Yup… today was trip number three for the Wharton girls to Yellowstone since we have been here. One might say I have a problem, but I think its better to say that its a love for such a wonderful place. Its just what I do.

After a disaster of a breakfast at the Pop Stand, something I would have never expected from this wonderful little diner, we headed out to Yellowstone with what looked to be great weather and hopeful to see many animals. After a stop in Mammoth we made our way out to Lamar Valley and what did we find. A cute little black bear! Well he is cute from the car but I respect what this animal can do, especially when just waking up from a winter’s nap and looking for food. We watched him eat and play and scratch himself for quite some time before continuing on our way. But, we were happy to see a bear so early into our trip.

After our black bear sighting, we didnt see much else in the way of animals in Lamar. The drive was beautiful though and between this trip and our last a lot of snow had melted. I could even see the grass and wildflowers starting to grow. On our return trip back to Mammoth, we stopped at Undine Falls for a few pictures. Its a spot we usually pass on our trips and one I haven’t stopped at in quite some time, so I thought it would be a nice change of pace. Abby enjoyed it and had a bit of time to explore with Grandpa Jerry too.

From there we headed down the west side of the park, over to Canyon for a stop to look in the shops and then headed out to Hayden Valley. The road from Canyon, through Hayden Valley over to East Entrance, South Entrance and over Craigs Pass to Old Faithful had opened just yesterday so I was excited to take this route. We had packed sandwiches and snacks for the day and decided that we would stop along the Yellowstone River to eat a late lunch. Once again, Abby had the chance to picnic in the back of Grandma and Grandpa’s car and she had a blast! When lunch was finished Grandpa Jerry walked along the large pull out with Abby, letting her stop to play in the snow that was still piled pretty high. Abby loves the snow and tries to take any chance she can to play in it.

As we were stopped and watching birds along the Yellowstone, two American White Pelicans landed in a small tributary near us. They moved away from us a few times but after following them around we watched them swim along, doing a synchronized water ballet. The two are a mating pair and the horn on their bills only appear during mating season. The Pelicans were so beautiful to watch we probably could have stayed there all afternoon. However, a Blue Heron didnt seem to like having them around and after about 10 minutes they took off to another spot along the Yellowstone, out of the sight of people.

Watching the Pelicans lulled us into a a relaxed state, but Yellowstone has a way of doing that to you. It was time to move on and see some more. We headed through Hayden Valley down to Yellowstone Lake. Despite the warmth and beauty of the day, it was obvious that Yellowstone Lake was still frozen over, but it was a beautiful and impressive sight to see.

As the day started to fade we headed over Craigs Pass, past Old Faithful and back towards Mammoth. On our trip from Madison to Norris we came across a small clearing. Standing in it was a small fox, whose coat was close to finishing its turn from white winter to red. Its hard to spot a fox due to the fact that they are extremely shy animals but we were able to stop and snap a few pictures before he or she disappeared into the tree line. Jillian, who looks to find a fox as hard as I look for wolves, had the chance to see another fox in Yellowstone. Along that same stretch of road, we came across another bison caravan of females with their young. One of the calves still looked to be be very small and probably only a dew days old. It was still wobbly on its legs and had to stop often to lay down, but mom was patient and protective.

After all that had been seen that day, we left Yellowstone for the last time feeling happy. Its no wonder this place in the world is my happy place. Everytime I leave Yellowstone, I know I leave a piece of my heart there but I find it again when I return. Goodbye for now Yellowstone! We will be back again soon!

Yup we did it again! Everyone had the day off, so what do we do? We head to Yellowstone! I know it might seem obsessive to some, but this is my happy place and if the chance to go is given, I take it.

Today was going to be yet another gloomy spring day, but we didnt let that stop us. We were up bright and early, ready to take on the day. We stopped for breakfast at a popular spot in Livingston called the Pop Stand. It was a super yummy breakfast and because it was a Tuesday, quiet too!

Once we arrived in Yellowstone we stopped in Mammoth to change diapers and use the restroom. While it was cloudy, it certainly didn’t look like rain would be falling anytime soon. I think we were hoping for a beautiful sunny day, but the gray of the day made for some great photography.

As usual, we left Mammoth and headed for Lamar. Only a few roads in the park were open at this point, so we are a bit limited in where we can go. Another road is set to open Friday. I am hoping to come back then too but we shall see. Today Lamar wasn’t as active as it usually is. No wolves or bears were within sight of the naked eye. They were out there though, you just had to use a spotting scope to see them.

The Bison were out in force though. The large bulls in their small secluded groups as well as the cows with their babies. One of the males had a little hitchhiker on his back but he didn’t seem to care. As we continued on we came across a group of females with their little ones. Two of the little ones seemed to be happy playing with one another, running, jumping and practicing their fighting. It was a cute sight to see and they had a very captivated audience in us and many other park visitors.

Despite the lack of animals on our trip out through Lamar, it was beautiful. We turned around at our usual spot, Trout Lake, and headed back to Mammoth for some lunch. As we approached Tower Junction and the bridge over the Yellowstone River, we found a lot of people stopped taking pictures. There just along the roadside were a ram and ewe Big Horn Sheep. Both had been eating a lunch of their own and were now just hanging out, posing for pictures.

After our goat encounter we headed back to Mammoth for some lunch. The grill there was finally open and Abby and Ellie were happy to stop for some noodles and hot dogs. It is amazing how lunch can bring cranky kids out of their funk and back to the land of happiness. I think it did the same for mommy too. The girls were adorable and the one thing that put a smile on my face was watching them hold hands. Abby and Ellie sat there holding hands for a good ten minutes as they ate and watched all of the interesting people come in and out of the grill.




After a yummy lunch we headed into the general store to check out some souveniers for the girls as well as a few snacks for the road. You cant leave and not have a t shirt or something to remember your trip by! The clouds began to part a bit but didn’t go away as we continued our travel. The rest of our trip through Yellowstone was enjoyed with very few stops, but we didnt mind. We were in beautiful country and sometimes you just cant take pictures of everything! It was yet another great day in Yellowstone!