Spring.

“From form to form, beauty to beauty, ever changing, never resting, all are speeding on with love’s enthusiasm, singing with the stars the eternal song of creation.”

                                                                                                   –John Muir.

  

It’s almost the one-year anniversary from the date that I first stepped into Yellowstone National Park, which has become my home in almost every sense of the word.  It’s a place where I feel most comfortable in my surroundings – whether it be relaxing next to the Canyon with me feet up or tromping through the woods.  It’s a place that I strive to know as much about as possible – from the wildflowers that are first starting to peep through the melting snow to the bears that have recently awoken from their winter slumber. 

The changes that occur throughout the year are so much more prominent in the springtime.  The snow is starting to melt (especially at Mammoth Hot Springs, where I’m living at for the next few weeks) and details of the earth’s beauty that have been lingering under winter’s hold are starting to reveal themselves. 

 

The Sagebrush Buttercup made a welcome appearance in time to help provide nourishment to the newborn Red Dogs that have started to dot the herds of winter weary Bison.  The yearlings that have toughed it out through one of the harshest winters the park has seen in years has been playing and romping with extra energy from the sun’s heat. 

A variety of birds have started making their migrations north.  One of my favorite birds, the Mountain Blue Birds, has started looking for partners by dancing in the evening around carefully chosen nesting sites.  There is a Snowshoe Hare that I have discovered living near the top of the Mammoth Terraces and have often seen eating grass and dandelions around sunset. 

Although there are days that truly feel and smell like spring, there are still the occasional snow flurries.  Areas located higher in elevation still contain up to 22 feet of snow, keeping the mountains under winter’s grip.   It’s only a matter of time ‘til the snow melts and is running from the mountaintops through the rivers and eventually out into the ocean or possibly used to quench the thirst of a newborn.