**Graphic Warning...some pictures do show what some may feel are gruesome.**
It was my turn to pick what 'do we do today'. A few days back we drove by a dead bison carcass that was found in the most perfect spot. If you had to choose the perfect site for a viewing this would have been it... close to a major intersection, a lodge with food and restrooms, the required 100 yards away from the roadway and plenty of parking. The Rangers even marked out an area for sitting and viewing... or to put it another way watch live theater.
We found out that the bison and a pick up truck killed each other on Sunday night. The bison actually was able to wander off the road the required 100 yards and laid down right at the edge of woods before he died. The pick up truck never made it off the road until the wreaker hauled it away to Gardiner. I decided that we really should head over and see what critters had been coming to the kill.
The wolf and bear gazers were already in place when we arrived at 7:30...needing a 6:00 AM wake up call to drive the hour to the site wasn't ideal for 2/3's of the household. At least we didn't get up at the first time proposed of 5:00 AM... too much snoring and I didn't have the heart to wake them so I cancelled that alarm.
A coyote was the first critter to arrive... we missed the grizzly that had visited in the wee early hours. Watching the coyote was very interesting... very skittish creatures (think Snoopy on steroids) and this one kept acting like the bison was 'sleeping' or something was going to pop out of the shadows and get him. He ate his fill and wandered off making a very wide circle away from us.
For the next 30 minutes or so all we saw were ravens and a vulture. Disappointed we decided to grab some breakfast at the nearby lodge and come back, but by the time we had turned the car around all heck had broken lose. You can always tell when the pros have their faces to their scopes and no one is talking...the dang grizzly was back and eating. Needless to say the car was parked and the cameras were clicking... all thoughts of breakfast
tossed to the side.
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| Grizzly takes off because of... |
A rather strange thing happened a new coyote showed himself and the grizzly left the kill after only 10-15 minutes. The coyote moved in for his morning meal. Strange... did not think a grizzly would leave a kill to a puny coyote. A Ranger we started talking to said that grizzlies cannot eat much at any particular time. They eat for a bit, sleep it off and return every few hours.
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| a coyote? Odd... |
Unfortunately when we drove back by on our way back to camp a thunderstorm interrupted our viewing... along with most everyone else. The gazers were still there covering their expensive setups and using umbrellas.
They may be crazier than us.
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| Who's coming? |
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| A bit warm in the nest...panting birds |
Bears and coyotes were not the only animals we watched today. We stopped by the Canyon Osprey nest to see how big the chicks were getting...feathers were starting to be visible. A couple of them were more or less balancing on their wobbly legs.
Of course the white pelicans were close enough to watch for a few minutes...then they took to the sky.
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| Take off |
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| Pelicans in flights |
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| A pair of Bale Eagles |
A pair of Bald Eagles were hanging out along the river while we grabbed lunch.
The Hayden Valley really seemed to be having a great day...animals everywhere we looked. It has quickly become our favorite place to watch for animals.
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| Lunch |
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