It was a layover type day, as we took care of life things like catch up on appointments and email, clean out the cooler, etc. We stopped to get ice and I even went to the quilt shop in town.
In the afternoon, I decided to venture out in the 95 degree heat to go explore the state park across the street and I am so glad I did! Did you ever want to experience a little bit of Yellowstone without all the people and animal traffic jams? And even be able to soak in the hot springs? Then book a stay in this town and explore!
I first saw Teepee fountain, which was actually man made, as a way of venting out some of the piping for the hot spring pools in the park. Then I walked along a boardwalk on the travertine, just like at Yellowstone. I half expected a buffalo to amble over the ridge. It smelled like Yellowstone too. There is a suspension bridge that crosses the river too, and lots of trails I didn’t take because it was a million degrees out and I was by myself and not prepared to do a hike in the back country.
I did find the hot spring though. Pretty awesome with the red rocks in the background. Long ago, there was a treaty between the Shoshone and the State of Wyoming that the hot springs would be available for everyone. Wyoming stuck to that treaty since then and so there is a public hot springs pool that is open daily for anyone who wants to use it. There are also 2 longstanding companies with hot spring pools with water slides.
I made it back to the hotel room without dying of heat exhaustion and enjoyed the AC with the rest of the family. Then we went to dinner in the hotel restaurant that is full of mounted trophy animals. The owner of the hotel had been a trophy hunter for years and years. As the ethics of trophy hunting changed, he changed with the times too. In his later years, he shot the animals with tranquilizer darts and got his picture, and then a vet would band and check the animal and then it woke up and went back to living. The tourism dollars still went to the people in Africa where he hunted, and the animals would get checked over for health and research purposes. I thought that was very interesting.
Kline Road Trips 