Finally, we were leaving Billings number one worst hotel.  After stopping for breakfast we drove past one of the several oil refineries in the Billings area and we headed off for Yellowstone National Park.  This would be my first visit to this park and I was really looking forward to it.

Highway 212 took us through Red Lodge Montana.   Red Lodge is a nice town with lots of shops and restaurants and has a good, rustic feel to it.  Our original plan was to stop in Red Lodge for lunch but our late breakfast combined with the town being packed to the gills – I think there might have been some motorcycle thing going on – led us to decide to just drive right through town and continue on to the park.  But first we had to go through some mountains.

To get from Red Lodge to the Yellowstone gate you’ve got to navigate a mountain barrier.  Highway 212 through the mountains between Red Lodge and Cooke City is a narrow, winding road with switchbacks, turnouts, sheer drops, and some fantastic scenery.  There are several places along the road where parking areas have been set up so you can get out of the car, walk around and gaze at the majesty around you.  During the drive we looked down on mountain lakes and drove past huge alpine meadows.

We spent quite a bit of time above the tree line during the drive and went past a lot of snow.  Of course we had to get out and walk around a bit.  Mrs. Salad Is Slaughter took pictures of me walking around in the snow fields.  In shorts.  And a tee shirt.  In July.  Not wearing a coat.  Not patches of snow.  Lots of snow.  There’s a reason this road is closed in the winter.

After walking around in the snow we headed down the other side of the mountains toward Cooke City and the Yellowstone entrance.  And what follows was my favorite incident of the trip.

To be continued.