My favorite animal this summer...

 

American badgers are cranky, cantankerous and confrontational.

Bunny

 

In addition to PDs, cottontails rabbits also get into our traps.

Prairie Rattlesnake

 

The main reason why we tread very carefully every day.

Toad-let

 

Another reason to watch where you step and sit.

Swarming toads

 

Burrowing owls

 

Another case in point

Nests on the ground...

 

…watch your step!

Little Birdies

 

Many birds in the Conata Basin nest on the ground…

American Avocet

 

A shore bird with a distinctive upturned beak.

Golden eagle in flight

 

A golden eagle has a wingspan of 6 ½ – 7 ½ feet!

Pronghorn

 

Abundant both in Conata and Meeteetse, pronghorn always duck under – but never jump over – fences.

Bighorn sheep at Mt. Washburn

 

Skipped up the summit just in time to spot these two bighorn sheep.

Black Bear

 

A hike cut short when this very brown black bear made an appearance with two cubs in tow.

Wild E. Coyote

 

More often heard than seen...

Yellow-Bellied Marmot

 

Oh, he's a little guy, kind of funny looking. Oh, just in a general kind of way.

Elk, Elk, Everywhere

 

The welcome party at Yellowstone

 

Mammoth Hot Springs

 

Terraces to tread around lightly...

Yellowstone River

 

Rivers to cross…

Mt Washburn

 

Mountains to climb…

A Trio of Parks

 

Yellowstone beckoned next, followed by Grand Teton and Bighorn National Forest. Spectacular country all around.

Riverside

 

Fields of wildflowers line the Greybull River.

Ashen Trail

 

The hiking trail was a thick layer of ash.

Charred spires lined the landscape

 

Charred Spines

 

A forest fire in the summer of 2006 wiped out much of the forest cover in this area.