Destination Yellowstone
Yellowstone National Park had been at the top of my bucket list for years.
As we approached the park after crossing the beautiful landscapes of Montana, I could hardly contain my excitement. This would be my first visit to a National Park, and I had visions of seeing wildlife everywhere—especially bears.
I have always been fascinated by bears. There is something about them that represents true wilderness. Growing up in the city, most of the animals I encountered were in zoos or on television. Bears belonged to a different world—one that seemed wild, untamed, and increasingly rare.
As we climbed toward Yellowstone, however, our adventure took an unexpected turn.
Just over a month earlier, we had rebuilt the transmission in our truck before beginning our journey. Now, only a few miles from our destination, it failed completely.
Suddenly, our long-awaited arrival at Yellowstone became a mechanical emergency.
We found ourselves stranded beside a vast mountain meadow while waiting for assistance. For hours we sat and watched the landscape, watching a herd of bison grazing, and admiring the scenery. If there is such a thing as a beautiful place to break down, this was certainly it.
The meadow stretched toward distant mountains beneath a huge western sky. Other travelers stopped to admire the view while we waited and hoped for good news.
As daylight faded, tow trucks finally arrived—one for the truck and one for our RV.
Because we could not leave the RV inside the park indefinitely, arrangements were made to tow it to Gardiner, Montana, just outside Yellowstone’s northern entrance. Frank accompanied the truck back toward Livingston while I followed with the RV and settled into an RV park for the night.
Then, just as we were preparing to leave, they appeared.
A mother bear and her two cubs emerged from the shadows.
The light was nearly gone. The tow trucks were ready to depart. I grabbed my camera and hurriedly snapped a few photographs, knowing the chances of getting a good image were slim.
Moments later, we were gone.
What had started as a mechanical disaster soon turned into an unexpected blessing. The transmission was shipped back to Oregon under warranty, and we rented a small car while repairs were arranged.
What we thought would be a brief visit became an entire month exploring Yellowstone National Park.
The little rental car turned out to be perfect. It allowed us to stop whenever wildlife appeared and explore parts of the park we might never have seen otherwise.
Later, when I downloaded the photographs from that evening, I was amazed to discover I had actually captured one of the cubs standing upright, looking directly toward us.
Sadly, the photograph was accidentally lost years later.
The image is gone.
The memory is not.
And fortunately, that would not be my last encounter with Yellowstone’s bears.