Life on the High Plains

Sometimes when Yellowstone is too crowded we venture into other areas of this ecosystem that are equally as beautiful. One of my favorite places is Idaho's Harriman State Park.  It's only a short drive down the road and it's never crowded.  I'm thinking of hauling my painting gear to Harriman to capture one of the many spectacular scenes. There are many birds on the water in Harriman including Trumpeter swans and pelicans.  The swans were too far away to get a good shot.  I googled what a group of pelicans is called and they are called a pod.  Although other names can include pouch, scoop, or squadron and if they're fishing together they are called a fleet. Lots of anglers enjoying the serenity of the river. Fields of wildflowers.  These are some of my favorite.  I believe they are Arrowleaf Balsomroot. There's even a view of the Tetons from the Idaho side.  My mother always said the Idaho side is more beautiful than the Wyoming side (probably bec...

 A couple days ago we decided to visit Lamar Valley in the northeast corner of Yellowstone National Park.  We got up early and entered through the west entrance at about 6:30 a.m. and we still had to wait in line. On our way up north we got to see this cutie and his mama (from the safety of our vehicle).  I was surprised how nicely these photos turned out. This is a cinnamon colored black bear.  His mama was pure black and was down the hill from him. They were searching for breakfast.  It took him no effort to flip over the log and dig for grubs. Further down the road we found another black bear and two cubs.  The cubs were on the hillside and only look like rocks in the photos.  During the entire day we found 10 bears, 4 grizzlies and 6 black bears.  Many of them could only be seen through the spotting scope so there is no photographic proof.  Sometimes an image can only be captured in your brain and that's okay. In addition to the bears we ...

This morning I got up early and headed into Yellowstone to visit the Norris Geyser Basin.  Even though I left at 7:15 I still had to wait in line for about 10 minutes to get through the gate.  Yellowstone is already overcrowded and it's only early June. When you arrive at Norris you are greeted by these signs.  Why, you ask.  Because in 2018 Steamboat Geyser came back to life and its spray reaches the parking lot and the acid can damage your paint job.  I bet there are people who still try to sue the Park Service even though they've been warned. Norris consists of two geyser basins--the Back Basin and the Porcelain Basin.  I started in the Back Basin which is in a densely treed area.  Above is the Emerald Pool.   Then I continued on to Steamboat Geyser.  I've never been lucky enough to catch an eruption of Steamboat.  It is the tallest geyser in the world with eruptions reaching up to 300 feet.  Today it was just steaming and bubbli...

 It's red dog season here in Yellowstone. Red dog is the affectionate term we use for the bison calves that are born in the spring. There really isn't anything cuter.  They're born with this red fur and by the end of the summer it will turn dark brown like their mamas. We came across the cow/calf herd in Mammoth one day.  They were grazing on the lush green lawns there and then all the sudden the #1 female decided it was time to head to the hills. The little red dogs kept up with the herd. Have you ever seen anything more adorable?  It's hard to believe they will grow up to 2,000 pounds if they're male and 1,000 pounds if they're female. The size difference is the biggest indicator of a bison's gender.  Another way to tell is the shape of their face.  Males have more of a triangular face while females have more of a rectangular face. Here's a big bull I got a shot of at Fountain Flats.  Males are quite often solitary or in groups of two or three. ...