Saturday, August 21, 2010

Yellowstone National Park






























We woke up this morning to 36 degrees. Whew!!! What a far cry from the heat wave others are NOT enjoying. However, right after daybreak it warms up quick to a comfortable 68 degrees. We found it very important to dress warm before retiring for the evening. The second night we got it right. The day was great checking out the Lower Falls and Inspiration point. It seemed that the day brought many sightings of bison, elk, trumpeter swans, and the biggest crows ever.



We hiked far back into the woods, which for the first time in a park wrought with grizzlies was pretty unnerving. As we got further into the trees we could see this brown furry creature in the distance by the water. As we edged closer found a bison bull laying in the dirt. He kept his eye on us and we on him. We don’t think he liked the company so we snapped a pic and left him to his solitude.





We took a break late in the afternoon to take a shower. It was the best $3.50 we spent this trip. On our return trip to Madison Camp we could see another traffic jam ahead. Should have know that every time we put the camera away that we will see something. Sure enough, there were two huge bull elk grazing just inside the woods. We got within 10 yards of them. They acted as if we didn’t exist and went about their business of getting fat for the winter.
Again we put the camera away and another 3 miles away we spotted quite a few female elk grazing alongside the road. What a treat to be so close in their environment.





It seemed that everyone respected their space and watched in silent awe. Soooo, this time we kept the camera out and much to our surprise we had the pleasure of watching two coyote pups playing in the field. We couldn’t ascertain what they were doing except maybe chasing mice. It seems that the wildlife are so used to the public that they simply ignore us.
We FINALLY made it back to camp to plan our day heading to the Tetons and beyond. A nice “large” glass of merlot and then lights out. We got the rules for cribbage from a local proprietor so that we can put Uncle Bill’s cribbage board to use. Hopefully we will take a break from sightseeing and blogging to learn the game.

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