Yellowstone: More than just Old Faithful

Yellowstone needs no introduction. It has got to be the most fascinating place on earth, given the on-going geologic activities. I have been wanting to go since learning about it in geography class.

And now that I am staying in the US, I no longer think that Wyoming is as remote as Mars. The perks of being on this side of the globe!

So the Fearless Three (Dad, Mom and I) decided to do a budget trip to Yellowstone. Dad has just retired, Mom has retired, and yours truly is unemployed. We decided to take on the long road trip challenge.

We would fly from San Francisco to Salt Lake City, Utah, making a transit at Phoenix, Arizona. Then we would drive five hours up north to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. The route would cut through Idaho. Five states in a day. Beat that!

Needless to say, we were exhausted by the time we arrived at Elk Refuge Inn at Jackson Hole. It wasn't as grand as the villa we have stayed on our Fairmont trip, but it's a decent lodge and our loft came with a small kitchenette, two beds, a toilet and a dining area.

(Note: We would have loved to stay within Yellowstone but there were no more vacancies when I called. A word of advice - book way in advance!)

The next morning, we drove two hours into Yellowstone via the Grand Teton National Park. As we drove in from the south, we were shocked to find snow all around. We even saw blocks of ice floating on Lewis Lake. It was hilarious because we were totally dressed for summer!

And then we finally arrived at the Old Faithful! We reached just in time. The world famous geyser was about to erupt; there was a commotion and people were running as we parked. We ran alongside the crowd to witness the first eruption. I was expecting a wall of water to spurt out, and hence was a little disappointed that it was small and didn't last long.

We were in the Old Faithful Visitor Centre, planning to go to our next destination when a hailstorm announcement came. Talk about sudden climate change. A moment ago it was all well and sunny; the next moment we were trapped indoors. I had to brave the storm to get our jackets because it was freezing.

The storm took more than an hour to pass. It was near the timing of the next eruption, so we decided to wait in the rain for the Old Faithful one more time. This time, she was really late. 10 minutes... 15 minutes... then VROOM! A gushing wall of vapour and water!

This is what we are talking about!



After witnessing the spectacular eruption, we decided to hang around the Upper Geyser Basin and do the 2.8-mile round trip to the Morning Glory Pool. It was awesome walking on the boardwalk, enjoying the sights of geysers, hot springs, and fumaroles boiling and spewing vapour all around us.

Mother Earth is breathing and we are standing right on her nostrils!

We also said hello to the thermophiles. These organisms thrive in extremely high temperatures, and they give pools like this their pretty colour. Isn't it awesome?

Before leaving the Upper Basin and ending our first day at Yellowstone, the Riverside Geyser gave us a grand performance, shooting a tall column of water up in the skies for over 15 minutes. This gave us enough time to snap as many photos as we could, and then enjoy the geyser just as it is.

Pretty rainbow there, hein?

To be continued...



Partying with the Fantastic Four

As mentioned, the Fantastic Four took time out of their busy schedules to visit us, and we were thrilled to have them for 1.5 weeks!

You've got to admire their energy level and positive vibes. There was no downtime at all, and everyday was practically a party.

Marin Headlands:



Monterey (I have one photo of Dad dancing but I better not post it!): 



Sonoma:





Worthy of mention is our 3D2N trip to Yosemite. I had been there countless times with visitors, but it has got to be the prettiest this time round. The foggy weather on the first day made everything looked surreal. We literally drove through white fluff on some parts of the road, not being able to see beyond fifty feet of us. It was strangely enchanting.

On the second day, we experienced light snow at Glacier Point while having simple homemade salad lunch, cramped in our 7-seater. It was cold, even in May! 

We were finally blessed with good weather on the third day, as we attempted the moderate uphill hike to Vernal Fall footbridge. Trust me, the sign says 0.8 miles from Happy Isles but it took us eternity to get there because of the incline. We were all ready to kiss our knees goodbye after that. 

On my previous visits, I have always stayed at Tenaya Lodge down South. Slightly pricier but very comfortable. This time round, Gugu booked a 2-storey house at Groveland under Hotel Charlotte, which is about half an hour away on the West. 

The house itself is located within the Pine Mountain Lake Golf Course. It came with three bedrooms, two toilets, and a gigantic kitchen. Awesome because we were able to cook dinner, but bad for the neighbours because we made such a din!

 

The rest of the Fantastic Four's stay included outlet visits, silicon valley tours, and day trips to the city. We even went down to Santana Row to sit in Tesla's trunk, just for the fun of it. Those are proper child seats, but our butts are obviously too big for them!

Yes, the silly things we did!

It's been more than a week since Gugu and Gucheung went back to Hong Kong, and Dad and Mom departed for Toronto. I will be joining them in Edmonton, and then at Yellowstone. I look forward to continuing the fun, because family time is hard to come by when we stay in different countries.

I'd also like to put on record a big thanks to the Fantastic Four for sponsoring our travels for this trip. Grateful for all the treats - accommodation, car rentals, gas, food... I hope I can return the favour one day, when I go back and start working again.

Till then, stay tuned for more family updates in the next few weeks!



An island of treasures

Lynn and AK are in town!

They arrived more than a week ago but there wasn't much action on our part, as I was tied down with some work and Panda had to cover for a colleague who was on vacation last week . 

Over the weekend, fortunately, we managed to do more stuff. One of the highlights was heading over to the Treasure Island Flea Market, held every last weekend of the month. The view of SF city from Treasure Island was so beautiful. Buildings of different shapes and sizes standing at contrasting heights against a blue sky, framed in front by palm trees and a calm bay. We had the Bay Bridge to the left of us and the Golden Gate Bridge visible in a distance. Very refreshing, and totally worth the drive.

The selection of stalls was quite varied but we didn't purchase a lot as I found most of the products pricey. That said, one can always be in awe of the vendors' imagination - colourful terrariums hanging in glass balls, wind chime made from forks and spoons, pendants made from bottle caps, lamps made from wine bottles... All these amazing items housed in a two-storey building. Out in the open air market, where they sold mostly second hand furniture and other knick-knacks, we managed to get quite a few Timbuk2 bags at a bargain - $35 for a haversack! I didn't need one until I saw how cheap it was. Heh.

There was also a terrarium workshop, where ten bucks would get you a DIY terrarium, complete with cute little plastic dinosaurs. I joined the snaking queue but pulled out at the last minute since Panda said I won't be able to bring it back home at the end of the year. Bummer!

The food trucks were awesome, and our taste buds got a real treat. There were Bacon Bacon, Sam's Chowder Mobile, Harvey's Gourmet Mini Donuts, CurryUpNow and more... Some of the queues were really long and at one time, I overheard that you need to wait an hour and 45 minutes for Paul's Rustic Oven wood-fired pizza. Whut?!

I am probably regretting not trying the pizza since it smelled really good. That and not capturing the SF skyline before leaving. What was I thinking? Argh.

Maybe it's worth bringing my parents here when they visit in May. That is, if they come back in time from their short trip to Canada. We'll see.

Photos galore!



Bay Bridge from the carpark

A $3 entrance fee per pax

Pretty butterfly stamps for entry! But they smudged into a black patch right after.

The famous Bacon Bacon food truck

Hello, Sam! I see you again.

Biting into a grilled prawn taco

Yummy breakfast burrito

The morning crowd

Random second hand/vintage items

Inside the first floor of the building which houses crafters

Checking out the bottle caps

Beer bottle openers for the wall 

Love these lamps!

Second floor

Terrarium workshop at $10

Man in action (his hairband is too cute!)



More stalls on the side facing SF city

Donut love!

Heart this machine - 2 mini donuts get popped into the tray below each time.

Give me the chicken!

Imagine the heavenly smell coming from this

Believe it or not, this shot was taken from the girls' toilet.