My sister said I had to drive the Beartooth Highway. And to get there from Bozeman, you make a loop through a small corner of Yellowstone National Park -- a busy place on a summer weekend.

Outside the park:

www.emcnerney.com [email protected]

And then just inside the North Entrance:

Mammoth Hot Springs

www.emcnerney.com [email protected]

Undine Falls

www.emcnerney.com [email protected] www.emcnerney.com [email protected]

The Yellowstone River near Tower Falls

Landscape recovering from old forest fires:

The Lamar Valley:

This panorama is too broad to allow you to see the wildlife scattered along the river.

www.emcnerney.com [email protected] We drove up to the Clay Butte Lookout to get these views and saw wildflowers blooming along the road.

www.emcnerney.com [email protected] www.emcnerney.com [email protected] www.emcnerney.com [email protected]

Beartooth Lake

www.emcnerney.com [email protected] www.emcnerney.com [email protected] www.emcnerney.com [email protected]

www.emcnerney.com [email protected]

Yes, pink snow.

www.emcnerney.com [email protected]

And continued up the highway:

Into the clouds. None of the famed views were visible. And, it got down to 37ºF. (My niece ran the camera here.)

Eventually we dropped back out of the clouds.

www.emcnerney.com [email protected] www.emcnerney.com [email protected] www.emcnerney.com [email protected] www.emcnerney.com [email protected]

And wound our way down the mountain.

And, after a very long day, were back in Bozeman in time for moonrise.