I have birded the Jersey Shore, the Maryland Coastal region, a few spots in Florida, and of course, almost everywhere I could in the Times News region. With a few exceptions, I have recorded nearly every bird possible in all those areas. (My life bird list won’t really grow anymore.)

That leaves me with probably two other U.S. regions in which my travels could lead me to more new sightings. One was my long, longtime dream, Wyoming. Wyoming has been in “my sights” for decades.

So late July of 2021, I sat down with my travel agent and booked a flight to Rapid City, South Dakota, reserved a rental car, and my wife and I were going to see the “High Plains” and work our way west through Wyoming and eventually, my prize, Yellowstone National Park.

We arrived about noon on June 10 and on the two-hour ride to Mount Rushmore I had already added two “lifers” and a few new mammals. We birded and enjoyed this new part of our gorgeous country until reaching Cody, Wyoming, on the afternoon of June 12. The hotel clerk greeted us with a smile AND some devastating news. For the first time in decades, Yellowstone would be closed indefinitely because of the storms, flooding, rock slides, etc. I was devastated. What are the odds that on the day we were to venture into that great park, it closed?

Plan B. Jackson and the Grand Tetons were our planned final two days of adventure, but since Yellowstone was closed, we couldn’t drive through the park to get there. Another disappointment.

After a long time on the phone and flights rebooked, over the next two days, we would have to drive back east across Wyoming again for 420 miles to get our flight in Rapid City. (I now know where America raises its beef. I’ve never seen so many grazing cattle.)

Now the lemonade. A few locals directed me to some wild areas nearby, and with a little luck, I found some nice habitat and some more new birds. The next day, before the drive east, we booked a 2½ hour horseback ride on a mountainside at 8,000 feet in elevation. We had two rounds of snow showers (on June 13), some more new birds, and some great views of the snowcapped mountains of Yellowstone in the distance. That was the closest we would get to Yellowstone.

More lemonade. The trip West took us on a 12-mile switchback trip over the Bighorn Mountains and back down, so luckily, a local rancher and his wife suggested a few side roads to take as we now repeated the long climb back over the “Bighorns” traveling east. That information was great with some more birds and a panicking moose calf and mom were added to our sightings.

Even more lemonade. Trying to best use my time back in Custer, South Dakota, I spent a few hours in Custer State Park and found some more “neat things.” I would have liked to remain there longer, but didn’t want to miss the flight from Rapid City so we left and can only hope that, God willing, we can make it back west again to make more “lemonade.”

Test Your Outdoor Knowledge: True/False: The local raptor that eats many large insects in the summer months is the kestrel.

Last Week’s Trivia Answer: A bird’s eggshell is mostly composed of calcium carbonate, so the answer was true.

Contact Barry Reed at breed71@gmail.com.