"car-free adventure" self-designed & self-supported bicycle tour adventures

Yellowstone National Park car free adventure______________________________________________________________________________

photos:  wild life

..top of the world..  ....wild life...  ..home away from home..  ..around the campfire..

We are bicycling across the US one state at a time.  We had ridden from the Pacific to the Kansas border and from Lake Michigan to the Missouri River.  We selected South Dakota as the state to complete our bicycle trek from the Pacific Ocean to Lake Michigan.  Our selection of South Dakota was influenced by the fact that we had not visited Mount Rushmore or Yellowstone National Park.  We decided to ride from east to west across the state which would make both easily accessible as post ride attractions.

Based on “no” research I had assumed that Yellowstone National Park consisted of a geyser named Old Faithful.  We would arrive at a wide place in the road where we would park and then stand patiently for the geyser to do its thing.  I assumed that since it was a National Park the Park Service had planted a small stand of trees near by.  After a few pictures of the geyser doing its thing we would get back into the car and return to Rapid City South Dakota to come home. 

But having learned from my past ignorance about the United States I planned two days at Yellowstone.  We selected the Canyon Village area because it was in the center of the park.    

We entered Yellowstone from the north entrance.  We drove through the Roosevelt Gate into an area wide enough for “Old Faithful.”  We stopped briefly to show the park rangers the “park pass” we had purchased during our visit to the Bad Lands of South Dakota.  Old Faithful was not near the entrance.   

We drove south 5 miles and then east for 18 miles to Tower Roosevelt.  We turned south 18 miles to Canyon Village where we had reserved our “cabin.” As we drove I began to realize that Yellowstone National Park offered more than Old Faithful.  Looking at my surroundings as we drove I began to realize Yellowstone was beautiful. 

We arrived at the Canyon Village and checked in.  Canyon Village was populated by restaurants, stores, gift shops and a ranger station.  Our “cabin” was located a short distance from the village.  It looked a bit scary from the outside but we found it to be very comfortable.  In fact it was better than some of the places where we stayed on our bicycle adventures in the States and Europe.  Its appearance matched the environment.

The following morning we ate a good breakfast at the restaurant and visited the ranger station for information to organize our day.  The park provided two roads that form two loops which provide access for the visitors to see the many of the wonders located in the park.  We had driven 40 miles of one of loops coming into the park to Canyon Village.  We decided to drive the southern loop on our first day and complete the northern loop on the second day.

Old Faithful was located on the southern loop.  We used the information we had gotten from Canyon Village Ranger Station which we used to guide a tour of the southern loop.  A bit of study of the park information began to reveal my ignorance of the attractions at Yellowstone.  On our second day we drove the northern route.  Again we used the information to stop at the attractions noted by the information from the ranger station.  And again we were impressed by what we saw and experienced.  We added ranger walks we found along our route which proved to be very informative. 

We decided to stay a third day in the park at Tower Roosevelt.  We had learned that one of the best places to see wild life during the early morning and afternoon was the Lamar Valley which was near the Tower-Roosevelt location.  After we checked into our room we drove to the Lamar Valley for the afternoon watch and were rewarded with buffalo, wolves, coyotes and prong horn sheep.

Briefly stated, we organized our stay to see as much as possible.  We divided our stay into 4 categories of interest.  An extra day was added when we discovered that it was possible to watch the wild animals during their feeding times in the park. 

Yellowstone is unique.  It had rained everyday for two weeks before we arrived at the park.  The Yellowstone River was rowdy with vivid colors and rapids.  The upper and lower falls were very robust.  The Yellowstone River had carved a canyon into the lava rock producing beautiful scenes along the river.  I discovered many geysers.  Old Faithful was a side show.  The mountain sides and forests matched anything I had experienced in the Redwoods in California.  Watching the wild life in the Lamar Valley was special.  I was a novice when I started but after an hour I could spot wild life in the brush and trees. 

We also included the park ranger talks at the various locations which we visited and the ranger talks at the camps at night.  We were told there are many hiking trails in the park.  Some hikes are accompanied by rangers and many are not.  We were told how to avoid becoming food for the

animals.

...the geysers..   ..the Yellowstone river..  ...the scenes....  ...the falls...

YELLOWSTONE WILD LIFE

  

The science of watching the wildlife at Yellowstone          ...a bear to the right of the two rocks next to the tree with the bright leaves...  ..serious animal watchers have expensive equipment that allows them to see everything that moves...  ...many are kind enough to share with the novice...  ..no I don't think I am looking in the wrong direction...

We brought along our binoculars that we use to watch football games in LA and had to entertain ourselves with the animals that graze near the road.  We saw many Buffalo and prong horned sheep.  We had to be lucky find the animals in the tall grass in places and ask for help from those with the professional equipment when everyone became excited about locating an animal in the distance. 

At one point a prong horned sheep was grazing with her young calf immediately across the river from where we stood.  The animals were close enough that we could see them with the naked eye. 

We had been alerted by the people with the good equipment that a wolf was roaming about 100 yards away from the prong horned sheep’s location.  I could not find the wolf with my binoculars as it was roaming in and out of the foliage along the river.  I was fearful that I would be able to witness a meal in the wilderness. 

Suddenly the prong horn sheep began to run in a circle in short bursts across the river from us.  The young one had disappeared from view.  The prong horn stopped her antics and began to graze and then suddenly ran toward us and chased a coyote out of the brush which I had not seen until it ran along the river bank.  She chased the coyote about 25 yards and then returned to her station where we assumed her young one was hiding.  The coyote could be seen roaming around into and out of the foliage along the river. 

We kept watch on the wolf and he or she did not move far from where we had first seen her.  The veterans said that she was trying to get across the road to her young ones located in the hills.  We were told that she did not mind moving cars but she was reluctant to cross near parked cars.  To justify the veteran’s thoughts suddenly we heard wolves howling on the hills across the road behind us.  She began to return the call.

Meanwhile mom, the prong horn sheep, laid down and watched near where the young one must be hiding while the coyote could be seen moving further away down the river bed.  It was very interesting and only one of many wildlife stories that played out before us.

One interesting note, as I was standing near the road a coyote came walking up from the river bed and crossed the road about 50 feet from us.  The wolves may have been a bit intimidated (or clever) but the coyotes accepted the tourists. 

Also the day we left Yellowstone we were driving along highway ??? and two prong horn sheep were running along the road and zipped past us.  During the drama being played out with mom and her infant we were told by the experts that the prong horn sheep could outrun a wolf or a coyote.  After our race along the road I believe.     

That same day we encountered traffic stooped on the road.  A herd of buffalo were casually crossing the road.  Soon they joined the cars on the road using the road as a path.  A contest began between two young males to determine who was the strongest a few feet from the car.  They were ignored as were the cars as the buffalo made their was across the road.   

Even though unprepared we soon became “animal watching junkies” and learned how to locate wild life from the veterans who took us under their wing.  We were allowed to share some of the sophisticated equipment to find and view wildlife at distances our binoculars could not reach.  We got into it and it became a very interesting and fun experience.  I recommend a couple of days with the experts on highway ???

..bear..  ..coyote..  ..moose..  ..ram..

..wolf...  ...buffalo...  ...budda...  ...moose...

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