"There is nothing so American as our national parks. The scenery and wildlife are native. The fundamental idea behind the parks is native. It is, in brief, that the country belongs to the people, that it is in process of making for the enrichment of the lives of all of us. The parks stand as the outward symbol of this great human principle." Franklin D. Roosevelt

Friday, May 22, 2009

Dunraven Pass Opens

I started out the day by watching a marten running around. Later a snowshare hare showed up. His fur has changed from white to grey except for his two huge white ears. Also, the Rocky Mountain Chickadees were busy pulling more insulation out of the building to add to their nest.

I was assigned to cashier in the bull pen this morning. I was later moved to groceries as that area seems to be incredibly busy. I don't mind either area. Tomorrow I am to work the floor in the apparel department.

Dunraven Pass opened today at noon. After dinner Carl and I took a drive over the pass. Lot's of snow up there still. But on the other side the valley it was almost clear of snow and we watched a black bear for awhile. Lots of elk and bison in the valley also.

Afterwards I turned on the heat in the car and opened the sunroof and cruised Hayden Valley. I watched a large grizzly for awhile and then moved down the road and watched another pair of grizzlies. A bison with a baby was there, which is good news since that was the first bison baby I have seen in the valley this year. As the grass greens up some of the bison will move over the mountains and summer in Hayden. A co-worker told me she saw a baby elk. That is the first one I've heard about, I wasn't planning on seeing any baby elk for another week or so.



2009 Wildlife Count as of May 22:

Grizzlies: 18
Black Bears: 3
Wolves: 3
Martens: 3
Coyotes: 4
Big Horn Sheep: 1
Muskrat: 1 (I almost ran the poor thing over)