Early Bird Special

When a place is as crowded as this place is, what is a tourist to do? We got up at 5:00 AM and headed for the park entrance. We were in the park as the sun rose and it was a much different look than yesterday. For starters, we had the place to ourselves. Secondly, the haze in the air clears out over night, so that the views are sharp and in focus. Well, we continued through the park and out and down to East Glacier where the Glacier Lodge Resort is located. Stopped in for a buffet breakfast and a tour of the lodge. Quite a place.
We then drove north up to Babb, Mt., and took the less known Many Glacier entrance into the park. As the name indicates, many glaciers are visiable from this road and it was a worth while trip. The shortest way home was back across the Going-to-the-Sun Road and this time the trip was slow, crowded, and hazy.
I heard today about the passing of Brian Moore. It was a huge shock. Brian was a great guy and a devoted family man of the highest order.

Road to the Sun

The famed Going-to -the Sun Road begins in West Yellowstone and heads diagonally NE across Glacier Park. It has a number of notable areas to stop and walk or hike. It is really a hikers place as trails spread out through the park in all directions. Going-to -the Sun Road is the only road that actually makes it all the way through the interior of the park and only one real glacier, the Jackson Glacier is visiable from the road. We hit the park around noon and made a quick stop in the Lake McDonald Lodge for lunch. And what a lunch it was. An elk, bison, venison sausage appetizer with three sauces, all terrific. Dana had soup and sandwich and I had a chief's salad. All great. We then walked to the Mcdonald Falls and headed out. The Logan Pass area of the road has to be one of the most spectacular roads in the country. The road was built in 1932 and just hangs off the walls of the cliffs and canyons. Breathtaking. The Park service and hotels run shuttle services and "Touring Cars" which are open air vehicles, and encourage people to use them because Glacier Park's infrastructure is woefully inadequate. At the areas of interest, parking is almost nonexistant. Rest room facilities are also short. (Yellowstone must get the lion's share of the park systems capital budgets. ) As we continued through the park, we were unable to stop at any other areas for lack of parking. It was Sunday, so we attributed it to the weekend. The road ends in St. Mary's and we exited south down Rt 89 to Rt 49 to East Glacier and the intersection with Rt. 2. Route 2 follows the park boundaries, and we observed the Skylands fire along the side of the road. Dry weather, heat and wind have made fire control impossible, and the air quality in some areas is Code Orange, whatever that means. (Rt. 2 was closed the next am as they started backfires to clear the edges of the road.) The ride home was long and we got back around 6 pm.

Into Glacier

We came into Glacier National Park from the east on Rt 2. The drive up from Helena was very pretty but everything out here is hazy from the heat (mid 90's today, 100's tomorrow)and from smoke from forest fires. We set up just east of Kalispel in the Rocky Mountain Hi RV park and took a nap. After regaining consciousness, we went on a quick spin around Kalispel and then drove up to Columbia Falls for a local rodeo. They had bronc riding, bull-dogging, barrel racing,bull riding, calf roping etc. It makes for a fun night and the local announcer did a great job keeping everything moving and entertaining.
Today we explore Glacier.

Great Falls

We said goodbyes and extended our thanks to Bob Nystrand for his wonderful hospitality, then headed up I-15 to Great Falls, Mt. Lewis and Clark had a major challenge to portage all their boats and gear around the Great Falls. We set ourselves up at our RV park and headed into town. We first went to The Charles Russell Museum. Charlie Russell, the Cowboy Artist, was a prolificate producer or paintings, sculptures, clay and porcelain painted figures, and books of the west. At 12 years old he won a sculpture prize at a St. Louis Fair, but was unable to devote himself to art at that point. His parents tried sending him to New Jersey to a military school to straighten him out, but it didn't take. He was sent to Montana with a family friend to work on the range in the hopes that the hard work would prove discouraging to him. He called Montana home from that moment on and worked as a cowboy while teaching himself painting. Eventually, local folks bought enough of his work for him to devote himself to art. His water colors of western scenes are just amazing, as are his oil works. As his poularity grew, he went on the road to do shows in galleries around the country and began to meet and learn from artists in many different mediums. He must have worked sun up to sun down to produce all the work. Even his thank you notes and personal letters contained little sketches, which are now highly prized. The museum has five or six rooms of his work and then a number of rooms of other western artists. For my money, it's the most enjoyable art museum yet. A can't miss stop if you get to Great Falls.
From there we went to the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center. I guess the government not only wants us to learn about history but also wants to help us interpret it . What would they do if the populous was to interpret facts on their own? The government learned this trick from the news media which has long felt they needed to help us think about things. But, to get back on message, the exhibit was excellent and we spent a couple hours following the voyage of The Corp of Discovery. A number of years ago, Steven Ambrose wrote a book called "Undaunted Courage" about Lewis and the expedition. It's an excellent read for anyone interested in stuff like that.
Today we head for Kalispel and Glacier National and the Going-to-the-Sun Road. Now that's exciting.

Gate to the Mountains

Bob Nystrand led us up I-15 and over to a park called Gates to the Mountains. Here the Missouri River cuts through the first hills of the Rockies and the spot was named by Meriweather Lewis on the famous expedition in 1805. As they made their way upriver they entered these limestone canyons which at the entry from the river look like a gateway. A tour boat took us on a trip down the river to this area and then turned around to view the gateway. The trip was particularly interesting yesterday because a good deal of the canyon on one side of the river was on fire. It's a national wilderness area where they normally let things burn. Because there were some structures about half down our boat ride and because the Park Service had an historic shed up in a gulch somewhere, they had started some "hot-spot" control in the area. They had a huge twin engine Sky Crane helicopter swooping down to the river,dropping a suction hose in and filling up. It then flew to the top of the canyon and dropped it's load. We saw this operation numerous times. About half way back, the fire looked like it was intensifying and jumped up into the crowns of some trees. The winds picked up considerably as we returned and then blew hard all afternoon. From Bob's valley, it looked like the fire was winning. In the evening, things calmed down and it even looked like some rain may have fallen. This morning, the smoke was pretty well gone and it appeared that the fire must have retreated.
Last night Bob broke out some elk steaks which were terrific. Lisa and her family, Kevin, Fred and Gnise stopped over and we had a nice visit. They are all avid outdoors people and love hunting, fishing and propagating local wild plant species.

Helena, Montana

We are visiting Bob Nystrand. Bob moved out here in '02 and has a home and 20 acres just outside of town. His daughter Lisa and family live up the street. Bob has always been a great outdoors man and loves it here. He took us on a tour around the area and a pretty good fire is burning a couple of ridges over. It's on land where they will just let it burn. Last night the smoke and cloud combination made an eerie sky. For those of you who know Bob, he's doing great and still is hunting and fishing all the time.

YNP

We spent a last day on a short drive over to West Yellowstone and the area outside the park. We cut the trip short as we are so tired of driving. It's too big. Since we pulled into Moran Junction over a week ago, we've driven about 2500 miles, from the south end of the Tetons to the top of the Beartooth Highway near Red Lodge, Mt. The lay out of the roads past the many beautiful viewing sites has been great. It's like a huge example of Central Park or the Biltmore Estate. New delights await the eye around every curve. They have mountains, valleys, lakes, rivers, water falls, canyons, cascades, buttes, bluffs and then throw in a whole bunch of thermal displays, springs, fountains and geysors. Yesterday we did get out and walk the boards at Mammoth Springs. Another absolutely beautiful scene. As Dana mentioned, it leads to scensory overload. And of course the time of day means so much as the lower sun angles bring out colors that look artificial and shadows that change by the minute.
It would have been better to see the whole place in the Fall, but that wasn't an option with our plans. In the Tetons we had a few instances where we thought we had the place to ourselves, but that doesn't happen in Yellowstone in July. Hopefully Glasier National Park isn't quite as popular.

I'm in the laundry room also--just had to say that Yellowstone is wearing me out--just so much to see--it's sensory overload every time you turn a corner, or see things in a different light. The Beartooth Highway(featured in the Life Mag. 100 places to see in the U.S.) was magnificent, and we're caught in the hazy season--so was the Chief Joseph scenic byway-----When we finally came out of the mts. the other night, we got caught in a buffalo jam--hard to see in the dark--but they were snorting away at each other and the cars--they hate the diesel truck, so Bruce inched forward and one moved enough to let us by--it was late and we needed to get home. We've seen coyotes about 4x and a quick glimpse of a moose crossing a stream.
We've seen so much--mostly from the car since it's been so hot, but Yellowstone demands that you engage in some activity to truly "see"it--next time for us will be cooler, and we'll be ready to hike more.
I fouled up my pix the other night--sneezed while dragging some around--a mess--but I'll get squared away sometime soon!!!

More Yellowstone

Yellowstone is just huge. It has 5 entrances, and yesterday we got around to going out the last one, the East Gate. The entrance highway is under construction which meant a half hour stop on the way through. Route 14 runs to Cody, Wy., so we took off. The ride, like all the entry-exit rides, is a trip in itself. Might be the prettiest thing the Park offers. Cody seemed like a nice place, and we found a steak and ribs place for a late lunch-early dinner. (looking for those early-bird specials.) The food was good, the dessert great, and we wandered around Cody a bit. The trip home brought us in the Northeast Gate so we had to traverse the park to the North Gate and the Roosevelt Arch. Another 300 mile trip. Today is our last day here and we leave for Helena, Mt., and a visit with the old sea dog, Bob Nystrand.

Moving Day

We moved from the Moran Junction site across Yelowstone to the north entrance at Gardner, Mt. It was an uneventful drive outside of a traffic ticket for speeding. I was doing 49 in a 35 which I thought was a 45. The Rangers are on a zero tolerance program because a woman pushing a jogging stroller was hit by car and badly injured two days ago.
After we set up, we found out that our site is only partially covered by wi-fi, so I'm down in the laundry room typing away. Anyway, after setting up I convinced Dana to go on a trip out the northeast gate to Cooke City and up Rt 212 known as The Beartooth Hwy to Red Lodge, Mt. (Three of the parks 5 entrances are in Montana even though only a tiny amount of park is in there. ) It was a great ride upover 10,000 feet and back into Alpine and some Tundra areas. If I haven,t mentioned, the weather has been high and dry most of the time here, with day time temps in the low 90's. At these altitudes, that's hot and dehydration is a big thing. Fortunately, from the cab of an air conditioned truck, the heat is not too bad. On the trip back from Red Lodge, we took a slight detour to pick up another piece if scenic highway. We were still in the mountains when the sun went down and didn't return home until 11:00 pm.

More of the Same

Yellowstone continues to amaze. Yesterday we drove up to Mammoth Springs, just another thermal activity center here. Elk were grazing throughout the downtown area. Rangers hurried about trying to convince people that 25' was close enough to these things. They were mainly does with fawns who had just about lost their spots. Very cute. Soon I'll be able to identitify most local wildlife by the scat cleaned off my shoes.
We have now ridden on all main interior roads of Y.P., and most of the side shows. We'll never get them all. Today we move up to Gardiner, Mt., to our new site to view the north areas of the park. There are several note worthy rides just outside the park which we hope to make.
We have been lucky with traffic so far, and have not been in any gridlock situations, which can happen here. People pull off at the site of any animal, and sometimes don't take the time to get far enough over to allow other traffic to pass. The Park is in a 20 year road renovation program to upgrade all roads to allow shoulder space everywhere. The few General Stores in the Park tend to be crowded and under staffed.
We've been lucky to see great close ups of elk, bison, moose, coyote, mule deer and the rather large western chipmunks. Have yet to see a good close up of bears.
Will Sergio have what it takes to finish the British Open? Could Tiger make a run from 7 back? How about Jimmy Furyk going low the last day?

So Big

Yellowstone Park is just huge. Today will begin day three of getting around it and we should begin some of the northern loop. Yesterday we visited the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone and saw the Upper and Lower Falls. All beautiful. We hit the ranger stations for some information and saw a film called "Ten Years Later," a take off on the old rock group. It was about the regrowth of the forests since the terrible fires of 1988.
The fires of 1988 made big news in the media where the Park Service took a big hit for letting the fires burn. They had actually made the change to this policy some years earlier. Fire was looked on as a natural part of the eco system. The years of controlling fire had lead to the development of huge amounts of tinder in the forest floors, and some experts believed that the fuel quantity was so large that fires would burn super hot and sterilize the soil and kill all seed. The fires of 1988 burned about a third of the Yellowstone forest, and to many people devestated the park. "Ten Years After" chronicles the regrowth of the forests and maintains that the fire was a natural and necessary part of the Yellowstone history. Most areas have vigorously regrown, mostly with the native Lodgepole Pines. The cones from a Lodgepole are held or glued together by a substance that only breaks down and releases the seeds when exposed to fire. The release of these seeds was prodigious, and most areas immediately began regrowth. Some areas either because of climate or exposure take longer and some areas were burned so hotly that regrowth was hampered. But overall the park looks great. The fire revealed the severity of the terrain here which the forest softens. The Park service maintains that the fire created more "edge of the forest" environments which is good for wildlife. The surface received more sun light so more species of plants grow. At any rate, people who thought the park had been ruined were wrong. It's just changed a little.

Hi--it's late--we started at 5:15a.m.--There's only one way to describe Wyoming--BIG and BOLD!!Forgive me the nature pix, but everything is so amazing. I didn't take the camera one time today, and as we walked along a river by the rapids there were 3 pelicans standing there, in the sun,in the white water--just minding their own business--maybe looking for breakfast--didn't at all care that we were there.--everywhere you turn, something surprises you. The animals are around, people out looking,or hiking,or kayaking,or horseback riding--In my mind the National Park System has done a good job of making these treasures accessible to everyone--there are paths and boardwalks and trails that can be used even by the least hearty person.
The colors out West are amazing too--just like the real photographers" pictures. Come West if you can!!
Gotta go--sleepy-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yellowstone

We began our assault on Yellowstone National Park. We entered through the South Gate and headed up to West Thumb where we saw our first geyser. We headed west toward Old Faithful and pulled into the lot at the Old Faithful Inn at about 12:30, so it seemed lunch would be appropriate. We went in and had an excellent lunch of baked brie, red pepper and smoked gouda soup, spinach salad and a veggy reuben sandwich. All was very good and the lodge is just amazing. After lunch, we watched Old Faithful go off and then walked the many boardwalks through the thermal areas. This is a really weird valley. Hot water and steam come out of the ground everywhere. They warn everybody not to walk off the boardwalks do to the danger of falling through the thermals, but buffalo pies are everywhere and right up to the geysers.
We left the Old Faithful area and proceded west to the town of West Yellowstone, Mt., where the West Gate sits. It's a little more touristy and we killed some time hoping that traffic would thin for the ride home. That worked, and we rode through a number of other thermally interesting areas on the way home. Once more got home late and didn't sit down to dinner until 9:00 pm.

Tetons?

These mountains were named by early French trappers who were looking for beaver and according to our float guide the name is a french reference to an ample bosom, which they can resemble from certain points. They must have been some lonely guys. Anyway, we started yesterday taking a tour boat across Jenny Lake to Cascade Canyon, a popular hiking and rock climbing area. We hiked about a mile in and up to Inspiration Point looking over the lake and valley. Just beautiful. The hike was quite inclined and about enough for both of us.
We left there and headed south to the sight of the Gross Ventre Slide. A massive land slide occurred there in 1925, caused by excessive rains. The slide brought trees and dirt from 9000 feet up down into the canyon in minutes and dammed the Gros Ventre River. Two years later, the dam burst and wiped out the town of Kelly and killed the 6 people who remained there. The wound in the mountain is still clearly visable as is the downstream debris from the dam burst. (the landslide is one of the largest movements of earth known) It was about a 40 mile drive out and we hadn't been looking in the rear view very much because when we turned around to drive back, we were greeted with an unbelievable view of the Tetons.
A visit to the National Museum of Wildlife Art just south of Jackson was next. The building is quite new and tucked neatly into the hill side. We took a guided tour and then spent some time backtracking and looking at various preferred works. If you're out here, it's worth the stop.
We scampered back to Moose Junction to take the 4:30 dinner float down the Snake River. They drove us about 12 miles up stream to their camp feeding area and we ate before departing. The float was very serene and we saw a number of beavers, an eagle or two and a few other animals. We had hoped to see moose but none appeared.
At the end of the float, we heard a couple people talking about seeing moose on the Moose-Wilson Road, a dirt road which runs over to Teton Village. Away we went and luckily we did run into a couple of moose. One, a young Black Moose male was standing legs splayed next to the road. In the light of dusk, it took a minute to realize he was taking a leak. And what a leak it was. He must have a 10 gallon bladder. He ambled down a stream bank and started to feed. The light was very dim and our pix may not be very good. We exited toward Jackson and headed home, about an hour's drive, at 9:45. Way past my bedtime.

Both Sides Now

We spent yesterday circumnavigating the Grand Teton Range. We entered the north gate and then exited north of the park to the area of the south gate of Yellowstone Park. We'd seen a road on a map called Grassy Lake Road which runs west from the Flagg Ranch Visitor's Center over to Ashton, Idaho. It was 57 miles of dirt road, half of it in pretty poor condition. It's as close to the wilderness as these city slickers have ever been. At about 1:00 pm we arrived at the Grassy Lake Reservoir. We drove down a steep accessway to an area that had been used as a camp and right onto the edge of the reservoir, which was down quite a bit. We turned off the engine and began our picnic (slimfasts) lunch. As we were finishing, we heard the strangest sounds coming from out on the reservoir. Dana grabbed the binoculars and watched out on the lake surface as two loons performed a dance. I believe it was two males competing for the attention of a female, and we could see a third bird further up the lake which didn't participate in the activities. The loons took turns flapping their wings and walking on water with chests stuck out in military fashion, all the time calling away. That lasted a little while, and they then went back to diving for food and surfacing. It made for great viewing. After we got back on the road, we saw a glimpse of a mule deer, but the rest of the ride to Ashton was uneventful. We did pass through scattered areas that had been burned. It looks like fires bounce around a good bit and pass over areas which are patches of green in the otherwise burned out landscape.
In Ashton, we turned south and began the ride down the west slope of the Tetons. The west slope is more gradual and rounded than the east slope, which is where the shear occurred when the mountains rose and the valley fell. From the road it still looked spectacular and the farmers and ranchers have awesome views.
The tour was completed by going through Teton Village and into Jackson Hole. From there it was due north back up the east side of the mountains. We went in through Jenny Lake again and while at a rest area saw a young Grizzly Bear about 50 yards away. It was probably under 200 lbs. People were all anxious to get close for pictures. I'll buy a post card. We stopped for several photo ops, but it was again hazy enough to make real good pix unlikely. We'll see. Back home, we cooked burgers and had iceberg wedges with diced tomatoes and blue cheese dressing. Klondike Bar for dessert. Can't be beat.

WOW

We drove from Rawlins, Wy., to our new RV park in Moran Junction, Wy., yesterday. Just after we passed through Dubois, we were passing one of these huge bottom dump truck-trailer rigs when my truck slowed down and gradually lost power. We pulled over and after consulting the owner's manual, decided that the fuel filter was most likely the culprit. Pulled a U-ee and limped back into Dubois where no dealerships exist. We stopped at the first gas station and their mechanic was a Duromax diesel expert who had just left a dealership. He had the diagnostic tools to determine the problem (it was the filter) and the new filter in stock. In less than an hour we were back on the road. Miraculous. Other than that, the trip over was just another gorgeous trip through Wyoming.
Our RV park here is a little dusty, but so is everthing in the area. We set up and took off for Grand Teton National Park. We started at the northern end and went past Jackson Lake and took the cut off to Jenny Lake. The views and sites are beyond my ability to describe. The Teton range soars above Jackson and Jenny lakes and reflects back in them. The high point is just over 13,000 feet. When the mountains formed, the peaks pushed up, but the valley floor also fell, hence the name Jackson Hole. The fall in the valley was 3 times the rise of the peaks. We were there late in the day on a reconnasance mission and will do in depth exploring today.
I was just about to call my sister Carol to get her input on what to do and see in the area, when my phone rang. It was Carol. She worked in the Lodge at Yellowstone Park summers during college and not only became very familiar with the area, but met her husband Mike. He was the maitre'de at the time. Today he would be charged with work place harassment and jailed or fired instead of starting a happy lifetime partnership with Carol. She gave me some tips on the area and said not to miss West Yellowstone. We won't.

The Great Divide Basin

Rawlins, Wy., is located just east of the Continental Divide and the start of the Great Divide Basin. This huge area drains to neither the Atlantic or Pacific. It didn't say where it drained but I suspect it's self contained. The Continental Divide is low throughout this area as it zigzags around ranging from a low of 6700 to 7550 at South Pass. This is the area the Oregon Trail, Overland Trail, Cherokee Trail and many other lesser known trails pass through the divide. South Pass was also known as "Parting of the Ways" as travelers here heading for Oregon took the Oregon Trail and those heading to Utah or California headed south. The tracks from the wagon wheels are still clearly visible. When you see the terrain these pioneers crossed, it's hard to see how they did it, and crossing the Continental Divide here also marked the completion of the easy part of the trip and the beginning of the hard part. Today this area is where I-80 passes through the Divide as well railroads, pipe lines, electric lines and everything else.
We started a lap around this area by heading west on I-80 for about 110 miles. We try hard to stay off interstates, but it's the only east-west road in the area. We set the cruise at 80 and see more truck traffic than we've seen all trip. The terrain is rolling with buttes, bluffs and rock outcrops everywhere. Immense. We hit Rock Spring and turned north on Rt. 191 up to Farson past the Red Desert and took Rt. 28 NE. This lead us to historic South Pass and South Pass City and Atlantic City, a couple of revived gold mine towns. Rt 28 then intersects Rt 287, and we headed back SE to Rawlins. Our loop traveled about 330 miles and the scenery was spectacular. Once again, I've never seen anything prettier.
Something really noticeable out here are the large, long, high sections of snow fence always on the west side of the road. They aren't like snow fences back home, but are metal structures with A-frames connected by horizintal struts. In some areas they are layered up to five or six deep. They appear to be over 6' tall. The wind is a constant through this area.
Back in Rawlins, we looked for a place to eat and finally located the Aspen House. It was a real treat with fine food and service. I take back everything I said about Rawlins yesterday. Off to the Tetons today.

Who picked this place?

We drove north from Loveland, Co, to Fort Collins and picked up Rt 287 NE to Laramie, Wy. It is a pretty trip. We took Rt 130 through the Medicine Bow Mountains which has a high point of about 10,700 feet. The mountains peak at just over 12,000'. That was spectacular. It's the highest we've been with the rig.
We ended up in an RV park just off Rt 80 in Rawlins, Wy, which is a small blue collar looking community with many cheap motels, bars etc. The add in Woodalls Dieectory had said it's windy here, and they weren't lying. Albert would hate the place. It blew up to 40 mph constantly for a number of hours. People have built wind breaks in outdoor locations to shield them. Picnic areas etc.
Since we are close to an interstate, we decided to check out a couple truck stops to see what the scene is like. There was a T/A place which segregated truckers from others, and then stopped at a Flying J. They offer truckers parking spots, showers which can be reserved and rented, a lounge room with tv, games, internet hook ups and buffet style meals. ("Not drooling yet" was the comment one trucker made as he checked it out.) Home away from home.

On the Road Again

We had a great time visiting the Simpsons in Webster, Mass. Their lake home is magnificent. We road on boats, went to lake fireworks, sailed in Naragansett Bay off Newport, saw Blueman Group in Boston, cracked lobsters with rocks at the Barking Crab on the Charles River, and played Horse with Jesse. Grant and Michelle came up for the first 5 days and it was great to see them. They had a blast being towed through the water on tubes and knee boards and playing with Riley and Blinckey, the Brittany Spanials.
The trip home ran a little late, and Loveland is having a Summer Fest this weekend. When we got there, no rooms were available so we got into Carl and Marion's home for the night. The good thing was we heard an add for a concert at Redrock Amphitheatre with KD Lang and Lyle Lovett on Friday night. We went on the internet and got tix. Kevin joined us and we drove down to the affair just south and west of Denver. Redrock was built in a redrock canyon on natural terrain, and is breathtaking; overlooking the distant Denver skyline. The seating is bench style but wide and roomy. The concert was excellent. KD was real good and Lyle had 13 pieces and four vocalists including Francine Reeves, who's a killer jazz/rock and roll singer. He went two hours non stop and must have done 25 tunes. Third time we've seen him and the best yet.
We head for Rawlings, Wy., today.