June 28-30, 2013 – Yellowstone National Park, continued
Friday we drove the Upper Loop through Mammoth Hot Springs and into Lamar Valley. We stopped at Gibbons Falls. This big buffalo was not concerned at all with all the people watching him. A short way down the road traffic was stopped once again and lucky us – another bear. This one was sitting in a tree. Our next stop was Mammoth Hot Springs where we walked around the hot springs terraces. After Mammoth Hot Springs we drove to Gardiner, MT where we stopped at the Wild West Corral (formerly Helen’s Drive In) for a great buffalo burger. After lunch we headed toward Lamar Valley and took a side trip on the Blacktail Plateau Drive, a 6-mile dirt road loop. About half way through the loop we came upon two vehicles stopped beside the road and – lucky again - another bear. This guy was sound asleep in the tree and was totally unaware that he was being watched. ...