Around here mid-June 2020

I thought this Friday I’d share some of the various news items related to Yellowstone and the surrounding areas.

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COVID-19

Coronavirus links have been added to this page. I’ve started to dig for more information from the various counties surrounding Yellowstone about their current status. Here in Cody, we just received word that the latest test of the wastewater here came out clean of Covid19. The testing from inside Yellowstone also came out clean as well as tests on employees.

It would be more helpful to know how many currently active cases are in each county. I heard (but haven’t yet been able to confirm) that Gallatin County (West Yellowstone, Big Sky, etc.) has learned of 14 new cases there. While Cody (Park County, WY) has no known cases, there are two new ones in neighboring Big Horn county. They contracted it while traveling recently. One is reported to be self-isolating at home, and the other, while not reported on, is likely doing the same. I’m having trouble finding information for Park County, MT (Gardiner, Livingston & Cooke City), but will continue to look for it.

As I write this, I’m working outside at Cody Coffee here in town, where nobody is wearing a mask. Still, all seem very conscious about keeping social distancing and using the hand sanitizer available when checking out. I hope this careful, but not fearful trend helps to keep our immune systems up and the virus at bay.

Cody, Wyoming, is still planning on celebrating the Fourth of July. The Cody Nite Rodeo is on and the Stampede Rodeo (four days) will happen, but with fewer tickets available to allow for social distancing. However, the Extreme Bulls/Bullfighters event was canceled. And it sounds like the parades will also happen – again, with necessary precautions.

I will work on finding out what information I can and posting it on the Yellowstone Open/Closed page.

13 June 2020 Update: we do have a few more cases here.

YELLOWSTONE FOREVER

This past week, Yellowstone Forever (the official 503(c)(3) fundraising organization for Yellowstone) announced they are shutting down the educational part of YF. The educational arm originally was the Yellowstone Association. I will always support Yellowstone and those that support Yellowstone but have to say I’ve been wary of the merger since it was first announced, and would like to see the two groups separate again. There has been quite a bit of fiscal mismanagement. It is encouraging, though, that Supt. Sholly is working with them to sort this all out.

PHENOLOGY (the study of the seasons)

On a lighter note, there are baby birds galore around, chasing their parents and fluttering their wings as they beg. We had another cold snap this last week. The system brought snow to the higher elevations, which is not uncommon in the first part of June. That snow is melting fast, though. A drive out to check on the Ishawooa Horse’s Head shows the reins are so close to breaking that it should happen as soon as possibly today. This was the sign the mountain men used to know the route to Jackson Hole through the Thoroughfare was passable. The temperatures are back on the rise, and summer will arrive for a longer stay here soon.

Flowers are blooming like crazy – the first week in June, the Arrowleaf Balsamroot was in bloom almost the entire way from Wapiti to the East Gate. The Lupine put on a good show as well.

More and more photos online show elk calves starting to drop. One of the road grizzly bears, Raspberry, was likely the one seen around Lake Butte Overlook on the east entrance road with a new cub. I plan to head into the park in the next few days and will definitely keep my eye out for her.

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Be Outside • Take Notes