Our final day in Yellowstone was entirely focused on thermal features. And boy did we get more than a sampling. After a really good night's sleep, which I needed, we got up around 6:45am. Yes, the Robitussin and the pint of beer I had did not go too well together, but it did make me drowsy enough to get a full night's rest since I've kind of been sick. I still have a cough to contend with, but other than that I'm feeling almost back to normal.
So, after checking out around 8am, we headed towards the first stop of the morning: Old Faithful. It has sort of been a running joke, because Justin has been asking me every day since we've been in Yellowstone if we are going to Old Faithful, full well knowing that we weren't going until our last day in the park. We got to the Upper Geyser Basin, where Old Faithful is located, just before 9am. Within about 2 minutes of walking over there, she began to erupt. Justin didn't even have enough time before the eruption to set-up the tripod, so we both tried to get whatever shots we could with our respective cameras.
After Old Faithful was finished, we went to the Visitor Center to see if we could find out additional eruption times for some of the other predictable geysers in the area. An older man recommended that was go see Grand Geyser which was scheduled to erupt within 2 hours of 10:30am. We figured we would give it a shot since Great Fountain Geyser was such a disappointment from the day before. We walked the 1/2 mile to the seating area while passing some of the other geysers in the Upper Geyser Basin area. A few of them were erupting when we went by, but they were pretty small at 8-10 feet high bursts. We reached Grand Geyser a little after 9:30 and proceeded to play the waiting game - again.
The way Grand Geyser works is that a neighboring geyser called Turban Geyser has small eruptions about every 20 minutes. When the pool from these eruptions does not drain in between each spurt, it means Grand Geyser will soon erupt, itself, during one of those Turban eruptions. We continued to wait for nearly two hours and still no eruption. Another couple who had been waiting it out had been there since around 8am, and they were sticking it out...what troopers! Around 11:20am, I decided to take a walk to see a few of the other geysers in the area. Turban had just erupted, so I knew I had 20 minutes to kill. I took off at a fast pace, while Justin stayed back with the camera. After about 12 minutes I decided to turn around and head back. When I was still about 2/10ths of a mile away, I could see that Grand Geyser was suddenly putting off a huge amount of steam. Uh-oh, it was starting! I started running along the boardwalk, while passing all of these other people milling around who were none the wiser. I reached the geyser just as it began some of its larger shots of water into the air, rising to nearly 200 feet. After watching it for a minute while catching my breath, I went to find Justin. He happened to be on the side of the geyser where most of the excess steam and water was falling, so he told me to watch his tripod and camera bag while he went to the other side where I had been previously. So, I waited..for maybe another minute. I began getting so drenched by salty geyser water that I scooped everything up and moved. In total, the geyser erupted for nearly 10 minutes and was totally worth the wait. Just like the people who go to the park strictly to watch wildlife, we met a handful of geyser experts at this spot. They were basically going to go from this geyser, to another one to stake out a spot for the rest of the day. And they probably spend several days doing that. They even had walkie talkies, so that various people could keep tabs on different geysers. It would be cool to come back one day and do something like that, but we just didn't have time on this trip.
By the time Grand Geyser was finished, it was nearly noon! So, we worked our way back to our car while viewing some other geysers on the way. We watched one little eruption at Anemone Geyser. It was so cute! It resembled a sea anemone and looks fairly quiet and harmless until suddenly it burps up water, begins bubbling, shoots some small spurts of water, and when it's finished, sucks all the water back down its hole. It all happens in about a 45 second time span, so it gives a quick educational tutorial on how a geyser works.
After leaving the Old Faithful area, we checked out a few other spots in the Upper Geyser Basin: one known as Black Sand Basin and the other called Biscuit Basin. Both of these areas had some really colorful springs and other small geysers.
The next area we headed was the Midway Geyser Basin to see one of the most famous and largest springs called Grand Prismatic Spring. It's nearly 300 feet around. Because of its enormous size, however, it's difficult to take a good picture!
The final stop we made was to the Fountain Paint Pots area in the Lower Geyser Basin. This small area sort of gives an overview of all the different types of thermal features that exist in the park including geysers, springs, fumaroles, paint/mud pots and pools.
It was well after 2pm by this time, and we were geysered out. So, we decided to begin our drive to our Best Western hotel for the night in Lander, WY. It's close to halfway between Yellowstone and Denver. Looking back, we are glad we left the park at that time because there was some major construction on our route that delayed us nearly 30 minutes. We also got to see the Tetons one more time before heading out of the area...they are just so beautiful.
Despite the construction hiccup, the drive to Lander was quite pretty with several landscape changes along the way. Once we left the pine tree rich forests of the Shoshone National Forest, the rocks changed to layers of reds and browns. It was almost like entering into the mountains of the Southwest and the Grand Canyon. Then, the mountains opened up a bit to rolling hills of prairie and occasional outcroppings of rocks. Throughout these fields were several ranches or farms with horses, cows, and some wild pronghorn deer scattered about.
We reached our hotel in Lander around 7pm, and decided to keep it simple for dinner tonight - both effort and price considered. So, we went and picked up Taco Bell and brought it back to the room to eat while we watched the Olympics. All that's left to do tonight is reorganize our luggage for the airport tomorrow and get a decent night of rest.
We're really looking forward to seeing Oskee and sleeping in our own bed tomorrow night!
Friday, August 22, 2008
Thursday, August 21, 2008
The Substitute - Yellowstone Day 3
So Lauren is feeling a bit under the weather so I am your substitute blogger for the day.
After pushing the snooze button a few too many times we got up around 7:30 and headed for breakfast. After navigating through the horde of kids waiting for the waffle machines we finally ate and got on our way.
The first thing we tackled this morning was Mammoth Hot Springs which should be renamed Mammothly Disappointingly Dry Springs. It is one of the more rapidly changing features of the park and it just so happens that it is fairly dry right now. Many of the springs were dry as a bone and the 40-50 mph gusting winds didn’t help things.
We packed up and headed north towards the towns of Mammoth, Wyoming and Gardiner, Montana. Our principle objective was to see some elk. During our time in Yellowstone we have been lucky enough to see most of the major animals – mule deer, moose, sheep, grizzly bears, and plenty of big predatory birds. We had yet to see an elk. Both Mammoth and Gardiner are infamous for being a prime spot to catch a glimpse of elk, but just like the hot springs we were sorely disappointed. While both towns were pretty cute and interesting on their own rites there were no elk to be found.
After our disappointing jaunt to the north we headed back south and aimed for the Norris Geyser Basin. Along the way we stopped at the Golden Gate. The Gate is a series of cliffs flanking a road passing through an immense canyon. In the pass the strong winds were considerably worse – and pretty fun to lean in to.
We finally made our way to Norris Geyser Basin and got to see some of the amazing thermal features of Yellowstone from steam vents to geysers, pools of the purist azure blue to sputtering pots of boiling mud, Norris had a lot to offer. We took our time and soaked it all in – including our hair which still smelled like hydrogen sulfide hours later.
Feeling upbeat we left Norris for the Artist Paint Pots and planned on stopping along the way for lunch. We ended up stopping, but not for lunch. As we were driving down a pretty average looking section of the Grand Loop, the truck in front of us started slowing and pulled off the road. As we passed the truck I saw the passengers all staring intently out the left hand windows. This particular stretch of road was passing through relatively young pine forests rising in the ashes of the huge 1988 wildfires. I followed their gaze and in a flash I saw between the trees a huge brown shape with massive antlers – we had found our elk!
I quickly pulled off the road into the shoulder telling Lauren to grab the tripod. We were one of the first people there! We quickly crossed the road and setup my camera and a long zoom lens. There just emerging from the forest was a huge male elk with even bigger antlers. We moved around in the tall grass to get a better angle and soon took more than 50 pictures of our first elk.
During this time we had attracted quite a crowd. In Yellowstone it is so hard to spot wildlife. Many times the animals are more than a few hundred yards away and are hard to see against the background. So when you see a person on the side of the road with a tripod, odds are there is some interesting wildlife and you stop. After just 15 or 20 minutes we had attracted a crowd of 30-40 cars full of people. The road was almost at a standstill in both directions.
Eventually we left the scene and had a quick bite of lunch and headed for the Artist Paint Pots. The Paint Pots are molten pools of mud that sputter and bubble like giant pans of paint. Unfortunately a fairly substantial section of the pots were closed – the wooden boardwalk that tours the area was under repairs. But all in all we saw a few pots and saw some pretty cool thermal features.
Nearing the end of our day we decided to hit the Firehole Lake Road loop. This particular area of Yellowstone features some pretty cool geysers, lakes, and even a swimming hole. We tried waiting around to catch Great Fountain Geyser but did not get to see any eruptions. Great Fountain Geyser has been very erratic for many years and proved to still be quite unpredictable. It was “supposed” to erupt at 4:30. At 6:00 we called it quits and headed for home base.
Tonight was our last night in West Yellowstone, MT so we decided to take in a more authentic Montana dining experience. We ended up eating at Beartooth BBQ which was quite delicious. Lauren got through 4 ribs and I had an entire rack (12 ribs!). And even though I warned Lauren not to drink beer and take Robitussin for her cough, she would not listen. She had to have some local Montana beer.
Which brings us back to the fact that I am substitute blogging our adventures from today and not Lauren! Hopefully she’ll feel better in the morning and we can finish up our last day in Yellowstone strong!
After pushing the snooze button a few too many times we got up around 7:30 and headed for breakfast. After navigating through the horde of kids waiting for the waffle machines we finally ate and got on our way.
The first thing we tackled this morning was Mammoth Hot Springs which should be renamed Mammothly Disappointingly Dry Springs. It is one of the more rapidly changing features of the park and it just so happens that it is fairly dry right now. Many of the springs were dry as a bone and the 40-50 mph gusting winds didn’t help things.
We packed up and headed north towards the towns of Mammoth, Wyoming and Gardiner, Montana. Our principle objective was to see some elk. During our time in Yellowstone we have been lucky enough to see most of the major animals – mule deer, moose, sheep, grizzly bears, and plenty of big predatory birds. We had yet to see an elk. Both Mammoth and Gardiner are infamous for being a prime spot to catch a glimpse of elk, but just like the hot springs we were sorely disappointed. While both towns were pretty cute and interesting on their own rites there were no elk to be found.
After our disappointing jaunt to the north we headed back south and aimed for the Norris Geyser Basin. Along the way we stopped at the Golden Gate. The Gate is a series of cliffs flanking a road passing through an immense canyon. In the pass the strong winds were considerably worse – and pretty fun to lean in to.
We finally made our way to Norris Geyser Basin and got to see some of the amazing thermal features of Yellowstone from steam vents to geysers, pools of the purist azure blue to sputtering pots of boiling mud, Norris had a lot to offer. We took our time and soaked it all in – including our hair which still smelled like hydrogen sulfide hours later.
Feeling upbeat we left Norris for the Artist Paint Pots and planned on stopping along the way for lunch. We ended up stopping, but not for lunch. As we were driving down a pretty average looking section of the Grand Loop, the truck in front of us started slowing and pulled off the road. As we passed the truck I saw the passengers all staring intently out the left hand windows. This particular stretch of road was passing through relatively young pine forests rising in the ashes of the huge 1988 wildfires. I followed their gaze and in a flash I saw between the trees a huge brown shape with massive antlers – we had found our elk!
I quickly pulled off the road into the shoulder telling Lauren to grab the tripod. We were one of the first people there! We quickly crossed the road and setup my camera and a long zoom lens. There just emerging from the forest was a huge male elk with even bigger antlers. We moved around in the tall grass to get a better angle and soon took more than 50 pictures of our first elk.
During this time we had attracted quite a crowd. In Yellowstone it is so hard to spot wildlife. Many times the animals are more than a few hundred yards away and are hard to see against the background. So when you see a person on the side of the road with a tripod, odds are there is some interesting wildlife and you stop. After just 15 or 20 minutes we had attracted a crowd of 30-40 cars full of people. The road was almost at a standstill in both directions.
Eventually we left the scene and had a quick bite of lunch and headed for the Artist Paint Pots. The Paint Pots are molten pools of mud that sputter and bubble like giant pans of paint. Unfortunately a fairly substantial section of the pots were closed – the wooden boardwalk that tours the area was under repairs. But all in all we saw a few pots and saw some pretty cool thermal features.
Nearing the end of our day we decided to hit the Firehole Lake Road loop. This particular area of Yellowstone features some pretty cool geysers, lakes, and even a swimming hole. We tried waiting around to catch Great Fountain Geyser but did not get to see any eruptions. Great Fountain Geyser has been very erratic for many years and proved to still be quite unpredictable. It was “supposed” to erupt at 4:30. At 6:00 we called it quits and headed for home base.
Tonight was our last night in West Yellowstone, MT so we decided to take in a more authentic Montana dining experience. We ended up eating at Beartooth BBQ which was quite delicious. Lauren got through 4 ribs and I had an entire rack (12 ribs!). And even though I warned Lauren not to drink beer and take Robitussin for her cough, she would not listen. She had to have some local Montana beer.
Which brings us back to the fact that I am substitute blogging our adventures from today and not Lauren! Hopefully she’ll feel better in the morning and we can finish up our last day in Yellowstone strong!
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
A Griz and Some Large Rocks
This morning we woke up around 6:30am, and left the Absaroka Mountain Lodge by 7:15. On our way back into the park, we were able to see some of the wildfire damage from the night before. Since it was now light outside, all you could actually see was smoke. So we kept moving and headed for the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.
We finally reached the Canyon area by about 8:30am. First we went to Artist Point at the end of the South Rim Drive. Artist Point provides a stunning and picturesque view of the Lower Falls and is one of the most famously photographed/painted spots in the park. Then, we backtracked about a ½ mile to another spot along South Rim Dr. to see some additional views. We did a short trail called Uncle Tom’s Trail down to a closer view of the Lower Falls. It involved 328 steps each way, so on the way down not so bad…but on the way back up, it was a beating on the quads. We continued for a short time on the South Rim Trail until we reached a viewing point of the Upper Falls (slightly upstream on the Yellowstone River from the Lower Falls). Although they are both striking the Lower Falls is the larger and more impressive of the two. After finishing in this area, we drove a short ways along the main park rode and took a short trail down to the brink of the Upper Falls. This viewing point allows you to look directly over the top of the waterfall as it crashes to the canyon below. It is pretty amazing to witness the force of the water as it tumbles over the edge.
By the time we finished in the canyon area, it was nearing 11am. So, we moved onward to the Northeast part of the park. Since it was still a bit early for lunch, we decided to do the Yellowstone River Picnic Trail loop. It was a 4 mile trail that skirted the edge of the canyon and worked its way through somewhat untamed grassy meadows. At one point during the route, we came upon a half dozen ospreys gliding throughout the canyon. The hike itself was not very challenging because it only had about a 300 foot elevation gain. However, the entire trail was very exposed to the elements: the blazing sun and the gusty winds. Winds occasionally gusted to 40 mph, causing us to feel a bit unbalanced at times. But luckily, it was blowing us away from the canyon as opposed to towards it. After about 3 miles the trail finally looped back around to the main road. But, we still had to hike over a half mile on the side of the road to get back to our car. By this time, it was 1:30pm, and we were both very hungry.
We quickly made some sandwiches and ate those at a picnic table. Then, we decided to continue east towards the Lamar Valley. Just about a mile from where we had been hiking, we noticed a massive number of cars pulled over. So, assuming it was something interesting, we stopped. Supposedly, there was a grizzly bear that had been hanging out in this meadow for a few days. We waited for about 5 minutes or so, and didn’t see a sign of anything happening. So, we got back in the car. As soon as we started to pull out, Justin spotted the bear, so we quickly pulled over again. We watched the bear from a safe distance for about 15 minutes, and Justin took several pictures. It was definitely one the coolest things we’ve seen so far on this trip. It’s just not very often that a bear just hangs out in an open field. The special thing about this particular field (at least to the bear variety) was the presence of a bison carcass. I'm sure the bear would nibble on it occasionally, but more than anything, he was hanging around because he had established ownership over the carcass. And from the mutterings we heard from the other people around us, he would continue to stay there and guard the carcass until he lost interest, which could take several days.
We finally decided to move on as opposed to camping out for the rest of the afternoon like many of the other people that spend weeks in the park just scoping for wildlife. Once in the Lamar Valley, we of course, were hoping to see a wolf. But you have to be extremely lucky and be in the right place at the right time. Unfortunately, I don’t think it’s going to happen for us on this trip. We did, however, see many more herds of bison scattered throughout the valley. Then, as we were retracing the route back, we passed a happy little coyote trotting along the side of the road. Because we were both traveling in opposite directions, we weren’t able to snap a picture. But, we’ve seen coyotes before, so it wasn’t that big of a deal.
We had just a bit more time to kill before heading to our hotel, but we were too tired to try another trail. So, we decided to check out the Petrified Tree which was a complete waste of time. Then, we took a drive on this one-way gravel road called Blacktail Plateau Drive. Supposedly, there were some good chances of seeing wildlife. Unfortunately, all we got were several false alarms. There were lots of big rocks that resembled animals. We joked about if the rocks had been planted there on purpose.
After these two disappointing ventures, we drove back south towards Canyon Village. There were a couple of spots where lots of cars were stopped along the road, but we honestly couldn’t see anything so we kept moving. At Canyon Village, we cut west onto Norris Canyon Road. Then from there, we briefly went south on the main loop before continuing towards the west entrance on Madison Junction Rd. We stopped a couple of times on the way out of the park to see some mule deer resting and feeding along the Madison River.
Once we got to West Yellowstone, we kind of had a hard time finding the Moose Creek Inn that we were supposed to stay at. However, once we found it, it just didn’t quite fit the description and pictures we had seen on the website. So, we drove down the road and checked into a more typical hotel called Yellowstone Lodge with a similar price point and cancelled our other reservation. It was definitely a successful switchover because we now have some of those luxuries that we have not had for a few days such as a TV, an ironing board, a mini-fridge and free wi-fi.
For dinner we drove a few blocks to the main area of town, and we managed to find the one Chinese restaurant in town. We were both pretty thrilled for the change of cuisine because Chinese food is like our comfort food. So, Justin had some pork dumplings and Mongolian beef, and I had egg drop soup and almond chicken. It was definitely a satisfying meal. Afterwards, we went to some of the souvenir shops to browse around and buy some magnets for our fridge at home. Then, we went back to the hotel and caught up on some Olympic watching.
Tomorrow’s focus will be on the Northwest side of the park with almost a full day of thermal features.
We finally reached the Canyon area by about 8:30am. First we went to Artist Point at the end of the South Rim Drive. Artist Point provides a stunning and picturesque view of the Lower Falls and is one of the most famously photographed/painted spots in the park. Then, we backtracked about a ½ mile to another spot along South Rim Dr. to see some additional views. We did a short trail called Uncle Tom’s Trail down to a closer view of the Lower Falls. It involved 328 steps each way, so on the way down not so bad…but on the way back up, it was a beating on the quads. We continued for a short time on the South Rim Trail until we reached a viewing point of the Upper Falls (slightly upstream on the Yellowstone River from the Lower Falls). Although they are both striking the Lower Falls is the larger and more impressive of the two. After finishing in this area, we drove a short ways along the main park rode and took a short trail down to the brink of the Upper Falls. This viewing point allows you to look directly over the top of the waterfall as it crashes to the canyon below. It is pretty amazing to witness the force of the water as it tumbles over the edge.
By the time we finished in the canyon area, it was nearing 11am. So, we moved onward to the Northeast part of the park. Since it was still a bit early for lunch, we decided to do the Yellowstone River Picnic Trail loop. It was a 4 mile trail that skirted the edge of the canyon and worked its way through somewhat untamed grassy meadows. At one point during the route, we came upon a half dozen ospreys gliding throughout the canyon. The hike itself was not very challenging because it only had about a 300 foot elevation gain. However, the entire trail was very exposed to the elements: the blazing sun and the gusty winds. Winds occasionally gusted to 40 mph, causing us to feel a bit unbalanced at times. But luckily, it was blowing us away from the canyon as opposed to towards it. After about 3 miles the trail finally looped back around to the main road. But, we still had to hike over a half mile on the side of the road to get back to our car. By this time, it was 1:30pm, and we were both very hungry.
We quickly made some sandwiches and ate those at a picnic table. Then, we decided to continue east towards the Lamar Valley. Just about a mile from where we had been hiking, we noticed a massive number of cars pulled over. So, assuming it was something interesting, we stopped. Supposedly, there was a grizzly bear that had been hanging out in this meadow for a few days. We waited for about 5 minutes or so, and didn’t see a sign of anything happening. So, we got back in the car. As soon as we started to pull out, Justin spotted the bear, so we quickly pulled over again. We watched the bear from a safe distance for about 15 minutes, and Justin took several pictures. It was definitely one the coolest things we’ve seen so far on this trip. It’s just not very often that a bear just hangs out in an open field. The special thing about this particular field (at least to the bear variety) was the presence of a bison carcass. I'm sure the bear would nibble on it occasionally, but more than anything, he was hanging around because he had established ownership over the carcass. And from the mutterings we heard from the other people around us, he would continue to stay there and guard the carcass until he lost interest, which could take several days.
We finally decided to move on as opposed to camping out for the rest of the afternoon like many of the other people that spend weeks in the park just scoping for wildlife. Once in the Lamar Valley, we of course, were hoping to see a wolf. But you have to be extremely lucky and be in the right place at the right time. Unfortunately, I don’t think it’s going to happen for us on this trip. We did, however, see many more herds of bison scattered throughout the valley. Then, as we were retracing the route back, we passed a happy little coyote trotting along the side of the road. Because we were both traveling in opposite directions, we weren’t able to snap a picture. But, we’ve seen coyotes before, so it wasn’t that big of a deal.
We had just a bit more time to kill before heading to our hotel, but we were too tired to try another trail. So, we decided to check out the Petrified Tree which was a complete waste of time. Then, we took a drive on this one-way gravel road called Blacktail Plateau Drive. Supposedly, there were some good chances of seeing wildlife. Unfortunately, all we got were several false alarms. There were lots of big rocks that resembled animals. We joked about if the rocks had been planted there on purpose.
After these two disappointing ventures, we drove back south towards Canyon Village. There were a couple of spots where lots of cars were stopped along the road, but we honestly couldn’t see anything so we kept moving. At Canyon Village, we cut west onto Norris Canyon Road. Then from there, we briefly went south on the main loop before continuing towards the west entrance on Madison Junction Rd. We stopped a couple of times on the way out of the park to see some mule deer resting and feeding along the Madison River.
Once we got to West Yellowstone, we kind of had a hard time finding the Moose Creek Inn that we were supposed to stay at. However, once we found it, it just didn’t quite fit the description and pictures we had seen on the website. So, we drove down the road and checked into a more typical hotel called Yellowstone Lodge with a similar price point and cancelled our other reservation. It was definitely a successful switchover because we now have some of those luxuries that we have not had for a few days such as a TV, an ironing board, a mini-fridge and free wi-fi.
For dinner we drove a few blocks to the main area of town, and we managed to find the one Chinese restaurant in town. We were both pretty thrilled for the change of cuisine because Chinese food is like our comfort food. So, Justin had some pork dumplings and Mongolian beef, and I had egg drop soup and almond chicken. It was definitely a satisfying meal. Afterwards, we went to some of the souvenir shops to browse around and buy some magnets for our fridge at home. Then, we went back to the hotel and caught up on some Olympic watching.
Tomorrow’s focus will be on the Northwest side of the park with almost a full day of thermal features.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Yellystone Day One
I was so proud of us this morning! We are totally the type of people who hate getting up early, and we love to sleep in. But we had our earliest morning yet, waking up at 6am and getting out the door by 6:45am. Then, we were officially in the Yellowstone National Park just 5 minutes later, since Flagg Ranch was only 2 miles from the entrance. We even beat the gate attendant when we got to the park, so we just drove on through after grabbing a map.
The first destination of the morning was the West Thumb Geyser Basin. We stopped for a few pictures on the way there, but did not catch any wildlife. The West Thumb Geyser basin has about a half-mile, boardwalk trail along Yellowstone Lake. There are several thermal features both along and actually in the lake itself. It was a bit difficult to take pictures because it was still only about 40 degrees outside, so there was a lot of steam coming off of the springs and pools. When we got to about the last quarter of the loop, we noticed our first animal for the morning – a very large, male elk. He was just meandering through the thermal features to get his breakfast, I guess.
When we were done with this area, we headed another 20 miles north to the Natural Bridge Trail. It wasn’t too long at 3 miles round trip, and the feature was a natural bridge created by rocks. It was sort of reminiscent of a rock feature you would see in Arches National Park, for example. Anyway, before any of that, about a ¼ mile into the trail, we ran into a couple from Indiana who had stopped. The reason was that there were several mule deer (basically deer that have antlers) grazing in the area. So, we spent about the next 20 minutes playing cat and mouse with them as we tried to slowly and quietly work our way along the trail. In all, we saw about 8 of them, and were able to get close enough to obtain some fantastic pictures. Shortly before and after the Natural Bridge, we ran into a couple of marmots. They sort of remind me of ferrets, but bigger and not nearly as lean. So, they are pretty cute if you like that sort of thing. They were also quite curious, so we were also able to get some close up shots of the little buggers.
We finally finished the trail around 10:30, had a quick breakfast by sharing a pop tart, and headed northward again towards Mud Volcano. We didn’t quite make it up there immediately though because in the open meadows along the Yellowstone River was a massive herd of grazing bison. We observed them and took pictures for a good 15 minutes, along with everyone else in the park, mind you. It was quite a sight though. Some bison were rolling around taking dust baths, some were making big to-do’s about demonstrating their dominance, and the rest of the bunch were grunting away like belching cattle. So, after that little jaunt, we made it to Mud Volcano. Mud Volcano is an area of more thermal activity that features mud pots and fumaroles. This area was definitely a lot smellier than the West Thumb area from earlier in the day. But, it all comes with the territory! A couple of the coolest mud pots included Churning Caldron and Dragon’s Mouth Spring. Churning Caldron was like a giant pot of boiling mud. Occasionally, it would splash up to 5 or 6 feet as it bubbled. Dragon’s Mouth was a hot muddy spring that generated its energy from the inside of a small cave in the side of a hill. The steam coming out of the cave and the low rumbling sounds it made as the hot gases and water are forced out led to its name many years ago.
By the time we finished in this area, we decided to find a good lunch spot and to begin heading towards the east side of the park. Once again, however, those plans were thwarted by the pesky bison. It was nearing noon, so the park was that much more crowded than before. We were stopped for about another 15 minutes on the way back south to the East Entrance Road. This time, the bison appeared to be acting as crossing guards as others milled across the road supposedly for better pastures. They couldn’t have paid less attention to the car jam they were creating on either side of the road. And so it goes…
About 30 minutes later, we found our lunch spot along the northeastern shore of Yellowstone Lake. We maybe only sat out there on the picnic table for about 10 minutes though because Justin was getting annoyed with the bugs. So, we finished our meal in car and then decided to try another trail. I wasn’t feeling too well because I seem to have come down with a cold as of yesterday, but I told Justin we could give another trail a shot. The one we decided on was called Avalanche Peak. Well, let’s just say that we finally faced our first Park vs. Peter defeat. This particular trail was 4 miles long round trip, with a 2,000 foot elevation gain. It was a category 4 out of 5 hike and was considered strenuous. You can call it being overambitious or you can just call it stupid. But, we made it about ½ a mile and were just too tired to continue on. We were also a little concerned because there were signs everywhere suggesting bear activity. Since there were only two of us, we were a little leery. So, we turned around and headed back to the car.
We made one more stop to Lake Butte before heading to our cabin for the night at Absaroka Mountain Lodge. From this 8,000 foot viewing spot, we could see the Tetons to the south, all of Yellowstone Lake, several other named mountains in the park and smoke from the current Lehardy Rapids fire burning in the backcountry of Yellowstone. On our way out the east side of the park, I thought I noticed more smoke in the distance (and in the direction we were traveling). As we got closer, we began to see road signs and other emergency vehicles making that fact more obvious. We stopped at a spot about six miles outside of the park to take a picture, and as we were doing so, a helicopter carrying a large bucket of water flew into the burn area. And about six miles later, we arrived at our cabin. There was not any indication of the fire at teh lodge, but we found out that a few weeks ago they did have to evacuate for 3 days and that some of the property above their horse corral was destroyed.
When we checked into Absaroka, the first thing we decided to do was take a well-deserved nap. That’s the only disadvantage to an early start – you are tired by 3’o’clock. We didn’t even bother bringing any luggage in. Around 5:30pm, we got up and decided to walk around the property a little bit. We walked up to the horse corral just as all of the horses were having their dinner. We spent some time hand-feeding some of them, and it seemed like several of them much preferred it that way. They didn’t have to bend down quite as far! Once we got back to the room, we got ready for dinner.
Dinner was just a short 30 foot walk to the main lodge…how convenient. I had trout with just a light lemon garlic seasoning and fries while Justin had a rib-eye and fries. We also both had a cup of creamy potato soup with bacon. We got done with dinner around 8:15 and decided to take another walk down to the main highway to see if we could see the wildfire. As dusk approached, we could begin to see the smoke settling into some of the valleys around the cabins. As we were walking, we also saw the Absaroka house pets – a dog and a couple of cats. I was able to get another kitty fix to help with my withdrawal from our baby. We couldn’t see anything from the road, so we decided go ahead and go for a drive instead. After about 4 miles traveling back in the direction of the park, we rounded a corner and there it was: an entire hillside of a mountain on fire. It was definitely a first for the both of us, and it’s unfortunate but awe-inspiring at the same time. Justin was able to get some pictures that hopefully represent the scale of what we saw.
We finally got back to the cabin at 10. Before heading inside, we spent a few minutes looking at the stars. We are not going to see a night sky like this for the rest of the trip since this is the most remote of the places we are staying. The stars are incredible out here. I can’t even estimate how many stars I saw as I scanned across the sky…there were tens of thousands that just blanketed the sky. We were probably even seeing a bit of a distorted view with the smoke nearby.
It’s after 11pm, and it should be another early morning tomorrow with the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone being the first thing on the docket. Off to bed and good night.
The first destination of the morning was the West Thumb Geyser Basin. We stopped for a few pictures on the way there, but did not catch any wildlife. The West Thumb Geyser basin has about a half-mile, boardwalk trail along Yellowstone Lake. There are several thermal features both along and actually in the lake itself. It was a bit difficult to take pictures because it was still only about 40 degrees outside, so there was a lot of steam coming off of the springs and pools. When we got to about the last quarter of the loop, we noticed our first animal for the morning – a very large, male elk. He was just meandering through the thermal features to get his breakfast, I guess.
When we were done with this area, we headed another 20 miles north to the Natural Bridge Trail. It wasn’t too long at 3 miles round trip, and the feature was a natural bridge created by rocks. It was sort of reminiscent of a rock feature you would see in Arches National Park, for example. Anyway, before any of that, about a ¼ mile into the trail, we ran into a couple from Indiana who had stopped. The reason was that there were several mule deer (basically deer that have antlers) grazing in the area. So, we spent about the next 20 minutes playing cat and mouse with them as we tried to slowly and quietly work our way along the trail. In all, we saw about 8 of them, and were able to get close enough to obtain some fantastic pictures. Shortly before and after the Natural Bridge, we ran into a couple of marmots. They sort of remind me of ferrets, but bigger and not nearly as lean. So, they are pretty cute if you like that sort of thing. They were also quite curious, so we were also able to get some close up shots of the little buggers.
We finally finished the trail around 10:30, had a quick breakfast by sharing a pop tart, and headed northward again towards Mud Volcano. We didn’t quite make it up there immediately though because in the open meadows along the Yellowstone River was a massive herd of grazing bison. We observed them and took pictures for a good 15 minutes, along with everyone else in the park, mind you. It was quite a sight though. Some bison were rolling around taking dust baths, some were making big to-do’s about demonstrating their dominance, and the rest of the bunch were grunting away like belching cattle. So, after that little jaunt, we made it to Mud Volcano. Mud Volcano is an area of more thermal activity that features mud pots and fumaroles. This area was definitely a lot smellier than the West Thumb area from earlier in the day. But, it all comes with the territory! A couple of the coolest mud pots included Churning Caldron and Dragon’s Mouth Spring. Churning Caldron was like a giant pot of boiling mud. Occasionally, it would splash up to 5 or 6 feet as it bubbled. Dragon’s Mouth was a hot muddy spring that generated its energy from the inside of a small cave in the side of a hill. The steam coming out of the cave and the low rumbling sounds it made as the hot gases and water are forced out led to its name many years ago.
By the time we finished in this area, we decided to find a good lunch spot and to begin heading towards the east side of the park. Once again, however, those plans were thwarted by the pesky bison. It was nearing noon, so the park was that much more crowded than before. We were stopped for about another 15 minutes on the way back south to the East Entrance Road. This time, the bison appeared to be acting as crossing guards as others milled across the road supposedly for better pastures. They couldn’t have paid less attention to the car jam they were creating on either side of the road. And so it goes…
About 30 minutes later, we found our lunch spot along the northeastern shore of Yellowstone Lake. We maybe only sat out there on the picnic table for about 10 minutes though because Justin was getting annoyed with the bugs. So, we finished our meal in car and then decided to try another trail. I wasn’t feeling too well because I seem to have come down with a cold as of yesterday, but I told Justin we could give another trail a shot. The one we decided on was called Avalanche Peak. Well, let’s just say that we finally faced our first Park vs. Peter defeat. This particular trail was 4 miles long round trip, with a 2,000 foot elevation gain. It was a category 4 out of 5 hike and was considered strenuous. You can call it being overambitious or you can just call it stupid. But, we made it about ½ a mile and were just too tired to continue on. We were also a little concerned because there were signs everywhere suggesting bear activity. Since there were only two of us, we were a little leery. So, we turned around and headed back to the car.
We made one more stop to Lake Butte before heading to our cabin for the night at Absaroka Mountain Lodge. From this 8,000 foot viewing spot, we could see the Tetons to the south, all of Yellowstone Lake, several other named mountains in the park and smoke from the current Lehardy Rapids fire burning in the backcountry of Yellowstone. On our way out the east side of the park, I thought I noticed more smoke in the distance (and in the direction we were traveling). As we got closer, we began to see road signs and other emergency vehicles making that fact more obvious. We stopped at a spot about six miles outside of the park to take a picture, and as we were doing so, a helicopter carrying a large bucket of water flew into the burn area. And about six miles later, we arrived at our cabin. There was not any indication of the fire at teh lodge, but we found out that a few weeks ago they did have to evacuate for 3 days and that some of the property above their horse corral was destroyed.
When we checked into Absaroka, the first thing we decided to do was take a well-deserved nap. That’s the only disadvantage to an early start – you are tired by 3’o’clock. We didn’t even bother bringing any luggage in. Around 5:30pm, we got up and decided to walk around the property a little bit. We walked up to the horse corral just as all of the horses were having their dinner. We spent some time hand-feeding some of them, and it seemed like several of them much preferred it that way. They didn’t have to bend down quite as far! Once we got back to the room, we got ready for dinner.
Dinner was just a short 30 foot walk to the main lodge…how convenient. I had trout with just a light lemon garlic seasoning and fries while Justin had a rib-eye and fries. We also both had a cup of creamy potato soup with bacon. We got done with dinner around 8:15 and decided to take another walk down to the main highway to see if we could see the wildfire. As dusk approached, we could begin to see the smoke settling into some of the valleys around the cabins. As we were walking, we also saw the Absaroka house pets – a dog and a couple of cats. I was able to get another kitty fix to help with my withdrawal from our baby. We couldn’t see anything from the road, so we decided go ahead and go for a drive instead. After about 4 miles traveling back in the direction of the park, we rounded a corner and there it was: an entire hillside of a mountain on fire. It was definitely a first for the both of us, and it’s unfortunate but awe-inspiring at the same time. Justin was able to get some pictures that hopefully represent the scale of what we saw.
We finally got back to the cabin at 10. Before heading inside, we spent a few minutes looking at the stars. We are not going to see a night sky like this for the rest of the trip since this is the most remote of the places we are staying. The stars are incredible out here. I can’t even estimate how many stars I saw as I scanned across the sky…there were tens of thousands that just blanketed the sky. We were probably even seeing a bit of a distorted view with the smoke nearby.
It’s after 11pm, and it should be another early morning tomorrow with the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone being the first thing on the docket. Off to bed and good night.
Monday, August 18, 2008
The Teton Experience
On Sunday, our first full day in the Tetons, we started the morning off right with a whitewater trip. The trip was through Barker-Ewing out of Jackson Hole. They actually called us around 8:15am that morning because we were the only two people reserved for our 8-man raft. So, we decided to join a 14-man raft instead so that we didn’t have to reschedule for later in the day.
We left the Barker-Ewing office around 9:30am, and it took a good 30 minutes to get to the boat launch site. Once we were down there though, it didn’t take long at all to launch. The Snake River started out pretty low-key to give us all a chance to get comfortable and practice our paddling technique. On our raft was a couple of families and children from near Palm Desert, CA and a couple of girls from the Jackson area. The guy at the front of the raft on my side was an ex-marine, so he paddled like way fast. It was really tough to lock-in on his rhythm. So, at times we were a mess.
Our guide’s name was Walker, and he did a great job throughout the trip of being informative and socializing with everyone on the raft. At the halfway point of the 8 mile journey, we finally reached the more serious rapids. The first and biggest rapid was called the Big Kahuna. This was also the rapid where the photo-op took place. A couple of photography companies stake themselves out on a rock and take shots of everyone coming through the area. So, I tried really hard to keep a smile on my face the whole time as water was hitting me full-on. Who am I kidding though?? It wasn’t THAT hard to smile. It was so much fun!
The next rapid after Big Kahuna was Lunch Counter with a short break before Rope. These rapids were fairly similar to one another and both occurred at bends in the river. The next two rapids included Champagne and almost immediately by Little Cottonwood. Champagne was really cool because right amidst the rapid the depth of the water suddenly changes to about 80 feet deep. The sudden change causes millions of bubbles to rise to the surface of the water both sounding and looking like a giant flute of champagne. The final rapid was called Sheep Gulch. Sheep Gulch was the longest of all the rapids and lasted a good 200 – 300 yards.
So, the whitewater trip was a success, but we were also excited to get on with the rest of the day and see those Grand Tetons up close and personal! Our bus got back to the Barker-Ewing office around 1:15, and in lieu of time Justin and I decided to pick up McDonald’s for lunch. Then, we ran back to our hotel, showered and entered into the park around 2:15. The first stop we made was at the Taggart and Bradley Lake trailhead. By 3pm, we got started. This was definitely the longest trail we had set out to defeat thus far. It started out easy enough, with lots of flat landscape. It was also beautifully sunny and about 85 degrees, so we started to roast pretty fast. About a half mile into the hike, we began to descend up into some glacial moraines. It became pretty strenuous pretty fast because the trail was so exposed to the sun. So, the brief episodes of shade from the aspens, spruce and lodgepole pines were quite welcome.
After about 1.8 miles, we reached Taggart Lake. The lake absolutely shone in the sunlight, and the backdrop of the Tetons and the clear blue sky were breathtaking. We also took a few moments to get our feet wet in the very cold water as a means to cool off. Then it was full steam ahead for another 1.6 miles to Bradley Lake. This portion of the hike was even more strenuous than the first jaunt. The two lakes were separated by a moraine, so we had to climb in order to reach the second stop. Once we reached Bradley Lake, it was time to take another big breather. Justin also took the opportunity to get some more great shots of the Tetons head-on. The trip back to the parking area was 2.1 miles from this spot, and we were exhausted so it couldn’t have come too soon. We finally reached our car at 6pm. So, I think we still completed the trail in less time than some of my trail guides suggested.
After the trail, we wanted to see a few more spots before heading back to the hotel and before dinner reservations. So, we hopped on Grand Teton Way northward to the Signal Mountain Overlook. There is a trail that you can take to the summit, but there is also a road that leads there. We were tired, so we were lazy and drove to the summit. When we got up there, there was quite a buzz because there were a couple of spottings of black bears. Sure enough, Justin and I were able to see one of them. Yay, our first bear sighting. Unfortunately, it was about 200 yards away though, so there was no chance of getting a decent picture. Hopefully, that bear will not be our last on this trip.
After Signal Mountain, we continued north to the Jackson Junction to take Highway 191 back south. We got back to our hotel around 7:45, and had barely 30 minutes to get ready and leave for our dinner reservations at Rendezvous Bistro. We were able to push the reservations back to 8:30 from 7:30 due to the lengthy hike we had taken earlier in the afternoon. For dinner, Justin and I had quail and Israeli cous cous as appetizers. For the main course, Justin had a chili-rubbed pork chop and this amazing corn mixture on the side. We asked the waiter how it was prepared, and we are absolutely going to try to duplicate it when we get home. I had halibut with saffron-infused fingerling potatoes. Very yummy. Oh yeah, I also forgot to mention that Justin had me try an oyster shooter. It had teqila, lime, cilantro and of course, the oyster. Let’s just say that I didn’t fare too well. First of all, I’m not very good at taking shots. Secondly, I like to chew my food before swallowing. So, I took the shot, then attempted to chew while all of that liquid and oyster was sitting in my mouth. I just couldn’t bear it any longer, so out went half the shot back into the glass. Oh well, I tried.
After dinner, we drove to Jackson Square with its elk antler archways. We walked in and then immediately out of the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar with saddle style bar stools. And then, we continued around a few other blocks of the square. It was nearly 11pm on a Sunday night, so nothing else was open. We finally got back to the hotel around 11:30 and crashed shortly thereafter.
On Monday morning, we woke up around 7:30am and checked out of the hotel by 9am. The first stop of the morning was to the Jenny Lake area of the park. This is one of the most popular spots, so we wanted to get in and out early to beat the crowds. On the way there however, we saw another moose. This time, it was a young male so he had antlers. It was also an up close and personal view as well because he was on the side of the road about 10 feet from the car. It was just awesome, and the funniest thing is that he was totally in his own world as car after car passed him by. When we got down to the lake, we decided to take a shuttle boat across the lake and back. It was $9.50 per person, but totally worth it because it saves 2 miles of hiking around the lake each way. As we floated across the lake, we could tell it was going to be another clear, warm day even though the morning chill could still be felt in the breeze.
Once reaching the other side of the lake, we began our hike to Hidden Falls and Inspiration Point. This hike was definitely going to be much shorter than the ones we had been doing at 2 miles round trip. After the first ½ mile, we reached Hidden Falls. At 200 feet, it was spectacular. Justin took several pictures, and I took some video with my camera. Sometimes a still shot just doesn’t do it justice. Then, we continued on to Inspiration Point. Even though this trail was very short, the climb up to Inspiration Point was moderately strenuous and definitely a bit treacherous. You literally hike on a completely rock covered path on the edge of a mountain. In some places, it’s only about 5 – 6 feet wide. Then, you add in trying to pass people going the other way, and it’s a little scary. But the view at the top? Totally worth it! It was just amazing to look down on the lake and to look across the entire valley below. It was definitely one of those moments of appreciation that is making this vacation so worthwhile.
It was well after noon by the time we returned to our car. And as I expected, the parking lot had hundreds of cars there by the time we were leaving. At this point, we decided to go down to Jackson to eat some lunch, do a little shopping and look at our whitewater photos. We ate outside at this cute little restaurant called Sweetwater. I had the Cowboy Sandwich, that included sliced roast beef, cheese, bacon and mushrooms…many of my favorites on one sandwich! Justin went Greek and had a gyro. After lunch, we went to a few stores. Justin found and purchased another filter for his camera. We both found some t-shirts that we liked and bought those. Then, we went to Floatographs to check out our whitewater trip. There were a few decent ones to choose from, so we order an 8X10, and it’s being mailed to our house. Our final stop on the square was to a generally crowded souvenir shop so that I could buy a magnet to add to my collection. After the madness at the square, we ran down to Albertson’s (grocery store) to re-stock on drinks and food and to fill up on gas.
We continued back north on 191 to save some time because it was about 3:30 by the time we got out of Jackson. I had another possible hike on the itinerary, but there was definitely not enough time, so we headed straight for Flagg Ranch Village. We made just a few brief stops along the way to take some pictures of the landscape, but nothing significant. We reached Flagg Ranch around 5:30, checked in and relaxed for a bit before dinner at 7pm. The restaurant for Flagg Ranch was in the main lodge, so it was literally 2 minutes from our cabin. Justin had salmon and I had linguine alfredo. It was nothing spectacular, but it did the job.
Right after dinner, we decided to head south back into Grand Teton NP so that Justin could try to get some good sunset pictures. It’s something he’s been asking to do this whole trip so far. Justin took pictures until is was nearly dark, and then we went back to Flagg Ranch for the final time. We looked for wildlife along the way, but it was just so dark out, we couldn’t see anything. When we got back to the cabin, we decided to do some laundry to get some of those rain-dirtied clothes clean, finally. There’s a pretty good chance that the temperatures in Yellowstone will be a bit cooler, so it would be good to have more clothing options if necessary. After the laundry is done and folded, we plan on going to bed and trying to get out of here between 6 – 7am tomorrow morning. Yellowstone, here we come!
We left the Barker-Ewing office around 9:30am, and it took a good 30 minutes to get to the boat launch site. Once we were down there though, it didn’t take long at all to launch. The Snake River started out pretty low-key to give us all a chance to get comfortable and practice our paddling technique. On our raft was a couple of families and children from near Palm Desert, CA and a couple of girls from the Jackson area. The guy at the front of the raft on my side was an ex-marine, so he paddled like way fast. It was really tough to lock-in on his rhythm. So, at times we were a mess.
Our guide’s name was Walker, and he did a great job throughout the trip of being informative and socializing with everyone on the raft. At the halfway point of the 8 mile journey, we finally reached the more serious rapids. The first and biggest rapid was called the Big Kahuna. This was also the rapid where the photo-op took place. A couple of photography companies stake themselves out on a rock and take shots of everyone coming through the area. So, I tried really hard to keep a smile on my face the whole time as water was hitting me full-on. Who am I kidding though?? It wasn’t THAT hard to smile. It was so much fun!
The next rapid after Big Kahuna was Lunch Counter with a short break before Rope. These rapids were fairly similar to one another and both occurred at bends in the river. The next two rapids included Champagne and almost immediately by Little Cottonwood. Champagne was really cool because right amidst the rapid the depth of the water suddenly changes to about 80 feet deep. The sudden change causes millions of bubbles to rise to the surface of the water both sounding and looking like a giant flute of champagne. The final rapid was called Sheep Gulch. Sheep Gulch was the longest of all the rapids and lasted a good 200 – 300 yards.
So, the whitewater trip was a success, but we were also excited to get on with the rest of the day and see those Grand Tetons up close and personal! Our bus got back to the Barker-Ewing office around 1:15, and in lieu of time Justin and I decided to pick up McDonald’s for lunch. Then, we ran back to our hotel, showered and entered into the park around 2:15. The first stop we made was at the Taggart and Bradley Lake trailhead. By 3pm, we got started. This was definitely the longest trail we had set out to defeat thus far. It started out easy enough, with lots of flat landscape. It was also beautifully sunny and about 85 degrees, so we started to roast pretty fast. About a half mile into the hike, we began to descend up into some glacial moraines. It became pretty strenuous pretty fast because the trail was so exposed to the sun. So, the brief episodes of shade from the aspens, spruce and lodgepole pines were quite welcome.
After about 1.8 miles, we reached Taggart Lake. The lake absolutely shone in the sunlight, and the backdrop of the Tetons and the clear blue sky were breathtaking. We also took a few moments to get our feet wet in the very cold water as a means to cool off. Then it was full steam ahead for another 1.6 miles to Bradley Lake. This portion of the hike was even more strenuous than the first jaunt. The two lakes were separated by a moraine, so we had to climb in order to reach the second stop. Once we reached Bradley Lake, it was time to take another big breather. Justin also took the opportunity to get some more great shots of the Tetons head-on. The trip back to the parking area was 2.1 miles from this spot, and we were exhausted so it couldn’t have come too soon. We finally reached our car at 6pm. So, I think we still completed the trail in less time than some of my trail guides suggested.
After the trail, we wanted to see a few more spots before heading back to the hotel and before dinner reservations. So, we hopped on Grand Teton Way northward to the Signal Mountain Overlook. There is a trail that you can take to the summit, but there is also a road that leads there. We were tired, so we were lazy and drove to the summit. When we got up there, there was quite a buzz because there were a couple of spottings of black bears. Sure enough, Justin and I were able to see one of them. Yay, our first bear sighting. Unfortunately, it was about 200 yards away though, so there was no chance of getting a decent picture. Hopefully, that bear will not be our last on this trip.
After Signal Mountain, we continued north to the Jackson Junction to take Highway 191 back south. We got back to our hotel around 7:45, and had barely 30 minutes to get ready and leave for our dinner reservations at Rendezvous Bistro. We were able to push the reservations back to 8:30 from 7:30 due to the lengthy hike we had taken earlier in the afternoon. For dinner, Justin and I had quail and Israeli cous cous as appetizers. For the main course, Justin had a chili-rubbed pork chop and this amazing corn mixture on the side. We asked the waiter how it was prepared, and we are absolutely going to try to duplicate it when we get home. I had halibut with saffron-infused fingerling potatoes. Very yummy. Oh yeah, I also forgot to mention that Justin had me try an oyster shooter. It had teqila, lime, cilantro and of course, the oyster. Let’s just say that I didn’t fare too well. First of all, I’m not very good at taking shots. Secondly, I like to chew my food before swallowing. So, I took the shot, then attempted to chew while all of that liquid and oyster was sitting in my mouth. I just couldn’t bear it any longer, so out went half the shot back into the glass. Oh well, I tried.
After dinner, we drove to Jackson Square with its elk antler archways. We walked in and then immediately out of the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar with saddle style bar stools. And then, we continued around a few other blocks of the square. It was nearly 11pm on a Sunday night, so nothing else was open. We finally got back to the hotel around 11:30 and crashed shortly thereafter.
On Monday morning, we woke up around 7:30am and checked out of the hotel by 9am. The first stop of the morning was to the Jenny Lake area of the park. This is one of the most popular spots, so we wanted to get in and out early to beat the crowds. On the way there however, we saw another moose. This time, it was a young male so he had antlers. It was also an up close and personal view as well because he was on the side of the road about 10 feet from the car. It was just awesome, and the funniest thing is that he was totally in his own world as car after car passed him by. When we got down to the lake, we decided to take a shuttle boat across the lake and back. It was $9.50 per person, but totally worth it because it saves 2 miles of hiking around the lake each way. As we floated across the lake, we could tell it was going to be another clear, warm day even though the morning chill could still be felt in the breeze.
Once reaching the other side of the lake, we began our hike to Hidden Falls and Inspiration Point. This hike was definitely going to be much shorter than the ones we had been doing at 2 miles round trip. After the first ½ mile, we reached Hidden Falls. At 200 feet, it was spectacular. Justin took several pictures, and I took some video with my camera. Sometimes a still shot just doesn’t do it justice. Then, we continued on to Inspiration Point. Even though this trail was very short, the climb up to Inspiration Point was moderately strenuous and definitely a bit treacherous. You literally hike on a completely rock covered path on the edge of a mountain. In some places, it’s only about 5 – 6 feet wide. Then, you add in trying to pass people going the other way, and it’s a little scary. But the view at the top? Totally worth it! It was just amazing to look down on the lake and to look across the entire valley below. It was definitely one of those moments of appreciation that is making this vacation so worthwhile.
It was well after noon by the time we returned to our car. And as I expected, the parking lot had hundreds of cars there by the time we were leaving. At this point, we decided to go down to Jackson to eat some lunch, do a little shopping and look at our whitewater photos. We ate outside at this cute little restaurant called Sweetwater. I had the Cowboy Sandwich, that included sliced roast beef, cheese, bacon and mushrooms…many of my favorites on one sandwich! Justin went Greek and had a gyro. After lunch, we went to a few stores. Justin found and purchased another filter for his camera. We both found some t-shirts that we liked and bought those. Then, we went to Floatographs to check out our whitewater trip. There were a few decent ones to choose from, so we order an 8X10, and it’s being mailed to our house. Our final stop on the square was to a generally crowded souvenir shop so that I could buy a magnet to add to my collection. After the madness at the square, we ran down to Albertson’s (grocery store) to re-stock on drinks and food and to fill up on gas.
We continued back north on 191 to save some time because it was about 3:30 by the time we got out of Jackson. I had another possible hike on the itinerary, but there was definitely not enough time, so we headed straight for Flagg Ranch Village. We made just a few brief stops along the way to take some pictures of the landscape, but nothing significant. We reached Flagg Ranch around 5:30, checked in and relaxed for a bit before dinner at 7pm. The restaurant for Flagg Ranch was in the main lodge, so it was literally 2 minutes from our cabin. Justin had salmon and I had linguine alfredo. It was nothing spectacular, but it did the job.
Right after dinner, we decided to head south back into Grand Teton NP so that Justin could try to get some good sunset pictures. It’s something he’s been asking to do this whole trip so far. Justin took pictures until is was nearly dark, and then we went back to Flagg Ranch for the final time. We looked for wildlife along the way, but it was just so dark out, we couldn’t see anything. When we got back to the cabin, we decided to do some laundry to get some of those rain-dirtied clothes clean, finally. There’s a pretty good chance that the temperatures in Yellowstone will be a bit cooler, so it would be good to have more clothing options if necessary. After the laundry is done and folded, we plan on going to bed and trying to get out of here between 6 – 7am tomorrow morning. Yellowstone, here we come!
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Stay tuned!
We had a pretty exhausting day, so I'll post the entire Teton Experience tomorrow. Click on the picture above to see more.
Saturday, August 16, 2008
A Long Haul
Well, we left by 7am this morning, which is exactly what I wanted. When we woke up, it was STILL raining! So, we couldn't get out of there too quickly. First, we took the Cache La Poudre Scenic By-way. It stopped raining just long enough for us to get out of the car and climb down to the river to take some pictures. Then, we continued on into the higher elevations of the drive. At the coldest point, the temperature went down to 33 degrees. We stopped briefly at a pullout to stand in the snow for a moment.
In Walden, at the end of the scenic drive, we got some gas (at around $4.10 per gallon). Then , we continued north into Wyoming. Once we crossed into Wyoming, the sun was beginning to threaten to make an appearance. Thank goodness!
After passing through a small town, we decided to stop off at the North Platte River for some more pictures. It actually took a good 10 minutes to reach the river on an unpaved road off of the highway. It was worth it though. The sun was shining, the temperature was rising, and we needed to stretch our legs. Justin took some fantastic pictures of some rocky cliffs and gorgeous wildflowers.
After reaching I-80, the boring portion of the drive began. For the most part, the landscape turned into a slightly hilly, desolate desert. The only thing that was missing were the cacti. We reached Rock Springs, WY around 2pm and proceeded on state hwy. 191N the rest of the way to Jackson.
About 90 miles in, we reached Pinedale, WY and the drive began to get more interesting from there. The trees and rocks began to reappear, and eventually we were driving along mountain rivers again, such as the Hoback River. By about 5pm, we reached the Inn at Jackson Hole in Teton Village. I was thrilled because I had no idea how long the total drive would take us. I knew there was a chance it could take 12 hours. Even with about 6 or so stops, we still made it in great time.
After checking in, we figured out our dinner plans. We decided just to eat in Teton Village because we could walk, as opposed to driving 15 minutes to get into Jackson. We settled on the Mangy Moose, which is the same restaurant I ate at about 15 years ago with my parents. It wasn't planned, it just ended up that way. Justin had trout, and I had a classic hamburger and fries.
Following dinner, we stopped by the wine bar of this new Italian restaurant right next door to our hotel called Il Villagio Osteria. We shared some Blood Orange homemade ice cream, I had a glass of wine and Justin had a couple of black Russians. It was actually really relaxing. There were lots of locals at the place, so we chatted with them and watched the Olympics. Justin and I aren't really going to participate in this event, but there were more people than normal in Teton Village tonight because there is a music festival going on today and tomorrow. A couple of the bigger names performing are Wilco and the Black Crowes. We just have too many other things planned to try to attend. Oh well.
So, off to bed for tonight. Tomorrow morning first thing is our whitewater trip!
Friday, August 15, 2008
Rain, rain go away!
Well, we had kind of heard that bad weather was coming for Friday, but I just assumed it would all blow over pretty quickly. That didn't quite happen. It was raining when we woke up, and its still raining now at 9:30pm. It didn't entirely ruin our day, but it did present some challenges, such as STAYING DRY.
So, we woke up around 7am this morning and decided to do a 3.6 mile round-trip hike to Gem Lake. It was only drizzling for most of the hike, but after being in drizzle for 2 hours straight, you're pretty soaked through. I stupidly wore makeup this morning too, so I had a bit of the raccoon effect going on by the time we reached our destination. This hike was also 2-3 times as hard as the hike we did yesterday. The height of some of the rock steps made me quite thankful that I have long legs! I also adopted a walking stick for this hike, and it helped out immensely. As we made our way to Gem Lake, we did not see even one person. So, it was definitely kind of cool to have the trail all to ourselves. The lake was pretty cool, as one side of it was bordered by a sheer cliff. I'm sure it would have been prettier if the sun was out though! On the way back down, we began to pass more people and the most spoken comment was "Wow, you are as crazy as we are!"
When we got back to the SUV, we were pretty wet. Unfortunately, we didn't really prepare our wardrobe for rain during this vacation, so our clothes were soaked through. We stopped back at the cabin to change, and since we were tired and it was still raining, we decided to go grab a nice hot lunch at Village Pizza in Estes Park. Justin had wings and I had a small thin-crust pepperoni pizza.
After lunch, we decided to take a drive and see if we could possibly fit in one more hike during the day. We were on the road for close to an hour and half before we got to our first possible stop at Indian Peaks. A ranger (from the previous day) had recommended we go there because of the beautiful wildflowers that blanket the area. When we got down there, it was about 37 degrees, and it cost 8 bucks to get into the area. The guy working the gate basically told us that it was not worth it. So, we turned around and headed back towards RMNP.
As we neared the Wild Basin Area around the Southeast side of the park, it continued to rain. But, we went ahead and drove to the Ouzel Falls trailhead anyway. With my change of clothes, I was even less prepared to do another rainy hike. Justin ran into the Ranger Information Station, and they had just had some ponchos delivered. So, he bought two of them for $8. The rain had also begun to return to a drizzle, and we were off.
The hike to Ouzel Falls was 5.2 miles roundtrip, so it was definitely our farthest yet. Along the way, we saw some other cool waterfalls such as the Upper and Lower Copeland Falls and the Calypso Cascades. The ranger also warned us before the hike about the fact that both black bears and mountain lions frequented the area. So, it was important that we stay quite aware during the hike. Along we went, and by the time we got to Calypso Cascades with a mile remaining to Ouzel Falls, the rain was picking up again. It was also about quarter to 5 (we started the hike around 3:30), and we decided it would be best to turn around. As we were resting before heading back to the car, three very large horses passed us. You can imagine that it was important to keep our eyes on the trail on the way back, so as not to step in anything repulsive. We made great time on the way back, though, and made it to the car just before 5:30.
We got back to the cabin by about 6:15 and decided to take a little nap before going to dinner. We slept until 7:15, freshened up and went to downtown Estes Park to a restaurant called Grubsteak. We had actually tried to go there the night before, but they had an hour wait. That was not so tonight! With the rainy, cold weather in play, there was almost no one at the restaurant. By the time we got our main course, we practically had the whole place to ourselves. I love that! So, what did we have? Well, tonight's main ingredient was buffalo. Justin had a buffalo strip steak with mashed potatoes and gravy and some veggies. I had buffalo meatloaf with mashed potatoes and gravy and veggies. I must not be too discriminatory because I couldn't tell the difference between that and regular beef meatloaf. So, all in all, it was delicious. I also had a tasty beer with dinner called Easy Street Wheat brewed in Ft. Collins. I doubt that I can find it in Cincinnati, but I'm sure gonna try when we get home.
We got back to the cabin around 9pm. Shortly thereafter, I decided to start blogging, of course. Before bed, we are going to go ahead and do most of our packing and take showers tonight. We are going to try to get on the road by 7am because we will have a long day of driving ahead of us to get to Jackson, WY.
Other than leaving on time, the only other thing I care about for tomorrow is waking up to the sun shining. I don't want to see any more rain on this vacation!!
So, we woke up around 7am this morning and decided to do a 3.6 mile round-trip hike to Gem Lake. It was only drizzling for most of the hike, but after being in drizzle for 2 hours straight, you're pretty soaked through. I stupidly wore makeup this morning too, so I had a bit of the raccoon effect going on by the time we reached our destination. This hike was also 2-3 times as hard as the hike we did yesterday. The height of some of the rock steps made me quite thankful that I have long legs! I also adopted a walking stick for this hike, and it helped out immensely. As we made our way to Gem Lake, we did not see even one person. So, it was definitely kind of cool to have the trail all to ourselves. The lake was pretty cool, as one side of it was bordered by a sheer cliff. I'm sure it would have been prettier if the sun was out though! On the way back down, we began to pass more people and the most spoken comment was "Wow, you are as crazy as we are!"
When we got back to the SUV, we were pretty wet. Unfortunately, we didn't really prepare our wardrobe for rain during this vacation, so our clothes were soaked through. We stopped back at the cabin to change, and since we were tired and it was still raining, we decided to go grab a nice hot lunch at Village Pizza in Estes Park. Justin had wings and I had a small thin-crust pepperoni pizza.
After lunch, we decided to take a drive and see if we could possibly fit in one more hike during the day. We were on the road for close to an hour and half before we got to our first possible stop at Indian Peaks. A ranger (from the previous day) had recommended we go there because of the beautiful wildflowers that blanket the area. When we got down there, it was about 37 degrees, and it cost 8 bucks to get into the area. The guy working the gate basically told us that it was not worth it. So, we turned around and headed back towards RMNP.
As we neared the Wild Basin Area around the Southeast side of the park, it continued to rain. But, we went ahead and drove to the Ouzel Falls trailhead anyway. With my change of clothes, I was even less prepared to do another rainy hike. Justin ran into the Ranger Information Station, and they had just had some ponchos delivered. So, he bought two of them for $8. The rain had also begun to return to a drizzle, and we were off.
The hike to Ouzel Falls was 5.2 miles roundtrip, so it was definitely our farthest yet. Along the way, we saw some other cool waterfalls such as the Upper and Lower Copeland Falls and the Calypso Cascades. The ranger also warned us before the hike about the fact that both black bears and mountain lions frequented the area. So, it was important that we stay quite aware during the hike. Along we went, and by the time we got to Calypso Cascades with a mile remaining to Ouzel Falls, the rain was picking up again. It was also about quarter to 5 (we started the hike around 3:30), and we decided it would be best to turn around. As we were resting before heading back to the car, three very large horses passed us. You can imagine that it was important to keep our eyes on the trail on the way back, so as not to step in anything repulsive. We made great time on the way back, though, and made it to the car just before 5:30.
We got back to the cabin by about 6:15 and decided to take a little nap before going to dinner. We slept until 7:15, freshened up and went to downtown Estes Park to a restaurant called Grubsteak. We had actually tried to go there the night before, but they had an hour wait. That was not so tonight! With the rainy, cold weather in play, there was almost no one at the restaurant. By the time we got our main course, we practically had the whole place to ourselves. I love that! So, what did we have? Well, tonight's main ingredient was buffalo. Justin had a buffalo strip steak with mashed potatoes and gravy and some veggies. I had buffalo meatloaf with mashed potatoes and gravy and veggies. I must not be too discriminatory because I couldn't tell the difference between that and regular beef meatloaf. So, all in all, it was delicious. I also had a tasty beer with dinner called Easy Street Wheat brewed in Ft. Collins. I doubt that I can find it in Cincinnati, but I'm sure gonna try when we get home.
We got back to the cabin around 9pm. Shortly thereafter, I decided to start blogging, of course. Before bed, we are going to go ahead and do most of our packing and take showers tonight. We are going to try to get on the road by 7am because we will have a long day of driving ahead of us to get to Jackson, WY.
Other than leaving on time, the only other thing I care about for tomorrow is waking up to the sun shining. I don't want to see any more rain on this vacation!!
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Rocky Mountain High
After an urban experience yesterday, we finally made it to the mountains today. We left Beth and Brandon’s around 8:30 in the morning and reached the Rocky Mountain National Park around 10am. We were so excited once we got into the park, that we fairly quickly pulled off the side of the road at a mountain stream to take pictures.
Around 10:30, we reached the end of Bear Lake Rd. and geared up to do a 3 ½ mile round trip hike to Nymph, Dream and Emerald Lakes. In reading about the trail beforehand, I wasn’t expecting it to be too challenging because it fell under the “Easy” category. Boy was I misled! After about a quarter mile of straight ascent, Justin and I were already huffing and puffing. We are, of course, not accustomed to the altitude yet either. But, we took fairly frequent breaks and surged forward.
At Nymph Lake, the first of the three, we took some fantastic pictures of Long’s Peak and hundreds of lily pads that blanketed the lake. The next lake, Dream Lake, was large and peaceful and had some great gushing mountain creeks both above and below. The last leg of the hike proved to be the most difficult, with a majority of the elevation gain occurring in the last quarter mile of the hike. Luckily, I didn’t feel as bad about being winded because most of the other hikers were noticeably affected in exactly the same way as us. We finally reached Emerald Lake around 12:30, and it was well worth the trip. The lake is totally fed by a glacier among the peaks surrounding it. We could actually see a waterfall starting all the way at the top of the mountains and working its way all the way down to the lake. We spent a good half hour taking in the views, having a snack, taking pictures and watching the chipmunks and birds beg for food. The return trip back to our car was way easier than getting there….it was all a descent, so it was difficult NOT to go fast. We got back in less than half the time it took us to complete the first leg of the hike.
By this time, it was nearing 2pm, and we decided to quickly make ourselves sandwiches and get on the road. Pretty much the rest of the afternoon was spent driving through the park, stopping occasionally for pictures and looking for wildlife. We completed a lengthy drive on an unpaved road called Fall River Rd. all the way up to the alpine tundra of the park. Near the end of the drive, things got a bit backed up (traffic wise) because there were some mule deer bucks feeding about 20 feet from the road. Their antlers were crazy-huge and Justin got some really cool shots.
By the time we got to the Alpine Visitor Center, the temperatures had dropped low enough that it began to sleet a bit. So, we literally took a quick bathroom break and got on the road again. We continued west on Trail Ridge Road to the southwestern edge of the park at Grand Lake. Along the way, we saw some more mule deer, a moose and possibly a black bear (but it was too far away to tell or get a picture). Once you get to Grand Lake, what do you do? Well, being that it was 4pm by this time, we decided to turn around and head back through the park so that we could check-in to our cabin.
So, we took Trail Ridge Rd. all the way back through the entire park, and we made pretty good time as well. We saw a bit more wildlife on the way back, including some more mule deer bucks and a small herd of female deer resting on a hillside. By a little after 6pm, we reached our cabin and checked in.
It’s a quaint little place that literally sits on the Big Thompson River called Whispering Pines. We are going to attempt to leave the back screen door open tonight so that we can hear the babbling water while we sleep…but it may get too cold. We’ll see. But anyway, once we got all of our luggage into the room, we freshened up and went into Estes Park for dinner.
Before dinner, we went to several touristy hiking stores in the downtown area because Justin wanted to buy a hat to wear while hiking. Apparently, this was not just ANY hat because after going to about 8 places, he couldn’t find what he wanted and finally gave up. On to dinner, after checking out several places, we settled on Redstone Bistro. It was very unpretentious and simple. Justin had brandy-glazed chicken with provolone and I had trout buerre blanc. We also stuck with beer, since we were sort of “wined-out” from the night before. Justin had Fat Tire (surprise, surprise) and I had a local Estes Park Brewery wheat raspberry ale.
We got back to our cabin around 9:15, and basically settled in for the night. Justin is falling asleep next to me as I am writing. So, I feel like it is my duty to join him in that activity. It was definitely an excellent but exhausting day!
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
A Mile-High Day
Okay, so Day One. And it's been a long one at that. Our flight to Denver and our arrival were precisely on time. I can't ask for much more than that. Unfortunately, the other aspects of that venture were not so smooth. Claiming our luggage delayed us a bit. In the process of retrieving the rental car, we probably waited 45 minutes. There were maybe only 6-7 people in front of us as well. It was a classic example of two few incompetent employees dealing with its customers.
So, we landed at 7:30am. By about 9:15, we had our car and headed towards our friends' condo (Beth and Brandon). It was a little slow going since we hit the tail end of the morning rush, but it was definitely not Chicago or LA.
After arriving at Beth and Brandon's, we freshened up and headed towards the light rail, about 8 blocks away, to go to downtown Denver. As far as I am aware, this mass transit system has only been in existence for a few years. But, it was extremely convenient, and I hope that Cincinnati will one day have something similar.
The first thing I wanted to do once we got downtown was to have some lunch. I had been hungry since I woke up at 4am this morning, but I didn't eat because I truly wanted to tough it out. We went to a restaurant in Larimer Sqaure called Osteria Marco for lunch, and it was fantastic. I didn't entirely enjoy my Italian panini, which unfortunately had roasted red pepper (which was also not detailed on the menu). However, the house-made mozzarella and imported prosciutto was delicious. Justin's prosciutto panini was also very tasty...I often like his meals more than mine even though I stick with what could be considered a "safe" option.
After lunch, we headed west towards the Denver Museum of Comtemporary Art. Surprisingly, the museum was maybe a quarter of the size of Cincinnati's Contemporaray Arts Museum, and it took us about 45 minutes to work our way through the 3 exhibits. Despite the somewhat unsuccessful attempt at experiencing a downtown tourist attraction, I still had a great time experiencing the downtown atmosphere.
At about 1:30, when we were done with the museum, I was about exhausted as could be. So, we took the light rail back to Beth and Brandon's, and I proceeded to take a much-needed nap. I woke up fairly refreshed around 4pm, and Justin and I decided to run to the store to pick up lunch items and snacks for the next several days.
For dinner tonight, we went to Izakaya Den (a sushi and tapas restaurant) about 6 blocks from from Beth and Brandon's. We had Kobe Beef Medallions with Watermelon and Edamame, Saffron Halibut, a Spider Roll, Diver Scallops, Duck Hoison Crostini, Haricot Verts, Pork Short Ribs (all were tapas style), and a bottle of Klincker Brick Zinfandel from Lodi. For dessert, we had Green Tea Mochi, a form of Japanese ice cream, which was fabulous.
The first day had its ups and downs, but overall it was a success, because I am totally enjoying myself. I did not have any issues transitioning into vacation-mode.
Off to bed here very shortly (after finishing my 3rd or so glass of wine...Beth and I have had a really great time catching up). More to come!
So, we landed at 7:30am. By about 9:15, we had our car and headed towards our friends' condo (Beth and Brandon). It was a little slow going since we hit the tail end of the morning rush, but it was definitely not Chicago or LA.
After arriving at Beth and Brandon's, we freshened up and headed towards the light rail, about 8 blocks away, to go to downtown Denver. As far as I am aware, this mass transit system has only been in existence for a few years. But, it was extremely convenient, and I hope that Cincinnati will one day have something similar.
The first thing I wanted to do once we got downtown was to have some lunch. I had been hungry since I woke up at 4am this morning, but I didn't eat because I truly wanted to tough it out. We went to a restaurant in Larimer Sqaure called Osteria Marco for lunch, and it was fantastic. I didn't entirely enjoy my Italian panini, which unfortunately had roasted red pepper (which was also not detailed on the menu). However, the house-made mozzarella and imported prosciutto was delicious. Justin's prosciutto panini was also very tasty...I often like his meals more than mine even though I stick with what could be considered a "safe" option.
After lunch, we headed west towards the Denver Museum of Comtemporary Art. Surprisingly, the museum was maybe a quarter of the size of Cincinnati's Contemporaray Arts Museum, and it took us about 45 minutes to work our way through the 3 exhibits. Despite the somewhat unsuccessful attempt at experiencing a downtown tourist attraction, I still had a great time experiencing the downtown atmosphere.
At about 1:30, when we were done with the museum, I was about exhausted as could be. So, we took the light rail back to Beth and Brandon's, and I proceeded to take a much-needed nap. I woke up fairly refreshed around 4pm, and Justin and I decided to run to the store to pick up lunch items and snacks for the next several days.
For dinner tonight, we went to Izakaya Den (a sushi and tapas restaurant) about 6 blocks from from Beth and Brandon's. We had Kobe Beef Medallions with Watermelon and Edamame, Saffron Halibut, a Spider Roll, Diver Scallops, Duck Hoison Crostini, Haricot Verts, Pork Short Ribs (all were tapas style), and a bottle of Klincker Brick Zinfandel from Lodi. For dessert, we had Green Tea Mochi, a form of Japanese ice cream, which was fabulous.
The first day had its ups and downs, but overall it was a success, because I am totally enjoying myself. I did not have any issues transitioning into vacation-mode.
Off to bed here very shortly (after finishing my 3rd or so glass of wine...Beth and I have had a really great time catching up). More to come!
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Twas the Night Before Vacation...
Twas the night before vacation, and all through my space
I was furiously packing at an Olympic-record pace.
My reservations were made, the plans were all done
Apprehension, excitement, let's get on with the fun!
One final blog before the big trip
Stay tuned for many more tales and clips.
I'm not sure how much more I can say about that. But yes, the itinerary is done, as well as, most of the packing. All I have left to do is some stuff around the house like taking out the trash and emptying the dishwasher. I, of course, have been slowed a bit by the Olympics. I'm trying to get my fill of it now because I don't know when we will be around TV's during our vacation (and that should not really be a concern anyway). So, I hope to get to bed by about midnight.
Then, it's 4am to rise tomorrow morning to catch our 6:40am flight to Denver, where we will be spending the day sightseeing.
I will try to provide more updates tomorrow evening!
The final two images above are of the Grand Tetons, I believe, and of course, Old Faithful. We will definitely begin encountering these sights this coming weekend and then into next week. Stay tuned!
Friday, August 8, 2008
Back on the Saddle
To begin I'll say that, those that are particularly close to me would know that I've been a bit out-of-sorts for about the past day and a half. But now everything is great, and I'm back to normal at this point. So, late this afternoon, I got back on the saddle to work on ALL THINGS VACATION. That would be a cute television show title!
What I did first was to call all of the hotels we are staying at to see if they had Wifi access for our laptop that we are bringing. Well, about half did and the other half did not. I was not surprised, to say the least, and I know that I'll have to find some creative ways to get around that with the blogging. Justin actually mentioned that there is a way to turn his Blackberry into a modem. I'll let him figure that out though!
But anyway, I feel like we are going to be like the most technologically advanced travelers ever! The number of electronics and gadgets we are bringing on this trip is ridiculous. Here's a list: my Razr, Justin's Blackberry, my portable Garmin GPS navi system, Justin's laptop, my digital camera, Justin's digital SLR camera plus 3-4 lenses and a tripod, and both of our Ipods (including a docking station to play them in our rooms and the car adapter to listen while driving). We thought about bringing our video camera, but we are going to have our hands full as it is!
Let's see, I finally finished stockpiling all of the trail descriptions for RMNP, the Tetons and Yellowstone as well. With all of this research being done, I should be able to whip out days 9 and 10 really quickly. Depending on how I feel after watching several hours of the Opening Ceremony of the Summer Olympics, I may or may not work on the itinerary later tonight. We shall see...
This evenings' picture is of the Lower Falls in the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. Yay, finally somewhere where I know we will be in a few weeks! I'm sure we'll have some even better pictures of it from the exact same spot. It's difficult to see, but just to the right of the waterfall is a viewing spot in which people can look directly down over the brink of the falls. It's truly amazing to see the amount of force (up close) generated by all of that water! Unfortunately, due to some damage to the one of the roads (probably from a rock slide or small avalanche), we will not be able to access the trail that leads to that spot. It's a bit disapointing, but I know that we'll see so many other spectacular things that it's nothing to get your panties in a bunch about.
Thursday, August 7, 2008
I Have a Blog!
Sigh...Day Eight of the itinerary is now complete. I'm halfway through Yellowstone Park at this point. Practically the rest of the time will be all thermal features, which in my opinion is one of the most fascinating features of the park. I also looked up more trail descriptions on Trails.com specifically for the third day in the park. That way, I can type up the itinerary tomorrow without much extra research.
Also tomorrow, marks the day when I start notifying people that this blog exists! You know, I just wanted to make sure I had the hang of it first. And now that I've posted several times, I've locked myself into committing to it while on my trip. People will now be depending on me! Usually when that happens, I just don't have it in me to disappoint.
Should I give some shout outs?? just kidding.
I think that tonight's picture is another shot from Montana. This time, it appears to be a glacier (not much of it left though) or simply a snow-covered mountain with a peaceful glacier-formed lake below.
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Big Spender
So, after returning home from band rehearsal tonight, I just didn't have the energy to do more itinerary. But does that mean I did nothing vacation-related tonight? ABSOLUTELY NOT! Instead, I found another reason to spend more money on a vacation planning tool. I came across a website called Trails.com less than a week ago and started to sign up until I saw that you had to provide credit card information. Well, I thought about it a little more and decided to go for it and subscribe. It's good for a year, but I'll probably cancel it before then. So, more money spent on more vacation planning sources. Ay, me!
I looked up several of the trails that we are planning on doing and emailed them to myself so I can print them later. They are great because they give very detailed descriptions and provide actual maps of the individual trail. And for amateur hikers like ourselves, this resource makes me feel a whole lot more confident!
The photo above fast forwards a few years to when I was going to be a freshman at U of I and Justin a freshman in high school. I'm pretty sure this is a picture taken from Glacier NP in Montana...but it's related!! We will be staying in Montana for a portion of our trip, just not that particular park. It's still spectacular, isn't it?
Small Steps of Progress
I managed to finish Project Itinerary Day 7 tonight. In addition, I looked up some trail descriptions for the second full day in the park. This portion of the trip is a lot harder to predict because there are just so many options. We're definitely not going to have time to do it all, but it's all going to be beautiful, so what's the difference? Honestly, that's all I have to report tonight. I should definitely spend the rest of it dreaming about hiking all of those trails.
So, this picture is a continuation of last night's picture. We reached Bear Lake at the end of the trail (or at least where my parents decided to stop my brother and I from going further). This picture is really cool because it shows off so many different features of the park, from the mountain lakes to the ponderosa pines in the distance to the tree line to the snow-capped mountains. Breathtaking!
Sunday, August 3, 2008
OC Tendencies
Well, I accomplished what I set out to do on Friday night and finished the itinerary through Day 6. I didn't end up accomplishing anything vacation-related on Saturday, but I'm feeling pretty confident that I will completely finish the itinerary before next weekend. So, that should be good to go.
Today, I compiled a song playlist for my Ipod relating to our vacation. It contains songs that remind me of either mountains, rivers, nature or just generally The West. I can't neglect any detail, can I? Just thinking about it now, I realize how ridiculous and obsessive I am, but that's just how I am. It's also quite enjoyable, and I don't have a problem admitting to the world that I have these compulsive behaviors!
Tonight's picture is again of my brother and I posing on a trail in RMNP. I'm guessing that this trail is en route to Bear Lake. From a distance, notice my popped toe - I've always been a poser (not in the present day slang, but in the more literal sense).
Friday, August 1, 2008
Small Stuff
Not much to report today, other than Days 1 - 3 are pretty much complete. I didn't go to sleep until about 1am yesterday, but any time I wake up and it's Friday, I pretty much don't care. I know that I have the weekend to recuperate. But anyway, I'm fixin' to get started on Days 4 through 6 tonight...the period that we will be in the Grand Tetons.
Tonight's photo features a shot into a valley within RMNP. I'm not sure which one, but this was probably taken at a vista or scenic pullout, if you will, on Trail Ridge Road. The glare on the right side is probably due to my cheap camera with no zoom or focus capability and manual film advancing. It did have flash though!
The Planning Continues
So, I just couldn't resist buying ONE MORE BOOK today about our upcoming trip. It's the fourth book I've either purchased or been given. I have a Frommer's Colorado, a Frommer's Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks, a book called Hiking Yellowstone NP, and the most recent purchase titled, Hiking in the Rocky Mountains. It's already late, but I just don't think I can resist taking a peak at the newest addition to my literature collection before I go to bed.
What other strides have I made today? Well, I downloaded a bunch of podcasts and related videos through Itunes. Some of them I've already seen on YNP's website, but they are still good to have as a reference. I will most likely starting listening and watching that stuff this weekend.
And finally, I started the official itinerary. I'm nearly through the Rocky Mountain NP portion of the trip - Days 1 - 3. But, I just need to get some additional addresses, directions, etc. plugged in there. Then, I will really try to hit it hard this weekend to get the rest of the trip close to being squared away.
Today's image is of my brother, Justin, and I on the shores of Grand Lake after my family completed the Trail Ridge Rd. drive through RMNP. As you can tell by our expressions, that water was damn c-c-c-c-old!!
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