Abby's Home & Yellowstone

After 3 days and 2 nights at the vet we picked up Abby this afternoon.  She was given an x-ray, 3 acupuncture treatments, pain killer and muscle relaxant injections each day and sent home with pain killer & muscle relaxant pills.  We were told to keep her from jumping up and down for about a month, massage her spine and use heat on her back. Her diagnose was that she had a swollen disc that was causing pressure on her nerves(pinched nerve) and it was causing spasms in her neck.
We don't know how it happened but we will be taking good care of our little girl this next month.  Glad she is home.
I think she got it from her mom!!
Yellowstone  8/11/10  Wednesday 
We decided to start out earlier today and were at the entrance gate by 7:30.  Big difference in the amount of traffic. We had decided to go to the north to Norris and Canyon Village.  The road was closed that direction from 10pm to 8am, so we were too early. Decided to go south to a road we missed the day before, Firehole Canyon Drive.

                             Elk we saw on the way

The road lead to Firehole Falls & no one else was around yet.

Further along this road we found an area where tourist are allowed to swim in the warm springs. A family was leaving when we arrived but no one was in the water.

By this time the sun was bright,it was warming up, & the road had opened so we headed north to Norris making frequent stops to walk the winding boardwalks over the fragile grounds.

Our first sighting of Bison

Next stop were the Artist Paintpots, these were one of my favorite because they were not the clear blue pool of water but pools of mudpots that were composed of clay minerals and fine particles of silica. Acids in the steam and water break down the rock into the clay mineral. The Crow tribe used to paint their tipis with this mud. The thick bubbling of the mud sounded like drums. Also saw a family of grouse on our walk. 

Now we are heading to the Norris Geyser Basin. This is the most active earthquake area of the park, most acidic hydrothermal area, more acidic geysers than in the rest of the world and Steamboat Geyser which is the tallest active geyser in the world.

In the Norris area we also got a science lesson on the many colors you see that are evidence of thermophiles(heat-loving microorganisms) and their activity. I had to take a picture of the sign to remember the info.

Our final destination for the day was the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. This area expresses the park's complex geologic history in dramatic colors and shapes. Puffs of steam mark hydrothermal features in the canyon's walls. The upper and lower falls of Yellowstone River add to the grandeur of this unique natural treasure. We experience the canyon from overlooks at different points in the canyon.

This was a beautiful area and we hiked along the North Rim Trail to Red Rock point which had a full view of the Lower Falls. The trail included many steps and drops of 500 ft in about 3/8 mile and not recommended for anyone with health problems. We made it with lots of huffing and puffing.

This was the lookout we hiked down to. When we got there we were by ourselves. Very unusual. Took a lot of fun pictures.

Back on the trail heading to the Brink of the Lower Falls Trail & Lookout.

Don is ready for a Grizzly with his bear spray

 Walking down to the Brink of the Lower Falls was another challenge. The lookout is at the point where the water plunges 308 ft. We decended to the brink on a steep trail that drops 600 ft. Quite a hike back up!!

We had had a long day and it was about 4:30 in the afternoon so we decided it was time to head back to the room. Tired and ready for drinks we got on the road. But this is what we ran in to. A road construction delay. We sat in this line of cars for an hour. It was a total stoppage so we laid back our seats and took a nap until we were able to move.