...chugga chugga chugga...: Thou Shall Not Pass... Mar 7

While we were leaving Montana, AH & Bobcat had given us a really beautiful route to drive down on our way to Yellowstone. They had us passing Flathead Lake (omg gorgeous) where they just bought some property and are going to be building a home soon. Gotta say, their invitation for us to come live in Montana for a while sounded pretty enticing after just a weekend there. I just have to get some better boots. (note to self: even though my cute boots have tread, they are not snow boots... get some real snow boots, girl... geez)

I also am finding wide open plains really relaxing for my soul to settle in.

wide open plains.. and then MOUNTAINS! BAM!

oh Montana... you're alright.

like, seriously?

Ok so then we drove all day and just as the sun was dipping below those perfect peaks, we arrived in Yellowstone park. Neither of us have ever been there, so we wanted to check out just the most northern point on our way east. We checked the interwebs and saw that the one entrance & road was open. That's what the interwebs said at least. Well, the entrance was open, for sure.

My first ever sighting of bison seemed almost unreal. And all I could think of was T-Dawg.
Luckily I moved past that as we spent more time with these majestic beasts.

Oh yeah- more yellowstone peaks from outside the park. Ugh. I have to find synonyms for "beautiful".
These were some HANDSOME peaks.

Just outside the entrance to the park was this school with a football field... full of bison.

So then we slept in the first campsite we came across. Pri-Pri (my car) is awesome. I fold down the backseats and voila! A bed for 2 people! Luckily we both have great sleeping bags. So we did that but then she couldn't sleep, so we drove for a bit and stopped at the Mammoth Hot Springs parking lot to finish out the night.

Tap tap tap. "Goodmorning Officer!"
"Good morning girls. Did you sleep here last night?"
"Oh.... just for a couple hours. We got in really late."
"Did you look at any maps or on the internet? The park is closed from November to May and has been for decades!"
"Oh.... um, no we didn't know that. I'm sorry."

And boosh. We got kicked out. But, I mean, really? We DID look and we coulda sworn this part was open! Decades?? That's just... well, it's probably true, but... whatever. We left. And snuck a few pics on the way out.

This was the view from my front windshield at Mammoth Hot Springs.
Probably the most exquisite view that lil' car's ever had.

Sunrise in Yellowstone covered in snow.

This is Boiling River, where a hotspring mixes with a freshwater river, which is the only safe way of dipping into the hot waters here. Apparently people get boiled alive in just minutes if they just go in the hot part. MY GOD.