Three hundred and sixty-four days ago, I was here. Taking pictures of bees and early spring flowers.

Now, you'd have to be living on another continent not to know our snowpack from last winter was exceptionally high. Hence the flooding along the Mississippi and Missouri.

And I've seen years with large snowpacks before. Basically, when you finally get into the high country, the drifts are larger, and they last longer.

Sometimes even into July.

So, when I heard statistics about snowpacks 200% or 300% above average, I knew I'd be seeing snow. But even from the basin below, the mountains looked awfully white.

Yes, as expected, I took the longer, slower route up into the northern part of the state. Didn't actually decide until I was a mile or two from the junction, though.

That's where the thought came to me...

If I take the fast, interstate route up the east side of the mountains...

I won't see Yellowstone.

So. Left it was.

And 280 miles and five hours later, I found out what a 250% snowpack looks like.

In the middle of June.

Solid snow cover, a meter or two, or three, deep. And it went on like that for miles.

This is reportedly the most heavily used National Forest in our state (no grizzlies). Last summer there was a camp trailer in every campsite, and almost every grove of trees.

Not this year.

We were discussing when, if at all, this might all melt.

This must be how glaciers start... just a few years like this, strung together.