Driving into Yellowstone, August 15, 2014
Leaving Fox Creek campground, the air was clear and the sky was beautiful. This morning was the first time we’ve used the heat. Karen’s quilts kept us snug and warm, with the outside temperature about 38°. Out of bed at about 5:30, though, the temperature inside was 58°F, a bit chilly for sitting at the computer editing pictures and writing.
View from inside the camper, standing up, looking out through skylight:
The drive into Yellowstone took us through Lamar Valley, one of the places in the where buffalo (American bison) often congregate.
Turning onto Yellowstone’s Grand Loop Road at Tower Junction, our drive took us over Dunraven Pass near Mt. Washburn.
Further down the road, we cam across the first of what we call “critter jams” – vehicles pulled over as well as slowed down because someone has spotted a wild animal, usually something large.
“That’s a bear!” and I pulled over and joined the critter jam.
The image resolution isn’t as good as I’d like, but, without a doubt, it was a grizzly.
We’ve visited Yellowstone a number of times over the years. We’ve very seldom seen a bear and, though they were reintroduced into the park in the 90s, we hadn’t seen any wolves.
Our campsite for the next five days would be at Bridge Bay Campground, which is across the highway from the north shore of Yellowstone Lake. We couldn’t see the lake from our campsite, but we could from a couple of points when we took a walk through the campground after supper.
The next day, we took a drive to Norris Geyser Basin and more.
