Yellowstone National Park is one of the best places in the world to view wildlife and check out the unique geology surrounding a super volcano.
During a single day in the park, I saw a herd of elk after coming through the West Entrance, and I also saw some bison in Hayden Valley. This area is one of the best places to see wildlife, but it was somewhat of a bust for me on this trip. However, just a day prior, a church group from Indianapolis saw some grizzly bears.
"I think my favorite part was seeing a grizzly bear, and that is all I wanted to see," said Kason Davis of Indianapolis. "It’s my favorite animal, we all get out of the car, and I yelled out it’s a bear. It was a beautiful thing, the shoulder hump, and you could just see its mass of it."
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This church group from Indianapolis who takes recent high school graduates out west to Yellowstone National Park had a pretty unique experience seeing moose, a wolf and a bald eagle.
"It [was] on top of a dead tree, and you [could] see the white, beautiful head of a massive bald eagle, and then we all started spotting it. Everyone starts huddling around and looking at this bald eagle, and that’s American right there," said Davis. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity because I don't know if I will ever be back here again; this is a rare moment for me."
Check out the video to see more of Yellowstone
I continued on to the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River as a consolation prize for not having the best wildlife experience. This canyon has viewpoints on both sides of the canyon, and we also hiked down to the lip of the lower falls on the Yellowstone River.
The majestic view at Artist's Point is one of my favorite parts of this incredible national park. A 20-year veteran of the park, church leader, Nick Wilkes, particularly enjoys Inspiration Point.
"I always say you can’t mess up a picture from Inspiration Point," said Wilkes. "No matter what the weather is, or the season, it is just awe-inspiring to stand in that spot."
If you do visit Yellowstone National Park, make sure to keep a safe distance from wildlife, as these are unpredictable wild animals living in their native habitat.
Click here to check out my first story on visitation numbers, which also highlighted the geyser basins, including Old Faithful.
