Lone Star Geyser

Today we took the hike to Lone Star Geyser in Yellowstone. Since we are Texas residents, (the Lone Star State), and have recently purchased a lot at Lone Star Corral, in Hondo, TX, it was something we were drawn to. The trail is 4.8 miles round trip, but even though it was a very warm day here, (mid 80's), it was enjoyable and relaxing. We had read that it erupts very regularly at about 3 hour intervals, but had no idea when it would happen. It was our lucky day, because just as we arrived we enjoyed a major, 40 foot high eruption that lasted almost a half hour. There were 8 others there with us to witness this, compared to the many hundreds we saw at Old Faithful the last time we went there.

The Lone Star Geyser

It was named the Lone Star because the nearest large geyser (Old Faithful) is 3 air miles away.

This geyser earned early fame because of it's large, colorful, sinter cone out in the middle of the forest.

As the major eruption gets towards the end, the water is all expelled and it goes into a powerful steam phase, which can be heard up to a mile away.

The geyser was not to be our only treat today. As we traveled through the park on our way to the hike we spotted this young eagle looking for some breakfast in the Madison River.

Young eagles don't get their white head feathers until they are 3 or 4 years old.

The first part of our walk followed the Firehole River.

A very large, colorful dragonfly we saw on the trail. It's amazing how thin and transparent the wings are.

This flower made us think of fireworks. The bee is just after the nectar.

More Wildlife in Yellowstone

Another trip into the National Park. One never knows what wonders await around the next bend.

Wildflowers near Dunraven Pass

A lone trumpeter swan on floating Island Lake

We usually see them in pairs. We wonder what happened to it's mate.

We saw another cinnamon black bear this day. Like the last one we saw, it was eating wildflowers.

The bear would push the flower stalks down with it's front paw so it could eat the flowers.

Sawtell Peak 2008

This year we visited Sawtell Peak with friends George and Gail. It was a wonderful day. For additional scenes visit last year's post.

Our truck at the top with the Grand Tetons in the background.

Scene from the top. We had a 360 degree view.

Female mountain bluebird.

This is the male of the pair.

We saw them entering a small hole in the side of one of the buildings, where they had a nest.

A close up view of flowers at the top.

West Yellowstone to Gardner

The last time we went for supplies, we decided to drive through the park, out the north entrance at Gardner, to Livingston, MT, west to Bozeman and then back home. There is always something interesting to see in the park, no matter how many times we have visited.

There is a nesting pair of bald eagles near the west entrance. Their nest site was blown over last winter, so they picked a different tree nearby for their new nest. Here is one of the adults.

Mom and baby elk.

Two more elk does with another baby.

Baby posing for a picture.

Cinnamon black bear munching on wildflowers.

Another view of the same bear. It appears to prefer the flowers over the plants.

This was a surprise to find prickly pear cactus blooming near the Gardner entrance. We weren't expecting them here.

According to signs, the soil in this area of the park has a high amount of clay and only a few plants can thrive here. There was a large field just covered with the cactus blooms.

Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center

A couple of weeks ago we visited the Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center which is located right here in West Yellowstone. They are a not for profit group, and they plan to build a new habitat for the wolves when they have the funds. They do not receive any financial help from the government and depend on admission fees, sales at their store, and contributions to keep the place going. It's not the same as seeing the animals in the wild, but interesting all the same. The animals here, about 12 grizzlies and a pack of 4 wolves, are here for educational purposes and for a variety of reasons can not be released into the wild. The bears don't all get along, so they only have 2 or 3 out at one time.

This one is playing with his food, an elk bone. Check out the claws!

The bears have a nice environment with trees, some open area and a waterfall which runs into a pool. They put live trout in the pool for them to catch. They also have a program where kids get to go into the enclosure between bears being out and hide the food for them.

No doubt they are commenting on all us people watching them.

It's amazing how similar the wolves are to our Siberian Husky we used to have. Not just in their appearance but in their behavior.

They also have a waterfall and pool which is stocked with trout.

Lunch time. Yum!

Male mountain bluebird.

The mountain bluebirds get their color from the sky.

Chain of Lakes Revisited

Last Monday we took a ride to Wade and Cliff Lakes, which we visited last year in the fall. Our day started with breakfast at Campfire Lodge with our fellow workampers from Bargain Depot Outlet. Thanks to our wonderful bosses for this nice treat. After breakfast we drove to the end of Ghost Village Rd along the Madison River. We saw two osprey nests with occupants along this route. They were too far away to get good pictures, but we did enjoy them with binoculars. Another side trip was on Beaver Creek Rd. a nice ride along the creek with wildflowers in abundance. We finally made it to Wade and Cliff Lakes. There are small campgrounds at each lake and another one on the hilltop between the two. There weren't many campers, but the area was well populated by mosquitoes. They tell us they will be gone by July 4th. We can already see a reduction of the pests here in town. After our stop to admire the lakes we headed south on Route 87 to Henry's Lake. Along the way we saw a turn off into the Targhee National Forest that we hadn't been on, so of course we had to take it. Another wonderful day exploring.

The circle at the end of Beaver Creek Rd.

A small stream meanders through this valley in the Three Dollar Ranch. The road to Wade and Cliff Lakes goes through the ranch.

Wade Lake

Cliff Lake with it's many shades of green and blue.

A closer look at Cliff Lake

Henry's Lake

What many see as a weed, we consider another beautiful wildflower.

The arrowleaf balsamroot are everywhere adding color to many hillsides.

White Mule's Ears cover many meadows with their snow white blooms.

Delicate flowers hiding under the leaves.

We saw many of these blue flowers near the Madison River.

Lupines in the early morning. You can see the flower stalk forming in the middle.

Morning dew on some interesting flowers and leaves.