Spring Has Sprung

We FINALLY got a warm, dry, weekend day to go outside and play! My poor ATV hasn't been out of the garage for two months!

We figured that our best chance of getting very far off the road was in the Pryors, so we headed south. It was crazy windy, but that wasn't going to stop us! As we got close, we could see that there was still a lot of snow on top, but the main road was dry. 

We took the first side road, then the first side road off of that one. It was a fun ride, but we hit a spot that was a little too much like "technical riding" for relatively inexperienced riders like us. ("Technical riding" is ATV-jargon for "DUDE... That. was. INSANE!") We walked up the trail a little farther, but it was obvious that we had gone as far on this road as we were going to get. So we headed back to the main road.

Coming out, Dan spotted a high point that just had to be conquered, so we parked the machines and started up. However, we kept getting distracted by cool rocks. (Rock hounding is a lot of fun in the Pryors because of the high concentration of crystals and geodes.) We did ultimately make it to the top and the view was incredible.  

We spent the rest of the day alternately riding, rock hounding, and hiking. It was just SO good to be outside again! We did find some lingering snow. I made it up the last drifted incline of the day, but Dan was good and stuck, so I turned back. He got himself out before I got back, but we decided that that was the end of that road for today. In spite of the snow, I am convinced that Old Man Winter is losing his grip at last and that spring has arrived. Seeing bluebirds and a robin only has me more convinced that summer will get here after all. Bring it on!

Who Needs Sleep?

I could hardly believe what I was hearing when Dan got home from work on Thursday night (Friday morning, really)! Be on the road by 8 am? Seriously? Well, it IS Yellowstone NP, so less than six hours later, I was dragging my happy hiney out from under the covers. (Ok, happy might be a stretch.) By just shortly after 8, we were on the interstate headed west. 

Since we have never been in the park earlier in the year than May, and only one road is currently open, we weren't sure what we might see. The flip side of that, though, is that we spent more time in the places where we COULD get ~ namely Mammoth and the Lamar Valley. Without the summer crowds, we did a lot more exploring (and photographing) on the lower level of the hot springs than we ever have before. The contrast of steam and snow was beautiful! 

From Mammoth, we moved on to Undine Falls. I wasn't sure if they would look much different in winter. Since the water moves so quickly, I wasn't sure that it would freeze. But it was different, and it was gorgeous. 

Now our focus turned to wildlife. We passed a group of people with spotting scopes (usually a dead give-away that something is out there), but the pullout was full, so we continued on down the road. Of course the buffalo were out in force. I do not generally enjoy photographing bison because they are so common, but on this trip, I challenged myself to find a setting that made for a memorable photo. We also added pictures of big horn sheep, moose, and elk to our collection as well. 

On the way back out, the spotting scopes were still set up, so we decided to stop and see what was out there. Thanks to the generosity of one of the spotters, I got my first look at a Yellowstone wolf. There were two of them, sleeping on a hillside nearly a mile away. Yes, these researchers had been sitting in the exact same spot for THREE hours watching wolves sleep!! ANYWAY...

Over dinner in Gardiner on the way home, we were looking at the pictures we had taken. The employee saw us looking and told us exactly when and where we could get photos of elk calves. Looks like a return trip to Yellowstone is in order. Well, if we MUST... 
                                                         to be continued. 

Red Rocks and Wild Horses

Nothing says "wild west" like a mustang! Dan and Ashley saw a few back in '09 while I was at work, but we haven't seen them since, despite several drives to areas that they have been known to frequent. I was telling a co-worker this last week that I have never seen one, and she suggested the Big Horn Recreational Area. She said that they "always" see them there. Sounds good to me!

Since we started a photography class this morning, we couldn't leave town until afternoon. The sunshine felt so good after all the snow and cold temps that we have had of late! When we got to the recreational area, we pulled off at an overlook to photograph the canyon and the river. Sure enough, there were a couple of wild horses grazing on the other side of the canyon. Unfortunately, they were probably half a mile away ~ a little much even for the big lens. 

We got back in the truck and drove to the end of the pavement. Coming back out, we were saying, "At least we saw them." Just then, we rounded a corner and there she was ~ a beautiful little mustang mare! She even trotted obligingly toward the truck before going out of sight around the bend. NOW we were satisfied. Not much later, we encountered a couple of coyotes in the road, but they were going straight away from us ~ not a flattering pose even for a slender young canine. 

Winter afternoons are so short! The daylight was running out on us, so the day's photo shoot was over and it was time to go home for dinner. 

An Eye for Eagles

If you have been following my blog for any time at all, you will have noticed that eagles are a recurring theme. While I am not a bird-watcher by any stretch of the imagination, I never tire of seeing these huge, majestic birds. 

Eagles have obviously made a comeback due to protection. I don't recall ever seeing one when we lived in Michigan, but they are fairly common there now. Even when we moved to Montana, it was a rare treat to see one. Now, in the winter and spring, we see them nearly every time we go for a drive. But just seeing one, of course, is no guarantee of a good photograph. Golden eagles are especially challenging. They just don't stick around! But we are having lots of fun trying to get the perfect shot. 

I thought you might enjoy some of our best. While you're looking, we will be out trying for more. 

The Enchanted Forest

The woods are lovely, dark, and deep. ~ Robert Frost

If you ask people who have lived in or visited Michigan about their favorite place there, most will mention one of the many lakefronts. Some might point out the historical sites or the great small towns. But my very favorite spot in ALL of Michigan is a place called Wildwood. No trip home is complete without a stop there. 

My beautiful momma in her natural habitat - harvesting something!

My love affair with Wildwood started before I was even born, when my dad and mom got their Pontiac convertible stuck in a sandy spot in the road. (Did I mention that none of these roads are paved?) Yes, I was along for the ride! As I grew older and gained siblings, many family outings took place in Wildwood. Part of the allure of the place was the traces left by early settlers. Old houses were scattered here and there, and foundations were plenteous. The best thing that the settlers left, though, continues to flourish, and that is their orchards. In any season except winter, there was always something to harvest, and it was free for the taking. We picked mushrooms in the spring, berries in the summer, and apples, pears, and nuts in the fall. The beautiful mix of oak, elm, maple, birch, fruit and nut trees put on a show of color that I still miss. 

Once in a while, after an evening church service, my dad would slow down as he rounded the corner just before pulling into our driveway, then go right on by the house. Yay!! a night-time drive through Wildwood "shining" for deer. My dad lived to hunt, and many of our forays were thinly-veiled scouting trips. He harvested many pounds of meat from Wildwood over the years. This was also the place where I got my first taste of hunting, sitting in a blind with my daddy. (All I really remember was being SO cold!)

I could ramble on much longer... about the nest of baby field mice, about the sandy hole in the side of the hill that Daddy said was home to fox kits, and about climbing the trees. And of course, Dan and I did much of our dating driving around Wildwood in his big, green Chevy pickup (much more suited for two-tracking than a sports car, Dad & Mom, haha)! Who needs a lakeshore? A day spent in Wildwood is, to me, a day of heaven on earth!

Worth the Hassle

Well, then... 
It's Friday, and the sun is shining. Where shall we go today? Having planned to go to the East Rosebud drainage last weekend (see Six Eagles and a 3-Mile Hike), and being thwarted, we figured that that was a good place to start. We saw some eagles along the way, but only one close enough to photograph.

We drove almost to the campground at the end of the road before we hit snow that was a little too deep. At that point, we backed up and turned around. 

Since we have seen moose in this area before, I was closely watching the hillsides around us. Suddenly, I spotted a frozen waterfall. Dan stopped and backed up to where we could see it again (he drives as well in reverse as he does in drive), but there were trees blocking a really good shot of the falls. What to do? Hike up to it, of course! The many, many young pine trees and fallen logs left by a fire about 10 years ago made for tough going, but it was worth it! We were able to get right to the base of the ice flow. Dan has "King of the Hill" syndrome, so we worked our way up further. Unfortunately, what goes up must come down. On the descent, Dan slipped and nearly skewered himself on a cool set of whitetail antlers (skull still attached). We otherwise probably never would have seen them in the dense underbrush. But now he had to make it the rest of the way down carrying his prize. But make it down we did. I think that we will both be feeling this one tomorrow. 

My King of the Mountain :)

Eagles and Bison and Sheep, Oh My!

AKA Same weekend, Part 2

Having been told on Friday about big horn sheep wintering outside of Cody, Saturday's agenda became "go find sheep"! 

We took the road out of Cody past the Buffalo Bill Dam toward the east entrance of Yellowstone Park. Sure enough, we found the sheep -- like 100 of them-- plus a few other willing subjects. 

Mission accomplished!