Lamar Valley’s Rose Creek in Winter White

Yellowstone’s Lamar Valley is  a sparkling winter wonderland, and the Lamar Buffalo Ranch is an ideal mid-valley location with a bit of civilized warmth from the frigid winter surrounds. The ranch was instrumental in saving bison from extinction in this country in the early 1900’s. Today, although not open to the public,  the ranch hosts educational opportunities through Yellowstone Forever Institute and the National Park Service’s Expedition Yellowstone.

Let’s walk up to where Rose Creek splits into three separate creeks as it races down into the valley to join the Lamar River. The trail is hard packed, but we will put ice-traction cleats on our boots for safety. It is a little after 10am and about 8 degrees, but with no wind, it feels much warmer.  What a beautiful day! Don’t forget your sunglasses.

Let’s go . . .

Ride~About: August in Wonderland Dodging Fires and Smoke

Yellowstone National Park, established in 1872, became famous for its supernatural landscapes of geysers, boiling mud, brilliant-colored hot springs, and amazing geological formations. Journalists as far away as New York talked of America’s Wonderland and every sort of person, rich or those of modest means, from America to Europe, became interested in one of America’s most spectacular places.

The Northern Pacific Railroad, looking to expand their tourism trade, began service to Yellowstone in 1883. In their effort to entice people to the park, they produced two brochures called Alice’s Adventures in the New Wonderland. Written as if by a grown-up Alice to her friend, Edith, she explains the marvelous sights, a bit of history, and beautiful scenery as she travels by railroad from Chicago to Yellowstone.

Today we are still awed by the beauty of this wild Wonderland, but in August we have a different kind of wild experience: Fires and Smoke.

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Naturalist’s View–Lamar Valley

Yellowstone Association, a non-profit partner of the National Park Service, is dedicated to educating us all on this amazing place called Yellowstone National Park. They offer seminars on a wide range of topics at their Yellowstone Institute, located at Lamar Buffalo Ranch. Not only do we get to learn surprising and interesting things about this vast land, but we get to stay at an historic location in the Serengeti of the West, Lamar Valley in the Northern Tier of Yellowstone. What an adventure today as our seminar group heads up into the mountains to see the only remaining wolf pens used for the 1995-96 reintroduction of wolves into Yellowstone. Come, explore with us.

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Continue our walk . . .