- Wildlife viewing
- Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
- Four black bears and two cubs observed
- stay overnight in the iconic test tube western town of Cooke City
We break up our camp and start at Grand Village around 7 a.m. The first stop is the West Thumb Geyser Field with its bubbling springs and steaming fumaroles directly on the large Yellowstone Lake. A little further on we see a teenage wapiti bull on the side of the road. Now bison follow and in the background we see a coyote.
In the Fishing Bridge Area we inform ourselves about the short trails in the region. Since the Pelican Valley Trail is still closed due to grizzlies, we march to Storm Point. Apart from two marmots and the fascinating landscape, we don't get to see anything. At Mud Vulcano, we march along the trail, where a massive bison bull stands right by the edge of the path. We continue through the Hayden Valley where some tourists claim to have made out a grizzley under a tree in a great distance. In any case, despite binoculars, we don't see anything. On the way we eat the rest of the burgers from the previous evening. The next stop is Artist Point at the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River. The world-famous park owes its name to the yellow color of the rock. Now the road leads up to the Dunraven Pass, which now has hardly any snow.
Suddenly the traffic comes to a standstill and as I slowly drive by I see a black bear in the thicket between young fir trees and the remains of the burned down forest. After some search we find a way to park the car and join the crowd. In between we catch a glimpse of the bears. Yes, right, not one, no, two black bears are hiding in the forest. One is black, the other is brown. As soon as we leave the crowd, the next black bear can be seen down in the valley. It is now happening in rapid succession. A little further traffic chaos and black bears again. This time a mother with two boys, one black and one brown. Which is by no means unusual for black bears. Shortly afterwards, at Tower Junction, where I and Oli saw a black bear practically every time I passed through, there is a slightly larger black bear. Now the journey begins in what is, in my opinion, the greatest part of the park, the Lamar Valley. In the vastness of the valley we see hundreds of bison, a few pronghorns and elk. A group with telescopes claims to have seen a black wolf shortly before our arrival. We continue to the northeast exit. Since the campsites near the park are only open to campers with solid walls, we decide to stay in the motel in the iconic retort western town of Cooke City. A shower later we have a beer in a local bar before we have a delicious dinner in the Beartooth Café. We go to the bar again and go to the queen-size bed.
