We tend to avoid the park in July and August because of the crowds but found this is not always the case.
We had planned to go hiking to some high lakes in the Beartooths with a starting point at Island Lake hoping to park our trailer there. The campground was closed for construction so on to Beartooth Lake... sign says campground full. Hmmm, how about a plan B and hike in Yellowstone. We get a spot at Chief Joseph campground with a downed tree blocking half the parking space, a perfect fit for our tiny teardrop trailer. We have our annual Yellowstone Pass, binocs and a spotting scope but we didn't bring our usual stuff like any big lenses, Ynet decal or detail maps. We decide to concentrate on hiking and spotting and if we get lucky, some close animal photography.
Friday the 23rd we found this fox bringing home dinner by trotting down the road and crossing the Yellowstone River using the bridge just like any smart fox would do. We stopped at the pullout and took a couple photos as he/she passed. We both laughed because the ground squirrel looked huge in its mouth and bounced as the fox trotted.
Sat. the 24th we decided to hike up to Specimen Ridge. We were expecting a crowd but when we arrived at the parking lot at 9am only one car was there. Having originally planned on hiking in the Beartooths we came prepared with our hiking poles, a bear spray canister each, plenty of water, Gatorade, snacks and a small p&s camera. We talked to a group of five headed for Agate Creek on the way up and saw no one else as we wandered around on the Western end of the ridge. The weather was perfect in the 50s when we left our vehicle with no clouds at all in the sky. The only wildlife we saw was a pronghorn on the way up , a bull bison high up close to the edge seeming to also enjoy the view and a peregrine falcon flew right over us, probably one from the nest not that far below us toward Tower. The view from up on the ridge is fantastic! The photos don't do it justice.
View South at the Yellowstone River.
View Northeast toward Slough Creek.
Mount Washburn in the distance to the Southwest.
Tower Falls to the West.
On the way down we decided to make a loop and head toward the Yellowstone picnic area and enjoy the view of the river below. We ran into several groups coming up. We were glad we had started early but earlier yet would still be better as it did get hot (80s), at least hot for us that is, and the deer flies started to come after us.
After our hike we took a break at Mammoth and found that's where the crowds were and they all found the ice cream! We then decided to take our time enjoying the Lamar valley for the evening. We came across someone just finishing taking photos and getting in their car, so I took a quick look and saw a grizzly bear's distinctive back and shoulder hump going through the sage brush a couple hundred yards out toward the river. Being in a perfect place to climb a small hill and set up a spotting scope and chairs we did some bear watching and sharing our scope with some nice people who climbed the hill to join us. The bear eventually went out of sight as it went off the bank and headed upstream. We watched it come back into view several hundred yards upstream and much closer to the road so we decided to drive east and see if we could see it again. It was just on the other side of the river and close so we took a couple photos. We also found this cute little girl using a dry erase board to tell people driving by what was in view. I asked mom if I could take her picture and she let me even though she resisted at first because she knew her face was dirty from wiping her board with her hands and then wiping her face. She was adorable pointing to the Bear from her perch out of the sunroof of their vehicle .
Sunday the 25th we had to head out early toward home over the Beartooth Pass. Tons of flowers at the summit and the rest is in the photos.
An unexpected pleasure in less than 48 hours.
Kevin
Sounds like a very enjoyable trip...
We really do enjoy it and have yet to find a campsite that it won't fit in!