The Yellowstone Expedition Day 9 - 11: The Journey Home

Our log cabin hotel was a good choice. I woke up fairly refreshed, though still feeling my sleep debt from the days before. We walked down the road to the donut shop from the night before. We had a good, warming breakfast. I was rather fond of the trivia they had playing across a TV screen. Should I ever pass this way again, I think I would be inclined to stay at the Branding Iron Inn and eat at that donut shop.

Kinda like the backside of the Badlands

Heading down the road, my main task was to pick out a rout. That seemed to be a silly task given the number of times we would change our plan throughout the day. Part of our path was fixed so we traveled through the Wind River Indian Reservation. Passing through the hills, at some points it was like being back in the Badlands. Red rock formations painted a picture to one side while the other was greener.

That is me up at top, and I scaled up higher than can be seen

The real adventure of the day was stopping at Split Stone. It is a little historical site because pioneers used it as marker and pony express station had been situated there. The cacti were in a beautiful bloom. Annoyingly, the mosquitoes were out in force as well. For me, the big draw was hiking and climbing up the small mountain of stone that marked the spot. I scrambled up boulders and over outcroppings so that I could look down bellow. Once I reached the spot I had seen, I discovered that there was even more that could not be glimpsed from bellow. I carried on, making my way back to the highest point. This required a daring leap across a gap between the boulders. From there I could survey all of the surrounding landscape. I sat down and looked across the land, imagining what the first pioneers had seen when they had undoubtedly climbed up as well. Returning down, I found a curious thing. Stones had been placed in a circle with a pyramid at the center. I do not know if it was a recent construction or something from a time long past. Whatever the case may be, I left it to the forces of nature as I made the trek back down. A man could become lost in the labyrinth of boulders as he tried to find the path that would take him safely down.

The rest of the day passed through the window of the car. Landscapes slowly changed as we went up and down. Things would be rocky and scrubland then forested and green. We expected to see more cattle, but more often than not only spotted antelope. As we worked our way south through Colorado we even encountered a convoy of forest service trucks baring the markings of hotshot crews. Given the lack of rush, I figure they were on their way from a training exercise.

Clouds get a vast quality out west

For the most part we seemed to skirt bad weather. It stayed distant or only spat a few drops of rain at us. The clouds gathered thick and dark as the day drew on though. As we neared the Kansas state line it began to storm hard. Seeking shelter we pulled off in a small community and got a hotel room for the night.

The next morning we got up early and hit the road with the intention of making some good distance. We were even considering driving through the night so we could be home by the next morning. Then came Kansas. Kansas is a long, boring state to drive through. Vast expanses of nothing to really look at. To me it was mind numbing. I am certain some people find beauty in it, but not me. The worst part; it turns out their is not really a Smallville. I found myself trying to read as much as I could. Seven or eight hours later we were finally free of it.

Shiny, if a bit out of focus

Of course, then we had to get across Missouri. At least it had changes to the scenery. We made it to St. Louis with all of its traffic. I did get to see the St. Louis Arch from the distance. It reflected brilliantly in the setting sun. i would like to see it up close some time. For now I will have to settle for the fuzzy picture dad shot for me since I was the one driving.

Dad was running out of energy so we got a hotel room and some dinner for the night. We were up early again and determined to get home. Illinois practically flew by. We crossed over into Kentucky and that took up a good portion of the day. Either way, I was glad to be back in the eastern deciduous forests where I am most comfortable. It was a temperature shock for sure though.

Up we drove into Ohio and soon the only thought on our minds was home. At 1820 we pulled into the driveway. Mom and the dog happily greeted us. We unpacked the car and started settling back in. It was a great trip and bonding experience with my father, but it is good to be home.

Over the course of the trip we saw so much. We have been through plains, forests, mountains, alpine regions, and deserts. We saw trees, bushes, lichens, and about fifty or more kinds of wildflowers. So many animals were seen: thousands of buffalo, dozens of antelope, two black bears, one grizzly, unita ground squirrels, prairie dogs, coyote, an eagle, ducks, pelicans, a moose, multiple elk, plenty of dear, lots of ravens, and much more. We ascended to 10,000 ft. and delved 380 ft. bellow the ground. It is so much to take in. There was history and natural splendor. All of it has left me exhausted. It was a great adventure, but now it is time to rest.

I is tired much now