If I hadn’t stopped at Round Prairie in the pouring rain to sit and enjoy the heavy downpour, I would have missed this moment. Sitting in the truck listening to the rain pounding on the roof and watching it move in sheets across the meadow delayed me just enough.
As I finally meandered back west, golden sun broke through, pushing against the bruise-colored rainclouds. There might be a rainbow, I thought, and immediately angled into a pullout overlooking Soda Butte Creek.
If I hadn’t pulled over right that second, I would have missed it. The rainbow was literally there only a few seconds, a minute at the most.
It was a beautiful moment of Yellowstone serendipity.
As the rainbow faded I decided to linger for a while in that spot, glowing from the memory of an incredible moment, made even more precious by its ephemeral nature.
Soon I noticed a bunch of ducks suddenly flying away from the creek. Knowing that they were probably disturbed by something, I waited and watched. And sure enough, a bald eagle flew low over the valley, ushering the frightened birds out of hiding.
Making Space for Serendipity in Yellowstone
The definition of serendipity is "the occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way."
In my experience however, you up your chances of serendipitous moments if you make space for them. If you resist the urge to rush from place to place, and instead take time to linger.
Sure, you can wear grooves into the roadside driving back and forth, and see some amazing things. However it's easy to succumb to the malaise of the vehicle, the road, and the FOMO of what others may be seeing somewhere else. I feel it far too often.
But I have found that the best moments come when I choose to linger. To simply watch and observe conditions, and wait. It's during these times that my most memorable experiences in Yellowstone have occurred; the deep, soul-shaking ones that have stayed alive in my memory for decades. The ones that have sometimes changed the trajectory of my life.
Lingering in a place when nothing seems to be happening creates the stage for magic to happen. I could have kept driving in search of bears or bison calves, but I didn’t. When something incredible manifests out of thin air after you've been there watching—and paying attention to changing conditions or animal behavior—something far deeper arises.
There is something remarkable happening in Yellowstone all the time. Yet as we remain tethered to our vehicles, the roadside, and the drive to cover more ground, we miss so much. Like the folks who who sped on when I told them I was watching for rainbows instead of bears....
I took my slow, sweet time returning home that evening, stopping frequently to sit and watch the glorious shifts of light and dark dance across the rippled landscape as the weather swayed from rain and snow to sun and back again.
I ended up seeing three rainbows and six (!) bears! All from slowing down, watching, taking time, and making space for Yellowstone’s serendipity to reveal everyday miracles.
For more tips on how to enjoy Yellowstone at a slower pace, check out our posts on Beating Yellowstone's Summer Crowds, and Finding Yellowstone's Magic.
Can't get enough of Yellowstone? Access the recordings from the Yellowstone Summit: the ultimate online event for Yellowstone lovers. Over 30 Yellowstone experts—from resource managers and researchers to local naturalist guides, photographers, authors, and artists—help you learn, connect, engage, and celebrate a shared love of Yellowstone.
Want to know how I knew something was disturbing the ducks? Learn more about the secrets of animal language in our free webinar.
Images © Jenny Golding
