My group was tired last night so I  dropped them off at the lodging and then went back out to just spend some time alone in my special place. We spent the day in the geyser basins, a highlight of a visit to Yellowstone for almost everyone. But, everywhere we went it was crowded, so many people. It started me wondering why other people come to this special place? What is it they take away with them when they leave?

Sunset in Hayden Valley (click photos to enlarge)

As I drove into Hayden Valley, the sky reminded me of one of the reasons I love this park. There is freedom here.  Freedom to be who you are, to think big, to be inspired to reach for something bigger than yourself. It is vast and wild. I truly believe that helps me put things in perspective. There is beauty in the simplicity of the cycles of life that are so evident here. There is so much to understand and appreciate.  It makes me want to learn, to try to understand how everything fits together. But most of all, it gives me a sense of peace. I want that for the other people I see, but I’m not so sure that some of them are finding it. I watch as people take selfie’s near a bison or geyser. I hear complaints about the food at the restaurants or about the traffic jams (I guess I might be guilty of that last one). But this is Yellowstone, the world’s first national Park. I want them all to appreciate it.

Double rainbow after the storm

A brief storm moved across Hayden Valley the other night as I contemplated all of this. The sky was soon electric with color.

Rainbow in Hayden Valley

I wish everybody here could take a moment and look at the sky, to take in it’s beauty. We should all look up every day and see how it changes in both bold and subtle ways. I think the skies of Yellowstone have a lot to say about why life is good and why we should make the most of it. So, wherever you are, take a moment and look up, and try to learn what the sky is trying to tell us.

Here are some of the sky messages I have seen this week.

Sunset in Lamar Valley

The Beartooths peeking out of the clouds

Sky reflection at Grand Prismatic Spring

Brilliant sunset at the North entrance to Yellowstone

Looking across Yellowstone Lake at sunrise to West Thumb Geyser Basin

Pink clouds in Lamar Valley