Dan & Annie's
Summer Adventure 2006

August 12^th, 2006:

TROUBLE IN PARADISE!!!

Yesterday we picked up elk antlers on our hike. Today we got busted for it.

We left the campground at 8am, headed for a remote section of the park where we were going to make an all day hike. A park ranger picked us up as soon as we left, followed us for twenty miles, and never passed even though we pulled off the road numerous times to photo the wildlife. When his backup cruiser arrived he finally made his move, stopping us for an alleged traffic violation.

Forty five minutes later, after running background checks on us and our vehicle and giving us a written warning for crossing the yellow line, the rangers got around to their real business. They wanted to know what was in the trailer. Someone had called in from the campground and reported us loading up elk antlers.

Five miles away from here, you can pick up elk antlers to your heart’s delight. Here in the park though, as we were finding out, it’s a no-no. We knew that you couldn’t remove or disturb natural features (rocks) or cultural artifacts, but we figured that collecting an elk horn as a souvenir was more akin to taking fish out of the river, and there are hundreds of fishermen in the park. We were wrong. We were informed that antler collection and sales in this part of the country is a big and often illegal business, involving some shady and sometimes dangerous individuals, and that rangers arrest and prosecute a number of these people in the park every year.

These rangers probably assumed we had a whole trailer full of illegal contraband, and this explains why they were so cautious in dealing with us at the beginning. But after listening to our story and searching the motorhome and trailer, they understood that we were just a dumb tourist family. They promised to note our honesty and cooperation in their report to the district attorney, who may use his discretion in prosecuting us. In the meantime, our antlers have been confiscated and are being held as evidence against us. They have been photographed and weighed. Our court appearance is scheduled for December the 7^th, 2006.

If anyone would like to coordinate the establishment of a relief fund, please feel free.

Dan & Annie & Jeff

At large in Yellowstone National Park

August 12th, 2006