The balance

The rest of the pictures from Yellowstone: After Norris Geyser Basin, we drove north along the Upper Loop to Mammoth Hot Springs. The springs at Mammoth have a unique look. The regular flow of hot water deposits large amounts of limestone and onto the surrounding hills. The travertine terraces are carved by the flow of water and colored by different species of bacteria and algae.

Palette Spring at Mammoth

Next, we drove east to Tower-Roosevelt and stopped to have a look at the Tower Falls (part of the Yellowstone River). We closed out the day by hiking the Mt. Washburn trail, which gave us panoramic views of the fertile valley and surrounding peaks. We hardly saw another soul on our way up, which made us worry about encountering bears (they tend to show up where there are fewer people). Instead, we came across a group of big-horn sheep -- and got frighteningly close to them!

This guy was no more than 10 feet away. He's missing most of his right horn.

Q at Beryl Spring, where we stopped on the way back. Doesn't she look like she's on another planet?

We left Yellowstone on Saturday and drove south into Grand Teton National Park. The Grand Tetons are known for the peaks that rise majestically above jewel-like lakes and the lush meadow valley known as Jackson Hole.

View of the Grand Tetons, which include the Grand Teton, Mount Owen, and Teewinot peaks.

We took a boat-ride across the popular Jenny Lake (in the background) and hiked up a trail past Hidden Falls to Inspiration Point, pictured here. It's something like 7200 feet above sea level.

After visiting the Grand Tetons, we headed to Jackson, a resort town south of the park. Q bought a loaf of OSM bread from The Bunnery, which Rachael Ray made famous, and we ate dinner at the Gun Barrel Steakhouse, which specializes in game. Q and I split the mixed grill of buffalo prime rib, elk chop, and venison kielbasa. It was very yum, but I felt a little bad looking at all the stuffed animals (hunting trophies, I suppose) that made up the decor. The next day we drove from Idaho Falls to Salt Lake City and flew back to the West Coast. Below are 2 iconic photos of Yellowstone that I forgot to put in my earlier entries.

Old Faithful
The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone