Ahh, the mountains (and lakes) of Grand Teton NP

A lovely view of Mt Moran with Jackson Lake in the foreground.
A wide-angle shot of the Grand Tetons with some native grasses and cows parsnips in the foreground.
This is Jenny Lake in the foreground, the smaller of the two main lakes at Grand Teton NP
An late afternoon photo at the beach of Jackson Lake on Colter Bay
An open meadow view of the Grand Tetons with a conifer tree line break
More open fields for the foreground.
An early morning shot with the clouds still shrouding the mountains.

Grand Teton Wildlife

This 8-point male deer seemed oblivious to our presence. There aren't many predators for deer in Grand Teton, so they may be a little careless or more relaxed.
We saw more different types of wildlife in Yellowstone, but we saw a lot more elk in Grand Teton NP.
I am glad I had a 70 -300mm telephoto lens when I took the above photo.

Wildlife Seen at Yellowstone National Park

Some of the 3000 bison (buffalo) that are in Yellowstone.
A bull elk lounges in the meadow while his harem forages for food.
We watched this coyote get one meal and here he is stalking his next.
Saw mostly butts of deer at Yellowstone who seemed far more skittish than the deer at Grand Teton. Perhaps the presence of wolves at Yellowstone makes them that way.

Our shy and retiring bull moose hiding in the trees near the Petrified Tree in the northern part of the park.

This lady elk knew what she was doing.
This elusive and partially concealed bear caused a big "bear jam" on the road between the Fishing Bridge and West Thumb.

Geysers, Hot Springs, and Steam Vents

Old Faithful, faithfully performed for us and a small crowd first thing in the morning.
Spectrum Hot Spring Pool was my favorite because of it's many brilliant colors: blue, green, yellow, and red copper.
Geysers, hot springs, and steam vents are a little disconcerting to see, at first, because you know that hot molten rock deep under the surface you are standing on is the source of all that heat and sulfurous odors. (The majority of them don't have that rotten eggs smell.) The US Geologic Agency has scientific equipment throughout the park to measure earth tremors and bulges in the earth's surface. If the place wasn't so beautiful I wouldn't visit such a place. After all, Yellowstone is still considered an active volcanic region, and we slept in a lodge that sits inside the ancient volcano's caldera.
This bubbling hot spring also had a steam vent that made a howling noise.

Lake Yellowstone

Lake Yellowstone is massive and hard to comprehend when you realize it is at 7732 feet (2,376 m) above sea level and covers 136 square miles (352Sq km) with 110 miles (177 km) of shoreline. While the average depth of the lake is 139 feet (42 m) its deepest spot is at least 390 feet (118 m). Yellowstone is the largest freshwater lake above 7,000 feet in North America.
the wind blown waves on Lake Yellowstone during the morning of 27 August were as big as those we would see on Pensacola Beach on a yellow flag day. On other days it was barely a ripple.

Lake Yellowstone Moods

Some hot mineral springs in the West Thumb Basin; Lake Yellowstone is in the background.
Sunrise on the first full morning in the park. Disappointing color but a lovely mirrored reflection on the lake surface.
A cloudy afternoon view eastward of the harbor water break on Lake Yellowstone

Lake Yellowstone Sunrise

I almost missed the best sunrise I have seen in four days at Lake Yellowstone this morning. I stood up and was stretching after editing photos early in the morning and looked out the window and saw the most beautiful sky I've seen in years. I jumped into my clothes and literally ran down to the lake (about .25 mile) with equipment in hand. Luckily I had all the gear I needed and it was all down hill to the lake. After about a half hour of frenzied photographing and the sunrise was finally over did I realize I was freezing cold. In my rush to get the photo shots I had only put on shorts and a sweatshirt in 32 degree Fahrenheit weather. In my excitement I had even forgot to put up the hood on the sweatshirt. The glove I left back in the room could have warmed my frozen hands.

Wyoming canyon (click on photos)

No matter how carefully I plan our trips, including my truly minor minutia, Mother Nature can still through me a curve with a wild fire as in the one we experienced East of Yellowstone. We saw smoke in the distance for at least an hour before we were warned via sign/emergency radio station about what was happening. It ruined a section of our trip as we had to rush through a truly beautiful stretch of the Shoshone River Canyon. We couldn’t stop to savor the beauty; we were rushing to preclude the firefighters closing our only way into Yellowstone. Sometimes these wildfires go on for days and burn thousands of acres of forests and grasslands. It could have ruined our whole stay at Yellowstone. It sure made me cross and irritable, but it was hard to complain about it when we came upon a small segment of the fire and watched the brave and tired firefighters doing their best to control and vanquish the blaze.

Mount Rushmore, wildlife, and more

We went to Mount Rushmore, which I believe is a must for anyone traveling in the area. I may have included more pictures here than I should, but it is an awe inspiring place for most Americans.







Next we traveled on the Peter Norbeck Scenic Trail, an incredibly beautiful, but slow, journey through the Black Hills scenery that is full of switchbacks and great forest flora. I have included photos of one of the three single-lane tunnels through the mountain and one of the many wooden bridges (yes, I said wooden and architecturally pleasing bridges) that "pig tail" back over itself. (See the car above our van passing on the bridge.) Next we went through Custer State Park, known for its wildlife.
I included a picture of some begging wild burros that habituate the roadside.
The main attraction is the herd of about 1500 bison (buffalo) that roam where ever they please. We saw some buffalo lounging amidst of a RV campsite. The park people take good care of the buffalo, making sure each year that they get their vaccine shots etc. Unlike the Yellowstone buffalo herd, the Custer State Park herd is brucellosis disease free. We came upon some of the herd moving down to a small pond for a late morning drink. There were literally hundreds of them. No telephoto lens was needed, they walked on the road we were driving on. We passed one bull bison so close I think he could have pressed his nose on Mary Lou's passenger side window. I added a few photos of pronghorn antelope we saw at Custer State Park.

Cedar Pass Lodge in the Badlands National Park

Our lodging at Cedar Pass Lodge was a cabin, obscured by trees in the picture. Not very fancy, frankly spartan, but it did have air conditioning and a view that made it all worthwhile. Note the other views from our cabin that follow.







I climbed up a hill that was near our cabin to get this photo. The rock I climbed on was mostly of soft volcanic origin as are many of the cliffs seen in the pictures. It looks like it erodes rather quickly. There were some footholds chipped into the hill I climbed and I thought I could had added to them with a few good whacks from a shovel.







Nice panorama from the valley floor.

Note the "keyhole" in the peaks at the top of this closeup picture.