Top Photos: Bob, Christian and I and the obligatory photos at the park signs.
Bottom: L-R at the Black Dragon Caldron; at Lake Butte Overlook
Our trip to Wyoming concentrated to visiting two national parks- The Grand Teton and Yellowstone. Hitting two birds in one stone they say. Bob always wanted to go and see these parks, but didn’t get the chance. Now is the opportunity and the time, so here we come.
He always do the research of the places we go so we have a detailed Itinerary of what we are about to do. I on the other hand, had the minimal knowledge; I only know about the Mormon Rows (Teton) and The Old Faithful Geyser (Yellowstone) but I know that they are both highly rated and recommended.
Yellowstone National Park. Bob came prepared; he hired a tour guide that knew about Yellowstone from inside out. So on our day 3 here out west, we ventured to Yellowstone National Park for the first time. All three of us ( we brought along Christian/Bob’s friend with us) were excited.
Jack is our guide- he picked us up at exactly 7AM and started driving. We made multiple stops before actually hitting the road to YNP- it was hard to make a pass to the mighty Teton without taking photo of the sunrise beaming on its peaks.
The many wildlife we saw at Yellowstone. Snow the bear (not shown was her two cubs/flakes); an elk; mule deers, and bison.
In the meadow we saw a herd of elks munching shrubs for their breakfast. First in my book of the wildlife I am excited to see in the park.
And so we continue our path to Yellowstone. It was an hour and a half drive to get to the park entrance. It was a smooth ride- we were getting acquainted with Jack, who happened to be so knowledgeable. All three of us in the car were impressed.
While the herd of elks earlier at the Teton was already a treat; the wildlife showcase really started not too long after we entered the park. In one of the intersections not far from the entrance, there were two elks crossing. It was mesmerizing to see them that up-close. All cars were at halt; waiting for them to be safe on the other side. I like that feeling. I also took some photos then we continued driving after that.
At West Thumb across the Yellowstone Lake, we encountered another wildlife- a lone bison-again crossing the street. Another first time for me. I requested if we could stop the car, as I was too excited. I was told to be behind the car and not to get too close when shooting photos. I did as I told. The bison proceeded on the other side of the street and mind his own business so were we.
a red tail fox we encountered up-close.
The bison was a huge animal- reminded me of our carabaos in the Philippines, but different. The previous night while eating at a restaurant, the server jokingly reminded us not to pet the fluffy cow, I can see why now 😂😂.
I didn’t understand at first why we kept on driving back and forth and looping around West Thumb and Sylvan Pass until Jack said there are family of bears he wanted us to see too. Another of Bob’s must see- a black bear in the wilderness. We did this for hours- I lost track of how long. And when we were just about to give up, our search for the elusive bears came to fruition when Gina, Jack’s wife called him and said that there were sightings of the bears. She too, was tracking them. She gave the place of where the bears were last seen and we headed back there and voila! We can see the bears from a 100 yards down the hill. Playing and eating some shrubs. It was also exciting to see all the wildlife enthusiasts that were as happy as us seeing the wild bears as they navigate their paths through the woods, crossed the road, and be lost at the thickness of the forest. That was priceless. The bears names were Snow (Mom) and her 2 Flakes by the way.
The adventure didn’t stop from seeing the bears. On our drive down the hill we came across the family of mule deers. As a common theme, they were at the side of the road staring at us- literally deer in the headlights. We gently parked. The challenged with photographing wildlife was snapping the perfect photo while the subjects were at still; but by the time you click the shoot button, the animals already moved..that what happened.🤷🏻
We continued driving. Jack took us to Hayden Valley; a vast grassland, and a large meadow with rolling hills, islands of trees, and of course, wildlife. There were herds of bisons on one side of the road and on the other side of the bend, we spotted a lot of people watching nature. Jack pointed that there was a carcass of dead bison. As we all know in the wildlife- this means food. We found a place to park our car and joined the many wildlife enthusiasts waiting for the appearance of the Gray wolf or wolves. Bob was excited too. Hours passed but no luck. We saw a red tail fox but no wolves in sight. At this time we decided that we will come back the following day to see if we will be able to see the elusive animals.
The Old Faithful erupting at 642PM.
Old Faithful Geyser. One of the most popular scenic spots in YNP, perhaps the only thing I know about the park aside from the vast population of wildlife is the Old Faithful. It is a cone geyser-a highly predictable geothermal feature that erupts between 44 minutes to two hours (wikipedia).
We got in the area at about 6PM, thirty minutes before the last eruption show of the day. We briefly stopped at the gift shop then secured a seat to watch the geyser erupts. Bob and I have seen one in Iceland last year, but this was first for Christian. We patiently sat and waited in a tolerable cool weather (Iceland was freezing cold), and at exactly 642PM, the eruption began. Jets of hot steam firing up; one after another until they reach their peak and slowed down. The show lasted almost two minutes; definitely longer than the Strokkur Geysir in Iceland we’ve seen. Another highlight of the day.
Yellowstone 2.0 We came back on Saturday to YNP for another chance to see if the wolves will decide to show up or already had shown up and we missed them. As we drove to the rolling hills of Hayden Valley, we came across another couple of elks. Surprise! Surprise! One crossing the street, and the other- static after we stopped by about 25 yards of her. Eventually she went her way and drifted off the woods.
When we arrived at Hayden Valley, we noticed that the carcass was still there; and the volume of the photographers and wildlife enthusiasts if not doubled, tripled.
This time we set a time when to leave the place whether we see the wolves or not. Not too long after, at the other side of the road, we saw two animals running fast and crossed the road. But unfortunately they weren’t wolves; they were red tail foxes. I was assuming that they too, are making their way to the dead animal. They are beautiful from what they looked from afar. We stood up for a while just admiring them. When suddenly they started moving again, they were too fast and were heading our way. We were so close (about probably 20 ft) and was too late to realize, that the path they were taking was the one we were standing at. Last I knew was the ranger yelling, “25 yards! You need to back off 25 yards!” Which I happily oblige. We didn’t see any Gray wolf, but the foxes made up for it. My heart is full just being that up close with them.
Red tail foxes nearby the carcass. A lot of people were waiting for the wolf, but the foxes showed up.
the view of The Grand Prismatic Spring at the overlook.
Mud Volcanoes, Sulphur Caldron and Geysers. We went sightseeing after our encounter with the wildlife. We roamed around the geothermal areas of the park. We went to the Mud Volcanoes which was quite fascinating. Seeing a spewing mud is one of a kind. Then to the Black Dragon Caldron. What’s interesting with this one is its over powering smell of sulfur that fumes the entire park.
Then we headed off to Midway Geyser Basin. A mile hike from the parking lot will bring you to the Grand Prismatic Spring overlook. It is Yellowstone's largest hot spring. It has bright bands of orange, yellow, and green that ring the deep blue waters of the spring. I can understand why it is the most photographed scenery in Yellowstone.
We also went back to the Old Faithful to see its eruption for the last time. This is longer (lasting a little over 3 mins) than the previous night (which was close to 2 minutes).
Yellowstone etched a memorable experience to me. The past two days we did a lot: stops at so many turn points like the Yellowstone Lake, Lake Butte Overlook, Sylvan Lake, Sylvan Pass and the Upper and Lower Falls of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. Really there’s just so much to see but so little time. But for me, the highlight of these two days was seeing the wildlife in their natural habitat. Yellowstone is indeed a wildlife menagerie.
Bucket list to see in YNP:
✅elk
✅Bison
✅bears
✅Mule deer
✅Red tail fox
✅Geysers
✅Mud Volcanoes
✅Hot spring
Foliage beginning at Sylvan Lake.