Oh
boy! As much fun as the trip has been so far, this is the part I have been most
excited about: visiting storied Yellowstone Park.
And
so far, it has been everything I expected, with a few twists. We left Cody to
start making the gradual climb to the east entrance of Yellowstone. The drive alone
was so scenic!
We
briefly stopped at Sylvan Pass, at an altitude of 8,254’, where I snapped these
photos:
And
not too far beyond, I spied this glimmering jewel of a lake, lying to the left
of our road. The sight quite literally took my breath away.
This
is Eleanor Lake, which sits below Avalanche Peak (alt. 10,568’) and it’s just
so beautiful, and the smell of balsam so heavenly, I would have happily stayed
here all day long. Henry, too, was happy here, as he had another chance to play
in the snow – safely on lead this time!
Next
up was Sylvan Lake, which promised good birding opportunities for Sue, so we
stopped. Henry’s not so much into just watching birds, as you can imagine;
anything he spies he’s likely to chase, so to give Sue some quality birding
time, Henry and I went across the road. The altitude here is over 8000’, and
the snow is just now starting to melt. I saw a little stream of snow-melt,
which Henry seemed much more interested in drinking from, rather than wading
in. We spied some pretty yellow flowers, and a tiny snow sculpture which
someone had left on a picnic table, then went back across the road to find Sue
studying goldeneye and mergansers.
Leaving Sylvan Lake, we soon came upon Lake
Yellowstone, which is the largest body of water inside Yellowstone N.P. and sits at an
altitude of well over 7000’. It’s quite deep, but I guess its depth is constantly
changing because in the last 15 years or so the ground under the lake has
started to rise significantly. Apparently there are all sorts of faults and
small craters and hot springs under a “bulge” in one section of the lake. And
you see some evidence of the geothermal activity – the hot springs – in little
steam plumes along the shore of the lake.
At
this point, I became very aware of just how potentially dangerous a place is Yellowstone.
And just to drive home the point, you see these signs EVERYWHERE:
I’d
never really thought of it this way before now, but ordinarily when you go to a
park, the “living things” are the animals and the trees and flowers and so
forth. Here at Yellowstone, the land itself is an active, living thing,
constantly changing, perhaps even to be considered volatile. You do read
about the Yellowstone Caldera (a caldera being a large volcanic crater that has
formed after a major eruption) and you read how Yellowstone, and a lot of the
surrounding region, sits on top of a massive volcano that, when it blows
eventually, will release massive amounts of ash that will blot out the sun and
lead to the end of life on Earth as we currently know it. Whoah
But
then they say, “Not to worry, it’s unlikely to happen within the next 500,000
years.” But they’ll add that no one really knows …
So
here’s my personal take on the whole thing: If this thing blows while I’m here,
what a spectacular way to go! I will be the envy of all my friends, especially
once world-wide famine hits and they’re slowing starving to death. Or maybe
freezing to death, because Earth would get pretty darn cold if the sun can’t
warm it.
Sobering,
but I prefer to look at it in a more good-humored light. One thing’s for sure:
My attitude toward this “act of Nature” isn’t gonna affect Nature, so I might
as well choose happy.
Even
more cool sights after Lake Yellowstone, like LeHardy’s Rapids
and STINKY sights like Dragon's Mouth Spring, mud pots, and the Sulphur Caldron.
Steam rising from Dragon's Mouth Spring. In the video below you'll hear the "rhythmic belching" of steam and the bubble of muddy, boiling water. What I can't share with you is is the accompanying stench of sulfur. You're welcome.
We
followed the road to Tower Junction, then turned east through the Lamar Valley toward
Cooke City. Saw a herd of elk grazing, a grizzly with two cubs, a black bear, a
coyote, and countless bison.
Driving
through Yellowstone, it’s inevitable that you’ll get caught in a “Bison Jam,”
where the bison decide to cross the road and you will just wait, silly humans!
Or a “Bear Jam” where someone has spied a bear way off in a field somewhere,
and others have stopped to gawk along with them. We saw a man with a
high-powered spotting scope trained on a high hillside, and decided to stop to
see if we could figure out what he was looking at. He generously allowed us to
look through his scope, which was trained on a grizzly with her cub. I’d NEVER
have seen them, without the aid of that scope!
Which
leads me to remark on my growing awareness of a little sub-culture among
Yellowstone visitors, the ones who spend their time not visiting Old Faithful
but intensely studying / tracking the wildlife. Fun pastime. I don’t have the patience.
Arriving
in Cooke City (alt. 7608) we went to check in at the Soda Butte Lodge, where I’d
SO looked forward to staying, only to be informed that they absolutely would
not permit Henry to stay there – even though at the time the reservation was
made, they’d said they would allow dogs. What to do? What to do? Accommodations
are not exactly plentiful around Yellowstone, and pet-friendly accommodations can
be hard to come by, anywhere. Luckily, Sue sweet-talked the desk clerk at the
Alpine Motel into the last room available on the property. He’d need to prep
the room first, so we went across the street to Miners Saloon.
Miners
Saloon is everything you’d hope to find in this frontiersy sort of village, and
maybe more: Grateful Dead music playing over the loudspeakers, a youngish
bartender who had an old soul and seemed fiercely independent, lots of wood,
and odd memorabilia stuffed into every conceivable nook and cranny. And
unusual, and definitely not health-conscious menu offerings. We’d decided on pizza,
though you may be scratching your head as to why we’d seek pizza so far away
from New York City – I mean, this town is almost the anti-New York, if you know
what I mean. And although I wouldn’t ordinarily order an appetizer (except,
maybe, a salad) before a pizza, we simply could not pass up the strange kind of
“loaded fries” that were topped with Velveeta and spicy Cheetos.
No
judging! I already told you the meal was not health-conscious! Cold-Smoke
Scotch Ale, featuring Montana-grown barley, was the drink of choice. And the pizza?
“Redneck Pizza,” featuring several different types of meat and which was
actually a fairly credible pizza – not Long Island pizza, but pizza – and was
pretty tasty!
We
checked into our room, which is spartan but charming in its way – maybe “rustic”
is a more apt description.
Then
we headed back to Lamar Valley, where we actually got to see a small pack of
wolves. From afar. But wolves!
So
today’s Wildlife Count:
1
Coyote
1
Fox
1
Black Bear
2
Moose
4
Wolves
5
Grizzlies
A
herd of Elk
Tons
(literally) of Bison
And a starlit sky to finish the night. Bliss!
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