I must say that Yellowstone in the winter is absolutely breathtaking! I think I enjoyed it more this trip than I have any other time.
The forecast predicted a major storm for our travels as well as our time there. Every episode of "I Shouldn't be Alive" started to haunt my thoughts as we prepared for the trip. However we couldn't have asked for more perfect conditions. Up until this point Yellowstone Park had considered shutting down due to lack of snow for snowmobiles. They got slammed the two days prior to us getting there and it the storm slowed down just as we pulled in. On our first day it was absolutely beautiful with freshly fallen slow all around. The second day it snowed on us off and on but it pretty much all but stopped for our drive home. {The SYSCO gang}
I know, I'm rocking that snowsuit hey?
I've never really gotten into the whole wildlife thing as far as getting giddy when I see something as we drive down the road. But for some reason on this trip it was just a little bit magical. Seeing the animals up close and personal in their own habitats was actually a little thrilling.
In the little spill they give you before you start the tour they tell you that in rare instances you may come face to face with wildlife. We were instructed to pull over, stop our machines and not challenge the animal in any way. In other words, "DON'T LOOK IT IN THE EYE!". At least that's what I heard anyway. Imagine our shock when we were instructed to pull over and stop our machines because something was headed our way. A coyote was hot on the trail of a dead elk that we had just passed up the road. He walked right past us. I'm talking less than FIVE feet away! It was crazy. And all I could think was "don't look it in the eye, don't look it in the eye....."
Our tour guide told us we were about to see something spectacular so we jumped off our machines and followed the coyote. There was just one major hurdle. A freezing cold river separated the coyote from the dead carcass. We sat and watched the coyote pace up and down the riverbed trying to decide if it would be worth the freezing swim. After about a half hour he took the plunge and swam across.
