Zoe and Phaedra from Yellowstone!

There’s no way that I remind you of a wolf, right? That’s what I thought…no way.

So, let me tell you what happened... The first day in Yellowstone we had to leave the camper at the service station to have the rear wheel axle welded back on. Don’t worry – it’s a long story that ends with “Some really wonderful people helped us out when we had the breakdown 3 miles south of Old Faithful and the service station “kid” not only knew RVs, but he was trained as a real welder!”

To pass the time, all of us went out to a great picnic area on a really cold river. Just as we got out of the car, we happened to notice that

there were 14 buffalo at the picnic area. A man approached Papa and told him a story about how buffalo think dogs are the same as wolves. It turns out that he had stopped somewhere with his Westie, and the buffalo nearby smelled the doggie scent and charged them. He told us to watch out. Ha ha!

We decided to take a table as far away from them as we could. Food came out onto the table and sandwiches were being started when all of a sudden, two HUGE buffalo approached our table from out of nowhere. Papa decided to remove us from the area, and Mom stayed with the table.

Closer and closer the buffalo got to her as she snapped picture after picture. All of a sudden, the big bull looked right at her and started trotting her way. The next thing I knew, she was hiding behind a tree that was about a foot wide and they were within 5 feet of where she was. It was so funny for us to see – scary, too. Finally they moved on and we returned.

Guess what? Before the sandwiches were made, 12 more buffalo came right up to the table next to us. Mom took our leashes in hand and high-tailed it away. That was it! We stayed close enough to the truck from that time until we finished – just in case we needed to jump in and lock-down! And all this mess because I smell like a wolf. Really!

We had a great time in Yellowstone. First of all, Parker and her folks joined us there, and we visited lots of places together until they had to go back to North Carolina. All of them were gone from dawn to dusk, it seemed like. Phaedra and I got to go out some with Mom and Papa, too. Never where the buffalo were, though!

Parker had a sleepover while her folks stayed at the Old Faithful Inn, and we played ball for hours. She’s really nice to me! Anne and Dov treated Mom to an early birthday dinner at the Old Faithful Inn. Do you think they brought home any doggie bags? No way. Why go out to dinner if they aren’t bringing Phaedra and me any treats? I just don’t get it!

You might know that lots of animals live in Yellowstone. Whenever we went into the interior of the park from West Yellowstone, we had to travel along the Madison River. Guess who lived there? That’s right, buffalo. There were Buffalo

Jams most days. One morning, it took us an hour to drive 14 miles because the herd of buffalo decided to cross the

road just as everyone staying in West Yellowstone was going into the park. Then, a few days latter, there were Bald Eagle Jams. That’s right, the big birds with the white heads! You know, those Bald Eagles can swoop down and carry off dogs my size. I hid under my backseat bed whenever we went by the nesting area. I know I’m good, but I don’t want to be someone’s dinner.

We couldn’t go to Mammoth Hot Springs. The ground can be hot and we could burn our feet. Also, we aren’t allowed on

the park trails. I don’t know if I would have liked the smell of sulfur, either. They had a great time exploring all the geysers, hot springs, and mud pots. I stayed at home with Phaedra and slept. It’s not easy being a dog, you know.

Bears live in the park, too. So far the folks have seen Grizzly and Black Bears. Black bears aren’t always black, either.

They can be brown or cinnamon colored. It’s not easy seeing them unless there is a Bear Jam. Papa keeps his eyes open for cars parked at the side of roads – something is usually there: bears, eagles, buffalo, moose, elk,

pronghorn, marmots, coyotes, or even wolves. They haven’t seen wolves yet, but they hope to because we aren’t leaving until July 5. We spend hours driving through one

valley or another, or going over a

pass, or driving along the rivers and lakes here.

We always see something interesting.

Yesterday, we saw a coyote chasing two adult pronghorns and the two babies with them. All of a

sudden, the last pronghorn turned around and chased the coyote. He left.

The pronghorn turned around and the coyote pursued them again. It took the pronghorn 3 confrontations before the coyote left for good. That really surprised us!

Sometimes the buffalo seem to stretch from one horizon to another. There are so many babies in the herds. They look like little baby calves, except their horns have already started to grow. I guess that happens really soon after they are born. I hope so, anyway!

Phaedra and I really like Yellowstone. Not the buffalo, though. It is like we are in four or five different countries because every new area is so different from the last thing we visited. I don’t think the rest of the places we visit this summer will be so unusual. Maybe they will, though. That’s what an adventure is all about, right?

Happy 4^th of July!

Zoe