Sunlight warms your tent, and the smell of coffee drifts through the air as your guide cooks breakfast. You join your group, ready to head deeper into Yellowstone’s backcountry.

       As you hike an undulating trail next to the river, you scan for wildlife. You might see a bear, bison, an elk, or even a wolf moving silently between the trees. The tall, yellow grass sways around you, and suddenly a cloud of grasshoppers bursts into the air, clicking their red wings as they fly.

       At a sandy beach, you kick off your shoes and plunge into the cool river while your guide prepares lunch. You lie in the sun and study the mountains across the water. Your guide points out Rattlesnake Butte and Turkey Pen Peak, names as wild as the land itself.

       Further along the trail, the deep blue water of Crevice Lake appears, mirroring the cottonwood trees and rolling hills that surround it. Just beyond, your campsite awaits.

       As night falls, the campfire crackles and stars flood the sky. You drift to sleep in your tent as a distant elk bugles, its call echoing through the canyon.