Vacation 2016 day 7

Edited to add: This is part of a series. The Vacation 2016 story begins here.

My instructions for the day read:

Aug 28

Sunday morning visit with Lani and drive 5 hours to Arrive 1st lodgeRoosevelt Aug 28 (Sunday), stay 28th and 29th;

From Lani's, go north to Missoula, then onto I-90 (93 to 12 to "Old 93" to 90); (If leaving from Hamilton, go south, then east on 43 to I-15 to I-90) follow I-90 to 89, just past Bozeman. 89 south thru Gardiner (stop and look!) into the park.  Turn left on Grand Loop Rd to Tower Junction, then right to the lodge.

We'll have 2 roughrider cabins, each with 2 double beds. Showers and toilets are communal and "nearby." There is a "general store, restaurant, and service station."

Laundry facilities for both camping and lodging guests are located at Lake Lodge, Old Faithful Snow Lodge and in the camper services buildings at Grant and Canyon Campgrounds and Fishing Bridge RV Park

Limited cellular telephone service is available at Old Faithful, Yellowstone Lake, Canyon, Grant and Mammoth Hot Springs villages. ATT is best at Canyon Village.

To see Lamar Valley, go across the Loop Road and continue on 212/NE Entrance road about 14 miles (25 minutes).The Petrified Tree, located near the Lost Lake trailhead (looks like you can walk from Roosevelt to Lost Creek, then down to Lost Lake)

Well, all of us would have gladly stayed at my cousin's for many days to come, but Bob and I decided in her interest and let her rest. 

It was a beautiful drive over to Yellowstone. We stopped in Gardiner and walked through some shops (some were closed since it was Sunday), and then worked our way to our cabin. I think we stopped at a waterfall or something, and arrived in plenty of time for a picnic supper between the cabins.

We stopped at Mammoth Hot Springs. Now I remember! This is from the top of the spring, looking down over the "village"

Yep, stopped at a waterfall.

The hotel office was inside the restaurant, which was quite popular. There was a small store/gift shop to one side, and a dirt road behind to rows of tiny cabins. We had two cabins next to each other, and just around the corner from the toilets. The first cabin we opened was small but clean; the second was even smaller. As the boys had someone sleeping on the floor, they got the larger cabin. These facilities are deliberately primitive. A single light. Cracks in the walls. A wood stove for heat. But It was fun, and seemed appropriate to the park.

Our two cabins, with an alleged parking spot between them. Bob was able to get the van in there, but we couldn't open the doors. So mostly we parked on the "street."

I cannot remember what we did after our supper. Maybe when I look at pictures I will see something, but maybe we just went early to bed. Remember, we didn't have the dog, but we did have 11 people in 4 double beds. Ruth was supposed to sleep with Ella and I in one bed, and the two big girls got the other bed. But Ruth doesn't much like what she's supposed to do. Some nights she insisted on sleeping with Taryn. Some nights she just bounced and talked until she collapsed on the floor. Sometimes she wanted a blanket, and others refused one. And so on.  This particular night was kinda chilly, so I put her into footed pajamas. She fussed about the feet until she fell asleep. Then I tucked her between Ella and I, and we proceeded to snuggle closer and closer throughout the night. The big girls never got down their extra blanket; they just froze to death. Bob actually built a fire in his cabin.