bringing a pic-a-nic basket into Jellystone*

My sister's family lives about 90 minutes from Yellowstone National Park, and so a day trip in is a requirement of our visits. We entered through West Yellowstone again so we could see the swollen Gallatin River first hand. Because we spent a lot of time at Old Faithful on our last visit, we decided to steer clear of the old girl and focus our attention on other locales.

James had mentioned that the record snowfall this winter in the mountains meant more than just near floodstage rivers: the bison were out and about because there is so much snow in the forests. We were about 15 miles into the park when we saw our first herd at Madison. We thought those guys were close... until we saw the two running down the road between the vehicles. Um, yea, you guys totally get to decide when and where you go anywhere.

We checked out Fountain Paint Pots, Midway Geyser Basin, and then hung out in the Canyon region, checking out the Lower Falls and the Upper Falls. For those of you who remember my claw-like grip two years ago, you'll understand why we did not hike down at all, but stuck around at the safe distance of Artist Point.

If you ever have a chance to go, do. Even the best of pictures don't do the views justice... and mine are by no means the best pictures. There are parts of the park that seem surreal, and parts that are just magnificent to behold. It is very understandable that this place is what became the first national park. We're already planning our next trip back...

*Today's contest is an easy one: who might have titled this post? Comment away, to win a 4x6 shot of this:

According to my sister, this is the quintessential Yellowstone shot. It's of the Lower Falls from Artist Point.