Yellowstone Traders

Here’s a short video of some scenes of yesterday in Yellowstone. The wind started around noon and didn’t let up, as you can see in many of the scenes.

For most of these shots I used the Tamron 28-75 lens, which is now my most common lens when doing video. It seems to be a very convenient focal length video (more so than when with still shots). The lens can be a bit heavy if walking around with it around your neck, but with video I’ve found that you absolutely have to use a tripod, so at that point a little extra weight doesn’t matter.

I was using my Canon T1i, but I recommend getting the newer T2i.

Here are five great ideas for a Father’s Day gift for the man with at least a little touch of the mountains or American West in him.

5. Bison Fiber Gloves. These rugged gloves handle moisture incredibly well, meaning I can dip my hand in an icy lake and the moisture will be gone from my skin within about five minutes. Cotton simply can’t come close.

4. Elk Antler Pens. A man should always have a really nice pen. These are hand-crafted in Montana and I think they are fantastic. They are noticeable because of the gold or silver trim, and the fine polish on the elk antlers, but using the natural product brings them down to earth. The antlers naturally fall off of the elk and were collected in central Montana.

3. a Bison briefcase. These rugged briefcases are made from shrunken bison leather which really brings out the grain. They come with a manufacturers lifetime warranty on the parts wearing out, so you know this is a quality product. And since this list is for the Western man, I’ll mention the briefcases come with a side pocket designed for carrying a firearm.

Bison Leather Wallet in Bryce Canyon

2. Bison leather wallets. These long, slim wallets fit nicely in a front pocket, back pocket, or, best of all, the front pocket of a coat (imagine your Dad smoothly pulling out this wallet when he’s picking up the check). Pictured here is the one I carry with me all the time – I took the picture in Bryce Canyon in Utah.

1. A buffalo hide rug. This is the ultimate for decorating your father’s cabin, the living room floor, or even draping over the bed. It’s a lifetime purchase, so you can also call me at (406) 646-6717 and talk about a good selection.

It’s been a hectic couple of weeks getting the store up and running, but it’s back and better than ever. Here are some updates:

Bison Leather. Did you read the Wall Street Journal article about how everyone is looking for iPad bags? Well, I’ve got two in stock, made from bison leather. You can take a look at them at the store, and it’s possible I can do a special order for you.

Canes. Ross Taylor of Utah stopped in Saturday morning and brought some of his hand-crafted goodies. Canes, shoe horns and dog chews made from the reproductive organ of a bull. Yes, you read that right and there have been two repeat customers already for the dog chews. I had a good conversation with Ross, especially about the state of boxing today, and rumor is he may be visiting again.

And the big news: an online sale. I’m taking part in Google’s “Dads and Grads” promotion, meaning you get a $20 discount on orders more than $120 when you use Google Checkout. More details on the site.

My friend’s rainbow trout was about to shake itself off the hook, so I jumped into Hebgen Lake to grab hold of it. Moments later water seeped through a hole and surrounded my right foot.

This had been going on for a month, including an uncomfortable ice fishing episode when the foot submerged in semi-frozen water, and finally I decided it was time to fix things by visiting the local outfitting experts.

My first stop was Free Heel and Wheel. I handed over the boot and it was taken to the back room for an examination. The verdict was that shoe goop wouldn’t work because the hole had become too large.

Next I talked to a guy from Idaho who went along on this fishing trip and he said he always uses duct tape to patch his boots. This made sense to me and I taped it up before going on a photo shoot, but the tape became wet and slipped off after an hour. I have a tendency to walk in streams and once again came home with a wet, soggy right foot.

Then I went to Bud Lilly’s Trout Shop, where I explained the entire history of water seepage, prior attempts at fixes, and various suggestions of what to do next. I received clarity in a couple of sentences: “Stop trying to fix that boot. Just go to Walmart and get another pair.”

This turned out to be good advice because Walmart in Billings had boots at half-price and I got my new ones for $10.

To finish up about my new boots, I’ll talk about being in Bozeman two weeks ago. In the morning the region woke up to a spring snowstorm and I put them on while doing errands. Later in the day I decided I needed a bunch of supplies and headed north for the 1.5 hour drive to Bozeman.

While there I thought I might as well check out the food co-op, which I had never visited. It was filled with people in very expensive mountain/outdoorsy clothes.

I noticed in myself a feeling of discomfort, and a couple things flashed into my mind. The first thought was of a local woman who says whenever she goes to Bozeman she can spot West Yellowstone people because they are wearing flannel and great big boots.

Then, keeping my eyes steady on the Montana bison meat selection, I forced myself to recall what I had on. It was my red flannel shirt, with no less than black long underwear peeking out of the collar, and of course my totally-unnecessary-in-the-situation new boots.

So while the boots are comfortable enough to forget they are on, maybe that’s a drawback, at least if you find yourself in places where it isn’t the style.

One of my favorite spots in Yellowstone is the Mt. Haynes Overlook about six miles in from the west gate.

It’s great to photograph it after a fresh snow because of the contrast that gets added. Most of the snow was gone last week when I visited there, but the skies were blue and the clouds were quickly moving by – a great opportunity for a timelapse video.

Doing this shot was fairly easy. I pulled over in the parking lot, put the tripod just outside the window, and attached the camera to a laptop. Canon has software in which you can enter how frequently to take a picture, plus how many you want. For this one, I had the camera take 400 pictures, each five seconds apart.

I was using my Canon Digital Rebel (link to Amazon) and Canon’s 10-22 wide angle lens.

Did Judy of Yellowstone Dreaming fame really come to work the summer in the Yellowstone area? I drove out to Old Faithful Inn today to find out for myself … and there she was!

Judy

Interior of Grizzly Bar and Grill

Grizzly Bar and Grill

There’s a great place to eat just outside of West Yellowstone that has excellent food, very friendly service and is a beautiful drive that will enhance your trip to Yellowstone National Park.

It’s called the Grizzly Bar and Grill and is located in Cameron, Montana. They opened yesterday and it is the only restaurant located on the world-famous Madison River, and yes, it’s possible to get a seat with a view of the river.

I had the Grizzly hamburger topped with blue cheese. The burger was perfectly cooked to my specifications (medium rare), was juicy and had a very good flavor. I especially liked the shoestring french fries because of how the chef adds a special seasoning to them – these aren’t your ordinary fries. The menu includes hamburgers, steaks, and chicken.

Beer and flowers at the Grizzly Bar and Grill

The wood-filled interior is what I call “Montana rustic” and gives a touch of pleasant western authenticity to your visit.

After a visit to Yellowstone National Park, this would make an excellent mini-roadtrip. There is also, to say the least, some excellent fly-fishing in the area.

There are two ways to get there from West Yellowstone, which are shown on the map below.

I suggest going there via Highway 191, which takes you by Hebgen Lake and Quake Lake.

On the way back, take the route using Highways 87 and 20 so you can go through Idaho and see more of this scenic area.

Address: 1409 Us Highway 287 N, Cameron, MT 59720

Phone number: (406) 682-7118

Hamburger with Blue Cheese at Grizzly Bar and Grill.

What’s the best gate into Yellowstone National Park? I like the north one at Gardiner, and the quote on it from Teddy Roosevelt is inspiring, but my favorite is an unofficial natural one.

Drive into the park from West Yellowstone and continue on the road for about eight miles. It’s mostly flat, but then you’ll come around a corner and see these two mountains ahead of you. The roads winds around the bend and as you enter these mountains, with your pulse quickening, you gain entry to explore and view geysers, hot pools, bison, wolves and elk, in an area unlike any other in the world.

This is how it looked yesterday evening – you can use your mouse to zoom in and out on this panorama or scroll back and forth, and the bottom right button launches it in full-screen mode.

I ran into my regular car mechanic a couple of weeks ago at Wild West Pizzeria and told him about my then-secret expansion plans.

He said, “I always look forward to summer to see the crazy things people come up with.”

But I don’t think he was talking about me.

The big announcement is that I’ll be running a hot dog cart next to my store (which of course will also be open). These will be the finest hot dogs in the area, and if you mention the blog I’ll even give you a discount.

I’ve gotten some snide comments about this, and last night one of the town council members voted to keep me out of business, but 3-1 is still a victory, so I’ll be setting up in late May or early June.

Of course I’m biased, but I truly believe a hot dog stand can provide a really good meal. I studied at Hot Dog University and am trained in the Chicago-style method.

Is this low-class? Is it something that enlightened societies should ban?

Here’s what famous chef/author and street-food conneiseur Anthony Bourdain says:

Sneer at hot dogs all you want. A well-made wiener is a thing of beauty.

My plans are to live up to this standard and provide a valuable, tasty, and memorable meal during your visit to Yellowstone National Park.

P.S. I’m still working out the exact menu, but when talking it over with my Hot Dog U professor he advised, in a defeated tone, “you’ll probably have to offer ketchup.”

He was more realistic than Bourdain, who on this controversial topic warns his readers: “if you put ketchup on your dog I will [expletive] kill you.”

There are plenty of trees in Yellowstone and while sometimes they can get in the way, other times you can use them to help frame your pictures.

Here are a few shots from yesterday afternoon in the park about seven miles from the West Yellowstone entrance.

First, here’s how not to incorporate a tree! I liked the way the buffalo formed a v-shape pointing toward me, but the tree was in the way. I moved to the side and down a little bit to get this better view.

Buffalo in Yellowstone, but the tree is in the way. Click for bigger image.

Here's the same shot, except with the tree off to the left. Click for bigger image.

Here are two more pictures in the same area, this time incorporating trees on both sides of the picture. I like the effect because it helps frame the subject, and makes you feel like you are peeking in on the scene.

In addition to framing this shot with the trees, I was also able to catch the mountain's reflection in the Madison River, which yesterday was extremely still. Click for bigger image.

Grazing along the river at Yellowstone National Park. Madison River is in the background. Click for bigger image.