flirty and the water was calm and serene. The shoreline was filled up with pebbles and small rocks that outlined the entire lake. The place was just plain gorgeous. However, NO ANIMAL SIGHTINGS. Dave and I were sad.
After driving through Grand Teton, we made our way to the long-anticipated Yellowstone National Park. Since we got there late, we setup camp near Lewis Lake, built our fire, had dinner and hot chocolate, then called it a night.
The next morning, we woke up ready to explore the park. Man! It’s
Tetons
Two of the three tetons so huge! Dave thinks it would take months to see everything that the park has to offer. I didn’t realize how large the park was either until we had to drive 12 miles to our first destination-Old Faithful. That was only in the bottom quarter of the park too!
We actually stopped in West Thumb where we got a glimpse of the famous thermal pools. They were filled with spectacular color and bubbling hot water! Some of the springs welcomed us with a foul odor-sulphur. But the stinkiness couldn’t keep our eyes from looking. Some of the pools looked so deep. In fact, one of them was named Abyss Pool. There are two different types of geysers at the park too. One of the types is called a cone geyser. This is where the earth is formed into a cone shaped volcano like structure, while the other type is known as a fountain geyser where it looks like a little puddle or pond. Well there was one cone geyser that caught my attention. It is called the Fishing Cone. Apparently, visitors to the park used to catch fish and then cook the fish by dipping it into that geyser.
Such a good idea. However, I don’t think people are allowed to do that anymore.
After West Thumb we went to the famous Old Faithful Geyser. It is one of the most predictable geysers in the world which makes it famous. It blows every 33-96 minutes and can reach heights of up to 140 feet. Again, I was expecting a lot out of Old Faithful but I didn’t get what I wanted to see. It was neat seeing it blow but I don’t know, it wasn’t as grand as I thought it would be. It was still neat nonetheless to see nature working and doing its thing. Oh and yeah, no animals still.
Where are the animals?! Dave and I were about to save one of our teddy grahams to show you guys that the only creature we saw was this bear. However…after being bummed out at Old Faithful we headed for other destinations and voila! Buffalo!!! The buffalo are huge! We pulled over to the side of the road to where everyone else had made a parking lot out of the little turnout in the road. Cameras were going off everywhere but the buffalo did not seem
Grotto Geyser
This is an example of a cone geyser. This specific geyser is my favorite of the park's and actually captures the attention of many artists and photographers. to mind. In fact, they were kind of naturals I would say. Posing for the camera, eating the grass because that’s what we want them to do. The buffalo were awesome. They seem like very gentle beasts but we got a flyer from the visitor entrance that had warned us that the buffalo had actually been goring people with an image of a buffalo and a person being tossed far far away beneath the warning. Yikes!
As we kept exploring the park, more and more animals would pop up on the side of the road for us to take a peak. We saw deer, antelope, various types of birds. Our animal needs were finally being met. However, still no bear. But in Yellowstone, they have Grizzlies so I guess it’s okay if we didn’t encounter any of them. :-)
Yellowstone National Park is just so awesome. From the geysers to the waterfalls and the canyons, this park just has it all. Lots of views to take in. I definitely want to return sometime so that I can spend more time exploring the park. We probably missed out on ¾ of the park this time around.
I’m going
Morning Glory
One of the most vibrant geysers and known for its color; the pool has actually been losing its color because people throw in trash, coins, and other items each year. to stop there for this entry. I’m currently in Minnesota at a Days Inn right now after having seen Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse this morning. But got to get up early again tomorrow to hit the road again. Until next time….CARPE DIEM! :-)
Advertisement
Tot: 0.053s; Tpl: 0.011s; cc: 9; qc: 45; dbt: 0.0319s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
DeAn
non-member comment
Hey what happened next,...
You said "Cameras were going off everywhere but the buffalo did not " then what? Please don't leave me hanging. I loved the beautiful pictures. Who is doing the photography? My best to you both - enjoy the trip!! Mamma Dee.