Yellowstone NP

Thursday  July 6, 2017     Yellowstone NP – Wildflowers and Geysers

What a perfect day we had at the park.  The sun was shining and the temps were in the 70’s.  We saw one bison, bunches of elk and a plethora of wildflowers and geysers.

We left Cody early and headed west passing through a narrow canyon that had three tunnels. 

The road opened up to view the Buffalo Bill Reservoir. On the western edge it narrowed down and then we followed the Shoshone River for miles and miles winding back and forth and crossing it numerous times.

We entered Yellowstone NP about 9am and enjoyed the climb up to Sylvan Pass, elevation 8,591 ft.  The alpine scenery was gorgeous with its high mountain lakes and wildflowers.  We drove up to Lake Butte for a beautiful of Lake Yellowstone with the snow covered mountains as a backdrop. 

evidence of wild fires from 2001

We continued on to Fishing Bridge where the lake empties out to form the Yellowstone River. 

We then skirted the north edge of the lake enjoying the views.  There were several geysers along shores, the first we found.  We saw lots of ducks, pelicans and swans.

We continued on to Lake Lodge for lunch and then we walked around the Lake Hotel.  This was built in 1923 and is the first hotel built in Yellowstone.  Both places had beautiful views of the lake that could be enjoyed from the chairs on their verandas.

We then drove to West Thumb but it was so busy with people walking around the geyser basin that we decided to move on to Grant Village.  This also had beautiful views of the lake.

From here we drove north to Old Faithful.  Going this way we went over two mountain passes crossing the Continental Divide twice.  Shortly after we arrived the Old Faithful geyser went off. We walked around the geyser basin enjoying all the hot springs and geysers.  The wildflowers in the thermal areas were different and beautiful.

Old Faithful before and after

Fire Hole River showing the geysers draining into it

bacteria from geysers

We ate dinner in the Old Faithful Lodge and then headed back the way we came.  Since the sun was behind us now we got beautiful pictures of the sun against the mountains across the lake.

We were hoping to see some wildlife because of traveling in the evening and we did.  We passed by two meadows with 20 and then 40+ elk grazing. 

Luckily it was still light as we passed back over Sylvan Pass and descended the other side of the mountain.  Darkness soon descended but the moon was almost full so it shone beautifully as we passed back and forth over the Shoshone River.  We came across signs with slower speed limits because we were passing through animal areas.  Imagine our surprise as a large animal passed across the road in front of us and we identified it as a Mountain Lion.  It was not running, it just loped across the road.  The size and the demeanor of the animal impressed us.  All we could say was WOW!

Another perfect end to yet another perfect day.