We packed up our sleeping bags and headed out early after two nights in the tent cabin in Colter Bay. I was told that I snored during the night which meant that I must have been asleep for at least part of the five hours that I thought I was tossing in my constrictive sleeping bag. In the middle of the night I finally remembered what I like about camping - nothing.

We rode back to Yellowstone along the same road (part under construction) as the previous day. In hindsight, we probably should have just stayed the night in Yellowstone but there was no way to know that beforehand. As you can see in the pictures, we ran into some wildlife along the way. I've only captured a few of the bison that we saw. There were some big herds. Traffic was stopped several times when they wandered out onto the road. Driving by one certainly reinforced that a motorcycle was no match for one of these huge creatures. Luckily, they are very accustomed to tourists.

Yellowstone has had many wildfires in the recent past. The number of burned and downed trees is extensive. Grand Tetons seems to have had almost no fire damage while Yellowstone is severely scarred. But everywhere are wildflowers and the sapplings that show the rejuvenation of the forest.

We stopped at the upper falls of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River. We would have liked to have had more time to explore the park. However, as with other days, we have places to be and miles to go before we sleep.

After leaving the park, we had a very pleasant drive along the Yellowstone & Gallatin rivers to Bozeman, MT where we had lunch. Montana is another state I had never been in. From what I've seen today, it is beautiful. Then it was off to 200 miles of I-90 to Missoula. We caught a break with Marty's Yamaha. It has been having stability problems about 65 MPH. However, Marty reported that the shaking wasn't occurring until about 75. Clif confirmed that "Marty's rear end looks good today!" Thus we were able to maintain a higher speed and arrive in Missoula before we had to deal with the setting sun in our eyes.

Today marked our first week of traveling together. While we are still learning each other's styles and preferences, the riding is getting easier. The weather gods have also been unusually cooperative. The tempertures have not been exceptionally high and downright mild in places. We've had no significant rain. I fear that we will pay for all of this later.

Tomorrow Clif, Charlie, and Marty head straight for Seattle. I have decided to take my time and ride the Lewis & Clark Wild & Scenic highway through part of Idaho.