It would be a futile attempt to try to condense 9 days, 2389 miles, more than 400 pictures and many adventures and discoveries into a blog posting.
As we drove back home from our visit to Yellowstone and Grand Teton, I asked everybody to name the first three things that came to their minds as the most memorable or enjoyable.
Interestingly enough, the same experience was number one for all of us.
On Sunday morning we got up before dawn (our Ipod was still set for PT, so we woke up @ 5:30 instead of the intended 4:30 am) and headed out to a lookout over Hayden Valley.
As we sipped our hot drinks and waited for the fog to lift, we sat in silence listening to the wolves howl. When the curtain lifted, we were treated to an amazing scene.
In the distance, a male grizzly bear feasted on a bison carcass, while a wolf counting on the bear generosity, attempted to get a morsel of meat for himself. The grizzly did not even have to move his jaw, which was tearing away at the meat, to assert his domain over the carcass . All he had to do was lift his immense paw and the wolf retreated immediately. Eventually, the wolf did sneak away with a piece of meat. Once the male gorged himself with bison, it was momma grizzly and her two cubs turn. They had been wandering around patiently, delighting us as we observed the "cute" cubs play and roll around. A big reason for this awesome, priceless experience, is due to the generosity of a very nice gentleman, who graciously let us view these scenes through his powerful scoping lens. My camera's zoom did not even get close to getting a nice shot, but the images are engraved in our minds.
Shawn had a close second on his list. Soaking in the water where the hot springs of the Boiling River meet the cold currents of the Gardner River was another unique, pleasant and unforgettable experience.
Ethan enjoyed all of the amazing thermal and geological features of the park, but when asked where he would like to go back to, he did not hesitate. His pick was his own personal playground that he and his friends found at the banks of the Yellowstone Lake.
Of course we enjoyed all of the typical sights and experiences that made Yellowstone famous. Typical is really not a fair word, there is nothing ordinary about Yellowstone, it's an active volcano after all! Even if you have seen this images on paper or screen, it blows your mind and senses when you see, smell and feel it for yourself. We had the privilege to explore this mind puzzling place under the guidance of a knowledgeable man, who helped us see Yellowstone through a Biblical geological perspective.
Check him out at www.northwestrockandfossil.com
Bellow are some of our favorite shots in no particular order.
Lamar Valley in the background with an amazing canyon and geological formation in the foreground.
Terraces around Mammoth Hot Springs.
Geysers and hot spring pools in the Old Faithful basin.
Daisy Geyser (not sure why the name, either did not read the info or forgot the reason)
Norris Geyser basin
The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone
Yellowstone River in the Hayden Valley after a hail storm.
Old Faithful
Hot Springs at the West Thumb basin.
On our way to Grand Teton.
Animals are always entertaining and fun to watch, we had a good dose of bison sightings
and bison traffic jams.
Spotted a coyote and several marmots, picas, ground squirrels and even a big horn sheep around Mt Washburn.
Elk were hard to miss, not only are they big but so is the traffic jam that they create.
