October 4, 2022
Day 2 of Yellowstone starts with a trip to the Continental Divide. It was on our way to the crown jewel of Yellowstone, Old Faithful. We had to wait about 30 minutes to see Old Faithful. In the visitor center they post the approximate time of the next eruption. They allow +/- 5 minutes. Our “scheduled” time was 2:19PM. It is pretty cool as there are other geysers around but Old Faithful has a large concrete sidewalk at least 3/4 of the way around. On the sidewalk are numerous metal benches. You find your seat, and wait. The time estimation was right on the money. We only had one more area we wanted to visit and travel on the rest of the figure of eight so we opted to save that for tomorrow. While it was still mid-afternoon, we decided to check out West Yellowstone, MT. West Yellowstone, MT is where we initially had reservations at another campground. It was only a short drive.
We drove through the town. We located a post office to mail out some things for the kids and grandkids. It was a cute little town. We opted to stop at a McDonald’s. We didn’t pack a lunch today. While in McDonald’s we got robbed! Check this out. We each ordered a Quarter Pounder w/cheese and a milkshake. Our total bill was $22! WTF!! I had to take a double take at the receipt. A Quarter Pounder w/cheese was $7.20 for just the burger. No fries. No drink. At home or most other places you get the entire meal for that price. Then the milkshakes were $4 each. Highway robbery. I am so happy we changed our campground. We returned home stunned and poorer.
One bright spot on this evening’s drive home was a chance to see and hear a heard of elk in a field. In addition on the opposite side of the road, up a wooded hill were two more bucks. Lots of folks stopped and took pictures.
