Less than 10 miles away from the cabin is Hebgen Lake. We followed Denny Creek Road until we found a good place to park. There's so much wildlife out here around every turn. These beautiful cranes were walking around right next to the road.
There were so many spots to pick from but we finally settled on one and it was a very small campground near the edge of the lake. We got out, put on our packs and tried to find a good trail to the lake. Mark noticed these big, metal boxes (about the size of a big communication box you'd see in the front of your yard) scattered around the tiny campground area. We didn't think anything of them until the kids started asking what they were. We originally thought they were trash bins but we looked a little closer and noticed small signs next to them with instructions. These were bear-resistant food storage lockers. They could also be used to hide in if a bear came strolling into your campsite. That was warning enough for Mark so we packed up and looked for another place to go to. (Later that night Mark read about this particular area being a popular bear area. Great...)
We found a much better area a few miles up the road that was a little more populated and well used. Mark felt much better about it. This place was called Rumbaugh Ridge (which happens to be in Gallatin National Forest, if you care to know) and had a great little area to walk around the edge of the lake. *This is only the beginning of picture overload!
Thanks goodness we like to take pictures of signs so we know where we've been.
I just love watching my kids be outside enjoying nature, away from electronics.
We even found a few docks to walk out onto. It was a stretch getting Téa out this far on the dock. It wasn't sturdy enough for her liking. Look at how smooth that water is, though. Beautiful!
Piper loved doing whatever Téa was doing. I think Téa loved showing Piper the ropes of hiking.
Next stop...lunch. We found a picnic area pretty close to Rumbaugh Ridge, overlooking the lake.
They even had picnic tables.
Calista enjoying her Doritos.
The view of the picnic area from the fishing pier. I can't get enough of the scenery.
The view of Hebgen Lake from the fishing pier was spectacular! There's a reason Montana is called Big Sky Country.
The girls wanted to hunt for bugs near the pier.
We found a cute, fuzzy caterpillar.
We headed the long way back to the cabin, going around Hebgen Lake. There were some awesome homes surrounding it. I could live here in the summer months but I think winter would be a little harder, with the possibility of being snowed in. After a quick stop at the local grocery store in West Yellowstone to load up on fresh food and things we needed for the week, we headed back to the cabin for some relaxation time. For Mark and me, this means reading to our hearts desire!
I caught the girls playing nicely together so I had to document the occasion with a picture. Téa and Calista were playing Battle Ship and not fighting. Hallelujah! Piper was oblivious watching a show on Mark's iPad.
The girls were trying everything to make the time go faster until Darron, VaLynn and their kids got there. They showed up late afternoon and my kids couldn't be happier to be hanging out with their cousins. And since no one really wants to cook very much we chose to eat out (again, for our family) and found a place called The Slippery Otter Club. The food was delicious. I had a big, fat, juicy burger. Yum.
The rest of the night we had a nice relaxing time sitting around playing Uno and Dutch Blitz and just chatting away. The kids loved being with their Woolley cousins again. We made the kids shower and clean up so they could be ready for a long day in Yellowstone Park. We are so excited for tomorrow!
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