With all the cousins, we made the trip to Yellowstone Bear World (deceptively named as it is an hour and a half from Yellowstone National Park). Visitors there drive through an enclosure with lots of wildlife that can be seen in the National Park.
This bull elk is very light colored, I'm not sure if it was an albino or not.
Here's a grizzly bear (notice the hump on the shoulder).
Some people go through in a big tourist truck; the bears stand up and beg for food from them. It's ironic as within the park, you are forbidden from feeding the wildlife since they don't want the bears to get too accustomed to people and then get aggressive when they are trying to get food, but here at Bear World as long as you are in the tourist truck/excursion vehicle, you can throw food to the bears (and they have come to expect it).
I was also surprised to see staff vets (I assume) driving up and getting so close to the bears. Bear World is honestly more of a zoo than an encounter with wildlife I guess.
The cousins liked watching the cubs too.
All the cousins threw food to the fish swimming in the water below.
Everyone posing in front of the big bear statue. The bright sun meant it was hard to get a good picture.
The petting zoo was fun. Brenna, Karina, Tessa, and Courtney petting a doe deer here.
Derek and Courtney with the deer.
Lydia and Grant found a goat to pet (I think Lydia is letting the goat sniff her hands).
New to Bear World (at least since I was last here) is Jurassic Creek. This is a section with animatronic dinosaurs that move around, roar, etc. I guess the owners decided they had gone as far as they could with the live animals, so they went with robotic versions of extinct animals as well?
Derek bonded with some of his cousins over shared love of dinosaurs. Here he is with Logan while Miles is stuck inside the T-Rex's mouth!
Dallin, Logan, Ethan, and Maxwell digging out a fossil in the sandbox.
Derek and Maxwell working together.
One of the highlights of Bear World for the kids are the handful of carnival rides. Courtney, Karina, Tessa, and Brenna rode together in the Ferris Wheel. Unfortunately, the most exciting ride for at least some of the older kids is a small roller coaster and it was not working the day we went (which seemed to be a regular occurrence).
Lydia and others eventually came over to the dinosaur area from the rides, and Lydia wanted pictures at various spots.
The girls had their turn digging in the sand (Brenna, Courtney, and Tessa here).
Brenna took a turn riding on a T-Rex (or at least posing on one).
Lydia took her turn.
As did Tessa.
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