This was our fourth year staying at Two Rib Cabin in Cooke City, a perfect base for exploring the Beartooths and Yellowstone. With ample fishing and hiking opportunities and beautiful scenery it was easy to fill a week. The dry year was evident in both the land (a lot browner than in past years, visibly less water) and sky (lots of smoke and haze from forest fires), but it did not diminish our time in the mountains. Here's how we spent our first week (Yellowstone pictures can be found in the Yellowstone gallery):

Friday: arrive in Billings, overnight Billings Hotel and Convention Center
Saturday: driving the scenic Beartooth Highway from Red Lodge to Cooke City, a hike part way up Beartooth Butte, settling in at Two Rib Cabin
Sunday: Wolf Mountain hike for Steve, fishing for Dad, and relaxing for the gals; a drive through Yellowstone's Lamar Valley and Blacktail Plateau (moose!) in the evening
Monday: Group fishing day at Island Lake and Little Bear Lake (fresh trout for dinner!)
Tuesday: Fossil Lake hike for Steve, scenic drive through the Sunlight Basin to Cody and a visit to Buffalo Bill Dam and Reservoir for the rest of us
Wednesday: sunrise at Island Lake and a hike to Beauty lake for Steve and me; fishing for Dad, tooling around Cooke City in the afternoon for the ladies, short hike to Gardiner Lake in the late afternoon for Steve
Thursday: hiking the Canyon trails in Yellowstone for Steve and me, evening hike and fishing at Trout Lake
Friday: Lake extravaganza hike for Steve; lunch with Beth and Adrienne
Saturday: Good bye to Mom and Dad and Two Rib cabin. On to our next adventure!