Today’s itinerary had us back in Yellowstone for the morning, followed by an afternoon in West Yellowstone before heading home to Under Canvas for the night.
Adventures by Disney: Montana
Day 1: Bozeman
Day 2: Yellowstone National Park
Day 3: Yellowstone National Park
Day 4: Yellowstone to Big Sky
Day 5: Big Sky High
Day 6: Home on the Ranch
Montana Memories
Breakfast at Under Canvas Yellowstone
We were up with the sun and fueled up for a day of adventure with a real western breakfast (other than my yogurt parfait) served in the restaurant.
Fountain Paint Pot Trail
On top of the agenda today was a guided walk with Connie, our local expert, along the trail that leads to this multicolored mud pot. It lies in the lower Geyser Basin and we just couldn’t get enough of the remarkable hydrothermal features along the way. Yellowstone’s volcanic activity was reveled as we discovered hot springs, geysers, mud holes and fumaroles – all things I knew nothing about until yesterday.
Grand Prismatic Spring
After another entertaining coach ride, we were at Grand Prismatic Spring. Yellowstone National Park’s largest hot spring was an incredible site to behold. This spring boasts a striking deep blue color that turns into a myriad of colors as the water disperses outwardly across its surface.
Excelsior Geyser (or rather, its crater) is actually the first feature you pass on the boardwalk. A steaming body of teal water running off into the Firehole River, Excelsior has been like this for most of its recorded history. For a time though, it was the largest geyser in the world.
Opal Pool was the final, fabulous, site to see in this basin.
Old Faithful Geyser
We’ve seen the Wilderness Lodge version, but were thrilled to finally see the famous Old Faithful Geyser!! Our guides gave us time to explore and then gathered us to pass out bagged lunches (we chose our sandwiches the day before) to enjoy on the boardwalk while waiting on her to blow! I know it sounds strange, but this little picnic right here, the four of us lined up giddy with anticipation, was an afternoon I’ll always remember.
Right on time, Old Faithful put on her show!
We had another hour free to explore before the next “show”. We got our National Parks Passport book stamped, explored the visitor center and then checked out Old Faithful Inn. It was the inspiration behind Disney’s Wilderness Lodge!
We went back to our spot for the 1:26 PM event. Well, Old Faithful was a bit late. The extra 10 minutes meant even more pressure built up and we had a HUGE water stream this time.
Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center
For our afternoon activity we had a choice of biking the back country in West Yellowstone OR visiting the Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center. When the options were explained to us on day 1, Honey and I were both shocked the boys picked Grizzly & Wolf! However, after our visit we were all SO happy with that choice. We saw the most darling ground squirrels, local fish, otters, birds, snakes and so much more… the center focuses on the predators in Montana wildlife and all of their residents were rehabilitated or removed from the wild when they became too comfortable around humans.
But the highlights were the grizzly bears and gray wolves! John and I favored the wolves. They were absolutely fascinating to watch roam, interact and snack.
Honey and Whit fell head over heels for the darling young grizzly bears. They were so playful and fun to watch!
We had time to explore West Yellowstone on our own. It was a scorcher and we ended up at a road side ice cream stand serving up Wilcoxson’s Montana Huckleberry Ice Cream. It.was.delish!
Dinner at Under Canvas Yellowstone
We ended yet another incredible day with some well-earned relaxation and a hearty meal back at the glamp-site.
After dinner, one of our fellow travelers organized a corn hole tournament by the river. We started off with a little music and drinks.
And then we moved down by the river for the tourney. There were chairs, enos and a few corn hole boards. The kids played tag, waded in the river and laughed well into the night. It was just wonderful.
All About Adventures by Disney
Adventures by Disney are expertly planned and guided group tours visiting 35 destinations across 6 continents. You can visit the world’s most iconic locations with Disney as your guide and your storyteller, and enjoy experiences, activities, dining and adventures in a way that only Disney can do. This is not a theme park tour with Mickey Mouse and popcorn buckets. These are trips around the world where you experience the service and VIP treatment that Disney is known for.
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We’re packing up camp and headed to Big Sky in the morning!
DIXIE DELIGHTS DELIVERED