Yellowstone National Park Day 2.

 

Day 2 was the best day at Yellowstone, the weather was so perfect and everything went smoothly. We woke up and headed to Mammoth Springs, and while on our way there we stopped and climbed these huge rocks that were on the side of the road....we were pretty high even though you can't really tell in our pictures!

We finally got to Mammoth Springs...and we went horse back riding while there!! My first time! It was so fun, I can't wait to do it again! My first horse, named Dodge, was extremely feisty and it being my first time, I was a tad bit scared, so I got to switch to a calmer/nicer horse, who's name is Boots! I loved Boots, he was such a sweetie. Jacob's horse, named Rooster, was a turd! He was so mean and would go around biting other horses, he even bit poor Boots right on the butt! So mean! But Jacob handled him pretty well, even though he couldn't get him to stop eating while we were riding, haha (we were specifically told not to let them eat!). It was a blast and I'm so glad Jacob took me!

Oh and how about that dandelion? It's the biggest one I've ever seen!!!

After that we went into town and ate some cheeseburgers and Snickers then we went to see the Mammoth Hot Springs, so beautiful (pictured above) the Liberty Cap (pictured above), and tons of Elk crossing the street!! Then we headed to the Boiling River because our horse guide told us we had to check it out. And it is located right on the state line of Montana and Wyoming, so we were able to check another state off our list!

We didn't have our swimsuits with us so we weren't able to get in the Boiling River (even though the next day we drove back so we could get in!), that day however we just stuck our hands in...and it is HOT! It's so crazy, it's like a hot tub, but even hotter than that in some places!! If you are ever in Yellowstone you have to go check it out and sit in it, it's amazing.

Here is what hikespeak says about the

Boiling River: "An underground discharge of water from a mysterious source beneath nearby hydrothermal terraces flows out of the ground at over 100 degrees. The channel joins the otherwise cold waters of the Gardner River, creating a blended pool that is too good to pass up." 

After that we stopped by the River and took some pretty pictures (I'll share them later) drove around and saw another beautiful waterfall. Then we stopped on the side of the road and climbed up a mountain to watch the sunset and take some more beautiful pictures (I'll share later!). The sunset was amazing and it was so serene to be up on the mountain top, just me and Jacob. I loved it.

When were heading back to the campsite we saw all these cars pulled over in the middle of the road, so we stopped to see why and down the side of the hill was a black bear! Our first (and only) bear sighting!! It was so cool to actually see one out in the wild! We were so excited. 

Then we got back to the campsite and star gazed, talked, ate soup, and drank wine. Such a perfect end to a perfect day.