September 9. 2010 by Merilee.

Colter Bay

Grand Teton National Park

September 9, 2010

Our first two days in the park have been off the scale for photographic settings.  The skies were dramatic from our early starts.  This image was taken early in the morning on the shores of Jackson Lake in the reflection of Mt Moran.  The beach is just a short walk from our RV site.

This park is so majestic at every bend in the road.  We explored Mormon Row where the Mormons established a settlement in the late 1880’s.  The barns are still intact and fascinating to imagine how life must have been in this land.

This morning we parked at the famous Ox Bow Bend in the Snake River.  This is where so many of the famous Teton pictures have been taken.  I was hoping to see a moose but settled for white pelicans and cormorants.

I will be posting more pics on Flickr.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/merilee_phillips/

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September 3. 2010 by Merilee.

Yellowstone National Park

September3, 2010

Yellowstone is always steaming, fuming and erupting somewhere.  This is the great fountain geyser as it erupts sporadically every 9 to 12 hours.   As the geyser gets ready to erupt the water in the center starts to boil and overflow to fill the fountain tables.  It is truly amazing to watch.   We enjoyed waiting for the eruption and hit up a conversation with a couple from England.

Great Fountain Geyser sits in the middle of one of the prettiest sinter formations in the park. The sinter forms a series of terraced concentric reflecting pools around the geyser.  Even if the geyser isn’t erupting, it is worth driving past to see the pools. Great Fountain is a fountain-type geyser, erupting in a series of bursts through a pool of water. Its interval between eruptions ranges from 9 to 15 hours but its short term average interval is usually stable enough that the eruptions can be predicted to within an hour or two. Great Fountain’s maximum height ranges from about 75 feet to over 220 feet. Its duration is usually about one hour but durations of over two hours have been seen. Great Fountain is a major geyser, but many people, when hearing it erupts to over 200 feet, are disappointed by its more common maximum of less than 100 feet. For this reason, Great Fountain has earned a number of pejoratives, such as The Flounder. The smaller eruptions of Great Fountain are still large and pretty but pale in comparison to the truly huge eruptions. Great Fountain erupts in a series of distinctly spaced bursts. The first group of bursts lasts about ten minutes. Then there is about a five minute quiet period followed by another five or so minutes of activity. These quiet and active episodes continue until the end of the eruption. Usually the first period of activity is the tallest and strongest, with the first and sometimes the second burst being the strongest of the eruption. Sometimes, the largest burst will occur during the third active period. This especially seems to occur when the first period has been uninspiring. Rarely, large bursts will continue long into the eruption.

Great Fountain is the only major geyser you can truly watch from your windshield. This is especially nice in bad weather.

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August 28. 2010 by Merilee.

Yellowstone National Park

August 28, 2010

On our first day into the park we left early to tour the Madison River section to the Geyser area. Yellowstone is truly amazing.  In the first half hour we watched a herd of elk graving in an open field along the beautiful blue Madison River.  There were buffalo along the way and one lonesome fellow heading to the river for a drink along a trail I am certain he has traveled many times.  The thermals in park are always a treat to view with the steam rising with the heat and sulfur smell.

With Brad’s usual good timing, we walked up to Old Faithful just as it erupted.  Beautiful treat to witness.  The crowds are down right now as the people are usually 5 deep to witness the display.

We camped out at the Great Fountain Geyser as it was scheduled to erupt in less than a half hour.  It is not as regular as Old Faithful and erupts every 9 to 13 hours.  It was a sight to see the steam start to build as the water filled the fountain tables and shot about 20 jets of water and steam.  It was a different eruption than we witnessed 2 years ago as it had only three big bursts.

Looking forward to exploring more of the park in the coming days.

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July 4. 2010 by Merilee.

July 4, 2010

Sheridan, Wyoming

Enjoyed the local auto show on Main Street in Sheridan.  There were many classics to admire and photograph.  This is the famous Mint Bar with the neon cowboy.    The bar opened in 1907 and operated a back room speakeasy.  A mahogany bar stretches the length of the room, cedar shingles are burned with local brands and an 8 foot rattlesnake skin holds center stage.  The bar made it into a scene in the 1985 movie “Wild Horses.”

These beauties are in a pasture right next to our RV site at Peter D’s.

Wishing everyone a memorable July 4th.

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June 30. 2010 by Merilee.

Sheridan, Wyoming

June 30, 2010

An early morning visit to Trail End Historic Site in Sheridan, WY was very enlightening about a wealthy rancher life style in the period from 1908 to 1933.  This is a side view of the mansion with a front view posted on Flickr.  It is the only known example of Flemish Revival architecture in Wyoming.  The mansion is fully furnished and open to self guided tours.  It really was a wonderful step back in time.  It was easy to willing suspend my disbelief and imagine how life must have been for this family.

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