We took the very scenic route to the Northeast entrance again so we could experience a morning visit of the Lamar Valley. We were hoping for Moose or Wolves, but we saw neither. Lots of Bison, a coyote and quite a few Pronghorn.
sunrise in Cody
Cooke City
Cooke City
Mule Deer before we got to the Park
Soda Butte
Pronghorn
Pronghorn
Pronghorn
Bison & Canada Geese
When I stopped to peel off a layer of clothes I looked up from tying my shoes and a fox ran by the picnic area we were in.
Osprey in nest
Osprey in nest
Osprey in nest
bison
The Canyon Village to Tower-Roosevelt stretch of the park's main Grand Loop drive is a 19-mile route through iconic Yellowstone landscapes, including the 23-mile-long Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone and striking basalt towers.
Calcite Springs Overlook
Calcite Springs Overlook
Calcite Springs Overlook
We stopped for some hot chocolate and then hiked to see Tower Fall.
hot chocolate stop
Tower Fall
We stopped to have our picnic lunch.
We then found a trail to walk to a lake. It was a nice walk amongst the wildflowers, but no wildlife, not even birds were there. Again there was no sign to say how long the hike was to the lake, but the onsite map looked to be about a mile or so. We walked the first mile and then came to a sign that pointed to the lake another hour or 2 away. We didn’t have that kind of time, so we turned around and came back.
Our next stop was at the Mud Volcano area.
Mud Volcano Area - Sulphur Caldron
scientists working
Raven
juvenile Brewer's Blackbird
juvenile Brewer's Blackbird
Mud Caldron
Mud Caldron
Mud Geyser
Sizzling Basin
Churning Caldron
Churning Caldron
Black Dragon's Caldron
Black Dragon's Caldron
Sour Lake
Mud Volcano
Mud Volcano
Dragon's Mouth Spring
Dragon's Mouth Spring
Brewer's Blackbird
Brewer's Blackbird
Brewer's Blackbirds
We then ended up in Hayden Valley for early evening game viewing. We had our picnic dinner and watched the Bison, Bald Eagles, a large herd of elk and a ton of birds.
Bison and Bald Eagle
huge herd of elk on the hills
elk
elk
Great Blue Heron
bison skull on the far hill
Bald Eagle (there were 2 of them fishing)
Bald Eagle
American Wigeon
American Wigeon
elk
elk crossing the river
Bison crossing the river
the elk started to stampede
bison swimming across the river
he shakes off after he gets out of the water
Bufflehead - female
Common Merganser
We then left via the East entrance to the park and I did get some photos of the drive home since we left while it was still light out.
lots of dead trees - via the east entrance
Shoshone National Forest (I think I've been wrongly calling it a National Park)
A Bob's Big Boy statue mysteriously appeared atop a concrete pedestal in the summer of 2013 in the middle of nowhere Wyoming. (about 20 miles from Cody)
We plan to sleep in tomorrow and have an easy day close to home and return for a 4th day in the Park the day after.
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