Being an early riser, I consistently awoke before Emilie and Jayme. Merry Weather and I would use that time to walk around the campground. On one of our treks we came across the Snake River. After that, we walked down to the river each morning to see what the weather was like.
One day, we watched two men and a dog outfit their canoe, put a life preserver on the dog, and then set off west on the Snake River.
Later we went back to the motorhome, ate breakfast, and waited for the rest of the world to arise.
With nothing on the schedule except meeting with the Kagans, we decided to go to Colter Bay. When making motorhome reservations for us, Sue tried first at the motorhome facilities at Colter Bay. We decided to check them out. Also we were looking for sites to take the family Christmas card picture which was to be a byproduct of the trip.
Colter Bay is a small resort community with a souvenir shop, a general store, some cabins, some trailer sites, a restaurant, and a fast food restaurant. And a big marina on the edge of Colter Bay. We toured the souvenir shop, ate lunch, walked around the marina, and took pictures.
About 4 o'clock we headed back to Flagg Ranch to await the Kagans. Debbie, Brooke, and Jayme were going to sleep in the motorhome; Ken and Mike were going to sleep in the Kagan family tent.
It got to be dinnertime and no sign of the Kagans. Rather than go somewhere for dinner, Sue whipped up something and we ate. It goes without saying that we were all a little bit on edge wondering what had happened to the Kagans. After dinner, Jayme and I went up to the telephone to call her paternal grandfather Harry Kagan to see if he had heard from them.
He had been waiting for our call. Debbie had forgotten where we were camping and they were in a motel in West Yellowstone, right on the Montana line. I didn't even ask Jayme if she wanted to spend the night -- I knew a TV and a swimming pool would win over Flagg Ranch and the motorhome. Debbie and I agreed to meet at Old Faithful which was about half way for both of us. Another middle of the night drive through Wyoming.
We threw Jayme's belongings into the car and headed north. This time I took Emilie and Merry Weather. It was much more fun driving through Yellowstone in the dark because I didn't see the drop-offs, though we were a little concerned about the animals. Jayme went right to sleep once she got in the car; I guess the tension she felt about being separated from her mother was now all gone. We met Debbie and threw Jayme's belongings into their car and returned to the road. We were barreling along when all of a sudden there was an elk standing in the middle of the road. We stopped and waited for him to move. I think he had the right-of-way. We waited another few moments to make sure that he wasn't the first of many elks walking along the road.
When we got home, we checked in with the Mesicks and told them that we were going to Montana the next day and wouldn't be around for dinner. The Kagans were planning on coming down to the campground during the day.