Howling Good Times

*Critters we’ve seen on our 2014 trip so far:  pronghorn, horse, llama, elk, bison, grizzly, bighorn sheep, mule deer, Uinta ground squirrel, wolf, black bear, moose, coyote, fox, bullsnake, bat, white-tailed jackrabbit, mountain goat, yellow-bellied marmot, river otter

*Birds we’ve seen on our 2014 trip so far: bald eagle, grouse, osprey, magpie, red-tailed hawk, Canada goose, great horned owl, American kestrel, sandhill crane, cliff swallow, mountain bluebird, Ferruginous hawk, cinnamon teal, Clark’s nutcracker, northern flicker, Brewer’s blackbird, red-winged blackbird, Lazuli bunting, common merganser, American white pelican

 [Click on any photo to enlarge.]

The last couple of years we’ve been fortunate enough to enjoy a fabulous scallop dinner with friends out at the Slough Creek Camp-ground (pronounced slew), and it’s always worth the approx. 45 min. drive (time is barring any animal jams!)  Rich, Annette, and their friends have been getting together
   every year at the same camp-ground for over 20 years and always eat in style when camping…no hot dogs and hamburgers for this gang!  This year Rich once again served as Chef Bill’s assistant and was in charge of toasting the tortilla triangles.  Each triangle was
   then topped with a huge scallop and homemade guacamole and/or salsa served with a fresh salad on the side. Even the dark of night can keep Bill from his culinary duties!  There were plenty of yummy appetizers to go along with the meal and of course plenty of
   wine.  The food was delicious, and as always the group was lively and fun, making us feel most welcome.  Thanks to Rich, Annette, and Bill for making sure we’re always included in this annual “event”!

 

   We had heard that the wolf pups in Lamar Valley were being seen on a regular basis.  They were about 6 months old, 2 black and 3 gray, and we decided to head out early one morning.  The best time to view wolves is around sunrise or sunset since they sleep during the day so we left before the sun came
up giving us the opportunity to witness an amazing sunrise on our way!  The bison and pronghorn were up and about as we headed towards the road leading to Slough Creek Campground, the viewing location.  In a pullout just off the main road was where we had been told to park and then for the best viewing, climb to the top of what is
commonly known as Dave’s Hill (that’s our silver car down in the pullout).  Despite the cold, several people were there with their spotting scopes so we set up ours and asked for help pointing us in the right direction.  There about a mile across the valley we spotted them!  In the photo you can only make out the 2 black wolves, but
we did see all 5 in the scope.  We watched for about an hour and then decided to head down and make a final visit to our friends in the campground since they'd be leaving the next day.  They were surprised and glad to see us and talked us into joining them for breakfast.  As we finished, we heard the howling of a wolf not far off in the distance!  It seemed to be coming from just over the hill and a few minutes later, there was another.  The consensus was that it was probably the adults.  What a thrill since it’s something we have rarely heard in all our time in Yellowstone!

 

A couple of nights later was a lunar eclipse, and we set the alarm with hopes that there would be no clouds in the sky.  I took my camera with me but no tripod (probably would have helped) and crossed my fingers that maybe I could get at least one decent shot.  I tried several different settings as I took pictures, and this is the best one I got.  If you click on it, hopefully you can even see the pinpoints of stars!

 

Our time was about up for the season, and it had been another great summer and fall with many good times.  It was a very busy year with park attendance up a little more than 6% over the previous year, and many full nights in the campground.  One of our last nights of work we enjoyed a potluck at Rick & Donna's put together by Allan's wife, Barbara, for the fall hosts.  All 8 of us crammed into their RV in site 1 which gave us a view of the office in case there were any issues, and we shared good food and many laughs.  This year we were fortunate to have been able to spend time with old friends,
getting to know each other a little better, and to work with great co-hosts.  We even made some new friends like this group who dubbed themselves “the happy campers!”  They were in the sites behind and across from us for a couple of weeks and truly enjoyed themselves.  (This photo of us was actually taken by them.)  We were invited for campfires and even for an anniversary celebration.  Funny how you just hit it off with some folks!  As for us, it was time to move on before the nasty weather hit!

 

Yellowstone Tidbits:

• Soda Butte is a travertine (calcium carbonate) mound in Lamar Valley formed more than a century ago by a hot spring.  Only small amounts of hydrothermal water and hydrogen sulfide gas currently flow from it.
• More people are hurt by bison than by bears each year in Yellowstone.
• The Sheep Eater tribe of the Shoshone Indians lived in many locations throughout Yellowstone and used dogs to transport their food, hides, and other provisions.
• Pronghorn:  Male (buck) weighs 100-125 lbs., female (doe) weighs 90-110 lbs., young (fawn) weigh 6-9 lbs. at birth, can walk within 30 min., and outrun a human in a couple of days; females generally deliver twins. Can run up to 70mph with sustained sprints of 45-50 mph but do not like to jump fences.