Today was a travel day.  We drove through the middle section of Montana headed north to Cananda.  All day we were surrounded by beautiful mountains and lush valleys.  Impressive spaces under the Big Sky.  I’m going to post some of the wildlife pictures we took in Yellowstone.

Thanks to all of you who have left comments or emailed me privately.  It means a lot to me knowing you all are enjoying the blog.   Until later, Dolores and Richard

1. Longhorn Sheep

2. Grizzly

3. Elk–BIG elk

4. Buffalo

5. Fox-mama and babies

6. Black Bear

7. Baby Buffalo

8. Wolf

Well, that loud boom you heard earlier today from the northwestern part of the US (more specifically Montana) was me cheering because I finally got the pictures to go where I wanted them.  I tried to get support to help me, but they just sent me the instructions I’d been following since the first blog.  As it turns out, there are two different browsers, and I was using the wrong one.  Who knew?

Today was our last day in Livingston.  We all enjoyed the four days we were here.  Today, we made a second trip to a wine and gourmet shop and bought some unusual, imported cheese.  We also went to another museum located in an old school house built in 1907.  It was four floors with each room filled with some of the neatest stuff telling the history of Livingston.

Since the HBO series, Deadwood, was one of my favorite, I found the section telling about the time Calamity Jane spent in Livingston very interesting.  The museum had photographs of Jane at Wild Bill Hickok’s grave in Deadwood.  When she was in Deadwood, she worked as a nurse during a deadly epidemic.  Everyone knew how much she loved Wild Bill.  When she died, a man who Jane had cared for his daughter during the epidemic, paid for her to be buried next to Bill.

They also had photos of Charlie and Steve Utter who ran a freight company in Deadwood, and they were good friends of Hickok.  Since I had watched the HBO series from the beginning, it was fun seeing pictures of the real people.

We ate at an old saloon.  I had terrific lamb chops.  The young man who owns the place was there.  He also owns an Italian restaurant in San Francisco.  He gave us the address, and we hope to go there when we go to see Richard’s oldest son, Robert.  He lives in Vallejo, north of San Francisco.

I’ll sign off for now.  Here are a couple more pictures.

Dolores and Richard

1. Our first day in Yellowstone,  It snowed everyday.           

2. Grizzly at a hot springs.  Notice the crazy people at bottom of picture.

1. Black Bear in heavy snow                                            2. One of many canyons in Yellowstone

Happy birthday, Howard!!!  (Richard’s brother)

Well, I uploaded a bunch of pictures but now I don’t know where they are.  Hopefully they will show up.  If it works, I hope you enjoy them.

We are still in Livingston and enjoying the town.

Until later,

Dolores and Richard

Yesterday we left the campground at Fishing Bridge and made our way to Mammoth Hot Springs at the north end of Yellowstone.  Since the road from Canyon to Tower Falls was still closed and we wanted to see the Tower Falls, we parked the motorhomes at Mammoth and took the Jeep to the Falls.  Along the way, we saw another black bear and buffalo (they should be called buffalot) and elk.  By the time we got to the falls, it was about 41 degrees and raining.  Boy, was it cold.

Once we were back in Mammoth, we rode around the compound (barracks and officers quarters) of what used to be Fort Yellowstone.  The buildings are now used as administrative buildings.  The park was made the first national park in the United States March 1, 1872.  A group of civilians was appointed to protect the park’s natural features and wildlife, but they failed.  In 1886 the US Army was posted at the entrance to keep people from killing animals and hauling out things to be sold as souvenirs.  Fort Yellowstone was an active post until the park was turned over to the newly developed park services in 1918.

We drove north out of the park to the town of Livingston, Mt.  It’s a small but interesting place.  It is called the original entrance to Yellowstone.  Today we visited a railroad museum.  Jack and Richard sat in a engineer seat and got to flip levers and switches like they were running a train.  While I was reading the exhibits, I found a picture of a man named Charlie Monroe Bair.  He came out west while working on the railroad in the late 1800’s.  He quit the railroad and started raising sheep.  He became one of the biggest sheep ranchers in the west and is known as The King Of Wool Growers.  My cousin, Sandy, is a Bair.  I took pictures of old Charlie. 

Livingston was park of the Lewis and Clark Trail.  A city park is named for Sacajawea.  They have a bronze statue of her and her son, Jean Baptiste, on a horse.  Sacajawea was a Shoshone woman who traveled with Lewis and Clark.  Her husband was one of their guides.  She served a couple of purposes–She communicated with the Indians along the way and, because she was a woman with a party of men, the Indians knew the party was not there to cause problems.  Therefore, they were not met with resistance on their long jouney.  Her life and death has been written about in many books.  Some say she died when she was 25 and others say she ran away from her husband and went back to the Shoshone where she died in 1884.

We went to dinner at the Montana Steak and Chop House and had a wonderful meal.  The steak was great which would only stand to reason since we are in beef country.  We then went to a theater in the quaint downtown Livingston and saw the new Indiana Jones movie.  It was good.

To all of you who sent comments letting me know you are out there, thanks and it was good to hear from you.

Kate:  Have a safe trip and a lot of fun at the get-together with Lori and Diane.  When I read about it, it sounded like it would be a lot of fun.  Think about me on Friday night when it all gets started (June 6) that’s my birthday.  The 5 days we were in Yellowstone it snowed.  It was cold.  Hopefully, it will be warm when you get there.  Have a great signing.

Ellen:  I’m glad to hear from you.  Other than reading brochures and books about the areas I am visiting, I’m not reading much right now.  Every minute I have I work on my latest manuscript which is due 9-1, but I really wanted to have it done before I left home and here it is the end of May and I still haven’t finished it.  I do see the end of the tunnel.

Carole:  I know you’ll be glad when the remodeling at your office is done.  Richard and I are really looking forward to you and Tom joining us In Alaska.

Robert (my stepson in California)  Dad and I will see you for sure this summer.  He is sending you a few pictures from his computer.  Love ya.

Until later

Dolores and Richard  

Today is what we call catch-up day.  We spent the day doing laundry, cleaning out the refrigerator, paying bills, doing maintenance to the car and bus, and basically cleaning up.  When you take your home with you on vacation, you still have home things to do.   

Jeannie fixed great beef stew and, after we ate, we went out to look for bears.  Unfortunately, tonight we didn’t see any.  Well, actually, since we have been bear hunting I’ve seen hundreds of ”magical” ones.  As we travel along the highway, my eyes scanning the floors of the snow-covered pine forests, I see a bear and it instantly turns into a big rock or tree stump.  Magically. 

Tomorrow we will leave Yellowstone and will spend a few days making our way from here to the Canadian border.  I’m having a great time and I’m actually getting a little writing done.  I hope all of you are well.  Go to the bottom of this post and click on comment and let me know who all is out there.  I’d love to hear from you.

For a couple of recipes, check out my article at www.cleverdivas.com

Until Later

Dolores and Richard

Today was cold, rainy, and snowy.  In the morning we went to Yellowstone Lake Hotel which was built in 1891 and restored to the 1920’s decor in 1994.  It is a huge, yellow hotel overlooking Yellowstone Lake which is also HUGE.  The lake is covered with sheets of gray ice.  And, although eerie, it is a beautiful sight.

Since it was so cold, we opted to hang out at the motor homes until after dinner when we went for a ride out to Mary Bay to look for the bears.  It was almost dark, the snow was coming down heavily when we saw the large black bear crossing a small creek not far from the highway.  He was on one side of the meadow with about four buffalo not far from him.  They all just went on about their business, grazing and foraging under fallen trees for their evening meals.

Cheri:  Yes, we went to both the Upper and Lower Yellowstone Falls.  What a spectacular sight!!!  We have seen all the nooks and crannies of the park except for the road from Canyon Village to the Tower and the road from there west to Mammoth.  The road from Canyon Village to Tower is closed.  Outside our bus windows are snow drifts from 5-6 feet.  Since we are leaving the park tomorrow, we probably won’t get to travel that section this time.  I don’t believe they will open any time soon.

Until later

Dolores and Richard

We drove approximately 140 miles today.  Yellowstone is such a remarkable place.  From the south end to the north end, around every turn is a different panoramic view, different terrain, and different scientific phenomenon.  We drove through canyons surrounded by high yellow cliffs. 

We stopped at all the bubbling mudpots and boiling hot springs.  Algae grows in the hot water causing most of the colors especially yellows, orange, brown and greens.  There are many shades of blue and those are usually too hot for algae to live.  As you stand on the boardwalks over the acres of holes in the ground with steam escaping, you can look down into the depths of many of the hot springs.  They resemble Morning Glorys in full bloom.

Mudpots are caused because they have only a small amount of acid water which dissolves the rocks into clay or mud.  Around most of the hot springs and mudpots you smell rotten eggs which is caused by hydrogen sulfide gas.

At Mammoth Hot Springs, we watched the slow dribble of water down the Minerva Terrace which is another awesome display of Mother Nature at her best.  Hot water with carbonic acid in it flows through limestone, dissolving the limestone and carrying it to the surface where it cools and becomes travertine which is another form of limestone.  To me it looks like a massive hill of that styrofoam spray used to protect water pipes.  No description I could give would tell you exactly how amazing the sight is.

Unfortunately, most of this stuff goes way over my head.  I know that if you mix vinegar and baking soda together it will erupt.  That is the extent of my chemistry knowledge.  So, I read a lot of literature to be able to pass along this info.  For me, when I walk up to these holes in the ground and see the beautiful pools of colored, boiling water, the smell of rotten eggs is only a slight distraction.  I don’t really understand what causes them, I only know they are amazing.

At one of our first stops, we saw a grizzly bear very close to the hot springs.  He moved back and forth over the top part of the walkway around the springs.  We took several pictures of him.  Other animals we saw today were a huge wolf and a coyote.  We have seen many ravens and magpies.  

We ate a picnic lunch along the way.  Ate dinner in a restored (1920) restaurant in Mammoth where I had fresh trout encrusted with pecans and parmesan cheese.  In the little town, elk graze on the town square.

Also, a lot of the park is still closed because of snow, but when nature calls, you gotta go.  Richard saw a public outhouse, but the road to it was covered in about 6″ of snow.  The fact that we probably shouldn’t go down that road didn’t stop Richard, but the deep snow did.  We all got out and hiked to the potty in snow which came way over my ankles.  It took some time, but Richard and Jack got the car back to the road.  We have stayed on the cleared roads since

Until Later,

Dolores and Richard

Last night, as I was trying to publish yesterday’s blog, we lost our internet connection.  Before that we had not been able to access television (too much snow on the dome) or use the telephones (no service).  It stood to reason too much ice on the satillite dish would knock me offline sooner or later.  I don’t remember the last time I went to bed that early.  Jeannie and I couldn’t even find out who won American Idol until we came across a USA Today newspaper at one of the country stores.  Yea, David Cook!!

So, this morning we packed up every conceivable electronic piece of equipment (minus the TV) and took it with us as we went in search of wildlife and signals.  Between our campground and Old Faithful we got up close and personal with a grizzly, buffalo, an osprey and babies, and BIG ravens. 

Finally we arrived at Old Faithful and the Yellowstone Lodge.  All our cell phones started beeping.  We had signals and messages.  I had internet.  Woohoo!  We were back in business.  Then I realized that for the approximately 12 hours we were without all that stuff, we were surrounded with beautiful white scenery and tranquility.

We ate dinner at the lodge and then went to the car to check email and call loved ones while we waited for the next eruption of Old Faithful.  When you see pictures of Old Faithful, there are usually spectators standing there watching the geyser spew way up in the air.  But as I said, we were in the car, except for Jack.  Why?  It was 34 degrees and raining.  ‘Nuff said.

Tomorrow we will head out early for another day of sightseeing.  And, let me tell you there are some spectacular sights to see here in Yellowstone National Park.

Cheri:  Since we have been without internet or television, we haven’t heard of any tornados in the last couple of days unless that was what we were in night before last when the wind made the bus do the hoochie coochie.

Bonnie:  If you are reading this, tell Miggie we said Happy Birthday.

Until Later,

Dolores and Richard

In the night we had some strong winds that whipped over the mountains into the valley and made our bus tremble.  Thankfully, it only lasted a short time, but the rain kept up all night and all morning.

As we made our way north into Yellowstone, the rain turned to snow.  That was 10 hours ago and the snow is still coming down.  I’ve been here about 5 times before, but this is the first time we have seen so much snow.    It is deep and getting deeper, but it is beautiful.

Jeannie fixed fried potatoes, pinto beans, and cornbread for supper.  To sit there eating the wonderful comfort food and looking out the window at the pine forest with all the branches cover with white snow, well, it was awesome.  Looks like a winter wonderland.

Later

Dolores and Richard