Trip around Yellowstone

One morning we made another attempt to see some bull moose that were sighted by friends. Here is what we saw this time.

The black bear entertained the crowd for a while but still no moose......

On our day off this week we decided to drive around some of the park. Our first stop was Norris Geyser Basin, but there were no parking spaces to be found. We thought the crowds had diminished but we were wrong. Since we walked through the boardwalk last year we moved on. Our next stop was Beryl Spring named for its resemblance to the color of a blue-green gemstone. With a temperature above the boiling point it's one of the hottest springs in Yellowstone.

We then headed to Old Faithful and were able to visit with several associates that we worked with last year . Continuing on our drive we stopped at West Thumb of the Yellowstone Lake to see that geyser basin. We were in time to listen to a ranger talk at Abyss Pool named for its impressive deepness.

Ranger John filled us with information about the formation of Yellowstone from a volcano. Toward the end of his talk thunder started to rumble in the distance and dark clouds rolled in. During the question/answer period we hustled back to the car before we got drenched. The lake which is usually brilliant blue was grey that day as we drove by.

After driving through the rain we stopped at the Lake Village lodge, hotel, museum, and visitor center. When we entered a ranger was explaining how to use bear spray. It was very interesting and informative. We carry it with us when we hike and hope we never have to use it.

As we continued up the road we got stopped in a bison jam by Hayden Valley. Cars were stopped on both sides of the road as a few bison crossed in front of us.

Since it is mating season there were lots of weird noises and activity among the animals. The males were closing in on the females

and sometimes going up against another male vying for the female's attention.

It was fascinating to watch, and we didn't mind being stuck in traffic. Once we got moving again we headed back to the northern end of the park. The rain and chilly temperatures dampened the day, but we enjoyed the park in spite of it.

Next week we are taking an extra day off to travel to Glacier National Park in northern Montana.