Back to Yellowstone

When we heard that my aunt and uncle were headed to the West entrance to Yellowstone, we decided to head back to the park and meet them. Still, we had several days before they were scheduled to arrive, so we decided to visit some other areas of the park.

We headed for the park’s Grand Canyon. This area of the park was packed with snow, and the roads were just opening up. The waterfalls in the canyon were partially frozen, and the lake was unrecognizable except that it was a very large field of white snow with no trees.

After taking a ton of photos, Adolfo and I decided to take a hike along the canyon’s rim. The trail had been used by several people before us, so we were able to follow it for a while. Then, all of a sudden the human tracks stopped—in their place were large bear tracks. We considered the option of turning back. For one, we weren’t sure where the trail was or how deep the snow was since the human tracks were gone. Secondly, would we find that a voracious bear was waiting for any fools who passed by. After all, these bears must be fresh out of hibernation and ready for a nice breakfast.

Adolfo noticed that the bear tracks led to a nice viewpoint over the canyon so we followed the tracks. The view was spectacular; however, we didn’t linger long. We took some pictures and headed out of there.

On another day we had a standoff with a Bison. We were driving into the park when we came across a bison in the middle of our lane. It was staring directly at us, chewing some grass, and standing firm. Cars driving in the opposite direction were lining up to take photos, so we were stuck. That dogged bison stood his ground for a good fifteen minutes. Finally, another bison on the side of the road began walking forward, and our tenacious bison moved farther into the middle of the road--not ready to give up the road. However, we were able to pass on the right side. Since no lions live in this park, this bison must think it is the king of the forest.


In another encounter with wildlife, we came across a gray wolf walking through the snow. As we scrambled for our cameras, the wolf slowly scouted out the Lake area before heading back into the woods. Beautiful!