January 2019 Update

Ramblin Ruis update January 2019

Our view of Las Cruses and the snow covered Organ Mountains

 Well whether we wanted it to or not 2019 has arrived. Its hard to believe that 2019 starts our third year Ramblin around the good ole USA. We have settled in for the winter in the southwestern desert, but the weather hasn’t been what I was expecting for the desert. December was warm at the start and then quickly cooled off as we had a number of weather fronts move in off the Pacific coast. Now being here on the western mesa overlooking Las Cruses the aren’t many trees and when those fronts come in the wind blows with little resistance, fortunately we haven’t had any dust storms. We have had 2 snow events that left a dusting here in the valley but measurable snow in the mountains.

Paula and I are doing well, we have gotten comfortable with our job as we check in 10 to 20 campers a night, sell a few goods from the store, and I have been licensed to pump propane for the campers. Most of the folks staying here are only one or two nighters from all over the country.

December also brought us visitors from Alaska as Ashley and Tristan flew in to visit and celebrate Christmas together.  Ashley has developed a real love of the outdoors and the wildlife in it, something that she started as a youngster and furthered in her adulthood. That being said we spent a few days checking out several bird and wildlife refuge areas around Las Cruces.

The next day we took a hike through the Bosque state park in Mesilla. After talking to the host, I was glad we were here during the winter as the host advised he saw an average of 8 rattlesnakes a day in and around the trails in the park last summer, this park is only about 5 miles away as the crow flies from our campground, spring time should be interesting around here. We saw lots of birds and Paula finally saw her first roadrunner (beep beep) crossing the road.  

Sunbathing Road Runner

One of the areas we visited was the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge. The Refuge was established in 1939 as a bird refuge for migrating birds that traveled along the Rio Grande River as they migrate from up north to winter in the refuge.  Some of the birds that migrate to the area each year are sandhill cranes, snow geese, various types of ducks. There are also mountain lions, bobcats, wild turkey, mule deer, and javelina (pronounced havalina) along with a multitude of lizards and other crawly things. This refuge is located about 2 ½ hours north of Las Cruces off of Interstate 25. So, Ashley found that they gave free guided tours of the refuge by experienced bird lovers and she booked us a tour. The catch was that the tour was at 8am so we had to leave Las Cruces at 5am to insure we arrived on time. Just so happens this was the coldest snap of weather we have had, and it was 29 when we left Las Cruses but the further north, we traveled it got colder as we rose in altitude. Thankfully it was a sunny day and we were in the truck and then a 15-passenger van for the tour.  After arriving at the refuge, we met our guide and driver and we found out we were the only ones signed up for the tour, so we basically had our own private tour. Now I can’t say that Paula and I are avid bird watchers, but Ashley and Tristan are very knowledgeable, and it was a real treat listening to them interact with the guide about the various bird and duck species that they saw. 

The main attraction of the refuge this time of year are the sandhill cranes that are estimated to be 20,000 birds strong. Now according to the guide these birds flew in from as far north as Alaska at an altitude of around 9000 feet and when they descend, they do so in a circular manner, so their lungs can decompress from the high altitude decent. We saw these guys all over the refuge as they feed on the grasses and seeds and majestically flew around with their huge 5-foot 4-inch long wingspan. There were also thousands of snow geese flying around and when they landed in flocks, they were so close together it truly looked like the ground was covered with snow. We went around one turn on the dirt road in the refuge and there it was the elusive “ROAD RUNNER”.  Road Runners are a black and gray colored skinny bird they can fly but are more comfortable on the ground and can run up to 15mph. Paula’s new favorite bird. Because of the cold temperatures this Road Runner was moving slow, they actually spread open their wings and expose their black skinned backs to the sun which helps warm them up, almost like a solar panel.  

The tour lasted about 3 hours and we learned how the water of the Rio Grande was diverted into the refuge to flood and manage the refuge and then with the help of gravity after passing through the refuge it reenters the Rio Grande on its journey to the Gulf of Mexico. Along the way we say a large flock of wild turkeys, mule deer, blue herons, red hawks and many more. We also saw a brood of javelina which are wild pigs that are common in the southwestern desert and central America. Once we finished our tour, we headed back toward Las Cruces and had a picnic lunch at the Elephant Butte state park overlooking the reservoir along the way.

After working our two days and having our Christmas gift exchange we packed up for another adventure. We had planned a trip to the Grand Canyon as Tristan had never been before and it had been a number of years since Ashley, Paula and I had been.  

On the way to the Grand Canyon we stopped in Tucson, Arizona for one night. The purpose of stopping in Tucson was so we could visit the Saguaro National Park which is the home of the “Giant Cactus” which is the symbol of the old southwest. 

The Saguaro Cactus is located only in a small portion of the southwestern United States and the national park was created to protect these majestic plants. We stopped by the visitor’s center and got a map of the park and then decided to drive the loop road through the park and take a few hiking trails from there as it was late in the afternoon. The loop road is a dirt road that dissects the western part of the park that is divided by the city of Tucson.

As we entered the dirt road and began to drive between these huge plants it was almost as if we had entered another planet. Everywhere we looked the cactus covered the landscape in various shapes and sizes. A closer look reveals an exterior covered in needle sharp thorns. It is even more amazing that these monsters grow and thrive in this dry climate, only receiving measurable amounts of water during the summer monsoons. The giant cactus grows on an average of 43 feet tall and grow an average of five arms. Interesting enough the Saguaro don’t even grow arms until they are at least 70 years old and they live to be around 200 years old. We got out and hiked one of the trails that lead us into the heart of the Saguaro cactus forest. As we walked and looked it was amazing to see the holes in the cactus that were made by bird for there homes. We noticed that the birds flited from cactus to cactus landing without a care in the world.

Another trail took us to a rock mound known as Signal Hill which was covered with Petroglyphs. Petroglyphs are writings and drawings which predate modern writing. The Petroglyphs are thought to be hundred if not thousands of years old. It was amazing how well these designs and writings have held up to the harsh desert elements for all these years.

Sunset over Saguaro National Park

After a good night’s sleep in Tucson we headed north for 3 nights in the Grand Canyon, weather forecast highs in the 20’s lows in the teens. We weren’t sure about our accommodations for this weather because we got a good deal on our rooms that Xanterra was running. The only catch was the rooms we were in were scheduled for demolition at the beginning of 2019 to be replaced by some new lodges. We checked into the lodge which was located inside the Grand Canyon National Park about ¼ mile walk to the south rim of the canyon. We checked in and found our rooms to be nice and maybe directly out of the 1960’s complete with electric baseboard heat. It did have a TV with cable although not a flat screen. After getting settled in we went and had dinner at the lodge café pizza pub. It was surprisingly good pizza. We decided to get up the next morning and watch the sunrise over the canyon.

SOO……  on  Day 2 thankfully the sunrise wasn’t until 7am so we got up around 6 and drove to one of the overlooks known for good sunrises over the canyon. Keep in mind it was about 18 degrees and the frost was so thick on the windshield and ground it looked like snow.  The canyon was very peaceful and beautiful at this time of morning despite the temperatures. There had been a snowfall a few days before we arrived, and the rim of the canyon had a dusting of snow on it which added to the dramatic colors of the canyon walls.

Snowfall on the south rim of the Grand Canyon

After enjoying the sunrise, we went back to the room and had breakfast. Ashley and Tristan decided to take the shuttle bus and hike along the rim while Paula and I went to the visitor center and saw a movie on the canyon and learned other interesting facts about the area. After the sun came up it warmed up enough that we had a picnic lunch outside the lodge and then that afternoon we drove along the western end of the south rim all the way to Hermit’s Rest.  Hermit’s Rest is a small rock structure built in 1914 as a shelter for tourist visiting the canyon. Today it serves as a souvenir shop and starting point for the Hermit’s trail which leads to the canyon floor.

Paula the explorer

On the way back, we stopped at a number of overlooks and also saw a small heard of Roosevelt elk which are resident to the park they are much smaller than the Yellowstone elk.

On day 3 we decided to drive up to Horseshoe bend overlook near Page Arizona. The drive up to Horseshoe lead us north through Navajo Reservation land and the land scape changed from the bright red of the canyon to a gray colored sand. As we traveled north, we made a detour through the marble canyon which has a bridge that crosses the Colorado river at the far northeast end of the Grand Canyon. We then stumbled upon Lee’s ferry which is part of the Glen Canyon recreation area.

I made it to the bottom of the Grand Canyon

Ashley and Tristan at Lee's Ferry with Colorado River in the background

The location is named for a ferry that was established by Mormon pioneers for early travelers to safely cross the Colorado River.  We spent some time exploring the riverbank and original structures left from the ferry operators. After a short hike we had a picnic lunch along the banks of the Colorado River. The last time we visited the Grand Canyon Paula spent some substantial time watching a California Condor while Ashley and I were hiking but this trip she was told that it was to cold to see them in the canyon. But as we started to leave the Lee’s Ferry area, we spotted a larger bird flying above the canyon. We stopped and upon further investigation viewed through our binoculars and a few minutes of debate we thought it was a California Condor, but he landed high up on the canyon and we couldn’t tell for sure.

California Condor # 54

Then he soared off the canyon rim and flew right over us and across the river. It was no doubt at this time it was a California Condor and he even flew close enough with his 9-foot wingspan that we could make out a numbered wing tag with the number 54 on it. Now these birds are very ugly up close but are an awesome sight inflight. California Condor number 54 landed on the canyon wall right across the river where we were able to get a really close up view of the bird. While watching number 54 I noticed another bird higher up on the canyon above 54. After a view through the binoculars, we were able to see the second California Condor had wing tag number 55.  

Now considering that the Grand Canyon area only has 75 California Condors which were released here to help the endangered species survive it was pretty awesome to see two so close together at one time. Now being technology savvy Ashley and Tristan quickly found a website that tracked the Grand Canyon Condors. It was determined that number 54 was a male and 55 was a female both released around 2005. So, it’s a good possibility this was a mating pair of condors which are helping increase the canyon condor population. 

We finally arrived at the Horseshoe bend overlook of the Colorado River which is located northeast of the beginning of the Grand Canyon National Park in the Glen Canyon Recreation Area. This location is where the Colorado River has carved a 270 degree turn in the rock walls of the canyon. We parked in the parking lot and had to take a hike to the overlook. We climbed the ¼ mile up from the parking lot and we got to the top and thought we were there but to our surprise it was another steep downhill 3/4 mile hike down to the overlook.

Horseshoe Bend of the Colorado River

Another Adventure 

The hike was strenuous but well worth it for the wonderful views overlooking the river. After returning to the lodge we grabbed a quick dinner in the café and turned in for a good night’s sleep. The next morning Paula and I headed back to Las Cruses while Ashley and Tristan headed to Las Vegas after one more night in the canyon area before returning to Alaska.

The week of Christmas we attended a Christmas concert with one of the families we work with at the First Baptist Church we’ve been attending. And then the Christmas Eve service which was very nice although no candles which we missed. Then the Sunday before Christmas Paula and I volunteered to work for some of our co workers who were going to visit family for Christmas, so they could get an early start.  For New Years we were asleep by 10 but being 2 hours behind the east coast we got to watch some of the New Years TV celebrations without having to stay up all night.

As 2019 begins it marks the beginning of our 3^rd year of retirement and Ramblin. We have been blessed with the chance to meet new people and make some new friends, work in some beautiful locations and enjoy a lot of Gods wonderful creations. We are excited to see where 2019 leads us and what doors will be opened.  

As we leave you remember that

“All that wander are not lost”

Still Ramblin

Allen and Paula

Ramblin Ruis

Fall 2018 update

Fall 2018 update for the Ramblin Ruis

 Well as we look back on the 6 months since we last posted an update time is truly flying right on by. If anyone is still out there we will try and catch you up on the happenings of the Ramblin Ruis. Since we last updated we have finished our second year at Yellowstone Fishing Bridge RV park. This was another enjoyable experience. Paula and I decided that this year we would prioritize what we wanted to see this year that we did not get to last year.

Lone Beaver having a snack

On the list of the things to do were the Beartooth Highway, Bighorn Mountains, Bechler Ranger Station (in the far southwestern corner of Yellowstone) and kayaking on the Henry Fork of the Snake River to name a few.

The Beartooth Highway is a winding road that has 11 major switchbacks as you climb to the summit of 11,000 feet.

This is one of the last roads that opens in the greater Yellowstone area because of the snow fall each year. The views from the top are spectacular and still somewhat cold even in the middle of June. As the saying goes what goes up must come down and so we did come down and down and down as we traveled to Red Lodge MT which is a town nestled in the mountains on the north end of the Beartooth Highway.

Bearthooth where the highway gets its name

We had a wonderful lunch and then headed to Buffalo Wyoming for the night. We traveled through the Bighorn mountains on this trip which are very impressive and rugged mountains. If you have ever traveled on I-90 in Wyoming, the Bighorns run south of the interstate for miles. We were also hoping to see moose as this was an area our friends had seen 25 on one trip and another friend saw 50 on a separate trip. We were able to see 1 bull and 2 cow moose along the way. After a restful night sleep in Buffalo we headed back west to the park back over the Bighorns which on this stretch were covered with alpine forest and lots of high elevation ponds and lakes. Then we dropped back in to the prairie and the high desert as we headed back to Yellowstone.

On another excursion we started on a picnic lunch down south to the Lewis lake area. After we ate I started driving south where we stopped at the headwater recreation area for some fuel. After fueling I decided to check out the dirt road that leads to the most remote part of Yellowstone which is Beclher Ranger Station. I had no intention of driving the fifty miles on the dirt washboard road, but it was a nice bumpy trip even though we only saw a chipmunk   along the way (oh, did I mention that it took 4 hours to travel the fifty-mile dirt road).  The ranger station was very remote set back in the woods and was located near the Bechler River.

Cave Falls on Bechler River

Beautiful remote area. Once leaving the ranger station we took the paved roads back to the west entrance of the park and back home. Check that one off the list.

Our days in the park were interrupted this year as a major road construction project was started on the Cody Road which runs right by our campground. Due to this we had some traffic delays from the construction so we decided that we would buy a satellite dish so TV could take the place of the every day disruptions of the road construction that made it an inconvenience going out in the park. Dish network has a program that is designed just for RVer’s where you pay month to month for service and you don’t have to sign a service contract which is nice. The only ones who seemed not to notice the construction was the 5 or 6 resident bull bison that traveled up and down the road daily making frequent stops in the entrance of our campground.

As I may have mentioned in an earlier post our staff was most all returners and it was again an enjoyable time working with such a diverse group of people. We again had our holiday meals and cook outs and yes Jim made lots of homemade ice cream.

Eat at your own risk

Something new this year was Paula and I started playing Rook on Wednesday nights with Carolyn and Gary Cooper some of our returning friends from outside Knoxville Tn. These games were held in the break room at the office and started out as friendly games to pass the evening away. Paula had limited experience playing Rook so everyone helped her with a refresher course. But as the weeks passed and she became more proficient the intensity of the friendly games increased. We wrapped up our Rook games the last weekend of the season at the employee pub over Pizza and the games ended in a tie. The championship game is scheduled for the summer of 2020.

During the first weekend of August we were able to get a kayaking trip together in Idaho on the Henry Fork of the Snake River. We did this with Jimmy and Sandy Affholder and Ed and Judy Lonsdale who were returning coworkers. This was a five-mile peaceful float (once we separated from others at the launch point) on a very steady spring feed river.

We saw lots of birds, eagles, ducks, otters but we took a back woods fork and missed the moose and calf. Afterward we had a nice meal at the local Mexican restaurant located on the banks of the river. We have had our kayaks with us for two years and this was only the second time we have put them in the water. The only kayaking inside the park is in Yellowstone Lake which has an average temperature of 42 degrees in the summer.  

 This year we had several folks from southside Virginia pass through Yellowstone on their family vacations. It was nice to see them and catch up on what was happenings in Pitt County and Dan Vegas.

Late in the season we got to witness the circle of life playing out among the wild animals of Yellowstone. We got word of a bison carcass along the Yellowstone river that the bears had been spending some time on. So, after work one afternoon we road down to the Hayden Valley and found the carcass with two grizzly bears trying get filled up before winter and hibernation time. The older of the two bears was on the carcass and the younger of the bears was patiently waiting his turn. As the time passed the young bear began to pace around the older bear on the carcass. Then the younger bear wondered up the river bank a short distance. I began scanning the area for wolves or other hungry critters. At that point I noticed a large bull bison standing up under a tree watching the younger bear who was watching the bison. Then at this point the bison started walking slowly and methodically toward the downed bison carcass. The younger bear tried to confront the bull bison even sitting up and waving his paws.

Not deterred the bull bison continued until he was at the carcass. At this time, it seemed the bull bison was out numbered but he continued and ran the two bears off the carcass. Amazingly without a fight, then for what seemed like forever (10 minutes) the bison walked slowly around his fallen comrade as if he was paying his final respects. He would occasional pause and stare at the bears as they continued to move up the ridge away from a confrontation. Then as just as methodically as he came to pay his respect he wondered off down the river bank undoubtedly glad he wasn’t on the menu that day. Once he cleared the area the younger bear returned to the carcass to get his turn as the older bear disappeared over the ridge.  

As the season wrapped up we had a final meal together in the office the night before we left. It was bittersweet as we enjoyed each other’s company and remembered the good times of the season. We all planned to return in 2020 to the refurbished and newly renovated Fishing Bridge RV Park.

This year Paula and I were able to secure a job in New Mexico which started on October 1. So, with only 3 weeks down time we decided to rent a car and drive back east and store our camper in Montana. This was a whirlwind three weeks in which we planned to visit family and friends while in Virginia and North Carolina. We stopped along the way and saw Scotts Bluff National Monument in Nebraska and were even able to catch a baseball game in Cincinnati Ohio between the Reds and Dodgers. But mother nature had some other ideas as Hurricane Florence hit southside Virginia area while we were there, so we got to see family and some friends but not as many as we would have liked.

On September 29^th we arrived in Las Cruces New Mexico where we will call home for the next 6 months. We are working at the local KOA campground. This area is full of agricultural, pecans, cotton, red and green chilies to name a few which is very surprising being in the desert. We have tried to adventure out at least once a week to take in the area history and culture.

Home Sweet Home View Of Organ Mountains

As most of you know Paula and I have been involved in the OCC shoebox ministries of Samaritans Purse for the last 15 years or so. Thankfully we were able to find an OCC collection location here in Las Cruces which we were able to volunteer at this year. We met some nice folks and were very blessed to be able to help out.

On Thanksgiving Day we had a huge lunch with all the work campers at our location. Each family brought something, and we had a traditional turkey and all the fixings.

 As we reflect over this past year we are truly blessed and thankful for our health and all the opportunities that have come our way.

So I will leave you with this thought, enjoy today and all that’s in it because none of us are guaranteed tomorrow.

Until next time

Allen and Paula

Ramblin Ruis

Updating the Ramblin Ruis

Updating the Ramblin Ruis’

Sunset over ice covered Lake Yellowstone 

Well here it is May 29 2018 and we are starting our second month of our second season at Fishing Bridge RV Park in Yellowstone NP. We are well into our routine at the RV park the training is over and we have been open almost 3 week now, before we know it the season will be over. Most of us have returned from last years crew but we do have some new faces. Another change this year is I have been assigned as one of the three lead agents. This requires more assigning of sites and dealing with people’s problems than checking in of the guests. It’s a lot like working a puzzle trying to find a place to put 346 campers in 346 sites in three different site sizes.  It’s a little more than I was looking for as a retirement job but it keeping my mind sharp and me on my toes. Oh yea I forgot the best part I am responsible for supervising my wife……..Glad we get along so well or this could be bad but she has been a great wingman to navigate this journey with. Well now let’s get caught up on how we got here from Arizona.

We pulled out of Arizona on April 20 and started our trip back to Yellowstone. For those that haven’t been to the desert southwest in the spring there are a few things that stand out one is the temperatures start rising and the second is the winds pick up out of the west. So, as we headed out across the desert we got blown around a bit. It also caused us to change our route north and avoid the bridge over the Hoover Dam as the high winds there have been know to blow tractor trailers and RV’s over, so instead we crossed the Colorado River at Bullhead City Az. Bullhead City is a resort town sitting in a valley on the Colorado River. SO down we went and then back up we went out the other side headed to Las Vegas. This is open desert so you have to have plenty of fuel and everything working well on your vehicle. After hitting Vegas at rush hour we made it to I-15  which took us north to Hurricane UT where we stayed in a nice KOA campground. Hurricane is one of the gateways to Zion National Park and the area is surrounded by high red rock cliffs and mountains.  This area was first settled by Mormon settlers.

Leaving Hurricane, we continued north on I-15 toward Salt Lake City Utah. This is an easy drive and was one reason we went to Arizona for part of the winter as we hoped this would help us miss the turbulent spring weather across the mid-west in April.  We made it to Bringham City Ut on the second day where we decided to stay two nights as we were making good time on our trek north.

We spent that afternoon and the next day exploring the areas Bear River Wild Life Refuge which is the world’s largest bird migratory  refuge. The refuge is a wetland with a river, lakes and ponds on the northern end of the great Salt Lake and it just happened to be prime migration time for northbound birds. Now I wouldn’t call us expert bird watchers but because of Ashley’s influence on us we have developed more interest in bird watching and identification. There was a dirt road that traveled about 12 miles winding through the refuge where we saw a wide variety of ducks, birds, cranes and pelicans. We enjoyed this so much that we spent two afternoons in the refuge.

Also located nearby was the Golden Spike National park located at Promontory Summit Utah. This is where in the late 1800’s the east met the west in the western expansion of the Railroads. Promontory Summit is where the railroad from the east met the railroad from the west on May 10, 1869. This was a neat place to visit but as a travel advisory don’t make a special trip just to see it, took about 30 minutes.

There was also a missile research facility in the area which was responsible for building the solid rocket boosters of the space shuttle among other things.

After leaving Bringham City we headed north toward Idaho Falls Idaho where we spent our last night outside of Yellowstone. We hit the local Walmart to resupply before heading into the park.

After leaving Idaho Falls we headed east on Rt. 20 which carried us to West Yellow Montana where we met up with 3 other couples that we worked with last year. We exchanged warm greetings and then went and had a country breakfast before convoying into Fishing Bridge RV Park.

2018 Fishing Bridge RV Park Crew

The winter of 2017/2018 brought a lot of snow to the Lake area of Yellowstone and it was obvious as we arrived at the RV park. The roads and the campsites in the campground had been plowed but high mounds of snow were everywhere. Unfortunately, one of our co workers caught the rear of his camper on a snow bank and it wasn’t pretty to say the least.  Fortunately, its was cosmetic damage and not structural damage so they were able to get set up and with a little duct tape we were able to get them sealed up until the fall when they can get it repaired.  Our site was plowed but we had high snow banks on both sides which would not allow the slides to open unless we dug out.

Thankfully the plow crew was still in the campground working on the other loops so I commandeered one of the bobcat operators and 5 minutes later our snow banks were reduced to snow flakes and we could get set up. Shewwww……thankful for the bobcat.

As training began we had a field trip early one morning as one of our maintenance guys advised of a grizzly bear nearby. So, with the boss’s permission we all loaded up and headed to Pelican Creek where we found a very hungry grizzly. The bear had pulled what appeared to be an Elk skeleton from the creek and he was eating the bones trying to get the bone marrow for the much-needed protein. Now this was an ideal spot to watch as we were on the bridge and he was below us only about 50 feet away. Now I’ve known that I wouldn’t want to be eaten by a grizzly bear but if I ever had any doubt it’s gone after hearing him crunching and crushing those bones as he was eating. IMPRESSIVE strength and drive. Needless to say this was the most exciting day of our almost two week long training.

Last year Paula and I drove who knows how many miles and covered almost every inch of the park roads multiple times but this year we have decided to be more selective in our adventures(fuel prices). We also broke down and got DISH TV this year which will give us another option for entertainment. We were also advised when we arrived this year that our campground will be closed next year to be updated and refurbished so we are focused on seeing certain things that we didn’t see last year on the outskirts of the park in case we don’t return in 2020.

Most of you may be aware that Steamboat Geyser has been going off for the first time since 2014. We were headed to West Yellowstone 4 weeks ago to attend church with some of our coworkers when we topped the ridge and saw the steam towering above the trees. Steamboat was living up to its name as the world’s tallest geyser. Needless to say, we made a detour to see such a rare occurrence. Come to find out it was the steam phase of an eruption from Friday night some 36 hours earlier. Needless to say, it was still impressive as Old Faithful is only 90 feet tall and Steamboat is 300 Feet in full eruptions.

We headed off to church and we were only 15 minutes late. The church we attended is West Yellowstone Baptist church a small congregation that grows with the increased summer workers and visitors to the area. This was the first time I have been in church where after the prayer concerns and praises the congregation gives a wildlife sightings report. Sharing with each other the beautiful creation that God has given us to enjoy. Best of all this was first Sunday of the month which is a covered dish meal. Now the sermon was good but the food was just as good as several of the ladies who are here for the summer are from the south so we had good food and a delicious surprise cake (some will recall this is very close to Margie Morris pineapple cake). We have asked for Sunday & Mondays off so we could continue to attend church but unfortunately because of our staffing and scheduling it doesn’t look like it’s going to work out. But even if we can’t make it to church every Sunday we are very thankful to be surrounded by this wonderful creation which allows us to worship God every day.

Today as we were driving through the park on the way for a short get away and grocery trip we went through the Lamar Valley to see some wildlife. As we rounded a corner the road was block by a heard of bison 75 to 100 strong. They were headed our way on the road which was guarded by a high ridge on the left and a raging Soda Butte Creek on the right. As they got closer to us the leader of the herd decided to cross the creek. Now keep in mind it is springtime and the herd has a number of month old calves “Red Dawgs” in their numbers. As the herd entered the swift flowing creek from the snow melt you could see the current immediately start sweeping the 2000-pound adults downstream and then the small calves followed. The “Red Dawgs” got a real survival test in the evolving circle of life.  Paula was about to jump from the truck and wade into the cold swift water to try and rescue the “Red Dawgs” and interfere with the circle of life. Thankfully all of the “Red Dawgs” made it out and no one had to rescue my wife who can’t swim.

water rescue

Well that’s about all for now we will try to update when we can but with out reliable internet in the park it will be probably only be once a month or so.

Until next time

Paula and Allen

Ramblin Ruis