The Buffalo Story

My work team took a trip to Idaho and Montana on July 16th and 17th. We left early in the morning (way before normal people get out of bed) and drove to Idaho. We visited with our co-workers there and then headed towards Montana where we would stay the night.
We stayed at a hotel on Lake Hebgen which afforded us some beautiful scenery. Right outside the hotel was a docked boat. You'll have to see the photo (below) to believe me. Here we are in the middle of nowhere and a boat is advertising happy hour. We didn't take them up on it, but don't think we weren't tempted after the long day of driving.
The next day we visited Yellowstone. We get through the entrance and not a few minutes in we have to slam on our brakes to avoid hitting the car in front of us. On the side of the road a buffalo is meandering down the way (above). My co-worker Linda wanted a picture so she yelled at my other co-worker Leslie to open the door. Leslie reaches for the door and I lose it. I'm yelling, "Close the door! Close the door!" Leslie doesn't know what to do and is opening and closing the door trying to please both Linda and me. Linda finally got a picture and Leslie shut the van door.
For all of you who might think I overreacted to the situation, I will prove differently. As we kept driving through Yellowstone we stopped at another place to look at the buffalo. I (the smart one) have remained in the vehicle. But Michelle (another co-worker) gets out and starts trekking up a hill to get a better photo of the buffalo that are grazing above. Suddenly, a female ranger yells out, "Ma'am! Remain next to your vehicle! Those animals can run at 30 miles an hour and they will charge you!" My response: shut the van door and die of the heat. Michelle's response, "Really? Huh." Like this wasn't an interesting fact?! So she gets her picture and climbs back down. I have to give her credit - she got some pretty great photos. On the other hand, I'm still convinced it's a miracle we're all alive and didn't get trampled by buffalo.
Enjoy the photos that Michelle got (even if it was at the risk of our very lives). It's amazing that we live in a world where we can see such things up close and personal. The elk photo is not a painting - it's real!