White Rabbit

The day after our trip up to the Pebble Creek meadows we went into Gardiner to go to the post office, grocery store, and get a pizza at the KBar. The environment is a lot different than up in the mountains. Gardiner is always in a rain shadow, and never gets much snow even in a normal year. The elevation there is about a mile above sea level. The Pebble Creek meadows were up at about 8200 feet.

On the way into town near where the Boiling River enters the Gardiner River, we saw a white rabbit in the snowless sage brush along the side of the road. It bolted up the hill, and stopped long enough to get a clear picture. It doesn't stick out as much when it's near the snow patches, but it looked pretty vulnerable lower down where there was no snow.

Jack Rabbits rely on speed (up to 40 miles and hour), and protective coloration to avoid predators. This one needs its summer brown-gray coat. The winter white doesn't look so helpful with all the snow gone.