We arrived at Yellowstone thru the North Entrance at Gardiner, Montana and checked out the Roosevelt Arch. The Arch was dedicated by Theodore Roosevelt in 1903 and features the inscription “For the Benefit and Enjoyment of the People. Yellowstone is the oldest National Park in the world and is truly an amazing place. We had reservations for Indian Creek Campground, a beautiful and somewhat remote campground about 6 miles from Mammoth. We set up and had a visit from the campground hosts to welcome us and to go over the rules and bear and fire safety. One thing led to another and by the end of the day we had an appointment with the campground. manager at Mammoth Campground about being NPS Yellowstone Campground hosts. It just so happened they needed hosts for a few weeks and the hosts at Indian Creek were convinced we would be a good fit. We went on a beautiful hike up nearby Bunsen Peak while we thought about whether or not we should volunteer. We have always been interested in volunteer hosting and this would give us some experience. Also we would get full hook-ups, free propane and free laundry. And it would give us a break from traveling for a couple weeks. We would work 3 days on and 3 days off.
Bunsen Peak Hike
Bunsen Peak named after the German chemist Robert Bunsen (inventor of Bunsen Burner) for his early work on volcanic geyser theories. It is a three hour hike with 360 views from the top. If you are ever in Mammoth we highly recommend the hike.
Our hike up Bunsen Peak to think about the hosting opportunity convinced us to do it. It was a beautiful day and the views were magnificent. Even though the Mammoth area is crowded we only saw a handful of other hikers. At the top we could see all the way to the Tetons. We came down from the hike and let the campground manager know we would like to host. We completed some paperwork, received uniforms and headed to our new host campsite at Mammoth Campground.
Whirlwind Tour of Yellowstone Highlights
Since we would be starting our volunteer gig right away we took a day to do a drive to all the Yellowstone highlights. Navigating the 142 mile Grand Loop Road would enable us to see much of the hightlights of Yellowstone. We left around 7 a.m. and headed to the Norris Geyser Basin. Norris Geysr is the oldest and most active volcanic basin in the world.
We then drove on to the Old Faithful area where we ran into large crowds of people. Old Faithful erupts about every 90 minutes and peope are there 30 minutes ahead of time to get a good seat.
We made it back to the campground around 8;00 pm, exhausted but happy to see the sites. Tomorrow we will shadow the other campground hosts and then will start to work two days after..We will have time for another hike in the park. More on our that in the next post.:)
Overhanging Cliff near Tower