July 25th. Day Tour Around Yellowstone to Canyon Logde After a blissful sleep, it was a 7am start. I joined the bus tour, Around Yellowstone In A Day. This tour was to drop me off at Canyon Lodge. The guide was enthusiastic and very informative. Her excitement was shared by everyone on the bus, especially me. The bus drove through the Mammoth country, the Geyser country, the Lake country and the Canyon country. The Mammoth country is home to the Mammoth Hot Spring Terraces which have formed the wired and wonderful colourful travertine terraces. A herd of elk were laying on the grass beside the old army building as the bus came in. The Geyser country features other hydrothermal activity including fumaroles, steam vents, mud pots and hot springs. The world famous 'Old Faithful' geyser was spectacular. It errupts every 90 mins or so and its height can range from 100-180 feet. The Lake country, is home to the Cutthroat trout, osprey and bold eagles. The Canyon country features the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. It has two major waterfalls, one at 109 ft and the other at 308 ft. We stopped off to view Inspiration point and Artist's point. A herd of bison crossed the road to enter the car-park. It was an incredible sight. I soon appreciated how powerful these creatures are and they are not to be reckoned with! My home for the next two nights were in a cabin. Another blissfull sleep was had. July 26 Free Day around Canyon Country I hiked around the north rim and part of the sounth rim of the Canyon. Hiking alone is not advised, so I kept to the well trodden paths which were established and well maintained. I stopped off at the Lower and Upper Falls, Inspiration and Grandview points. The colours of the rock were beautiful. Pinks, oranges, reds, yellows and creams were cast into the shadows of the rock. I also went horse riding. Western style. My horse was called Grumpy. He wasn't quite an oil painting but then he wasn't really grumpy. He reminded me of the pony I used to ride called Willy john. He too wasn't exactly an oil painting but I loved him all the same because he was full of character and came alive when I rode him. We met a lone bison along the trail and our leader had to radio in for additional riders from the ranch, to help move the bison off the trail. My highlight was seeing a lone coyote. It was amazing riding through the back country in the meadow fields and rolling hills. July 27th. Bus Tour to Lamar Valley Easy day, hung around the Canyon Village and played my tin whistle in the empty ampitheatre. (Much improvement is needed). It was the first time I played for weeks. The sun was very hot, in the 90's. I caught the Bus Tour at 5.30pm. It took me into the Lamar Valley and to the Bufflo Ranch. My home for the next 4 nights. The Lamar Valley has been described as the Serengeti of North Americia, with its large grassy meadows, woodlands and its wide open sage-bush plains. The Lamar Valley is home to the bear, elk, wolf, pronghorn deer, big horn sheep, mountain goat and mountain lion. I met two New-Yorkers named Gail and Shu. We arranged to hike Mt Washburn the following day. July 28th. Mt Washburn and Intro to Seminar Group. It was a bad start to the day. I thought I had lost my purse with my cards and driving licence. It was in one of those 'safe places'.... After feeling very relieved and somewhat stupid, we made our way to Mt Washburn. It stands at 10,243 ft. There's a track all the way up, so it makes the ascent relatively easy. On the way up, we passed many alpine fowers and big horned sheep. I took pictures of some of the forest that had burnt in the great fire of 1988. 793,880 acres were destroyed. Its impact is still vivid today. During the evening, I met my seminar guide and group. There were 13 students, one guide (Julieanne) and two volunteers, (Carol and Gary). I must say, my group were fantasic. We had a good cross-section of age and field experience. The dynamics of the group were good. July 29th. Hellroaring Trailhead to Yellowstone River 6am start, on the road at 7am. Our distance covered 6 miles through open sage bush. A good day was had by all. My group all mingled as we walked. Everyone spent a little time with me, helping me to identify the alpine flowers and vegetation, as well as sharing their binoculars to view the animals in the sage bush. we saw many bison and some elk. I found myself talking about Gran and how she would take me on nature walks to identify the plants, trees, grasses and birds. It was strange that the knowledge was coming back. Julieanne would stop and discuss the evidence of animal kill along the way. Bleached bones, anklers and left-over carcases were scattered along the way. She explained the food hierarky of a kill and the eating behaviours of the wolf, bear, coyote and raven. We stopped at a river for lunch. It was very refreshing and welcomimg form the heat of the day. Some people had a swim. During the evening, I joined Julieanne and some other members of the group for a small hike to the Rose Creek Wolf Pen. Along the way we saw bison and black tailed deer. It was here, I learnt about the re-introduction of the wolf. Julianne gave a poignant and emoitive account of the fragile lives of the wolf, with the story of the alfa male no.10 and alfa female no.9. The story has had a long lasting impact upon me. July 30th. Warm Springs Trail to Pebble Creek. It was a long hike of 12 miles. 7-8 hours. It took us through large open meadows and 3 stream fordings. The expanse of land was amazing. The highlights of the day, were through the lens of binoculars when we saw mountain goats and a female moose with two calfs. Both sights were found by the eagle eyes of Carlin and Zac, (father and son). Everyone took part in identifying the birds, plants, mammals, flowers and vegeation. Such flowers included the everlasting, larkspur, paintbrush, monkey flower, elephant flower and yarrow. During the evening we all went out for a meal. Along the way, we saw bison, elk and a black bear. My meal was paid for by all the members of the group. I was touched and quite overwhelmed by their kindness. Their warmth is a very fond memory. July 31st. Specimen Ridge to Petrified Trees It was our last day and last hike. Camel the moose joined me today. We had a bison herd visit at the ranch as we were leaving for the hike. (see pictures). Our hike covered 6 miles through open land and sage bush. Osprey, grouse and pereguine falcons were spotted. We also saw pronghorn deer. The petrified trees were impressive as some were still standing. Julieanne pointed out the root systems that we locked in time by the soil and rock. Caroline and Tracy, the two women who shared a cabin with me gave me a lift to Rexburg. They were returning home to Drigg and went out of their way to help me on my travels as I headed out of Yellowstone. To close my account of my Yellowstone trip, I met fantastic people and marveled at the sights I saw, from the gesyers, the canyon, the wide open sage bush, the pronghorn deer, the black tailed deer, the bison, the mountain goat, the longhorned sheep, the moose, the elk, the black bear, the falcon and the osprey to name but a few. Most of all, I will remember the people I'd met who made all the experiences and sights happen.