Wow! What a beautiful morning! 49 degrees, a light drizzle and the view of the Teton mountain range partially in the sun with a layer of fog stretching the lower length of the range. It gave the appearance of the mountain peaks breaking through the fog and illuminated by the early morning sun. Truly, this is one of God's gifts. Words can't describe it and pictures don't do it justice. You just have to see it for yourself.
Winding our way thought Grand Teton National Park on the way to Yellowstone the sun broke through the clouds. Blue sky and sunshine, what a great combination.
Passing by Jackson Lake it is indeed sad to see how low the lake is. Providing irrigation water to neighboring state, Idaho may be good for them but it has to have a negative impact on the wildlife and balance of nature in Yellowstone. We saw many, many animal tracks leading from the shore through the mud for hundreds of feet to get a drink of water. It wasn't that long ago on our last visit to Yellowstone that we saw this lake full and providing a beautiful setting for the wildlife and tourists alike. OK, I'll get off my soapbox for now.
First wildlife moment of the day. When we saw a number of cars stopped on the side of the road we figured it's got to be some sort of animal. It was a grizzly bear no more than 30 yards from the side of the road. What a fantastic sight! The bear was digging for food, paying no attention at all to all of the onlookers. Ana told us it was a rather small grizzly but it sure looked big from where I was setting. Dark brown, almost black in color and possibly 400-500 pounds (I'm guessing). It sure helps being as high off the ground as we were sitting on the motor coach, giving us a spectacular view of this magnificent animal. Cameras are a-clicking away. Brian opened the door so Marsha could get some great shots.
Beauty appreciation moment (as Ana calls it). We pulled to the side of the road for a vista of the Lewis Canyon, named after the explorer Meriweather Lewis of Lewis and Clark fame. Not only were we able to take in the splendor of the canyon and the Snake River, we saw the results of the 1988 fire that destroyed almost 30% of the park. Many small trees have been naturally reseeded after the fire and are growing quite well. Some are 15-20 feet tall and climbing.
I guess I could talk (write) forever on each stop we make and sight we see, but I think I'll keep this to the highlights and leave a little something to your imagination. Maybe you'll want to go with us on one our next tours.
Another spectacular photo op. Artist Point at the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone provided incredible views of the Lower Falls and the brilliant coloring of the cliffs on either side. The Yellowstone River flows north from the Yellowstone Lake and into the canyon. The canyon is over 4,000 feet across and 800 -1,200 feet deep. A viewing point of the Upper Falls is next.
Just a short walk took us out to a viewing platform of the Upper Falls. Great photo op and worth the walk.
We drove through Hayden Valley looking for bison. We could see them but they quite far off in the distance so a close up view of bison was not possible today (or so we thought). There's always tomorrow, however. Maybe we'll get lucky then. We did see a couple of small herds from across the Yellowstone River. Not the close up view we were hoping for but the camera can always bring them in pretty close. We'll take it. On the drive through the valley we could see many trees where the bark was rubbed raw by bison rubbing up against them trying to shed their winter coat. Patience pays off. We came up on a small herd near the road so we got our close up look at bison. We were within 50 yards of one rather large bison who obviously was aware of our presence. He was rolling around in the dirt, stood up and looked around and rolled in the dirt gain. Quite a show.
Dinner tonight was once again delicious followed by a game of 8-ball by a few of the group. Another successful day of touring and looking forward to tomorrow.
Be sure to check back to our blog regularly. When we have a strong Internet connection we will add photos!
No comments:
Post a Comment