From Mammoth to Tower Junction and on to the Lamar Valley

June 1:  Today our wanderings took us east from Mammoth Springs to Tower Junction.  The landscape includes hills such as these and many open valleys.

Our first stop was unplanned--bison in the road.  Here they are close to our car.  

The man in the car in front of us did what every sign in the park about animals says not to do: get yourself closer than 20 feet (unless you are in your car).  Bison are now considered the most dangerous animals in the park (more than grizzlies!) because people are immensely stupid around them.  Just yesterday a girl was gored in Mammoth Springs, so I was relieved when the man unharmed got back in his car as the bison came our way.

We stopped next to see the Undine Falls (named in the 1800s for water sprites from mythology) on Lava Creek. 

I also found these three types of flowers: bluebells, which I saw only in this spot, balsamroot, and alpine forget-me-not, both of which were widespread in this area.

At a stop along the road, I could see the meadows and hills:

At the Forces of the North guided trail (created by the park with lots of signs to provide information), I caught these views.  

Also this flower which I saw several times today.  It is Prairiesmoke.  

This quaking aspen is surrounded by pines that died in fires and by new growth pines.  Fire is important for the renewal of the land in Yellowstone.

At this overlook, the small river in the distance is Hell Roaring Creek, which feeds into the same Yellowstone River that we saw when we first entered the park.  It flows north past the northern part of the park and into Montana.The second photo is a view slightly further along the valley.

While we didn't plan to do any hiking on this trip, walks in the woods were fine, and we found a short (1 mile) trail to and from Lost Lake.  I discovered some more flowers here including these two, which are sugar bowl (also called hairy clematis) and silky phacelia.

The walk in included this meadow:

When we got to the lake, I took this photo of Chuck.

Near where we had parked is the only petrified tree in the park.  There were two in 1912, but visitors took parts of it away til there was none left.  The remaining one is protected with fencing and signs warning not to touch.  It is believed the tree is a redwood, which is surprising for this area.

Once we reached Tower Junction (which has a gas station with some food), we got some lunch and headed further east into the Lamar Valley.  This valley has the most plentiful large animals in the park.  It is where the Lamar Buffalo Ranch (now the Yellowstone Institute) is located.   At the ranch starting the early 1900s, the remaining 40 buffalo (!) in Yellowstone were bred with ones from elsewhere in the country in an attempt to save buffalo in the park from extinction. The breeding program was very successful, as today there are about 4300 buffalo in the park, most of which winter in the Lamar Valley.  

The first animal we saw was the pronghorn, a kind of antelope and the second fastest animal in the world. Cheetahs are faster in a sprint, but pronghorns can keep running for distances at 30-40 mph!

We did enjoy stunning views, including one of the Lamar River.  

Close to the Yellowstone Institute is this meadow, where you can see large herds of buffalo in the distance, and this fellow closer up (he's not so close to me because I was using a telephoto lens!).

At the Institute, we turned around and went back the way we came from Mammoth Springs.  We enjoyed all the views again.  I look this view of the Terraces (white ridge in the center of the photo) as we approached the village.

And in the village across from our hotel was this lady elk.  There is a small herd that resides in the village to enjoy the lawns of planted grass (which are a holdover from when Mammoth Springs was a US calvary post---but more on that tomorrow!).