We had our mental checklist ready for the wildlife. The anticipation of skiing in the same environment as wolves, elk and bison was a bit concerning, but that tension brings excitement. The mental image of frozen bison faces billowing steamy breath- Are we ready for that? Getting that close seems a bit sketchy.
I'm not accustomed to negative temperatures, and Yellowstone can be bitter cold. Will the car be ok? Will we get stranded and end up frozen icicles? I don’t really know how to prepare for that kind of cold. These concerns were replaced with others during the great meltdown. "Will there be enough snow to ski? Will it even be skiable or treacherous icy conditions?"
I guess there's only one way to find out!- Let's go!
We headed into the park headed to Tower Junction for a trek to Tower Falls. Pronghorn (not antelope) adorn the hills around the Roosevelt arch and park entrance, grazing near some elk. They seem to have painted faces, or perhaps too much make-up on? On the way in, we stopped at the gaggle of spotting scopes and got our first glimpse of a pack of wolves, lounging around. The wolf sightings are different from the National Geographic images that come to mind. Without a spotting scope, you can't even see them. Evidently averse to humans, they keep a great distance and their activities at any given moment is far from the exciting National Geographic footage. The trail groomer quipped "They're watching the wolves sleep again".
Bison on the other hand don’t seem to care about us- until they do, then it's terrifying or worse! I was thinking about that when we skied past the small herd….. How far are we supposed to be? How far are we? Do they also know this? How could I possibly move any faster with these skis if he did get angry with me? Terrifying!
Returning from Tower Falls, a snow-shoer reported a sighting of wolves near the tree-line close to the trailhead, and they were doing their wolf song. Exciting! Maybe there would be the chanced for the Nat Geo encounter?! I was full of anticipation when we neared the area, and at the bend in the road I saw one! Jumping off the road and moving up the hillside thru the snow- except it was a coyote. Agh! Was this alleged sighting a "coyote wolf?" or were they hanging out together? He was a very nice coyote. Oddly enough all the spotting scopes had left the parking area/ overlook. I was forever hopeful to see something exciting on the way back, but it was "just" bison, elk, pronghorn and an eagle.
The snow-coach adventure tour is the only way to get to Old Faithful if you don't snowmobile, so that's what we did. We boarded the canary yellow van with enormous over-snow tires. I'm not sure if the bumper shackles were there in case we needed help, or to help someone else out of a snow drift. That seems to be the spirit, to be ready to help wherever it may be needed.
Driving a monster truck in the caldera of a super-volcano, even if sleeping, is a worthy endeavor. Our guide, Gypsy, confirmed the best way to find wolves is to look for the cluster of spotting scopes! He provided so much information, I could only grasp a tiny fraction of it. It does seem to me that a guide would have the insider information that would help find wildlife if that was the quest.
The sunshine suddenly turned to a snow squall as we reached Old Faithful, but we set out to walk the route around the area to Castle geyser, over the river, watching the fog billow up from the hot spring entering the stream. I was anxious to find a viewpoint as the estimated eruption time neared. Around geyser hill we found a bench with a great view of Old Faithful starting to send up some preliminary steam. The sun broke out of the cloud just as old Faithful was erupting, providing a fantastic backlight on the fountain of steam and water- how perfect!
Back at Mammoth hot springs, the boardwalk provided an interesting and intriguing view. The terraced hot springs, mineral deposits and colors contrast with the snowy hillsides is a stunning landscape. A bald eagle glided into the basin for one turn, then vanished. Did I just see that? Wow!
Our final park outing was a self directed auto tour to the Lamar valley and Cooke city at the east entrance of the park. When I saw the birds on the tip of the pines, I remembered Gypsy saying that's how you see pygmy owls, so we stopped (in the road- forbidden) and got the binoculars out- Yes! Pygmy owl! Sweet!
At a large pull-out the spotting scopes were out again, trained on the opposite wall. The folks said there were big horn sheep and a mountain goat. With steady hands, I could see those with my binoculars too. Word went around that the next stop, Pebble Creek, the wolves were very close to the road. Irresistible! Let's go.
Pebble Creek had not only spotting scopes, but Orange cones, No parking signs, people mulling about (like bison), and ranger cars with flashing lights…. And a wolf sitting on the hill like a shaggy dog. Not exactly Nat Geo style event! With nowhere to park, or stop (in the road- forbidden) we had to move on from the circus. What a beautiful valley- superimposed with this chaos. We heard that Cooke City has the worlds best cinnamon rolls, so that seemed like a likely great next goal. Cooke city is a cute little town where snowmobiles seem to outnumber cars on the only street. The famous bakery was closed. The locals at the gas station/shop/coffee roaster confirmed that they do indeed get moose, elk, bear and even horses in town- hmmm.
On the return, we stopped for a ski tour at Blacktail Plateau where we encountered Elk and a herd of bison who destroyed the ski trail like a bunch of roto-tillers might. Otherwise a great ski tour! The pronghorn were in their places near the exit, with their surprised, painted on faces. I'm thankful that it's not -6 degrees!
Yellowstone in winter is an adventure, and an awesome trip. Exploring the geology and wildlife of such a unique place is fantastic. Harsh winter conditions add complexity and beauty to such a magnificent place, our first national park.
