Bison, Bear, and Elk, Oh My!
The sign said “Old Faithful” with an arrow pointing straight ahead toward a surreal, steamy landscape with benches where hundreds of people waited. Pat, my “faithful wife” said: “I’ll just jump out here and save you a seat.” By the time I found a parking spot and hiked back she said: “You missed it.”
We’d travelled 1,103 miles to Yellowstone National Park to see the most famous geyser in the world and I missed it. If only I hadn’t stopped to take a photo of the distant rear end of a moose an hour earlier, or had that big bowl of bison, elk and beef chili that I will forever remember.
“I should have taken a photo,” Pat said, “but it was so amazing time stood still.” I checked my watch. Fortunately, Old Faithful spouts off every 90 minutes, so I did get to see it. Pat said it was even better when I saw it. She had her most sincere look.
We checked into the Old Faithful Inn, the largest log structure in the world, built in 1903 by carpenters and beavers working hand and paw. There are 325 rooms. Ours came with a bed so small, we had to put our suitcases end-to-end on it. What I think used to be a walk-in closet was now the bathroom, which was great because not all rooms came with a bathroom. “Cozy,” Pat said.
We continued down the road until we saw dozens of cars
pulled over. This time it was a black bear on the side of the hill.
“If he comes down,” a ranger said, “you should get in your car
and leave.” We decided to beat the rush.
“And with a view,” I looked out the window at the thick upper branches of a lodgepole pine tree. One of the few not used to make the triple-level Grand Lobby, where everyone gathered to people watch, as there were no TVs or wi-fi anywhere at the Inn. Rustic, the brochure called it.
The next morning we untangled ourselves – the only way to assure neither of us fell out of cot… I mean… bed – then had a quick breakfast so we could beat traffic to the Grand Loop road. Turns out it wasn’t a problem.
“Can you see at all?” Pat asked, as she peered through the fog.
“Wait, what? I thought you were driving?” Nary a snicker. All I could see was a pair of tail lights some distance ahead. Then they were gone. I made a quick left.
“Are we alive?” Pat asked.
“Yup. You can open your eyes now.”
Shortly after turning, we saw our first bison. It was walking slowly down our side of the road right in front of us. I honked. It turned and flipped me off. (Okay, I made that last part up.) It did cut across the road though. Halfway there, it stopped and scratched behind its ear with its hind leg like a dog. Never saw that on National Geographic.
We continued down the road until we saw dozens of cars pulled over. This time it was a black bear on the side of the hill. “If he comes down,” a ranger said, “you should get in your car and leave.” We decided to beat the rush.
Within moments, we saw more cars pulled off. A Bald Eagle. Then just up the road was another bison. I got out to take photos. It was just the two of us. I felt a real closeness. That’s when I realized I was barely zooming out with my camera. I wondered if they were as fast as people say.
We stopped for lunch. I opted for salad. I didn’t want bison breath for my next close encounter.
Next was Norris Geyser Field, with steaming caldrons, bubbling mud pots and active vents everywhere. That’s when we realized we were actually standing on top of the largest volcano in the world. Awesome, though a bit apocalyptic.
Yellowstone has its own Grand Canyon with towering waterfalls and a deep gorge. I decided to hike to the brink of Lower Falls, only 3/8th of a mile down switchbacks (and 3/8th back up). Breathtaking, literally. Pat waited up top. She dismissed the paramedics when she saw me.
On the way back to the lodge, we saw an elk. It was surrounded by tourists with cellphones and apparently lots of insurance.
A great day. We had wine, saw one last spout, and then knotted ourselves together in our suite for the night.
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