My prior explorations of Yellowstone Country, while satisfying, did not dampen my spirts for a return visit. And so, in late September of 2006, I traveled again to that Wonderland, in the company of a small group of men and women, all of us bound together by our love of exploration and the natural world and an interest in documenting our travels with our cameras.

To that end, we eight - two women and six men - agreed to meet in Salt Lake City, the capitol of Deseret (otherwise known as Utah) where dwell a great many of the formally polygamous Mormons.

Tim and Phil had to make an arduous trek from the great parklands of Zion and Bryce Canyon, in the southern reaches of Deseret, while Ken, Joanne and Roger made an equally difficult approach from that land of the fruit tree, Orange County, in California. Meanwhile, Rial flew on that most modern and practical of conveyances, a jet airplane, from the city of Burbank, also in Southern California, while Rosemarie flew from the city of Oakland, located on the east side of the beautiful San Francisco Bay. I made my own way, flying from Los Angeles, the great metropolitan center of the western United States.

My flight took me first out over the blue-green water of the vast Pacific Ocean, and then the plane turned its silver nose inland, its great engines flying us high above a mostly unpopulated land, principally over vast portions of arid California, Nevada and Utah. I arrived in Salt Lake City somewhat parched and in need of a good meal, as scant fare was presented to us on our flight eastward.

We all met, on the evening of Sunday, September 24th, at the comfortable, if not commodius, Super 8 Motel, a bit west of Salt Lake City, and not far from the highly saline waters of the Great Salt Lake. As captain of our enterprise, it was my duty to provide maps and books, spotting scope and binoculars, etc., etc. I did so by shipping these items in advance of my arrival, and I was gratified to find these items - as well as much of my clothing for the expedition - in the capable hands of our innkeeper.

My co-captain, Rosemarie, brought medical supplies, table cloths for our picnics, itineraries, checklists of geysers and animals we hoped to view, and she also brought a wonderful sense of adventure and enthusiasm to our entire enterprise. Rosemarie and I made a foray into the heart of the city to purchase additional supplies that evening, and we spent some time in the beautiful Temple Square, the spiritual center of the Mormon nation.

Earlier that night, we had dined near our accommodations with our comrades, and after purching our additional supplies, we, and everyone else retired fairly early.

By early morning on the 25th of September, with the temperature hovering in the mid-30s, we had packed our rental van - pulled by almost 300 horsepower - with our luggage and photographic equipment. We bid goodbye to the city, and began our journey to Wonderland. (Photograph by W. H. Jackson)