This week, we finish off our Yellowstone Journey with the upper Grand Loop Road, including wonderful waterfalls, mud pots, and canyons. Plus, we have the top five campground office complaints, a new winterizing system, and so much more! This is the RV Miles Podcast.

Have you ever wondered what the most common things campers complain about at the campground office? Nanci Dixon, who is a regular camp host and a writer over at RVTravel.com, put together a list of top five complaints: https://www.rvtravel.com/rvofficecomplaints968/

Weekly “ask”: If you’re interested in supporting RV Miles, we’d love for you to use our affiliate link next time you shop at amazon! It doesn’t cost you a dime, and we get a small kickback for every purchase you make. Just go to https://amazon.rvmiles.com next time you shop. 

Something you might want to consider on Amazon, If you’re someone who likes to camp deeper into the season, but have to winterize between trips. You might be interested in the Floe winterizing system. It’s essentially a small on-board DC-powered air compressor that’s installed right inline with your water system, so you can blow out the air lines as you break camp: https://amzn.to/3ltypVU

Last Week’s Brain Teaser:

Doctor Rob was staying with Cousin Ralph in Ralph’s RV, in a beautiful wooded lakeside campground in a National Park. The two had come together for the camping trip to set up Ralph’s will. As Rob was Ralph’s closest living relative, much of Ralph’s estate was being left to him.

One day, Ralph went to Dr Rob very disturbed. "Doctor," he began, "I have just found out that an assassin wants to get me. He will be here very soon. Where will I go? Where can I hide? If he finds me here, he will surely kill me. I do not have time to leave this campground and go further into the woods."

Dr Rob thought for a moment, and then grabbed a 5' long bamboo pole, with a diameter the size of a quarter. "Ralph, follow me out to the lake. This lake is 4' deep. If you lie on the bottom of the lake and breathe through this pole, the assassin will never find you. I will swim down to get you when he is gone."

Ralph consented, and lay down on the bottom of the lake with the bamboo pole in his mouth. A few hours later, a ranger passed by. He found Ralph's body, dead. Dr Rob told the police of the circumstance, and that Ralph had probably panicked, and died.

Police arrested Dr Rob, on the charges of murdering Ralph. Why?

The bamboo pole did not have any cracks or holes. Its opening was above water the whole time.

Ralph died of carbon dioxide poisoning. The pole was 5' long, but only the size of a quarter.

The first time he breathed in, he breathed oxygen. When he exhaled, the air could not travel 5' before he breathed in again. He was just breathing what he exhaled. Before long, all he was breathing was carbon dioxide. He died of CO2 poisoning.

Doctor Rob was the one who told him to use the pole, therefore the cause of his death. Rob is a DOCTOR, and therefore knows about the CO2. Rob did murder Ralph. His motive: the money in the will.

The final portion of our Yellowstone journey (Northern Half):

Canyon Area - Canyon Village, Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, and Lower Yellowstone Falls

The Lower Falls area is located just to the east of Canyon Village.  A one-way loop drive takes you to the brink of the Grand Canyon and offers four views.  Lower Falls is the biggest waterfall in Yellowstone at 308 feet. It’s probably the second-most famous site in the park after Old Faithful. We took the Brink of the falls trail, which leads you down a steep set of paved switchbacks right to the drop-off. We then drove a bit further down the loop to see the falls from a distance. It’s a busy area, but well worth it.

Norris Geyser Basin

Norris is one of our favorite spots. Steamboat Geyser is really interesting, whether it’s erupting or not. There are tons of noisy and interesting steam vents and pools in this area, and the milky Porcelain Basin is pretty spectacular. We thought it even looked like it was glowing in the early evening. 

Artists Paint Pots

If Norris was our favorite area, the Artist Paint Pots were our kids. These muddy cauldrons spit hunks of sludge high in the air, and right towards you. It’s a 1.5 mile round-trip, and there are other thermal features in the area to see along the way.  It’s also a spectacular sunset spot, overlooking a meadow that’s often full of Elk or Bison. 

Mammoth 

The Mammoth area is home to giant thermal constructions - like massive wedding cakes crafted through mineral deposits, all linked with boardwalk trails. The mammoth area is where the park headquarters is, and it’s home to many historic buildings, along with gift shops, restrooms, and restaurants. 

Gardiner

You can make the 5-mile drive out of the park into the gateway town of Gardiner, Montana from the Mammoth area. When you do, you’ll pass a sign marking the 45th parallel, half-way between North Pole and Equator. You’ll get to see the historic Roosevelt Arch entrance, too. We picked up some to-go pizza from Outlaws Pizza and brought it over to Arch Park, where you can picnic in front of the Arch. There’s also a giant Yellowstone National Park entrance sign in downtown Gardiner overlooking the park, an excellent spot for a family photo. 

New Brain Teaser:

Through the day they toiled away

At night their plight was in disarray

A woman entered the picture

And the changes came

Their lives would never be the same

Then the evil showed up

and almost sent her to heaven

Many can name some,

But can you name all of this fearless Seven