Day 27: Swimming

After a day driving in search of wildlife, the boys were ready for a more kid-centric day so we went out in search of a place to swim in Yellowstone. Swimming is officially closed in all of Yellowstone, but there is much bandit swimming at the pull-offs along the rivers.

Our first stop was a beautiful spot along the Madison River. It was backed by a dramatic, shear rock face. The water was cold, but we got in. The current in the middle of the river was too swift for little kids and water got deep quickly so we left in short order.

We moved upstream a few miles to an area with calmer waters. We ate the lunch I packed, then did some exploring. There was a small island 25 or so feet off shore that will and I initially set off to colonize. We discovered a family of ducks with 8-10 baby ducklings. Lucas and Jenny eventually joined us, but too late to see the ducklings up close because Will tried to befriend them and they fled to the other side of the river. We played in the river for a while. My favorite part was Will walking up stream and then floating back to me while I played goalie in order to stop him from floating too far downstream.