Coming from Grand Teton, the crowds in Yellowstone was initially a turn-off and the place felt like a theme park. Bizarre scenery, fuzzy animals, and a lot to see. Anything that required you to hike a few hundred yards was desolate, quite, and very nice. My wife found it frustrating that everywhere you went it smelt like an onsen but you couldn’t take a dip. Fortunately or unfortunately we didn’t see any bears on our hikes. Its a nice place considering that its an active volcano.

The hike to the bottom of Lower Yellowstone Falls featured a scary see-thru all the way down the canyon staircase. chibiru.

The atrium area of the Old Faithful Inn reminded me of the Gassho-style houses of Shirakawa in Japan. It’s a nice place to grab a latte and sit down for a while.

More details on my wife’s blog…in Japanese.