Taking the Kids: Escaping Yellowstone's Crowds with Guides to Show the Way

When we spied a bear from the road, Matty Kirkland made a U-turn (no small feat with a van and trailer), parked and raced up the hill to set up a scope so we could watch from a safe distance (park rangers say visitors should be at least a football field away) while he chowed down on greens in a field of wildflowers.

When it was time for the kids to be sworn in as Junior Rangers (www.nps.gov/yell/forkids/beajuniorranger.htm), Gugliotta and Kirkland whispered into the ranger's ear to "make a production" of it, thrilling the kids and making everyone around us smile, as they were handed their coveted ranger badges.

Our guides knew exactly where to hunt for frogs and fashioned balloon animals for a scavenger hunt at our campsite; they had magnifying glasses at the ready for nature walks so they could look close up at bugs and flowers and they helped the kids construct a bona-fide arch from rock along one trail and snapped pictures all along the way, putting them together on a CD they gave us at the end of the trip to chronicle our adventure.

"With kids, it's always about the journey, not the destination," explained Matty Kirkland, who has been guiding families for Austin-Lehman for 15 years.

Sure it costs more to tour the park this way (typically $400 a person per day, less for the kids), but that includes everything -- accommodations (no worries here about getting rooms at park lodges), stellar meals (how about a taco picnic while the kids bang away at a pinata in a picnic area?), and activities (we ended the trip with a whitewater raft trip down the Yellowstone River).

Most importantly, we had a knowledgeable guides who not only interpret what we are seeing (did you know pine sap makes good chewing gum?) but also entertain the kids with a never-ending supply of jokes, riddles, songs , piggyback rides and snacks.

Of course, there were glitches. The mosquitoes were terrible at our campsite. The crew that set up our camp didn't bring the promised fishing poles for the kids. A hot springs where we planned to swim in the park was closed because of high water. But because our guides were always ready with a plan B (ready to fly a kite instead of fish) things that might have derailed another trip proved to be just minor annoyances and the adults could relax rather than scramble for alternatives.

Other thoughtful touches made us all smile. Think homemade ice cream made with a special REI gadget and served in cones at the top of a hiking trail with the bright turquoise Grand Prismatic Spring -- the third largest hot spring in the world -- spread out in all its glory below us or yogurt parfaits presented on a silver platter underneath a waterfall.

"Absolutely worth the money," said Atlantan Tim Mast, whose Austin-Lehman family trip also overlapped ours. His wife and three daughters had such a good time -- their first on such a group trip -- that they are already thinking about next summer.

Our last morning in Yellowstone, 9-year-old Ethan declared, "It's better than DisneyWorld! I don't want to leave."

Me either.

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For more about Eileen's Montana adventure, read her trip diary at www.takingthekids.com and also follow "taking the kids" on www.twitter.com, where Eileen Ogintz welcomes your questions and comments.