In the morning, we rode through a cattle drive. That was an interesting experience. We made it to Lander where we left our bikes and our gear at the Sleeping Bear Campground. Wayne and Wanda Major from Riverton drove down, picked us up, and invited us to spend the night with them in their home. Tomorrow, we will go with them to meeting in Wayne's parent's home. An interesting side note: Wayne is Brett Major's uncle (who worked with me at the South Rim of the Canyon two summers ago.)
We finally made it to Dubois where we ate at a less than satisfactory cafe. Tonight we are camped at the Dubois KOA. We hope to be able to make it to Lander by tomorrow.
It was a good thing we stopped to camp where we did. The rest of the picnic and camping areas were covered in snow, and the snow banks along the road were huge. In fact, it was interesting trying to find a bathroom in the morning. Thankfully, we found one that was still unlocked. We woke up to a light dusting of snow, and it continued to snow on us through most of the day. We crossed the Continental Divide three times. Since the roads were closed, it was nice to be able to ride without worrying about any traffic.
Unfortunately, despite the new tires, Shayne got another flat tire today.
We exited Yellowstone and soon entered Grand Teton National Park. All of the services we came across were closed for the winter season. While we still had enough food for a couple of days, we were running out of water. We were considering hitching a ride down to Jackson since we weren't sure how long it would be before we would find something that was open. Thankfully, there was a gas station near Colter Bay Village that was still open.
We are camped (illegally, again) just outside the park at a Forest Service parking area within view of the Tetons.
Today we entered Yellowstone National Park and crossed into Wyoming! It was difficult to leave the comfort of a real bed this morning. Shayne stopped by a bike shop in West Yellowstone to buy new tires. We also checked with a Ranger Station, and they recommended that we ride around since the park was closed beyond Old Faithful, and they couldn't guarantee that the roads would be plowed. This was disheartening as it would add over 100 miles to our trip. We didn't end up leaving West Yellowstone until after lunch. The plan was to take our time and enjoy the park as we rode to Old Faithful. I had never been to Yellowstone so it would have been a shame to be this close and miss it, even if it meant adding another couple of days to our trip. We saw lots of wildlife, including bald eagles, bison, and elk:
We made it to Old Faithful by late afternoon. After we stopped to watch, we waited for the crowds to disperse, and then we rode past the barricades. A couple miles beyond Old Faithful,
Unfortunately, Shayne got another flat tire this morning. He is getting a little frustrated since this is his fourth flat so far, and I haven't had one yet. We stopped to check out Earthquake Lake and Hebgen Dam.
hostel wasn't open yet. However, it has been getting cold outside at night, so Shayne and I didn't mind splurging on a hotel tonight. Tomorrow, we are going to have to check the conditions of the road inside the park. There is the possibility that they are covered in snow, and that we will have to ride around.
This morning, we stopped to check out Beaverhead Rock, which needed a little bit of imagination.
We had one pass to get over right outside Virginia City. Right before Virginia City was Nevada City which contained dozens of buildings from ghost towns reassembled in one location.
Tonight we are camped at the Ennis State Fishing Park. Ennis is at 4,985 feet, and this is the last time we will be below 5,000 feet until Pueblo, Colorado.
