One of the most beautiful sights we saw on our trip to Yellowstone, this amazing frost-covered tree was at the Lamar Buffalo Ranch in Lamar Valley. There is a small creek that runs through the ranch and that's why the tree is so covered in frost. There was a lot of steam rising from the creek early in the morning and freezing to the trees in the area.
A landscape image that I made while on a short hike to Wraith Falls in Yellowstone National Park. It sure was a beautiful day to be in such a beautiful place!
Here is another photo of Frosty Beard Bison, this time up close and personal from the window of our car. The head-on photo that I posted the other day was taken from a safe distance away. I was standing in the middle of the roadway to make that shot. After getting that photograph I got back in the car and we waited for the bison to walk past us. As they did, I made this photo with my little Sony RX 100 III camera.
Here is another favorite bison shot from near the Lamar Valley in Yellowstone National Park. As I mentioned before, it was pretty cold when we visited the park. In the morning most of the bison were wearing a full beard of frost thanks to their warm breath clashing with the cold air and condensing on their fur. I was hoping to get a shot like this but with the bison standing in the snow. Unfortunately that did not work out. A lot of the bison that we saw were walking right down the roadway, probably because it's easier than walking in the snow. The ones we saw in the snow were too far away to get a shot like this. Most of the shadows that you see in the roadway immediately behind this one were shadows from other bison that were also walking down the road.
Another image from our foggy/frosty/frigid morning drive from West Yellowstone to Bozeman, Montana. This one was made with a Nikon 300mm f/4 PF lens. I was trying out this lens for the first time on our Yellowstone trip and I loved it. It was a joy to shoot with! All of the wildlife images I've posted so far from the trip were also made with the Nikon 300 PF.
The air was bitterly cold the morning we left West Yellowstone. As we drove north along Highway 191 the temperature (according to our car, which we've found to be quite accurate) dipped to 26 below zero. A bit colder than we are used to for late November! Once we reached the Gallatin River, though, the cold temperature made for some beautiful scenes along the river. The temperature clash between the cold air and the warmer water made for lots of steam and frost along the river corridor. We stopped at a pullout that features a view of the river with Black Butte in the distance. It sure was a beautiful way to end our fun week in West Yellowstone!
A snowy scene from the Lamar Valley in Yellowstone National Park. There was a large group of bison in the meadow but this one decided to wander off on its own away from the rest of the group. I liked how it looked with the frosty trees in the background.
