In some ways, the best wildlife viewing of the day was upon opening the curtains this morning. A moose was browsing along the hedgerow and fortunately I grabbed my camera just as a passing motorist scared it off. Poor thing was quite overcome and darted here and there before disappearing into the brush nearby. But today, we were headed for Yellowstone and another new state for our collection - Wyoming.
The wildlife viewing was good in the National Park too - we saw plenty of bison, deer, elk, a bald eagle and several smaller critters. But it was the landscape which impressed us most, the variety and the immensity of it all.
Of course, we headed for the familiar first, and it showed up right on time. At about 10.45, Old Faithful began to bubble and spit a bit, and then at 10.56 exactly it shot a plume of water into the air, satisfying the hundreds of people sitting in rows waiting for the show. Though it was impressive, it wasn't really the highlight of our day - that was to come later. (We found video podcasts for the park features here)
We made our way to the West Thumb thermal area and loved the colourful pools there. We picnicked in the sulphurous air and chatted to a couple from Boulder, Colorado.
Highlight of the day, without doubt, however, was the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River. A complete surprise to us, the canyon was not only huge, but gloriously photogenic with the turquoise river contrasting beautifully with the red ochre cliffs and olive green trees. My photographs don't really do it justice - those in my head are the best ones, as always.
We finished our day with a beer and supper at the Montana Ale Works. And very good it was too!
