The First Week

Well I have returned from the first week of my new research job in Yellowstone, although we weren't even there for a full week. However it was still quite an exciting time, with some very interesting weather. I also got to spend some time with the Fam since they came up to visit the park.

Boss and I didn't end up leaving Bozeman for the park until Thursday morning. More delays on the logistics of the research project. And there would be a few more logistical problems to come soon enough. We got to the park and checked into a campsite because Boss was still working on getting a trailer for us. We spent the rest of the day running around talking to park officials. Nothing really too spectacular.

The next day we started doing some research. I guess I should explain what we are doing. This project is examining aspen growth in west-central YNP to examine recent browsing pressures from elk in order to determine if this pressure changed when wolves reinhabited the area. Essentially we do a lot of hiking through the woods looking for aspen then measuring some of them. So the first day we started hiking. Then we hiked some more. And after that we kept hiking. The terrain was pretty rough. Basically lodgepole pine saplings that were so dense I could only see about three feet in front of me and dead trees crisscrossing my path forcing a lot of hoping, crawling, climbing, and balance beam-walking in order to get through. Very slow going... and no sign of aspen either. A little after lunch a storm blew in, bringing a short spurt of hail, lightning and thunder followed be a steady rain for the rest of the day. I soon learned two important lessons on my first day in the field. One: dead, wet logs are very slippery and it is quite easy to fall off of them. Two: that when companies say "waterproof" it is an approximation.

So the first day in the field was sort of rough. We ended up going back to Bozeman for a few things we left... and I was happy to get a warm shower. We headed back to the park, made a stop that resulted in finding a trailer and started working out some of the kinks with actually sampling the aspen stands. So the next few days weren't too exciting. I guess unless you count the five inches of snow we got one morning and the repetitive afternooon hailstorms. We basically spent a lot of time setting up the trailer and talking to more park officials. Other than that we spent some time in the field and determined that the methods we planned on using needed to be rethought. So we cut the work week a little short and headed back to Bozeman.

I didn't stay too long in Bozeman though. The Fam was visiting Yellowstone, so I headed back to the park to visit with them after one day in Bozeman. We had quite a good time wildlife watching and checking out some of the thermal features of the park. The first night I went out with them we spotted four wolves in Lamar Valley. They were just meandering through the valley, not paying any attention to the herd of bison around them, at least thats what we thought. Before we knew what happened they took off towards a lone bison, alone except for her calf. We then watched as the four wolves and the two bison fought for their lives. The wolves constantly diving in towards the calf only to be repelled as the bison mom charged at them. It was pretty remarkable to watch. The calf was forced to essentially run between the front legs of its mother in order to stay away from the wolves while the wolves would attempt to distract the mother long enough for another to run in from behind her to get the calf. The wolves were unsuccessful and the bison was able to fend them off, although we found out the next day that the wolves ended up killing a bull elk that night.

The next day, the wildlife viewing peaked at the very beginning of the day. Alongside the road, and I mean right next to the road, there was a great gray owl. He was in the company of about 50 photographers and tourists taking picture after picture of him. We stopped and quietly approached, although I have the feeling he didn't really care that all the people were watching him. He might even have enjoyed it! He was getting a ton of attention and seemed to know exactly what all the photographers wanted. He had his back to everyone the majority of the time, but every once in a while he would turn and look straight at the cameras. Which caused a flurry of snaps and clicks from all the cameras in the area. Then he snapped his head away again. Every time he moved to a new rock to perch on everyone jumped up and migrated to a new spot with a better angle. We ended up watching him catch a small rodent in the field then fly off into the woods. I still can't believe that he stayed so close for so long with all of the people there. But I think it is more unbelieveable that the majority of the photographers there, and I mean the ones with the big, expensive cameras that sell the shots they get, didn't even seem to be enjoying themselves. They were so concerned with what angle they were taking their shots from and the lighting in the area that they couldn't even appreciate what they were seeing. I was so excited and couldn't stop grinning at the sight of him, yet they only seemed to care about getting the perfect shot instead of marveling at what was before them. I couldn't believe it.

The rest of the day was fun, but I don't think anything really topped seeing that owl. We hoped that he would be hanging around the same area later that day, but we didn't spot him. That was the last day in the park(for the vacation that is) and this morning the Fam headed back for home and I headed back to Bozeman. Tomorrow I go back to the park, this time for work though. Hopefully we get a lot of work done and everything goes smoothly, but we will see. I have a lot of pictures that I will try to post on here later. I figure this post is already long enough.

Starting the Job

Well today I should be leaving Bozeman and headed for Yellowstone to start my job. I guess it should be called a research position, but whatever. I am pretty excited about it and will be updating later about what the research is and what I am going to be doing all summer.

I will be in the park for the next week, so no more posts during that time. But I plan on keeping a journal while in the park so I can be sure to get all the exciting happenings of my week on here. And hopefully I see a Pika!

The Return Trip

I left my sweet abode of Missouri and started the trip towards Montana on Thursday, May 28th. Traveling with me was my girlfriend, the wonderful Miss Doe, who flew to Missouri to visit last week. The plan was to go from Missouri to Sioux Falls, South Dakota on Thursday. Then drive across South Dakota, making any stops and side trips that seemed exciting, and stay in Rapid City on Friday night. Then Saturday we would make it back to Bozeman. The drive to Sioux Falls was fairly uneventful, but the next day proved to be quite interesting for Miss Doe and I.

For those of you who are unaware of how boring driving across South Dakota on I-90 is, let me try to shed some light on it. The interstate is lined with billboard after billboard for the entire way. Many of these describing various popular stops that can be made throughout South Dakota. This includes amazing attractions like Wall Drug, the Tractor Museum, and the Corn Palace. However the cluster of billboards doesn't block too much of the flat farmland spreading alongside the interstate. Don't bother resorting to the radio either, scanning the stations in parts of South Dakota will yield a total of two stations, neither very entertaining. Since the driving was boring and we had time to spare that day, Miss Doe and I were "corn-vinced" by the endless billboards to stop at The Corn Palace... what a mistake.

Many of the billboards proclaim that that its the "World's Only Corn Palace". I have decided that is because it is a horrible idea. The whole thing consists of a big building (normally used to house basketball games and concerts) that has murals made out of different colored corn stapled to the outside. Once inside, you get to walk around a basketball court that has been turned into a giant gift shop. And that is about all of the Corn Palace. So my advice is don't get "corn-fused" by the signs. Skip the Corn Palace. Maybe try the Tractor Museum if you are desperate.

Severely disappointed, we continued the journey across South Dakota and decided to take the scenic byway through The Badlands National Park along the way. I think this is a much better side trip for South Dakota, even though it receives much less advertisement. In the Badlands Miss Doe and I went on a few hikes and saw some wildlife, but no black-footed ferrets like I was hoping for. We did see some rabbits, a couple bighorn sheep, a bunch of prairie dogs, and an unidentified snake (rattler?).

I really wanted to spot a black-footed ferret since they are one of the rarest mammals on the planet. They were thought to have become extinct during the 1900s until a small population of them was found in Wyoming in the 1980s. Captive breeding programs and reintroduction of the ferrets in suitable habitats have greatly increased their numbers. The whole recovery program sounds like it was an excellent job by conservationists. I think it is always good to hear remarkable stories like this, and it shows the positive impact people can make on the planet if they are willing to put in the effort. But since I didn't get to see one, I think I am going to have to make a trip back to the Badlands sometime to find a black-footed ferret!

After leaving the Badlands we continued towards Rapid City only to find that there wasn't a single hotel room in the whole city... and somebody didn't make reservations (oops). We had to keep driving, but luckily were able to get a room (thanks to Mom) not too far down the road. The next day we had a nice drive through Montana to Bozeman.

First Post

Well I am back in Bozeman. For those of you who haven't heard, I will be spending the summer in Yellowstone National Park assisting a graduate student at Montana State University with his research. Since I am going to be gone all summer, I decided to make this blog and keep everyone up to date on what is going on in my life. Hopefully it will be filled with fun and exciting adventures in Yellowstone and Montana!

Currently I am unpacking and repacking my car and getting ready to head to the park, but I do have some stories and photos to share about the trip from my lovely home in Missouri. I will try to post those later tonight.