There’s a song we used to sing in Girl Scouts (a million years ago) that goes “make new friends, but keep the old, one is silver and the other’s gold.”  That song has run through my mind on several occasions this week.  The folks we met last year and have returned to the park (a surprising number) have greeted us so warmly that it was sometimes a little overwhelming…but we are both looking forward to a great season.  There are lots of new staff as well and it’s a new adventure as you get to know them.  You are immediately thrust into the fairly intimate situation of  a shared bathroom….which really helps you get to know people.  I also want to introduce Wolfie.  Wolfie is our travel companion this year and you will see him pop up in photos from time to time.  He has also become my facebook avatar.

The park has indeed been both an “old” and “new” friend.  Last year the snow pack was way below normal and when we got here–all the animals had already returned to the park.  This year the snow pack is at 30% above normal–most of the park is still covered in white (there’s 6+ feet at the southern end of the park) and many of the migratory animals are just now moving back into the park.

It’s amazing how fond one can be of bison–even though they still make me very nervous…and the Uniatas ground squirrels just started poking their heads up out of the ground yesterday.  Because the bison are confined to the few grassy areas that are open, you need to be VERY careful where you walk.  Bison pies are HUGE–and they are concentrated in a very limited area.

The bluebirds are back in force–but never more than that quick flash of blue as you drive the road.
The wolves have been a little hard to find—we’ve seen 4 so far, but 3 of them were at quite a distance.

The coyotes, however, seem to be making up for it.Two days ago I finally got a chance to watch a coyote “mouse” and took an entire series of shots–including this one with 4 feet off the ground.
and today I got quite close (about 15 feet) to a coyote who was finishing off an elk carcass. The wolves are really feasting on the winter kill–you don’t go very far down any trail or road without seeing evidence of predation.

With all of that said–today was a fabulous day for just driving–the sky isn’t North Carolina blue–it’s Montana blue–and it was  a perfect “Big Sky” day.  Tomorrow we’re off to take the “Yellowstone in a Day” tour…..and will post the highlights of that.  I’m committed to posting something at least once a week.  Let me know if there’s something you’d like to know more about  (and I apologize–WP is being very weird with the blog).

As a teacher we were typically subjected to “unannounced observations”…..they were  usually viewed with some trepidation as they were snapshots that lasted only a brief period of time and yet could become a significant portion of our evaluation.

To some degree, I feel like our trip across the country is just like an unannounced observation.  We didn’t plan or read up on where we were going to stop and what we might find of interest there.  As such,  did we really get a view of what America is truly like or is it just as invalid as some of those unannounced observations?

Our first stop was just outside Toledo—I remember looking at Tim and saying “rust belt” as we passed a few shuttered factories; strip malls with empty stores and generally not prosperous looking communities—but how do you define prosperous looking?  By Arlington standards?  By Midwest standards?  Is this glimpse a reflection or an aberration with regard to middle America?

Madison Wisconsin was another story—a university town, with many of the universal aspects of a university town.  The central shopping strip was a little dog-eared and it was hard to tell whether it was on the upswing from down times or falling apart.   The interesting thing, though, was the continual presence of gubernatorial recall signs—and the constant speaker on the steps of the state capital.  Clearly this is a community with many divisive issues ahead of it.  Is this a reflection of what the entire country is facing?

Sioux Falls was not unlike Toledo—but since we stayed much closer to the center of town, you got more of a sense of civic pride.  They have a fabulous art program—where sculptors donate their outdoor sculptures to the city for a year—so there’s an ever-changing streetscape.  How I wish the arts were more important in our governmental budget decisions.

The last few days were spent in the Badlands, Custer State Park, and New Hope, Montana.  New Hope is a tiny town—but is does have three banks!  Again, it appears to be struggling to survive as most of the local businesses appear to make all of their income from a very limited tourist season.

So..what does it say about the state of our country?  I’m not sure

(sorry for the lack of images…WP 3.1.1 and I are not getting along)

Set, go….   Nope, not even “ready” and we’re out of here quite soon.  Folks keep asking me if I’m packed, what route we’re taking, where we’re stopping and, the bottom line is–no and I don’t know.

A lesson learned last year is that we took WAY TOO MUCH STUFF….so this year we’re limiting things a lot….one can get by with just a few pairs of jeans and a t-shirt.  As far as the route is concerned–we will decide from day to day, depending on weather and our mood.

The only thing that is anywhere close to ready are the knitting decisions–what projects will I take? what will hibernate while I’m gone? and, of course, I have to leave room for new purchases along the way.  At some point this summer are we going to visit the Mountain Colors shop in Corvallis–this is probably my favorite yarn manufacturer–I love their colors and the combinations.  I’m currently stitching a Brandywine Shawl out of Mountain Goat–and it’s beautiful.

I’m also looking forward to using my new lens out in the park–it’s a 500mm prime and sharp as a tack–I’ve been testing it out on the lions at the zoo…but I can’t wait for the wolves.  The snow pack in the park is running 128% of normal–so the wolves should be MUCH easier to see than they were last year.  The wolf situation in the Montana/Wyoming/Idaho area is not good, as the local governments and the eco-organizations struggle to find a compromise that allows the wolves to continue to survive outside the park while not inflicting overwhelming damage to the local cattle industry.  The reality is that wolves, unless stressed, will usually avoid cattle farms–they are too close to humans.  If you’d like to keep up to date on the wolf situation I can recommend the Defenders of Wildlife site.  If you’d just like to know more about the Yellowstone Wolf Project (an amazing, on-going experiment in what happens when you reintroduce a top predator to an ecosystem, please read the Wolf Project reports http://www.nps.gov/yell/naturescience/wolves.htm.

I think we are both surprised by how anxious we are to return to the park.  It almost feels as if we’ve been spinning our wheels since we got home–and that real life will begin again once we hit the road.  Keep in touch, let us know what you want information about, and enjoy the show!