Groundhogs and Buffalo and Bears--Oh, My!

July 23, 2017--We had been throwing around the idea of leaving Yellowstone early to get the Grand Teton so we could spread out the driving back to Sioux Falls. Bridge Bay was also without electricity, but it was more primitive than Canyon Village.

We are not against roughing it, but we had no idea that these sites wouldn't have electric and so we hadn't prepared for it. The lot were not mowed and there wasn't a lot to do at the actual campground. People must use it mainly as a place to sleep, spending their days hiking around Yellowstone.

Before we left we decided to do a "quick" hike to the Natural Bridge. There were many points in the hike that we stopped to reevaluate whether or not to push on. We finally came to a couple of women who said it was just around the corner.

Yay! It was a cool sight, set up on a hillside with water rushing down. As an added bonus, there was a groundhog chilling in the stream so we got to see some wildlife! Little did we know what awaited us...

Each time we went into the woods we were reminded that we needed to stay in groups of at least three--BE BEAR AWARE. With our 11 we naturally went at different paces and on our way back to the campsite we were in three different sections. Mark, Nick, and Louie were leading the way and when we climbed the final hill Mark was standing there putting his finger to his mouth to say "be quiet."

Lo and behold when we got to the top we saw a gigantic buffalo only feet away from our RV!! The reason Bridge Bay doesn't mow the site is because this is a natural feeding ground for the area's buffalo! The poor guy didn't pay us no mind, as herds of humans gathered around to take pictures.

This was the highlight of our Bridge Bay experience and soon we jumped in the RV to make our way to Colter Bay in Grand Teton, a first come, first served campground. Our sources said to get there by noon to be guaranteed a spot and with our little adventure we were predicted to be there by 1pm. The next hour and a half the kids watched Indiana Jones & the Temple of Doom, and Kevin and I rocked out to Led Zeppelin.

As we pulled into Colter Bay in a line of cars and campers we held our breath to see if there was any room left for us. We didn't have to wait too long before finding out that, yes, there were two sites near each other for us. Whew! The lots were nicely wooded, across from each other, and there was a lot of amenities that we were excited about. Originally, we thought we'd have to wait until Mt. Rushmore to do laundry, which we were badly in need of.

We did laundry, went to the Visitor Center where a Ranger from Loveland gave us tips on what trails and attractions we needed to see, and a planetary group was there with their telescopes letting people look at the sun and gave out glasses for the solar eclipse on August 21st. And if that were not enough, this was one of the few places the kids were able to ride their bikes!

Charlie, testing out his new shades

We took the Lakeside Trail and after the laundry was dried, headed back to the campsite for a delicious meal of pork, mashed potatoes, and salad (really, Michelle went all-out for every meal!). Afterward, Kevin and Mark used the boys' bikes to ride down to shower and Michelle and I went on a walk in the campground with the kids. Both events stand out as highlights of the trip.

Skipping stones, a favorite activity

The kids were riding while Michelle and I walked, but soon we came to a trail and the kids dropped their bikes. Obviously we weren't the first to take this path but it felt like it, especially when it opened up to the lake with Grand Teton in the backdrop. Seriously, it took my breath away each time I saw the range. There was a steep hill to climb down, but the kids made it and they decided that tomorrow's activity would include swimming at our "private" beach!

The guys' experience was a little more blood pressure-spiking. Before they took showers they decided to ride down to the marina to get a good picture of the sunset with the mountains reflecting on the still lake. They took the trail we were on this morning went out on a peninsula. While Kevin was snapping shots a group of college kids came up yelling that a bear was swimming in the water!

Reenactment of the situation

Undeterred, Kevin kept trying to get a good shot. At that point rangers came in on a boat and pushed the bear up onto the peninsula. Redirecting their attention from the bear to Kevin and Mark, they started yelling at them for riding their bike onto the peninsula! Then they threw rocks and yelled at the bear to get it to scurry into the woods.

We ended the night by sharing stories and s'mores around the campfire!