The Mystery at Yellowstone National Park

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R E A L K I D S • R E A L P L A C E SAMERICA’S NATIONAL MYSTERY BOOK SERIES

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C A R O L E M A R S H

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One PeskyPark Ranger!

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The Mystery

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YellowstoneNationalPark

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Copyright ©2009 Carole Marsh/Gallopade International/Peachtree City, GAAll rights reserved.First EditionEbook edition Copyright ©2011

Carole Marsh Mysteries™ and its skull colophon are the property of Carole Marsh andGallopade International.

Published by Gallopade International/Carole Marsh Books. Printed in the United Statesof America.

Managing Editor: Sherry MossAssistant Editor: Paige MuhCover Design: Vicki DeJoyContent Design: Randolyn Friedlander

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Yellowstone National Parkby Grant

Well, folks, here I am in Cody,Wyyyyoming, 'bout to head West, youngman, go West...to Yellowstone! I hear tell isa big, doggone place. I hear tell there'sgrizzlies... bison...a'bubblin' mud pots...gobsof geysers...snow that steams...and ghostlyvapors...and, best of all, there's aSUPERVOLCANO! Well, gotta go get myboots on and my snowmobile warmed up.Mimi and Papa are a'waitin' on cowboyGrant and I don't want to get left behind.Oh, yeah, Christina's coming, too. I justhave one question: Should I be scared?


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Grant began to stir in his rumpled hotelbed sheets, rolling from side to side as he didevery morning as he woke up. This morninghe had the strange sensation that someonewas watching him. He cracked open one eyeto see a small lens right in front of his face.

“Christina! What are you doing?” Grantcroaked. His sister was standing directly overhim with her brand new video camera pointing down at him. Grant whipped thesheet over his head and buried down deep intohis feather bed.

“Gooood morning, little brother! It’s amarvelous day for a snowmobile ride!”Christina turned her camera toward thewindow and began filming the snow-covered

Believe it or not!

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rolling hills of Cody, Wyoming. “Wow! I can’tbelieve that some people get to look at thisview every day. It sure is different than littleol’ Peachtree City, Georgia.”

Grant slowly crawled out of the coversand sat upright. He rubbed his fingers overhis face and through his tousled blond hair.“The only scenery I want to see right now is aloaded breakfast buffet,” he said. “I hope theyserve real sourdough pancakes out here in the West!”

Christina and Grant had arrived in Codythe night before, along with theirgrandparents, Mimi and Papa. The kids oftentraveled with their grandparents while Mimidid research for the children’s mystery booksshe wrote. Mimi always said that the abilityto give her grandchildren excitement AND aneducation was the best job in the world!

Wyoming was one of Papa’s favoriteparts of the country. One of his fondestmemories was a snowmobile tour ofYellowstone National Park that he and Mimihad taken years earlier. A cowboy through and


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through, Papa was excited to recreate thatexpedition for his grandchildren. The stop inCody was a brief layover on the way to whatPapa described as a “journey through one ofthe United States’ most valuable treasures.”He couldn’t wait to put on his cowboy hat andboots and share that treasure with Grant and Christina.

There was a knock at the door adjoiningthe kids’ room to their grandparents’ suite.

“Kiddos! You up?” Papa hollered.“We’ve gotta get a move on—mud pots andgeysers and bison await!”

“We’re up, Papa!” replied Christina.“We’re getting our snow bibs on and packingup our stuff.” Christina and Grant loved tosnow ski every year with their parents, soluckily they had all the cold weather clothingthey would need on this tour. Snowmobilingthrough the park would be all kinds of fun—butsince Yellowstone gets an average of 150inches of snow every year, it would also be allkinds of cold!

Christina stowed her video camera inher backpack. The kids quickly got dressed,


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gathered their things, and headed to meetMimi and Papa for breakfast. They werelooking forward to filling up with food, and alsofilling up with the details Papa and Mimi wouldgive them about their trip.

“Papa, when are we getting oursnowmobiles?” Grant asked. “I’ve beenpracticing my driving skills on my video game.I’m ready to speed all around the trails!” Heplopped down at the restaurant table withFrisbee-sized pancakes and greasy baconspilling off his plate.

Christina’s eyes got huge as she putgranola and fruit into her yogurt. She hadheard there were dangers to look out forthroughout the national park, but she neverthought it would be her brother on asnowmobile! Luckily, Papa quickly put hermind at ease.

“Oh, I don’t think so, cowboy!” Papasaid. “You must have a driver’s license tooperate a snowmobile. The last time Ichecked, you didn’t have one. So you will beRIDING—not driving on this trip.”


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As Papa piloted the Mystery Girl to Codythe night before, Christina sat in the back ofthe plane finishing up a fantastic book she’dbegun reading that very morning, so shehadn’t yet asked her grandmother what thiswinter excursion was all about.

“Ok, Mimi,” Christina began, “what’s sogreat about Yellowstone? Why do you andPapa love it so much?”

“Yeah, Mimi,” said Grant, “we’ve beento a national park before. Why is this one anydifferent?”

Mimi pulled her sparkly glasses fromher face and smiled at her grandson. “Grant,Yellowstone isn’t just A national park. It isTHE national park—the very first national parkin the entire world.”

“All thanks to President Ulysses S.Grant,” said Papa. “He realized that the landand the water and the wildlife here werevaluable to the world. So in 1872, he declaredthat the area would be a national park. As itsays on the Roosevelt Arch up at the NorthEntrance of the park, ‘Yellowstone is for thebenefit and enjoyment of the people.’”


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“So what are we going to see?” askedChristina, popping a last grape into her mouth.“Oh, Christina,” said Mimi, “the park is full ofsights and sounds and smells that you couldnever imagine!”

“That’s right,” said Papa. “As a matterof fact, when the 19th century explorers begantelling the stories about what they saw in thiswilderness, people didn’t believe them.”

“What couldn’t they believe?” askedGrant skeptically.

“They couldn’t believe what you aregetting ready to see on this trip,” said Mimi.“Yellowstone National Park is a boiling,bubbling, steaming, gushing, spewing, sizzling,smelly place!”

Grant looked out the window at the suncoming up and glistening off the powder-whitesnow. “It’s freezing cold and there is a ton of snow outside,” he said. “I don’t see howanything can boil and steam in the dead of winter.”

“That’s what’s so amazing aboutYellowstone, young ’un,” said Papa. “And wait


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until you see the wildlife—oh, the animals we’llsee! Bison, bears, deer, wolves, elk, coyotes,eagles…” his voice trailed off.

Mimi loved to see Papa’s eyes light upand the permanent grin attach to his facewhen he was out in this part of the country.

Christina grabbed her video camera outof her backpack and hit the ‘Record’ button.“Land that is boiling and steaming? This Igotta see! And film, of course!” she said. “Sowhen do we start?”

“If Grant will wipe that syrup off hischin, we can start right now!” said Papa.“We’ll commandeer some snowmobiles and beon our way!”

Grant was excited but also a bitskeptical. As he zipped up his heavy coat andheaded to the door with his sister and hisgrandparents, he secretly hoped thatsomething interesting would crop up during their trip that would add a little thrill totheir journey!

He wouldn’t have to wait long.


Repetitive Routes

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Molly Jane Edwards put rubber bandsaround her hair braids, stuck her glasses onher face, and let out a sigh. Every year MollyJane and her parents made the same trip fromtheir house in Jackson Hole, Wyoming toYellowstone National Park. Her parents wereobsessed with the place! For hours, theywould watch the mud pots bubble and belch.Or they’d examine and analyze the churning,swirling hot springs and thermal pools orspewing geysers. Her dad could explain howalgae could change the color of the water as ittumbled over the Lower Falls, the highestwaterfall in the park. Her mom loved thewildflowers and the trees in spring and would


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continuously chirp out their names in Englishand in Latin!

Without even realizing it, Molly Janehad become something of an expert of thescience behind the sights and sounds ofYellowstone. Her parents were great teachersand it was hard not to get swept up in theirexcitement about these natural wonders, evenas they were headed to Flagg Ranch at thepark’s South Entrance for the sixth time in asmany years.

At least this time would be a littledifferent since they were going in the middleof winter. Molly was excited that they wouldbe traveling by snow coach instead of by car.Hopefully there wouldn’t be as many trafficjams with snowmobiles and snow coaches asthere were with cars during the height oftourist season. Maybe the snow and the trailswould shed new light on some of these placesin Yellowstone that she knew so well.

If only I had a friend to go with me thistime, thought Molly Jane. If only there was anew way to look at the park or a more


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interesting way to experience its sights. Littledid she know there were other kids headed toYellowstone with the exact same idea!


surprise surprise!

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Gunny Mitchell’s great-great-grandfather was a world-class hiker back in hisday. He had traveled through some of themost scenic and most dangerous areas in theentire United States, documenting his travelsin his journals. His expeditions were reveredamong hikers to this very day.

“Remind me, Dad, if great-great-grandfather James was such a good hiker, thenwhy did he die by falling into a hot spring atYellowstone?” Gunny asked his father as theywere packing up their camping gear.

“It was an unfortunate accident,Gunny,” replied his father. “He stumbled intoa spring while hiking at night. Back in those


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days, the hot springs at Yellowstone were notmarked. If it was dark and someone could notsee where they were walking, they could fallin and die a very gruesome death. The waterin hot springs can be more than 200 degreesFahrenheit.”

Gunny shuddered. He had burned hisfingers on a hot roll the night before—hecouldn’t imagine what 200 degrees would feel like!

Gunny and his dad were driving downto the North Entrance of Yellowstone fromBozeman, Montana. Mr. Mitchell was ananimal researcher, specializing in wildlife ofthe West—bison, elk, moose, and bearsespecially. Because of his dad, Gunny lovedthe outdoors and the animals that lived there. Gunny was big and strong for his age, theperfect size for a middle school kid who helped his father on wildlife research trips.Mr. Mitchell was documenting winter habitatsof endangered wildlife in Yellowstone andoffered to take Gunny along with him. Whenthey reached the North Entrance, he


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surprised Gunny with the fact that they wouldbe taking snowmobiles through the park tohave a little fun while they were working.

Mr. Mitchell would have been surprisedhimself if he had known what Gunny hadplanned. In the attic of their house, the boyhad found a faded Yellowstone trail mapscribbled with notes, lines, and markings thatobviously belonged to his great-great-grandfather James. There was a note attachedto the front that read:

Gunny had the map and the note hiddenin his backpack (his father jokingly referred toit as his “Gunny Sack”). He didn’t want to tell

If you have this map, thenI am no longer hiking this earth.

To you, I leave clues tosomething more valuable than gold;

More precious than gems; atreasure of a lifetime.

Its owner will only profit

from its riches!


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his dad that he had other ideas about their tripthrough Yellowstone because he knew hisfather’s research was important. But maybe,just maybe, he could do a little treasurehunting while they were there. He wished hewas an expert at following clues because thefirst clue already had him stumped. Maybe hewould run into tourists or park rangers whocould help him, he thought.


Christina, Grant, Mimi andPapa snowmobile intoYellowstone National Parkto encounter mud pots,geysers, bison, beauty,bears, volcanic action, anda mystery of historicproportions!

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WORDS TO KNOW

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The Mystery at Yellowstone National Park

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