Then- a short day's travel up to Salt River - we just couldn't make it to Drigs, Idaho. We "boondocked" again by a sweet little river, up the next day traveling to Jackson, WY where we spent 1 1/2 hours. Too crowded for us so off we went thru Grand Teton and found a campsite in the National Forest between GTNP and Yellowstone NP.
Anna gets to be off leash in the campsite and we get to camp for free. (Yes, my Scottish grandmother is very very happy!)
First day we drove for several hours, there is just no helping it in Yellowstone. Just as we thought that an elk and bald eagle would be our only wild life experiences we saw a lone bison on a hill. OK, I said, that should be it for the day. Rounding another corner was part of the Snake River and a small heard of bison just hanging out. One bull meandered closer and closer until he finally crossed the road as we all moved aside. The further we drove the larger the bison herds became. Finally we had to stop or it would take 4 hours to drive home. The night ended with sunset, moon rise and a lightening storm.
Next day was an even longer day of driving but with even more wildlife. No lions, no tigers but yes a grizzly bear, bison, pronged horn antelope, another eagle (over our camp), coyote, elk, and the not so rare but amusing Eddie Bauer Fly Fishermen/women.
The rangers have downplayed the bear issues while at the same time giving some great safety lessons. Unfortunately at the time we sighted our grizzly chowing down on bison (from about a mile away), one gent who did not get the lecture but did want a photo managed to get within a couple hundred feet before the bear scented him and ran off. The crowd (there are nothing but crowds in Yellowstone, especially if there are animals or other natural features to be seen) all agreed that he deserved the Darwin Award for interrrupting a grizzly dinner and wished to assist granting of said award. Some suggestions were: staking him out next to the dead bison and if he lived to get a good photo, so be it; putting carion in his camp, etc etc.
The next bear sighting was this afternoon as we walked Anna down a road (allowed under the rules). First we flushed out a small herd of prong horns as we walked along singing - as instructed in our ranger lesson. Then, as I visited the field ladies room to powder my nose, I noticed a black smudge darting behind some trees- a good way away, but still. I called to Renee, and said, "OK bear sighting!", and she went for the Bear Pepper Spray at her hip. "Where? Where?" she called. "Just behind those trees, but it didn't keep running." "Oh I see it. It can't be a bear, it is too fast." I agreed and we held our ground- part of the advice as well. Just then a red bear went streaking by, and then a white bear and then a blue bear. These were the rare Oldsmobile, Honda and Subaru genus of grizzly! We were seeing the tops of cars on the road. Oh my indeed. As Renee commented, we are in a heightened state of awareness after seeing that grizzly loping across the sage field toward his snack.
So these are the random thoughts that arise today on our "rest day" in the Grand Tetons.
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