Our Speaker for December 12 will be our Sierra Club Outings Leader Susan Murray - who was convinced that Yellowstone was a crowded tourist trap with a lot of buffalo and some bears, and she only reluctantly accompanied her husband Jim to Yellowstone, on a summer vacation the year after they were married. That turned out to be the first of nearly 30 trips to Yellowstone. Each trip was different, but most included some backpacking, hiking, oohing and ahing at geysers, staring mesmerized at pools, enjoying the aroma of hot springs, and listening to the rumbling, bubbling and hissing of various thermal features. A few even involved some (very) close encounters with buffalo. Susan will touch on the history of Yellowstone and how it came to be the first national park. She will speak about some of the challenges that have faced the park, including the great fires of 1988 and the reintroduction of the wolves, and how the park has survived and thrived. Like everything else, Yellowstone is constantly changing and Susan will speak about some of the pressures that continue to act on the park. Photos and stories will make it clear how one can visit a park nearly thirty times and want to keep going back for more, and Susan will share some tips for visiting the park. Susan and her husband have been members of the Yellowstone Foundation and Yellowstone Association, and are currently members of Yellowstone Forever. In addition to being a backpacker and hiker, Susan has taught at Becoming an Outdoorswoman programs and is a Leave No Trace instructor.