Yellowstone 2014

Artist Point

Westward Ho! That was the Fagella family vacation cry this year as they headed west to the wilds of Montana and Wyoming for a vacation in beautiful Yellowstone National Park. Instead of traveling by stagecoach, they went by aircraft (although there were moments a stagecoach seemed like a better option) and instead of pitching a tent, they rented a cabin for the week. Transportation upon arrival was not a horse, but rather a Buick Regal, complete with satellite radio. The supplier of choice was not the General Store, but rather the Super Wal-Mart in Billings, Montana (in keeping with remoteness, the nearest Wal-Mart was 70 miles from Yellowstone). Despite all of the modern conveniences, there was plenty of adventure in store for the week.

Anna & Charlotte from Vienna at the Bear Tooth Highway

The adventure began with attempting to get to the Baltimore airport to catch a flight. Why would anyone want to drive to Baltimore on a Friday afternoon? Well, they had the best deals on flights to Montana (who knows why). Despite leaving an extra hour, a car accident on I-95 slowed traffic to a crawl on all roads. When we finally reached the airport security line, they were announcing last call for the flight. Thanks to a slightly sympathetic TSA official, and a sprint through the airport (because of course the gate was at the end of the terminal), the family just made it......only to find seats spread all over the plane. Fortunately Theresa was able to negotiate a seat swap so that she and Anna could sit together and the plane was off.

While waiting in Denver to change plans, Anna noticed a girl in a Vienna soccer jersey with the same tie dyed colors as her friend Ellie's team. Sure enough, it turned out to be Charlotte from Vienna and her family who were also traveling to Yellowstone for vacation. We ran into them periodically throughout the trip, including the plane ride home.

After finally arriving in Billings, the family headed to the rental car desk to pick-up the car only to discover there was no car available (so much for reservations). The customer service representative kindly referred us to the next rental car place that had a car available....at significantly more than what we reserved. After much negotiation, Joe managed to get the woman to honor the original deal and a Buick Regal magically appeared. After a night in a smokey motel room (it was Montana after all), the Fagellas headed for the Super Wal-Mart - their last brush with civilization, before heading to Yellowstone.

The drive from Billings, Montana to Yellowstone was nothing less than spectacular on the Beartooth Highway. The Highway opened in 1938 and is the highest elevation highway in the continental U.S., reaching nearly 11,000 feet through the heart of the Rockies. It was truly an unforgettable ride. As the family climbed through the mountains, the altitude change became quite apparent in some of the groceries in the backseat...specifically the chips. At one point Anna became so concerned that she exclaimed, "am I the ONLY one worried about the chips exploding?" Fortunately no chips were lost during the trek over the mountains. There was definitely a new appreciation for the explorers.

Lamar Valley Bison

After crossing the mountains, we arrived at our destination in Silver Gate, Montana. The town consisted of two small convenience stores and a restaurant nestled between the mountains. There was no cell phone service, so it was definitely a peaceful setting. Anna was shocked to discover there was no tv. Theresa was shocked to discover there was no radio. Joe was shocked to discover the limited Internet bandwidth that prevented downloading most anything...including the newspaper. The family had no choice but to talk to each other.

Bison jam

The first day in the park was spent stopping at numerous trails and sites along the way. There were grizzly bear warning signs all over the place. There was also hundreds of bison roaming the valley, which was marked with signs to warn tourist of the dangers of being gored by a bison. The lady at the local convenience store was kind enough to loan bear spray, including a demonstration on how to use it (apparently bears are a bigger threat than bison). For each hike, Joe came armed with the bear spray. During the first afternoon, Anna wanted to wade in the Lamar River. Upon heading down the trail, there was a warning signing noting that there was a dead bison off the trail and the grizzly bears were in the area (fortunately Joe had the bear spray). After about an hour or wading in the river, Joe decided to get out and check out a bit more of the trail. After about 10 minutes, Joe calmly said that there is a large animal coming towards the river about 200 feet away and that it looked like a bear. Theresa, who has a very strong flight instinct, immediately grabbed her shoes, yelled for Anna to get out of the river and prepared to take off. While fleeing what she believed to be a potential bear attack with her child, she managed to step in a hole and twist her ankle in a major way. Anna quickly realized that it was not a bear, but a bison who was grazing in the valley. Joe admitted that the sunglasses he was wearing were roughly two prescriptions ago. Theresa hobbled around the rest of the week. Anna was in charge of verifying any future large animal sitings.

Horseback riding in the mountains

The rest of the week was filled with more spectacular scenery. One of the many highlights was the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone, which offered breath taking views of the waterfalls and amazing colors. It was also a reminder of the dangers of the park and the importance of staying on the trails. The day before the Fagella visit to the canyon, and 8-year old girl was killed when she went off the trail and fell 500 feet into the canyon. Before she even knew about the story, Joe was lecturing Anna about the importance of staying on the trail. It was not uncommon to see tourists off the trails and hanging over the edge of the canyon in an effort to get a good photo.

In addition to the canyon, other highlights included visits to the hot springs, the terraces, and the geyser basin and the eruption of Old Faithful. Anna participated in the Junior Ranger program and completed the requirements to become an official Junior Ranger. She also had a wildlife checklist to mark off for each siting. Animals viewed included bison, black bears, mountain goats, big horn sheep, elk, prong horn antelope, and mule dear. Other highlights for Anna were horseback riding in the mountains and a trip to a real Montana rodeo (Anna decided the bull-riders were crazy). Despite some rain the last couple of days, the family put on their rain gear and continued to hike on.

It was an amazing trip and a great way to end summer vacation! Check out more photos at:

Yellowstone Photos