Map of the United States

I took a Yellowstone & Tetons in Winter tour given by Western Leisure which sells tour packages through organizations such as AAA and Good Times Travel. I booked with the latter company. Our tour started in Salt Lake City, Utah, in the Western United States, to the right of California and Nevada. We traveled from Salt Lake City through Idaho, then just a bit into Montana, and then to Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming.

 

Map of the United States

Map of the Tour

We spent day 1 of the tour in Salt Lake City, Utah, a good choice as it was much colder here than in Southern California––about 40 degrees compared to about 70–75 degrees, but not as cold as it would be on the next days of our trip, so a day to acclimate to the colder temperatures.

On the map, the pink line is our route on day 2 of the tour, from Salt Lake City to West Yellowstone, Montana; the blue line is the route on day 3, from West Yellowstone to Yellowstone to Jackson, Wyoming; and the green line is day 5, from Jackson back to Salt Lake City. We spent two nights in Jackson.

We had 41–44 on our tour, most from either Southern or Northern California.

Map of the Tour

Our Tour Guide

Our excellent tour guide, Ted, very knowledgeable and very nice.

Our Tour Guide

Our Bus Driver

Our great, very safe driver, Steve.

Our Bus Driver

Salt Lake City

Road sign on the Salt Lake City highway. A crossroads: Cheyenne, Wyoming, 442 miles; Las Vegas, 420 miles. Yellowstone is 320 miles from Salt Lake City.

Salt Lake City is the capital of Utah, with a population of about 200,000, with its greater metropolitan area having a population of about 1,140,000. About 50% of its population belong to the Church of the Latter Day Saints (Mormons). About 60% of the population of Utah are Mormons.

Salt Lake City

Salt Lake City

Salt Lake City has many modern buildings. The city is located in a valley between two mountain ranges: the Wasatch and the Oquirrh.

Salt Lake City

Salt Lake City

And also many beautiful buildings built in the 19th and 20th centuries. This is City and County Building, 1894. It has as its distinction that it is the first building in the world that was retrofitted with base isolation so that it will “float” during an earthquake. Salt Lake City has two major faults, which are overdue to rupture together with an earthquake as great as 7.5.

Salt Lake City

The Beehive House

A National Historic Landmark. It served as the official residence of Brigham Young when he was President of the Latter Day Saints (LDS) Church and the first Governor of the Utah Territory.

The Mormon religion was founded by Joseph Smith in a log cabin in upstate New York in 1830. He published “The Book of Mormon.” The Mormons moved west to the Midwest United States and then to Utah after Joseph Smith was assassinated in 1846.

Salt Lake City was founded by Brigham Young and the Mormon followers in 1847. The Mormon pioneers organized a new state called Deseret and petitioned the U.S. Congress to recognize it. The Congress declined the petition and instead established the Utah Territory.

Today, about 50% of the population of Salt Lake City is Mormon and about 60% of Utah’s population is Mormon. There are approximately 15 million Mormons worldwide.

The Beehive House

The Utah State Capitol Building

We made a stop at the Utah State Capitol Building, patterned after the U.S. Capitol Building and completed in 1914.

The Utah State Capitol Building

Inside the Utah State Capitol Building–MOVIE

A movie of the inside of the the Utah State Capitol Building. The paintings inside the building were a WPA (Works Projects Administraton) project.

Inside the Utah State Capitol Building–MOVIE

Old and New Buildings

New buildings and old ones. On the left, the 18th Ward Chapel, 1882. On the right, the Old Salt Lake Council Hall, 1866.

Old and New Buildings

Cathedral of the Madeleine

We made a stop at the Cathedral of the Madeleine, 1909.

Cathedral of the Madeleine

Old Houses

There are numerous interesting old houses in Salt Lake City. Probably the best way to view them is by a slow car ride around the city.

Old Houses

The Salt Lake 2002 Olympic Cauldron Park

The 2002 Olympics were held in Salt Lake City and other venues in Utah. The opening and closing ceremonies were held at the Salt Lake 2002 Olympic Cauldron Park.

I have put my photos of our sightseeing tour of Salt Lake City on a slide show. Go directly to

http://www.peggysphotos.com/day–1–salt–lake–city–utah/

(Slide Shows, United States, Yellowstone in Winter, “Day 1, Salt Lake City, Utah”).

The Salt Lake 2002 Olympic Cauldron Park

Buca di Beppo

We had our dinner tonight at Buca di Beppo, an U.S. chain restaurant serving Southern Italian cuisine family style. The food was pretty good. But don’t order wine with your dinner, as with tax on it plus an included service charge, one glass of wine came to over $13.00.

In case you want to know, the largest bowl of pasta was served in the Garden Grove, California, Buca di Beppo in 2010––a Guinness World Record.

Buca di Beppo

Buca di Beppo

Many photos on the walls in the restaurant. Here, a great photo of Pavarotti and Sinatra.

Buca di Beppo

Buca di Beppo

A decorated room.

Buca di Beppo

Buca di Beppo

A statue.

Buca di Beppo

Buca di Beppo

The religious wall.

Buca di Beppo

Buca di Beppo

Even with the glare on the photo, it is definitely a great one.

End of the first day of the tour.

Buca di Beppo