On our third full day at Yellowstone, we arose super early in the morning to meet in the lobby of the Inn at 5:45 AM.  Yup - that is right (it is NOT a typo).  We are on vacation, yet getting up early enough to join other crazy people for a super early tour for some great shots.   Having said all that, let me tell you - it was definitely worth it.  What a super tour.  Our driver/guide, Betty, was terrific.  We were a small group of about 12 or so, and we had some great one-one-on-one time with her.  She was very familiar with different brands of cameras.  I had a fairly high end Nikon, and other tour members also had some impressive cameras.  There were also iPhones (the newest models take some great pictures).  Betty had tips and tricks for all of us - regardless of our camera equipment or level of proficiency.

Early morning is really neat in Yellowstone - there are bison and elk wondering around whose breath condenses on the cool air, to the sun shining through the vapor clouds above thermal streams, to the rainbow only visible for a few minutes each day, and only from a single vantage point, in the mist of the Lower Falls of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.  Truly, Yellowstone National Park is a paradise for shutterbugs.  Betty - our driver/guide who was also a professional photographer, tailored the tour to our interests, skill levels, and equipment of the group to create a day of memorable photographs for all of us.

Our safari originated from Old Faithful Inn, and takes in thermal areas and wildlife north of Old Faithful Village. There is another safari that departs Lake Yellowstone Hotel to visit wildlife-rich Hayden Valley, north shore of Lake Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.  As they advertise, the goal of both of these 5-hour safari tour is intriguing photographic opportunities coupled with (for those who’d like it) instruction on how to better use your camera.  There were a limited number of in-depth stops - rest room as well as photo opportunities.  We all thoroughly enjoyed this adventure - and our driver/guide - Betty - certainly played as significant role in this success!

Enjoy the pictures and videos below.  Remember to click on any picture for a larger image, and then just close the new window to return to this page.

Pretty morning picture

Arriving at Black Sand Basin

At this early hour, we are pretty much alone

Informative sign

Check out the intense colors

Bobby Socks trees - bleached at the bottom of trunks

A lot of the features have signs

Beautiful blue pool

Check out those colors!!

Our beautiful 1936 coach

Beautiful morning for this photo tour

Great location for pictures

Pam on the boardwalk

Another shot of this landscape

Looking thru steam at Bill talking with Betty - our driver/guide

Time for a pit stop

Pam standing by our coach

Beautiful tree at this location

Bill and I walked over to check out this fallen tree

Back of our coach

Playing around with some fun stuff Betty taught us

Our next stop

Informative sign

The Geyser

Pretty location 

This guy came over to check us out!

Back on the road to our next stop

Steam rising

 

Info on the park

Time for a pit stop

 

Our next stop

Firehole Falls

Looking down the river below the falls

Trail down to swimming area

Swimming area on the river

Young kid exciting to see our classic coach!!!

On our way to some geysers

Flood Geyser

Gorgeous blue color

Landscape around us

Beautiful area of the park

The 1/2 mile boardwalk in the distance

Pam and me by our beautiful coach

Us again with the coach

Mary and Bill

     
     
     
     
     

Video Clips