July and half of August (or Where Did the Time Go?)

8/20/2020

July 5^th we took a drive through the Tetons. We got a quick photo of Lewis Falls on the way out of Yellowstone’s south entrance.

We didn’t see many animals in the Tetons but there was still snow on the peaks.

We got some shots of the runoff coming down the mountains.

We did see one small animal next to the truck during a stop in Mormon row.

 On the way back into Yellowstone we stopped at Moose Falls for a short walk.

On the 8^th of July we drove all the roads open in Yellowstone. We started by driving east from the Old Faithful area. Along Craig’s Pass we saw a red tail fox who was losing his winter coat.

Up near Canyon Village we saw one of the three bull elk again.

 Up on Blacktail Plateau the wildflowers were in bloom.

Out toward the northeast exit, we saw waterfalls on the face of Baronette Peak.

 Coming back through the Lamar Valley we was a small herd of pronghorn watching us.

 The 9^th found us in the Canyon area again and we saw another of the three amigos.

We also saw a black bear foraging for food in the same area.

We drove through Firehole Lake Drive on our way back to the trailer and got a couple of shots of White Cone Geyser erupting.

July 10^th we hiked with our neighbor to Mystic Falls. To get to the trailhead you walk the Biscuit Basin Trailhead, which gives you a chance to see some of the thermal features in the geyser basin.

 Once on the trail you walk along the Firehole River and see some nice geologic features.

The river itself is beautiful and you often find people fishing it.

The falls themselves are not very tall, but are quite pretty.

After a stop at the falls, we decided to complete the trail loop. From an observation point on the trail you can see the Old Faithful geyser basin. We hiked slow enough that we were able to see it erupt twice.

We also saw a little bit of wildlife on the trail.

The trail is a little narrow in spots. 

It was a nice hike but it wore us out. It seems to take longer to acclimate to the altitude each year.

On the 11^th we hiked to Duck Lake, across the street from the West Thumb geyser basin. It’s a small, secluded lake that can be reached by a fairly short hike.

July 15^th we drove around the entire park again. We found this young black bear in a meadow near Floating Island Lake.

Coming back through Mammoth we saw a few elk lounging around on the manicured lawns.

Two days before, there had been a fire in the town of Gardiner that burned half a city block across the street from the K-Bar restaurant. When we got to Mammoth, there was still quite a bit of smoke.

Our niece Aliesha came up for the day on the 16^th. We drove around the lower loop with her. We stopped along the north rim drive of the canyon and hiked down the Red Rock Trail.

Then we drove through Virginia Cascades.

 In the Hayden Valley we saw three swans swimming in the Yellowstone river.

The next day we drove back up to Mammoth. There were more elk, including some very young ones.

 We also drove into the town of Gardiner a got a photo of the damage caused by the fire.

July 22^nd we too another drive up to Mammoth. Along the way we saw an eagle in a tree in the Hayden Valley.

And a herd of elk on the Yellowstone River.

 On a short hike we came across this flower in bloom.

The 28^th found driving around the lower loop again. We saw this blacktail deer near the corrals in the canyon area.

Near the end of our drive, we passed through the Firehole Lake area and were lucky enough to see Pink cone geyser erupt, something that doesn’t happen very often (at least for us).

Penny’s sister, brother-in-law and niece came to the Teton’s for part of a vacation on the 29^th, so we drove down to meet them for lunch and a ride up the ski slopes of Teton Village on the gondola.

We took a side trip to Signal Mountain on our way down to meet them. About half way up to the top we saw a clump of beautiful flowers.

We had lunch at Moose, then drove the Wilson-Teton road to Teton Village. Along that road we saw two moose, but there was no place for us to stop, so we didn’t get a picture of either of them.

From the top of the gondola ride you can look south and see the Jackson Hole area.

As we were descending the mountain, in the gondola, Penny looked down and saw a male moose lying in amongst the willow bushes. There was no emergency stop button in the gondola so we couldn’t stop it to take a picture.

On our drive home we had a beautiful view of the cloudy sky at sunset driving over Craig’s Pass.

July 30^th we drove around the entire park again.  On the way out, near Fountain Flats Drive, we saw a grizzly digging for grubs.

Near Blacktail Plateau we saw a black bear in the grass.

 

Down around the corner at Elk Creek we saw a coyote that had caught its lunch.

Driving through the Hayden Valley on the 5^th of August, we saw a family of ducks in the Lamar River just south of Mud Volcanoe.

In the Lamar River Canyon the two Osprey fledglings could be seen waiting for their parents to bring them lunch.

The park had been keeping the Upper Terrace drive, above Mammoth, closed but with all the people parking on the road and going where they shouldn’t, trampling the fragile plants, they decided to open the drive to traffic. Many of the thermal features have changed since the last time we were here, as the outflow of water has stopped in many of the areas. Much of what used to be gold and orange are now white and grey but some of the areas have continued to expand.

On the 6^th of August we took a trip to the Hayden Valley. Driving along the Firehole River we came across an Osprey looking for a fish.

After watching it for a few minutes it launched itself from its perch.

In Alum Creek, in the Hayden Valley, we saw another family of ducks.

Thinking we needed to hike some more, we decided to hike the Wolf Lake/Ice Lake loop on the 7^th. We got to Little Gibbon Falls easily.

Then we had to cross the Gibbon River but rather than wading through the river we decided to cross via a fallen tree. Penny wasn’t to happy about that but she made it without falling in the water.

We had to cross another creek near Ice Lake and did the same thing. It was a little easier for Penny since the log was closer to water level and she could use her hiking poles to steady herself better. We did finally make it to the lake though.

Driving around the lower loop the 12^th, we saw a black tail buck just north of Le Hardy rapids.

The 13^th we drove to the Lamar Valley. There was a sandhill crane in the meadow at the trailhead for Mary Mountain.

We stopped near the Specimen trailhead, east of the Yellowstone river bridge, to watch some of the bison in rut.

 

Unfortunately our camera died after just a few shots, so we turned around and went back home.

The next day we drove to Bozeman to get a new camera. Fortunately we decided to go by way of West Yellowstone. It wasn’t until we got out the gate that we learned there had been a water main break between the upper and lower terraces south of Mammoth and the road to the north side of the park was closed for the next 24 hours.

The 17^th we drove back to the Lamar Valley to spend time with the bison again and try out our new camera. We first drove through Lamar Valley and stopped at the osprey nest to see how the osprey family was doing. The two fledglings were at the nest. Just as we got set up to take some photos, one of the parents flew in with something to feed their chicks.

We sat there for another 15 minutes or so while the one chick gorged itself on the fish its parent brought while its sibling watched it make a pig of itself.

We drove back to the west side of the Lamar River bridge and parked where a herd of bison were close to the turnout we parked in. Penny got in the bed of the pickup to watch and photograph the goings on, while I sat in the drivers seat watching the other direction. We saw a couple of minor fights between males, quite a few rolling in the dust bowls and we  listened to a lot of grunting.

 

Shortly before we left, one of the bison decided to walk up onto the road and block traffic for a few minutes – right behind our truck. It stayed within six feet of Penny for quite a while. Then more bison came up to join him. Penny was able to get some very good close ups of the bison, though she was as nervous as kittens.

She was finally able to climb out of the bed of the truck and get into the cab.

Wednesday the 18^th we drove back to the Hayden Valley and found hundreds of bison along the Yellowstone River, just west of the Mud Volcano area. We found a good parking spot, set up our camp chairs and sat there for about an hour watching the bison and eating lunch.

We got a few good shots of a couple of males butting heads. Apparently the little red dog in the foreground didn’t have a clue what was going on.

On the way out of Hayden Valley, towards Canyon Village, we saw a group of incredibly intelligent motorcyclists.

Hopefully, I’ll get my next post out before six weeks go by this time.