Eat Fly & Play

Friday, October 9, 2009

Yellowstone -- Lamar Valley, Grand Canyon & Mud Volcano 9.5.09

* Lamar Valley

* Grand Canyon of Yellowstone

* Mud Volcano

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That morning we got up at 5:30 AM and checked out of the Mammoth hotel. We saw a few more elks before we left.

We were on our way to Lamar Valley, but got lost twice before we got there.

We got some pictures of mountain goats and Pronghorn Antelopes, and saw either a coyote or fox on the way to Lamar valley.

By the time we got to Lamar Valley, it was already in the middle of the morning, not the best time to see the wildlife close by.
We did see many people with telescopes that spotted some wolfs far far far away.

We drove down to the Canyon area and took the North Rim Drive and South Rim Drive.

The lower fall was definitely more impressive than the upper falls. Hans was so impressed by the majestic views of the canyon.

It was the first day of the Labor Day Weekend, and we could see that there were many more cars and tourists on the roads than the past few days. There were traffic jams along the Hayden Vally. We were not sure if it was caused by bisons, but we did see plenty of bisons hanging out in the valley.

We took a walk around the Mud Volcano area. Boy, the sulphur there had a really strong smell.

After Mud Volcano, we checked into the Lake Lodge at the lake village.
Our cabin was really nice. We hung out at the lake hotel before we went back to bed.

Photo Album

Jackson Hole, Grand Teton, Yellowstone Day 4

Next: Grand Teton & more Geyser Basin 9.6.09

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Yellowstone -- Bison herds & Mammoth Hot Spings 9.4.09

* Bison herds in Hayden Vally

* Norris Geyser Basin

* Mammoth Hot Springs

* Roosevelt western cookout

View 9.4.09 in a larger map

We got up around 5 AM and checked out of Old Faithful Inn. We were leaving Old Faithful Inn that morning and headed to Mammoth Hot Springs. Because the road between Madison to Norris was closed, we had to take a detour which added probably 2 hours to the drive. I enjoyed getting up so early in the morning to watch the sunrise and the change in the sky.

It was very foggy at some point, but the fog disappeared quickly.

We saw several bison herds in Hayden Valley. They caused quite a traffic jam. The sight of a bison herd crossing the Yellowstone river was amazing.

The Yellowstone river was so serene.

We stopped at Norris and walked through the geyser basin trail.

The scenery at Norris Geyser Basin was quite different than what we saw yesterday. They were not quite as colorful. But the landscape was beautiful. I felt like I was walking on a different planet.

After Norris Geyser, we continued our drive up to Mammoth Hot Springs. We drove through the upper Terrace Drive and walked through the Lower Terrace trail.

I have no words to describe what I saw. I was in awe.

We checked into our cabin in Mammoth Hot Springs hotel, and took an hour nap. After the nap, we drove to Town-Roosevelt for our horse ride and a western cookout.

The ride to the cookout was easy. I enjoyed the scenery and felt really relaxed. Unfortunately we were not allowed to bring our cameras while we were on the horse since we needed to pay attention to our horses. My horse Lakota was a short and slow male horse who liked to eat grass whenever he could.

The cook out was in a beautiful vally.

We ate steaks, drank really good cowboy coffee, and listened to some country songs.

After the dinner, we rode our horses and took a shorter route back to the range. My butt and knees were killing me, but I enjoyed the whole western experience so much that I almost wished I booked the 2 hour horse ride. We were told that the scenery was even more amazing. We drove back to our cabin in Mammoth and called it a night.

When we got back to the Mammoth Hot Spring Village, there was a male elk who caused quite a stir. The park rangers were at the scene and asked people to get back inside of their cabins. Supposely, this particular male elk was more violent than others. Unfortunately, we were too far away and it was too dark for us to get any pictures. We asked a funny lady at the hotel reception desk where we have the best chance to see animals. She asked us to hold on a second, picked up the phone receiver, and asked in a serious voice, "Hello elk, where will you be tomorrow?" We all laughed. Haha, I guess we would have to find out the next day.

Photo Album