No!! We don’t have Wi FI
June 1,
2017
It has
amazed me in the first month of living and working in this beautiful place with
its pristine 2.2 million acres of wilderness how many people get upset because
we don’t have Wi-Fi. Now I realize that we are as society which has become
obsessed with social media and modern conveniences, but with all there is to
see and do here Wi-Fi would be my least concern. On that note with the
increasing numbers of visitors even those of us who did have our own internet
access have lost access due to the volume of use of cell phones and I-pads and
other communications that overwhelm the 3 park cell towers. Hence this is one
reason it has taken this long to update the blog.
Yellowstone River
May was a
busy and interesting month. Paula and I began our jobs as guest service agents.
In the first week or so after opening we had a majority of European visitors in
the park. These folks all had rented motor homes and would all seem to arrive
at one time late in the evening. In talking with the guest most were renting
brand new RV’s from manufacturing locations in the mid-west and were spending
their 2 to 3 week holiday traveling the US and visiting as many national parks
as they can in that short period of time and then they would drop off the RV at
RV rental location on the west coast or even Alaska. A pretty neat way for them
to see our country. We have found the language barrier challenging at times but
have enjoyed meeting so many interesting people from so many different places.
Most of them have been very pleasant to deal with and very understanding with a
few issues that arose during freezing temperatures and were just so excited to
be here.
Always look behind you, you never know what you might have missed
Sunset over Pelican Valley and thermal features
Full moon over the Absaroka Mountains
As the
middle to end of May rolled around we began to climb steadily in occupancy when
we were hit with a nice spring snow storm. The forecast was for 1-3 inches and
we ended up getting 16 inches for a total of 30 inches since our arrival on
April 20. This storm presented some challenges for us as a staff and our guest
as we lost power and water for 12 hours. Most people visiting Yellowstone on Vacation
are not prepared especially when the temperatures are hovering in the low 30’s
and upper 20’s for daytime highs. Most guests rolled with the punches and went
about with their plans once the roads were reopened by the Park Service. One of
the benefits of living on top of the world’s largest super volcano is the
ground is warm and once the temps get above freezing the snow melts pretty
quickly.
Bison looking for grass during our spring snow storm
Lots of "Red Dawgs"
Paula and
I have a very good schedule as we work two nights and three days and we have
Friday and Saturday off. So, on our first weekend off after opening we ventured
off to the south of Yellowstone toward the Grand Teton Mountains and Jackson
Hole. These mountains are called the Alps of the United States because of their
height and beauty. Because of the high snow fall amounts this year the Tetons
are completely covered with snow and glisten in the sun. We also retraced some
old footsteps that we as a family had traveled 13 years ago by going to Moose
Wyoming and driving down Moose Wilson Road. Thirteen years ago when we visited
this area Moose Wilson Road was a nightly trip at Ashley’s request because of
the Moose and other animals we saw on this road. So every night after dinner we
would discuss what we were going to do and Ashley’s reply would be “I Want to
go to Moose Daddy”, so thirteen years later minus one family member Paula and
I rode down Moose Wilson Road and were
able to find one Moose grazing in the marshes alongside the road. Unfortunately, this area has really grown and
developed with condos and lodges for the Teton Village ski area and this was
the only Moose we saw. After a grocery run, propane refill and lunch we made
the 3 hour drive back home. This drive with the Teton’s out the left window is
a truly amazing scene.
Grand Teton Mountains
Our next
weekend off we headed north to Bozeman Montana where on Saturday we met my
cousin Darcy and her husband Mark who live just outside Bozeman. Darcy and I
were very close as kids growing up when my family would travel to see my dad’s
family in Minnesota. We would usually stay on the farm with Darcy and my aunt
and uncle. It’s was great to see her because it has been at least 10 years
since I had seen her. We had lunch and planned some future kayaking and tubing
trips for later in the summer. After our visit, we resupplied at the Bozeman
Wal-Mart. I got a new camera with a better zoom for wildlife pictures and we
headed home.
Memorial
Day brought the beginning of the summer here at Fishing Bridge RV Park in
Yellowstone. From now until the second week of August we are 99.5 % full. We
had a nice two days off but chose not to go anywhere over the weekend due to
the extra travelers inside and outside the park. We did get up early on Friday
of Memorial Day weekend and head north to the Lamar Valley for wildlife
viewing. We started out at around 8am and because the last road to open for the
season over Dunraven Pass (road clear but still 2 feet of snow piled on both
sides of the road) opened we were in the Lamar Valley by 9am. As we approached the
bridge across the Yellowstone river we saw a large crowd of people gathered on
the east side of the bridge with lots of big lens cameras. This is a clue in
Yellowstone that its either a wolf, black bear or grizzly bear. We parked and
walked across the bridge and there was a sow black bear with two cinnamon
colored this year cubs on the river bank below the bridge and three rangers
handling crowd control. Thankfully we had bought the new camera and we were
able to snap some great shots. As we stood there someone noticed on the
opposite side of the bridge and on the opposite river bank that there was a
second black bear sow with two last year cubs. These guys were climbing the
bank and we were able to get some really nice shots of those three as well. It
is rare to see that many bear in one area at the same time as one kid walked by
us he said in amazement,” wow I have just seen six bears”. We spent probably an
hour watching the first mamma bear and her cubs. As we were watching I noticed
that there were four Bison on the road on the west side of the bridge headed in
a full sprint toward the bridge. As they approached the bridge the leader
veered off to the left and started to climb the roads side bank. Now keep in mind
there are at least 200 people of all ages standing on the bridge watching the
bear and her cubs. Then as the leader approached the end of the bridge he
looked down at the river bank and fast current of the Yellowstone river and he
changed his direction and headed back onto the road and bridge. Now it gets
exciting you have 4 large male Bison and 200 people and a few cars on a bridge
which is 100 feet above the river. As the Bison began to sprint across the
bridge in the east bound lane the bridge began to bounce from the sheer weight
of these animals. The ranger began yelling for the pedestrians to get behind
the cars on the bridge and keep the car between them and the Bison. As I was
trying to snap a picture to capture this moment in time in case it was my last,
I looked around for my wife and she was sucked up so close to a white Honda
Accord that you would have thought she was part of the paint on the car. As the
Bison passed you could hear them breathing and snorting they are most
diffidently an impressive and massive animal. As they approached the end of the
bridge one of the rangers stepped in front of the Bison waving his hat and
orange vest and they veered of the road at the end of the bridge and off into
the meadow. Disaster averted and the adventure continues.
Picture is blurry because the bridge was bouncing
On
Memorial Day, we had a staff cook out of hamburgers which were provided by our
Manager Jan and potluck sides provided by the rest of us. This was good as we
were working so we got to eat dinner without having to fix anything and enjoy
some co-worker fellowship.
On
Tuesday after Memorial Day we met up with my former partner at DEA Chris Young
and his family who passed through Yellowstone on a two week vacation out west.
It certainly was good to see Chris and his wife Ruby and their daughter and son
in law and two grandsons. Chris and I spent the majority of the last 2 1/2 years
prior to my retirement working on cases together. For those that know Chris he
has a quick wit and good sense of humor which I miss but he still couldn’t talk
me into coming back.
Partners reunited if only for a few minutes
We are
very fortunate to have a very good crew to work with at the RV park and when we
interviewed we were told that a number of the people returned each year. As
Paula and I discussed whether to take the job that was a key factor in our
decision. There had to be a reason that people kept returning to Fishing
Bridge. Well we found the reason. Her name is Jan and she is the campground
manger. She has been the manager for five years and she bends over backwards to
make sure we enjoy our time here. She spoils us with cinnamon rolls or pigs in
a blanket in the mornings and today was ginger bread that she baked. She is
five foot 2 spunky and full of life and she is all about making sure that our
guest and staff have a pleasant experience here in Yellowstone.
As the
calendar rolled from May to June the Yellowstone Lake has thawed, we still have
snow on the ground around the campground but now mainly where piles were pushed
to clear sites or the road. The wildlife is abundant for viewing and the
temperatures have begun to rise as well. But the saying is in Yellowstone if you don’t
like the weather wait 30 minutes and it will change. This was proven last
Sunday as Paula and I sat outside soaking in the warm sunshine eating our
sausage biscuits and reading our daily devotion. All of a sudden, the sky
started to get dark and it began to rain and then sleet on us. And as quickly
as it started it stopped and cleared back off for a beautiful afternoon proving
that truly if you don’t like the weather just hang around it will change.
We refer to this as a Bison submarine.
To be as big as they are they are very graceful animals
To be as big as they are they are very graceful animals
We have seen 28 bears in the short time we
have been here not to mention the numerous other wildlife sightings. One
particular grizzly actually crossed the pedestrian walk on the Fishing Bridge
over the Yellowstone river. This is a very crowded area and people were way too
close to the bear trying to get pictures and selfies. Luckily the bear just
wanted to cross the bridge instead of swimming the river, and fortunately no
human foolishness caused the bear to attack which would have cost him his life.
Hope all
is well where ever you are and that you enjoy whatever you are doing this
summer and as Ashley always says get out and enjoy a park. We are truly blessed
to be able to enjoy so much of what God has created.
Until
next time the Ramblin Ruis
Allen and
Paula
