No Buffalo This Week

Buffalo...they are a part of life in Yellowstone. They are everywhere. I am more scared of buffalo than any other animal in Yellowstone. You might be thinking about bears, wolves or mountain lions as the scariest but unlike buffalo they are not everywhere. Buffalo are on the roads, winter and summer, they are outside your door at any time, you can see them when you look out the window at work, and they are on the ski trails.

During the summer of '98 I was working at Canyon Village as an assistant manager of one of the cabin areas. I was in the office looking out the window and one of our resident buffalo, Bob, was being approached by a tourist. As he got closer and closer I could feel myself tensing. Finally he got so close I knew it was going to happen. I ran to the door of the office and was just about to yell at him to back up when it happened. Bob moved with so much speed that I only saw the man flying through the air and land. I went back to my desk and call 911 and rangers were there in minutes. He was not seriously hurt but they took him out in an ambulance just in case. One thing that happens is that people thing that buffalo are just cows and they don't realize that they can run up to 30 mph, they can jump a 6 foot fence and they weigh a ton. I know that not everyone will fear buffalo but they should at least have a healthy respect for them.

Patty found out my fear the hard way. Our first winter we borrowed a snowmobile to go to West Yellowstone for the day. We were on the road between Madison Junction and West when we saw a herd of buffalo ahead of us. This was our first trip in Yellowstone on a snowmobile and we didn't know what to do. A ranger came up behind us and told us not to try to go through them because they were antsy that day. He then told us that there were more buffalo behind us and if they started walking by us to turn off the snowmobile, get off of it and stand on the other side of it. I thought he was crazy but when the buffalo started to walk by that is what we did. Then it happened. One buffalo stopped right by us, turned towards us and started moving his head up and down and stomping his hooves. Patty and I were standing side by side and I grabbed him and moved him in front of me. At least now I had a snowmobile and Patty between me and this angry animal. Patty yelled at me and asked "What do you think you are doing?" I yelled back, "If you were my grandma I would do this right now!" Then I shoved him toward the snowmobile and jumped into the snow at the edge of the road. I still think about this day and wonder. That was our first month or two of dating and 11 years later I want to ask what HE was thinking that day. Best not to ask too many questions though.

I bring this all up because we have a herd of buffalo that hang out around here all the time. All week I have been bringing my camera to the Snowlodge so I could take pictures on my way to work. They have been around but they were camera shy this week. I did take some pictures of where they would normally be.

As long as I live here I will be nervous around these animals. If you ever have the

pleasure of riding in a car with me around the park and we end up in a buffalo

jam you will notice me rolling up the windows and turning down the music.

Silly, I know but it's nice to know that with me some things never

change.

Trailer Life

This is our home. A 36 foot 5th wheel trailer. If you find yourself living in Yellowstone this is the best way to do it. If we weren't living here we would be in a dorm. It's not that dorm living is awful, but there is a sense of freedom that comes from living in a trailer. We own our trailer. We live in a "neighborhood" in the summer and in the winter we have one neighbor who lives across the street from us and he is a friend.

When you live in a trailer in Yellowstone it is like living in a gated community. We get questions all of the time that are normal to us, maybe not to everyone though.

"You get to cook your own food?"

"You have a door between your living room and bedroom?"

"You have a washer and a dryer in your place?"

"You have a dog?"

If someone not working here actually heard these conversations they would think that they have come to a different world. I guess in a way they have.

I also want to point out that when we walk into our trailer in the summer it is three steps up to the door, and in these pictures there are no steps. It's been a great snow year and I hope it keeps on coming.

Getting Started

This is scary. Blogging. I never thought I would do this. It has taken a year or more of my sister Michelle's encouragment for me to have the courage to start a blog. She told me people would want to read about a person who lives in Yellowstone National Park, working seasonally and living year round here.

In 1997 I was living in Missoula, MT and almost failing out of college. I was unhappy and I knew college was not what I should have wasted my year or money on. I didn't know any better. College was what was done after highschool. I never really considered the fact that college was not for everyone.

During that year my mom had mentioned that I should work Yellowstone for the summer. It seemed to make sense. Why not spend a summer working in a place that our family had vacationed in every year for almost our whole lives. I loved it.

I went to Bozeman for the winter and wasted time until I could go back to Yellowstone in the summer of 1998. I loved it again. During that summer a bunch of us "Yellowstoners" came up with a plan to try another park. That winter I went back to Missoula. During that winter I applied to Denali National Park along with my friends. Some of us got jobs, others didn't and in the end I was the only one to go. I loved it.

While I was in Alaska a friend mine who was in Yellowstone for the summer of 1999 sent me an application for a winter season. I applied and got a winter job back in Yellowstone. What was supposed to be a summer job for me has turned into a life style. I have been a housekeeper, housekeeping manager, carpet cleaner, busser, server, barback, cocktail server, bartender, and for the past 6 years I have been a bar lead.

During my time here I met Patty. We have been together for 11 years, married over 5 years, we have bought a 5th wheel trailer where we live with our dog Tahlula. Somehow a summer job has turned into year round living in the oldest national park. I still love it. It is still what I want to do 13 years later. Working here is far from perfect...living here is as close to perfect as I can imagine.