by Natalie Ogbourne | Feb 12, 2014 | Pause, Ponder the Path, Press On
We dragged ourselves into Yellowstone’s Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel according to plan, just after midnight Sunday morning. We’d driven twenty hours and that last one was hard. We were all road-weary and my husband, who had driven most of the way, was done. I...
by Natalie Ogbourne | Oct 24, 2013 | Pause, Ponder the Path, Press On
The Canyon Area is an outpost of civilization near the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone boasting two stores, a post office, Visitor Education Center, hotel, gas station and campground. A slow drive down a wooded lane leads campers away from commotion and commerce into...
by Natalie Ogbourne | Aug 13, 2013 | Pause, Ponder the Path, Press On
A trail’s name hints at what lies beyond. Usually it’s the destination: Mallard Lake. Sometimes it’s that the trail won’t be level: Mount Washburn. Occasionally it’s a warning: Seven Mile Hole. Hikers need more than a hint. We need to...
by Natalie Ogbourne | Jul 5, 2013 | Pause, Ponder the Path, Press On
The last fight between my brother and I involved a fun-size Snickers bar. We were on our way out for a day of downhill skiing and both had our eye the same treat. He was twenty. I was twenty-four. We fought over candy. Travel has a way of bringing it out in people. It...
by Natalie Ogbourne | Jun 11, 2013 | Navigating Tough Terrain, Pondering Life Outside
We wore the road to Norris thin. Home to a geyser our family favored, it was a must-stop. Every time. Echinus’ eruption cycle was short, thirty-five to seventy-five minutes. A half-mile path through the woods led to the broad depression in the earth that was its pool....
by Natalie Ogbourne | May 28, 2013 | Pondering Life Outside
Even though Mom and Dad first took us to the mountains when we were little, little enough that my brother and I had matching blue and white jackets, it wasn’t until we went to Yellowstone that we really hiked. Our early forays on the trail were not entirely...