Sophie hates that we are always on a trip during her birthday (poor baby). The afternoon before her birthday we gave her a few different options and asked how she'd like to spend her day. She surprised us when she said she was up for and early get away. This girl likes to sleep in. But the draw of seeing wildlife in Lamar Valley was too much for her.
We made preparations the night before, went to bed early, and were on the road at 3:20 am. We left so early because of road construction that had caused known road closures and we would have to take the long way (about a 2 hour drive). We arrived about 5 am and were glad we did as there were opportunities to see grizzly bears, black bears, and wolves from a distance with our spotting scope. We were not alone and gleaned from the experienced spotters.
A little later in the morning we spotted black bears foraging, one or two with cubs. These were much more close up but we kept a safe distance. Except for when we had pulled into a picnic area to see a bear that was seemed to be heading that way. Well he sure was, and as we pulled into reverse to angle ourselves better we ran into a large rock. We didn't get out to see the damage until the bear was out of the area but I have to say so one was overly bummed about the bummer and whenever I see it, I think about what a great experience we were having.
In total on her birthday we saw 8 black bears, 4 of which were cubs, 5 grizzly bears, 2 of which were cubs, a pack of 8 wolves, osprey, and 2 badgers. Also numerous bison, elk, and squirrels.
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| Setting up the scope to see osprey |
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| Two badgers outside their den |
After a long morning we stopped at Gardiner, MT to celebrate Sophie's birthday with not peanut butter and jelly sandwiches but a stop at a restaurant. She got to talk with her Aunt Kira and Uncle David while we had cell service in town and she feasted on a burger and fries. Following that we visited the Roosevelt Arch and the Mammoth Hot Springs.
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| Petrified Tree |
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