*Critters we’ve seen on our 2012 trip so far: prairie dog, bison, bighorn sheep, pronghorn antelope, mule deer, llama, white tail deer, elk, grizzly, coyote
*Birds we’ve seen on our 2012 trip so far: Western meadowlark, magpie, wild turkey, killdeer, osprey
*National Parks/Monuments visited on 2012 trip so far: 2
In our opinion the best host site in Mammoth Campground at Yellowstone National Park (www.nps.gov/yell) is site 41. It has a spectacular view of the valley and the elk visit on a regular basis, and this was going to be our home for the next 4-1/2 months. Even though we had only worked here a month last year, we were the lone returning hosts which made us the experienced ones who would train the others….kind of scary! LOL W
e got ourselves settled, and the next morning met with Ranger Allan (our supervisor) to get keys, uniforms, etc. He had been off the previous 3 days and with no hosts on duty yet, the paperwork was in disarray so we spent the next couple of hours helping him get it all straight. After a quick lunch and changing into our uniforms, we were on duty for the rest of the day. The next hosts were not arriving until Thurs. which gave us a little time to get back into the routine of things.
Richard and Jean arrived, and in the small world category, they had hosted 3 years earlier at Greenbelt National Park where we had just spent the winter. They are originally from Louisiana but have lived in Arkansas the last several years, and are a couple of the nicest people you’d want to meet. They spent a couple of days training with us and were then on their own (of course we were available if they needed anything), and they’re doing a fine job.
About a week later we finally went out for a drive, and not 10 min. away at the Mammoth Terraces were 3 grizzlies! As it turns out, this was mama and her two 2-year-old cubs, and as you can see, they are nearly as big as mama! They were a gorgeous silvery golden color, but unfortunately my photos do not do them justice. They were trying to figure out how to get past the walkway and eventually did as the rangers shouted for everyone to get back (requirements are to stay at least 100 yards away from bears and wolves). They turned away from the road and went up into the hills but what a spectacular sight to begin our day.
We continued our drive south past the Swan Lake Flats and snow could still be seen on the hillsides. Though this had been a mild winter for these parts, we were amazed at how high and
fast the water was flowing in the rivers and streams from the snow melt but were told it was nothing compared to previous years.
Further down the road, the bison as always were causing quite a stir. Bison jams are commonplace in Yellowstone, and one always has to remember that it is their park and that we are merely v
isitors. They have the right of way, and trust me you don’t want to tangle with anything that size especially when their young are nearby! After we turned around to make our way back, we had to slowly follow behind a couple who had nowhere else to go but 
down the middle of the lane. Finally around the bend there was room for them to step to the side so we could pass. Along the way we also witnessed a couple young bulls testing their dominance by butting heads, but serious head butting occurs during the mating season in Aug.
*Birds we’ve seen on our 2012 trip so far: Western meadowlark, magpie, wild turkey, killdeer, osprey
*National Parks/Monuments visited on 2012 trip so far: 2
In our opinion the best host site in Mammoth Campground at Yellowstone National Park (www.nps.gov/yell) is site 41. It has a spectacular view of the valley and the elk visit on a regular basis, and this was going to be our home for the next 4-1/2 months. Even though we had only worked here a month last year, we were the lone returning hosts which made us the experienced ones who would train the others….kind of scary! LOL W
e got ourselves settled, and the next morning met with Ranger Allan (our supervisor) to get keys, uniforms, etc. He had been off the previous 3 days and with no hosts on duty yet, the paperwork was in disarray so we spent the next couple of hours helping him get it all straight. After a quick lunch and changing into our uniforms, we were on duty for the rest of the day. The next hosts were not arriving until Thurs. which gave us a little time to get back into the routine of things.
Richard and Jean arrived, and in the small world category, they had hosted 3 years earlier at Greenbelt National Park where we had just spent the winter. They are originally from Louisiana but have lived in Arkansas the last several years, and are a couple of the nicest people you’d want to meet. They spent a couple of days training with us and were then on their own (of course we were available if they needed anything), and they’re doing a fine job.
About a week later we finally went out for a drive, and not 10 min. away at the Mammoth Terraces were 3 grizzlies! As it turns out, this was mama and her two 2-year-old cubs, and as you can see, they are nearly as big as mama! They were a gorgeous silvery golden color, but unfortunately my photos do not do them justice. They were trying to figure out how to get past the walkway and eventually did as the rangers shouted for everyone to get back (requirements are to stay at least 100 yards away from bears and wolves). They turned away from the road and went up into the hills but what a spectacular sight to begin our day.
We continued our drive south past the Swan Lake Flats and snow could still be seen on the hillsides. Though this had been a mild winter for these parts, we were amazed at how high and
fast the water was flowing in the rivers and streams from the snow melt but were told it was nothing compared to previous years.
Further down the road, the bison as always were causing quite a stir. Bison jams are commonplace in Yellowstone, and one always has to remember that it is their park and that we are merely v
isitors. They have the right of way, and trust me you don’t want to tangle with anything that size especially when their young are nearby! After we turned around to make our way back, we had to slowly follow behind a couple who had nowhere else to go but 
down the middle of the lane. Finally around the bend there was room for them to step to the side so we could pass. Along the way we also witnessed a couple young bulls testing their dominance by butting heads, but serious head butting occurs during the mating season in Aug. 
A light snow began falling May 25th, dusting the campground and the surrounding hills. The photo at right was taken from the campground office, below left are the hills across the road from our campsite, and below right is a view down the valley. As you can see, the mountains in the distance have seemingly disappeared! The snow fell off and on all day with no real accumulation. 
Though not predicted, the next morning we awoke to find 6” on the ground and it was still falling! At left is our car and The Folly and below left is our picnic table and satellite dish covered in snow! Unfortunately we had to work, but as we made our way through the campground toward the office, the winter wonderland that unfolded before us was beautiful. We were just hoping it wouldn’t get worse or stay around too long. 
Another couple of inches fell during the night, but we were going to be off work that next day and could stay warm inside our cozy motorhome. But you know what they say about the best laid plains. About 6:15am I had just taken Abby out to do her business and had snuggled back into bed when there was a knock on the door. Some campers wanted to warn us of a potential problem. Seems that during the night one of the elk cows had given birth and had “hidden” her newborn calf in a grassy area
about 3 sites down (you can see it peeking out through the grass and snow above left). The problem was with the calf only a couple feet from the road, every time anyone would walk by, even if they didn’t see the calf, mama would come charging at them, and she had already chased one guy and his dog into the ladies’ room! We threw on our jackets, grabbed our radios, and went to check it out (I managed to zoom in for a picture without getting closer.) We were warning people to stay back, and I
went down to the office to call the Comm Center so they could get someone from Bear Mgmt. (who handle all wildlife) to assess the situation. While I was gone, a man unwittingly started to come in the direction of the calf and the cow was eyeing him (that's here at left). Russ called out to tell him to stay back which diverted her attention to Russ, and she came charging at him! He said she came within about 10 feet of him as he ran into the ladies’ room yelling “Coming in!” as he opened the door. He said his heart was pounding pretty good! A short time later Bear
Mgmt. arrived and decided that the calf had to be moved for the safety of all concerned. They managed to get the cow to back off some while they positioned the two pickup trucks near the calf with the back of the front truck down. Jeremy was given the task of picking up the calf and getting it into the truck…quickly!! With that accomplished, they set the calf down in an area near the campground amphitheater and then spent the next 
half hour trying to “harass” mama over to where her baby was. However, she kept going back to the original site, and we believe it was because earlier there had been a coyote prowling around the open field not far from where she was, and she wanted to make sure it stayed away. It was 3 hours later, and needless to say we were now wide awake and ready for some breakfast, but what an exciting start to our day!
Before closing this post, we thought we’d share another couple campground views of the wintry wonderland taken from our RV.
We’ve also decided to add a new feature to each post sharing some interesting tidbits about Yellowstone and its inhabitants. Hope you enjoy!
Yellowstone Tidbits:
*Snow has been recorded in Yellowstone every month of the year at some point in history.
*Grizzlies: Males (boars) weigh 300-700 lbs. while females (sows) weigh 200 – 400 lbs. and have a social hierarchy. Both can run up to 35-40 mph.
*Elk: Males (bulls) weigh up to 700 lbs. while females (cows) weigh up to 500 lbs. Up to 2/3 of each year’s elk calves may be killed by predators.
*Grizzlies: Males (boars) weigh 300-700 lbs. while females (sows) weigh 200 – 400 lbs. and have a social hierarchy. Both can run up to 35-40 mph.
*Elk: Males (bulls) weigh up to 700 lbs. while females (cows) weigh up to 500 lbs. Up to 2/3 of each year’s elk calves may be killed by predators.
