06 October, 2016 (Cody Hardy)

Today is a day I could never forget because 19 years ago I was blessed with both the best and worst gift a big brother could ask for, and that is a little brother. Today I had the opportunity to call him and tell him happy birthday which meant a lot to me, and I’m sure him too, because we are pretty close. I have not seen him since he left for basic training in May, I am very proud of the man he is becoming and it meant a lot to hear that he has been doing fine and graduates at the end of this month. With that being said, today will also be unforgettable for me because I will never forget the view we had today. As we hiked the trail at Biscuit Basin to the overview and to Mystic Fall in the snow, it was absolutely beautiful. No matter how much someone might hate the snow or the cold, if they could have experienced what we did today, they might change their minds a little. After our hike we moved onto another small hike to view Fountain Paint Pots where we were able to learn more about the geothermal activity here at Yellowstone and how there are several different ways in which gasses and pressure are being released from below the Earth’s surface. We then headed back to camp which took a little longer become some bison were blocking the road. It is amazing to see all of the wildlife in the area and how they don’t seem to care one bit about all of the human activity. After a short stop at camp we headed to West Yellowstone where people had the opportunity to go out to eat, get groceries, and even buy gifts for family and friends back home. The people around town where super helpful and friendly. It just goes to show that there are still good people in the world today. Once we got back to camp debrief took place. It was a long one as usual, but another lesson was learned about improving our skills. I can only hope that we all do our best to make those appropriate improvements.