Tag Archives: elk

10/6/2019 Lamar Valley at Sunrise, Day 26

 

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The American Serengeti

The last time we tried this, heavy snow over the very first pass turned us back.

We awoke at 5:35 AM in pitch darkness.  Stars were out.  The sky was clear and the morning felt abysmally cold, though “only” 31F.  We made coffee, put “everything” away, pulled the push-out in, brought the Antenna down, disconnected, and drove off.  We left at 6;25, not a stellar departure, but good  enough.  “Next time we’ll setup to leave before bed.”

We stopped briefly at the park entrance and headed up the hill.  To get to Lamar Valley take the first left in Mammoth onto Grand Loop Road toward Tower.  Temp when we left Gardiner was 31 F.  As we climbed from Mammoth it dropped to 26 then 24.  At tower the road to Lamar Valley branches left.  We were beginning a climb with a drop off to a narrow field and trees to our right when Ellen nearly shouted, “Bear” , then ‘Grizzly”.  First light was breaking over the ridges.  We could see clearly, yup, a grizzly.  It ran across the road maybe 50 yards ahead, scampered down to and across the field, and disappeared into the tree line.   I immediately stopped right on the road at the first sight of bear, well before it crossed the road.  The car behind us also stopped.   Our sighting was on the rise to Slough Creek.

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What Happens When You’re Unprepared for “the shot”

From Slough Creek, the road runs along the Lamar River, through a canyon.  It rises through pine trees curving left and right, then descends into and rises from a small valley (that could be part of Lamar Valley).  It then rises and drops into a stunning vista. Lamar Valley is a long expansive plain of grasses and sage, cottonwood and aspen groves along the Lamar River, and evergreen trees rising up the slops in the distance.  The sun had risen, but was still below the ridge line.

We stopped at the first paved pullout on the valley floor and scanned the tree line.  Nothing.  We skipped the next few turnouts.  One turnout ahead was busy.  Ellen and I both thought a. We’re too late and b.There won’t be parking for us.  I slowed to a crawl and pulled into a space big enough.  I had to pull forward barely scraping a rock with the left suspension. OOps. 

There was a small cluster of people, three or four with spotting scopes trained on the sagebrush.  “What are you seeing?”  “Wolves, there are four of them in the sage brush just behind the near short tree right there.”  And there they were. There were four gray wolves, two cavorting about and two more interested in bedding down.  A while later two more moved in from the left, a white and a gray.  While we watched a covey of grouse appeared in the foreground and jumped about.  Ellen noticed a pair of bald eagles in a cottonwood by the Lamar River. Two bison ambled by in the background.  Back to the wolves, a seventh ambled in from the left.  Then a fellow who had been on the hill behind us mentioned there was a wolf coming in from the right near the cottonwoods.  He/she was close enough to see without glass.  Under the spotting scope we saw a large, well fed coyote.  Just as I focused on the eagles to take a “phone-scope” pic, they flew out of the tree.

The wolves disappeared into the grasses and sage.  The eagles flew off.  The bison had wondered to the far right.  We were about to move on when a herd ( harem, herd, group, flock? ) of prong horn ( antelope, deer, sheep ? ) charged out of the pine trees and ran at high speed through the sage and grasses.  Seen in a full gallop, these are magnificent animals.  They are very fast.  In no time they had run out of sight.

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Typical Yellowstone Traffic Jam

We drove further down Lamar Valley, slowed then stopped for a herd of Bison, then turned back.  We ate at Mammoth Dining Room, which has a limited, way overpriced menu; then headed to Gardiner for more hand warmers, cough drops, and whatever else we might need/want.

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Boiling River

Along the way we pass the turnoff for Boiling River. We’d seen crowds at the river each time we passed.  Yesterday we tried to stop for a “look-see”.  The two parking lots limit size to 20’ and road side parking was full.  Today it was nearly empty!  We had no trouble parking and walked the quarter mile to the “boiling river’”. It is a spot along the Gardiner River where hot springs flow into the cold river.  People have piled rocks in circles creating warm bathing pools that go from cool, to warm, to hot.   Ellen soaked her feet while I watched our gear.  The trick is to go with a bathing suit, towel, the clothes on your back, and little else.  We passed one woman walking back wearing a resort-style terry robe.  Smart.  We’ll go back in the next day or so better prepared.

I felt a wee bit strange taking photos here.

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Can You Spot the Snake?

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Strangely Inappropriate

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Mid Sized Bull Snake Warming Itself

That Bull Snake was remarkable.  It slowly extended its head and maybe 6” of its body over the hot water.  Then it dipped just touching the water and rose back.  It did this three times. Then it got brave and submerged into the water.  Like a baby touching a hot stove.  It snapped back in a U shape and buried its head.  One Smart Snake, assuming it didn’t badly burn itself.

Parks Fly Shop

Finding specialized equipment in Gardiner off season is practically impossible.  The shops/outfitters who would carry such things are all closed.  Every last one.  Looking for river shoes, a local recommended we try Parks Fly Shop.  “They’ll have stuff for wading for sure!”   Well, no, they don’t.  In fact the friendly guy manning the counter said, “You don’t want to go wading in river shoes.  You’ll break your toes.” He went on to say his pinkie sticks out like his thumb, he’s broken it so many times.  “Don’t wear river shoes and no we don’t carry any, sorry.”  He was not trying to up-sell us.  He was seriously saying “don’t do it”.  We’ll use our old sneakers instead.  As for a fly fishing outfitter and based on what I know about fishing, I can very highly recommend these guys.

Rocky Mountain RV Park

We’re back “home”.  Water, electric, and cable are all connected.  This day has tired us out.  Jessica came by with her one year old, June, to settle up.  They’ll stay open through the 15th, though the water will be shut off tomorrow.  Water will be available near the office after that.  Yes, we can use the sewer, just run a bunch of water.  

Rocky Mountain RV Park is outside Yellowstone Park.  We have to drive a bit more to access Mammoth and other points of interest.  However, unlike campgrounds within the park, we have electricity, sewer, and water here.  Then too, we use our Senior Pass for free access to the park.  We go in and out of Yellowstone as often as we want and at no charge.

Say Hi to Curtis, Jessica, Payton, and June when you visit. 

Weather

Today was a cold and gloriously sunny day. Low temp going to Lamar Valley hit 24 F.  High temp today hit 69 F.  That’s a huge temp swing. Tomorrow should be even better than today.   Wednesday will be tough.  We’ve heard temps as low as 1f overnight with sub freezing temps for 24 hours.  Ouch.  I expect we’ll be tethered to electricity  all day Wednesday to run our tank heaters.  They would drain the batteries in under 6 hours.  Running the generator overnight is not an option.  So an electric hook-up is necessary.

Plans

We’ll stay in Gardiner through Wednesday.  We’ll go to Lamar Valley again tomorrow.  Today was glorious.

10/4/2019 Gardiner & Mammoth, Day 24

 

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Red Sided Winnie? Of Course!

Weather Report 10/4 “good buddy”

Again we were warned that overnight temperatures would drop below freezing and again it did not happen.  After midnight the low was 32 F and the high was 40 F.  It’s cold outdoors for a Californian, but it’s non threatening to an RV’s water system.  Wednesday is projected to be sub freezing all day though temps Tuesday and Thursday would be above freeing during the day.  Do I winterize, or do I find a way to heat the water tank and outside shower for 24 hours?    I’d much prefer the latter. Li’l Beast has the winter package with heaters on the gray and black tanks and a vent from the heater to the fresh water tank.  There’s a light in the water bay that should keep the outside shower lines from freezing.  I’ve been reading about using terrarium heaters  to avoid frozen RV plumbing.

At 8:57 it’s 37 F outside. I’m in no hurry to venture outdoors.  Rain and Snow is forecast for today and tomorrow.  The skies are darkening.

Happy Birthday

Ok, so Ellen said it’s not uncommon to celebrate decades birthdays for days or a week even.  Really, can I celebrate for a month or year?  Cool.  Ellen chirped, “Happy Birthday” again this morning. 

And In Florida Today

A mother tried to kill her children by slamming her van into a tree at high speed. “He put a hex on me and caused the crash” speaking to police about her husband.

Man jumps out of bush to wish father in-law happy birthday.  Father in law shoots him dead.

Is Florida particularly whacky?

Plans

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Ok, but There is Better!

 

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View of The Yellowstone River from Yellowstone RV Park

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Today we do not have any plans per se.  We’ll wing it.  See what’s out there and go where our hearts take us.  We stayed at Yellowstone RV Park last night.  it’s ok.  Rocky Mountain RV Park was full yesterday.  I called this morning and have a site reserved for tonight and tomorrow.  It’ll be good to have electricity with snow on the way.  There’s a scarcity of motorhome supply shops here.  We need some non-toxic antifreeze “just in case”.  Perhaps a general store or market will carry some.

We’ll spend the day at Mammoth walking the hot springs, the visitors center, and enjoying the resident elk.

Ellen spotted a camper using a unique method to protect their windshield wipers.  We use the same material over spots we’d bonk our heads inside.IMG_8383

Winterize your Windshield Wipers

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Ellen and Curtis off to View a Site

Rocky Mountain RV Park

Rocky Mountain RV Park sits on a bluff above the Yellowstone River overlooking Gardiner.  We drove there yesterday, saw a FULL sign, and turned away.  This morning at 10:01 I called. “Oh we have many sites open, come on up!” a happy young woman answered.   We stopped at the local grocery for milk and Kleenex.  They carried RV antifreeze.  SCORE!  Not that I want to winterize, but now I can if I have to.

I parked at the RV Park and Ellen headed to the office as an electric car pulled up.  Curtis hopped out and greeted us.  He’s a bundle of energy.  The weather has driven most of their long term renters off.  They have lots of sites.  He offered to show Ellen the sites and off they sped in the golf cart.  Moments later they returned.  Ellen was happy with the site.  An added bonus, elk roam the campground.  One massive bull was sitting on the far side of the camp.  We signed up for two nights, hoping to be in place as the rains/snow this evening and tomorrow subside.  I really enjoyed talking with Curtis.  He said some locals think they’re crazy.  They’re one of the first to open and one of the last to close every year.  Sometimes they have burst pipes, but that’s the price of taking risks.  They plan to turn the water off Monday.  The truly cold weather arrives Wednesday (so say the meteorologists).

 

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Mammoth

There were zero cars going into the park as we pulled up to the kiosk.  Kia opened the window, “Hi, how are you guys?” Kia is an early 30’s ranger who really enjoys her work.  With no cars behind us, The three of us chatted a bit about the park, Yosemite, the weather, and wolf sightings.  “I hope to see you guys again!’ “Oh you will!”  Parking in Mammoth was stress free.  There were many open spots for an RV.  The visitors center was just as I remembered it. The photo of the mountain of Bison skulls stood where I remembered.  That photo had and has a profound effect on me.

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Bison Skulls to be Ground Up for Fertilizer!

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Lamar Valley is further from Mammoth than I remembered.  “If you want to see wolves, go to the valley at first light.”  How many are in the pack?  “Maybe about ten”  Getting to Lamar Valley at first light will take getting up very very early for us.  We tried doing just that last year, but a good snowfall over the passes turned us back and out of the park. 

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We walked to Mammoth Hot Springs, stopped at the general store for a hot chocolate and hot pretzel.  At the cashier I said, “Just these two hand warmers.” We stopped in the Mammoth Dining Room, but figured we had better food in The Beast.  The Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel is open, has an interesting gift shop, and a lounge.  We didn’t find anything of interest in the gift shop.  The lounge’s bar was closed; I had no plans for a drink anyway.

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Driving back we saw two elk harems.  Ellen said “Stop” as I approached a turn-out near the exit kiosk.  The something she had seen was a group of prong-horned sheep, a harem.  Five females with a single male.  We saw more elk as we watched the sheep.  They are alternately called sheep or deer.  Their closest living relative are giraffes and okapi!  Last year getting diesel near Butte, we noticed photos of pronghorns on a wall.  Ellen remarked on it and the young gal at the counter said, “They’re really fast and they’re great eating.”  I didn’t mention the ones we had seen in Yellowstone then and I wouldn’t now.

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“Let’s go back to Rocky Mountain, have lunch, and walk Gardiner. We could have dinner later.”  We agreed we could dress warmer and be more comfortable.  We ate the last of the chili while watching a few elk graze on the fresh grass as the sun came out.

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The View of Gardiner from Site 45

Gardiner

Headed down the hill to Gardiner we met Curtis walking home.  “Hi, we forgot the name of the restaurant you recommended.”  “Are you walking?”  “Yes.” He mentioned three: Cowboy’s just across the bridge, Wonderland Café as the best in town that’s open, and some other I’ve forgotten.

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We walked downtown Gardiner, which is very small. Most restaurants are closed for the season.  Most inns have vacancies if they are open at all.  There were a few espresso shops open and Rosie’s for breakfast, all the outfitters and tour operators are closed, though one outfitter offered XC-Skiing tours.   It felt warmer than our walk to Mammoth Hot Springs earlier.  We remembered stopping in here and grabbing a bite there last year. We had fun reminiscing.  Yellowstone Wild was open.  C Thomas Hoff was at his desk just like last year.  His photographs pop off the page, just as they did last year.   One photo in particular, well two actually, but one well; Ellen and I discussed where it could go.  Over the fireplace?  But it would break up the wall.  It would look great there.  But I don’t think the colors would go well.  The blue and gray would be perfect.  But the blue isn’t the correct color and we’d have to put holes in the stone.  No we could drop the piece from the ceiling on transparent line.  How about in the stairway?   It was a losing proposition for me, but we were discussing color not price.  “It’s late in the season.  If you take it with you, I’ll give you 20% off.  Ellen liked that.

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We ate at Wonderland Café.  When we arrived the restaurant was nearly empty.  Ellen had butternut squash soup, some of my side salad (which was served in the coldest salad bowl ever), and some of my mac & cheese with pulled pork.  The pulled port was laced with maple syrup.  It was scrumptious.  By the time we left the restaurant was full with people waiting for seating.  Wonderland also has a bakery with some great looking scones on display.  Their huckleberry were sold out.  “Tomorrow” we said simultaneously. 

 

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Photograph on the Wall at Wonderland Café

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Diners at Wonderland Café

 

We stopped at Cowboy’s but didn’t bother to go in.  It has a distinctly old west look and feel.  It looks like a good place for a burger and a beer.  I wouldn’t expect much more.

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Cowboy’s & Red Cars?  It’s a Thing?

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Cowboys & Gazebos? It’s a Thing?

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Cold and Dressed for It

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We walked back over the bridge that’s under repair and down the street past the market before turning back. The scattered tour operators were closed.  We passed an elk youngling in one yard, a deer in another, and a skittish fawn who sped away.  Some houses had high wire around their yards and plants.  As twilight set in we walked back up the hill to Li’l Beast then looked for the laundry and showers.  We were back “home” at 7:43 when the first few rain drops fell. Twenty minutes there’s some serious rain falling.  Will we have snow overnight?

If it’s cold & stormy tomorrow, we’ll  hunker down for the day.  With no reservations driving us onward, we can stop where and when we like.

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Rocky Mountain RV Park

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A Great Gate and Li’l Beast in the Background

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It’s Too Cold for a River Run IMO

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Ever Feel This Way?