Yellowstone National Park
Hi Everyone! Next up, our nation’s first ever, established into law in the year 1872, national park. Follow me inside and we’ll check out what can be seen in this beautiful area!
In my guess-timation, if you were to ask 3 things of people that they recall from a trip into Yellowstone, henceforth referred to as YNP, the lot of them would say, Buffalo, Thermal pools or geysers and how big it is. I have other memories that I hold deeper than those 3, but nonetheless, there are opportunities within the confides of this park that could last you the rest of your life. If you plan to photograph your way through YNP, there will be no shortage of scenic vistas to capture. The one mammal that is a guarantee to photograph would be a bison. Go in the Autumn, the bison herds come down from the higher ranges to do a massive forage before the winter snows set in. There were so many bison when my wife and I were there that after the second day…I was done photographing them.
Bison are magnificent beasts and they are grumpy all day long. No smoke breaks, not any kind of reprieve from being grumpy. Bulls will get sassy with each other during a rut, but the extent of their grumpiness stems from…humans. Folks that think they’re Dr. Dolittle reborn, get out of their vehicles, approach a bull and think they can tame the grumpiness that lies within. You can imagine, on your own, how that can fail 100% of the time.
The Lamar Valley is where you want to head to. Beautiful, open plains with mountains in the background and loads of bison. Pace yourself, though, you can get inundated quickly, especially when you find yourself stuck on a road because the bison decided that the roadway was much more comfortable to lie down on than the grass. Then you’ll really be done with them after that point.
As with any situation, involving animals withing YNP, always practice safety first. There is all sorts of literature at the gates into the park, as well as, general stores and the like that are also within the park. Literature that will help you practice safety first when dealing with the mammals of Yellowstone.
A little tip for you newbies to YNP. If you’re driving along the roadways, of YNP, and see lots of cars pulled of to the side of the road and, even more important to the number of cars, you see a ranger on the side of the road as well as all the cars, it means one thing…there is something worthy of your attention. I had a few of those instances and my first encounter, in those circumstances, led me to get a bunch of shots of this Bull Elk. In this little riverbed, just standing there as if to pose, once in awhile shifting his gaze in my general direction, keeping an eye on his herd and drinking occasionally. The patch of land closest to him, in the background, was actually a little island in the middle of the river.
Did I mention that the Elk rut was in full swing? No? Well, it was and the cow being chased, actually the cow had to practically pitch rocks at the bull’s head so he’d notice her, was what was on the menu. I will say this, even mammals of other distinctions can have performance anxiety. For what ever reason, after thrice attempting to sow his oats…nuthin’, nada, nil, nixt…was happening for the big guy. The cow finally laid in the grass and gave the bull the iciest stare I think I’ve ever seen one elk give to another. There isn’t a specific place I can tell you to go and see elk. You may see them on your own, or you might come upon the scenario I just explained above. Either way, you’re bound to see something worthwhile and memorable.
Whilst you’re driving, you will see lots, I mean a ton, of thermal pools and lots of steam coming from those thermal pools. In the photo to the left is Yellowstone Lake, a pretty huge body of water that lends to some cool photographic possibilities. If you see a sign for any kind of thermal pool/geyser, go and take a look. If you have the imagination, you can make some of your photos look somewhat, post-apocalyptic, something like a wasteland with the pools and steam and dead trees sticking-up out of the ground, killed by the heat of the sulfur ridden water.
My wife and I were walking to a lesser known thermal pool. We parked the car, got out, got on the trail to the pools, walked about 40 feet in, looked up and saw this beautiful Bald Eagle perched up in a dead tree. I, and the few prepared others, could have been there for hours. This bird did not move. It turned its head a few times, more-so looking down in scorn at us, wingless, flightless beings. Whatever the mockery going through its head, was well worth the time we had to shoot this beauty! Even though this wasn’t so much a road less traveled, one still needs to be prepared for whatever pops-up!
So when it comes to thermal pools in YNP, none compare to the Grand Prismatic Pool. I left people in the shot to the left to give a size perspective. The reddish/orange parts around the pool, when you’re down below, gives one an awesome, textured perspective when you zoom into that color. there are ripples in the ground, formed but the heat of the water, time and wind. A nice set of macro shots could be had if you play your cards right. Safety tip: Never, EVER attempt to go into the pool. Unless you want to lose weight, by having ALL of your skin removed from your bones…LITERALLY, then do not enter into this pool, or any other thermal pool within YNP!
Lastly, when going to some place like YNP, at the very minimal, bring some sort of looking glass with you. Even if you don’t want to take photos, at least bring some binoculars. Case in point, the photo on the right. We passed by a bunch of cars pulled off to the side of the road. There was a ranger doing his best to direct traffic. When asked about the big crowd he stated, “Great Grey Owl.” Since this bird was on my bucket list of photos, I had no choice but to pull over and join the crowd. We were all about 30 yards, give or take, away from the tree where this magnificent raptor was perched. It was explained to me, about 50 million times, what tree and how far up the tree the bird was perched. It took me about 15 minutes to finally get an eyeball on this raptor. This owl blended so well into the tree, as you can see, but once I found him, getting in for some shots was simple. But, having a looking glass of some sort would have helped anyone, from that distance to see what the fuss was about. And a fuss well worth having.
If you have never been to Yellowstone, you must go. Run, don’t walk! Or drive, anyway… There are possibilities of seeing sights that you most likely will not see again, at least in the context of how you first saw them. You could get shots of a grizzly bear, a fox, other types of raptors, etc. You’ll never know what YNP will hold for you in your life experiences if you do not go. Our nation’s first national park. You have to go and experience it. Plan accordingly with where you stay and what it is you want to see within the park. Stay nearest the entrance to the park to where most of the things you want to see. Depending on the time of year, it can be crazy busy. My wife and I stayed in a time share that was fantastic. Outside of that, there are motels that will book-up very quickly. So you have to plan a little bit more than for other trips as there are fewer options for places to stay. Go in an off-season, Autumn or Winter, there will be fewer people.
The second part of our YNP trip was to the Grand Tetons in the state of Wyoming. That is where I will pick it up next week. The next installment will demonstrate, once again, how lucky I am in my photography and, it’s not what you know but who you know…until then, travel well and always take the road less traveled!
