Day 2...Here is the map that shows where we started the first two days while we stayed outside the park. We entered Yellowstone National Park through the West Yellowstone entrance each day as shown on the left side of the map directly west of Madison. Today we were headed north to Mammoth Hot Springs and Gardiner, a very small town just right outside the Custer Gallatin National Forest.
The elk were plentiful....and could be seen in herds in the distance or in small groups close to the roads..
We stopped at Gibbon Falls, which had a beautiful stone cropped viewing point....The photo doesn't do it justice...It was a major, roaring waterfall.
We traveled through the Monument Geyser Basin, and the Norris Geyser Basin....
We passed Sheepeater Cliff (don't you just love that name? Is it because they fall off the cliff to their deaths sometimes?) No photo of that one, but on we went, continuing north....
We traveled the Golden Gate Bridge of Yellowstone, quite the engineering feat for its time. Bridging the canyon was one of the most expensive early road building projects back then. The view is of the canyon and Rustic Falls with pullouts to look for wildlife and mountain goats.
We arrived in Mammoth Hot Springs. There is a small local herd of elk in town that is supported with protective enclosures and here the elk lounge around town wherever they feel like it! Like this big guy. He was in somebody's yard for several hours, just soaking up the sun.
We left early in the morning, around 8:00 AM.
The temps were in the twenties, the trees and brush were coated with frosty ice crystals. It was beautiful!
The temps were in the twenties, the trees and brush were coated with frosty ice crystals. It was beautiful!
Along the way were many wonderful geysers and wildlife....And a lovely river running alongside the roadway, the Gibbon River. The bison were often spotted alone and not with a herd.
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| young bull elk |
We stopped at Gibbon Falls, which had a beautiful stone cropped viewing point....The photo doesn't do it justice...It was a major, roaring waterfall.
From there, we continued north to see the Roosevelt Arch which is the north entrance to Yellowstone National Park. There are two little doorways, one on each side for people to walk through and get their photo taken. 
As we drove closer to the north park entrance, we spotted herds of pronghorn.
Pronghorn are neither sheep nor antelope as people commonly believe. They are unique North American mammals. They do resemble both sheep and antelope, because of their deer shaped bodies and their speed. Their horns are different from deer antlers and they are more closely related to giraffes (!) than goats or sheep. Their antlers have a hairlike sheath called keratin, and they are shed and regrown annually. They are the fastest land animals in the western hemisphere! When Sparky kept seeing more and more of them, she just HAD to get out of the car and get just a LITTLE BIT closer to get this photo....At which point, a ranger came out of the Roosevelt Arch entryway and chastized Sparky (very nicely) to get back in her car and move along, much to Eldo's chagrin. Sparky knows better! (But you can't tell her anything when she's trying to get a photo! laughs E.)
Back in the car we went, continuing on to Gardiner, a very small town of about 750 people. There didn't seem to be much there to explore, so we headed back home as it was now getting to be much later in the day. We thought we would top off the day with a visit to Old Faithful, probably the most famous geyser in the world? which was south of Madison on the map. Back we retraced our drive with lots of wildlife along the way to keep the repeat trip from being boring. Eldy is so great about stopping frequently to get multiple shots of elk and bison, and he watches the landscape continually to help Sparky find photo ops. He's a great driver, too.
Twenty-three minutes later than the scheduled time, "thar she blows!"
There was another geyser that blew before Old Faithful, and it was a fairly big one farther away, so that was a treat as well! We think it was the Lone Star Geyser.
It was getting late, time to find something to eat! The town was gradually closing down for the season, and a lot of places had closed. Bullwinkle's was a restaurant right downtown in West Yellowstone that was open and Sparky wanted to go there just because of the name. (She LOVED the show Rocky and Bullwinkle when she was young and she can do a mean imitation of Bullwinkle's voice.) The moose theme was everywhere, and a model train ran around the perimeter of the ceiling inside the restaurant. The food was very good, and we highly recommend it.
Tomorrow, we head into the park itself to stay at the Canyon Lodge for our last two days of exploration. We'll see you there! (Part 3)
