National Parks

Inspired by Ken Burns' PBS documentary (see links at the end of the narrative), we chose three of the national parks in the North West for our spring vacation this year.

Weather in the northern Rockies is undependable in early June. We left Bozeman as cold rains began. They continued for the remainder of the day. We entered Yellowstone Park through the Madison valley, where herds of bison with their young seemed oblivious to the rain. We passed through the park with only a brief stop at Old Faithful geyser basin (we'll be back when the weather improves), and pressed on to Colter Bay Village in Teton National Park.

It was still raining when we woke next morning. By 10 a.m., though, the weather showed signs of relenting, and the clouds began to lift. As we drove south through the park, the Teton mountains were gradually revealed through the mist.

After a detour through the Snake River valley, we stopped at Jackson Lodge, where an unconcerned fox reminded patrons whose territory they were occupying by urinating on several lamp posts.

We drove further south past the most impressive part of the Grand Teton range, with the weather improving as we drove. We had lunch at the south end of Jenny Lake, then took a walk along the western shore of the lake.

Along the way we passed Moose Ponds, a favorite location for wildlife. Look carefully at the picture and you may spot the grizzly bear and the moose (Moose Ponds, remember?). Further along the trail several yellow- bellied marmots were less shy than the larger mammals.

We hiked as far as Hidden Falls which, because of snow melt and recent rains, were not well hidden - more of a raging torrent in fact.

On the way back to Colter Bay we took in the full grandeur of these impressive mountains.

The rains returned as we left Colter Bay for Yellowstone Park. The dreary weather made flooding along the the Lewis River even more gloomy. A soggy mule deer found plenty to graze on though. The most cheerful sight along the way was this western bluebird.

In a search for a little color, we stopped at the West Thumb Geyser Basin to explore the thermal features. One advantage of the poor weather, of course, was the absence of large crowds.

Some of the features here are quite dramatic in their vivid colors, even though muted by the rain, or in the delicate texture of their surface. Others threaten to envelope the viewer with sulphurous fumes. Hot springs appear in the middle of a grassy meadow, or in Yellowstone Lake itself (inspiring old stories of "hooking and cooking" trout from the lake).

We arrived later that day at Lake Hotel, an elegant building dating back to the late 19th century.

Weather the next day was not much better. We followed the Yellowstone river to the Hayden valley, a popular site for herds of bison.

We stopped at the Yellowstone river's upper falls, then took a short but strenuous walk past the lower falls and along the south rim of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, to artists' point.

On the hike back we took a side trail, the modern equivalent of Uncle Tom's Trail - 320 metal steps that take the visitor to the bottom of the canyon, below the lower falls. Then, of course, we had to take the 320 steps back up. At an elevation of almost 8,000 feet, it's not an easy climb.

On the trip back to the hotel, we stopped again to look out over the Hayden valley. There, minding his own business, you can see the large grizzly.

Back at the hotel, breaking clouds over the Absaroka mountain range promised a pleasant day tomorrow.

Indeed, the next day dawned bright and clear,so we planned an extensive tour of the park. The trip began with a stop at a hot springs that had appeared in the middle of a parking lot. From there we took in the clear view over the Hayden valley and the Yellowstone river.

We enjoyed brief stops at quiet meadows and ponds, en route to the Artists' Paint Pots. This is one of Yellowstone's most dramatic collections of hydrothermal features, with colorful hot springs, and patches of boiling mud. All are reminders that most of the park sits atop a large, active volcano.

Heading north, past a pair of resting bison, we drove to the town of Mammoth. There the primary attraction is the Mammoth terraces, travertine formations that are constantly changing. Some reminded us of architectural designs by Gaudi in Barcelona. There is a great variety of colorful formations. Hot springs emerging from the old terraces help to create new ones.

The terraces seem to be a great habitat for swifts and the occasional jack rabbit.

After leaving Mammoth we stopped for a short hike up to Wraith Falls. Along the trail to the falls were three elks, two of them grazing, the third resting near the trail. The trail was also home for numerous ground squirrels, cheerful little animals that seem to be unafraid of humans.

We followed the valley of the lower Yellowstone River, and stopped to take a hike along the north rim of the Grand Canyon. Along the way we encountered this antelope. Boulders strewn across the meadows, including one that appeared to have come to rest against a pair of trees, are a reminder of the glacial action that created much of this region. The canyon itself was set off by this gnarled cedar tree.

On the way home we came across a black bear and his nearby mate. Ignoring the numerous cameras and binoculars aimed at them, they proceeded to do their part to increase the local bear population (viewer discretion advised here - sex). A little further, we noted a coyote dining on a bison carcass (another viewer advisory - violence).

The road back to the hotel took us past Mount Washburn and over Dunraven Pass, where there was still deep snow. On top of the pass is this dramatic residue of a forest fire. On our return to the hotel that evening we had a better view of Yellowstone Lake and the Absaroka mountains than we had seen so far.

We decided this morning to take a hike along the Firehole River, to the Lone Star Geyser, one of the most interesting geysers in the park.

Lone Star erupts roughly every three hours. When we arrived we were told we had just missed it, but it turned out that all we missed was the preamble. Five minutes later the main show began. For 20 minutes plumes of boiling hot water emerged, followed by clouds of steam. The audience for this display consisted of ourselves and four other people.

By contrast, we next revisited the Old Faithful basin. Rather than stay with the crowds, we hiked up the hill past Solitary Geyser to a scenic overlook from where we could look down on numerous other springs and geysers. A small group of us watched the eruption of Old Faithful from the overlook, without having to deal with the usual audience of hundreds. Afterwards we had lunch at the lodge. Sitting in rockers on the porch after lunch, we watched the next eruption 90 minutes later.

This morning's hike started at a popular fishing spot in the Firehole River. The trail took us past the Great Prismatic Spring, so called because it reflects the colors of the rainbow in its steam.

A vigorous hike justified a pause for a rest at the foot of Fairy Falls. While there, a western tannager was happy to pose for us and allow us to capture a formal portrait.

Later in the day, another encounter with bison gave us a close-up view of mothers with their young. This can be rather hazardous since, like most wildlife, the bison is very protective of its young.

We left Yellowstone Park and Yellowstone Lake to cross the width of Montana, slowed occasionally by unexpected events such as this cattle drive.

We arrived finally at Glacier National Park and the Many Glacier Hotel, situated on the shores of Swiftcurrent Lake. The lake was so still that evening that everything was perfectly reflected in the water. Mount Willbur is straight ahead, and the sheer cliff to the right of the mountain is the Ptarmigan Wall. The lake is dominated by Grinnell Point. Oops, sorry, wrong way up - this is the correct version.

We were happy to sit on our porch and take in the view of the mountains and lakes. That's Mount Gould beyond Grinnell Point, and Mount Allen to the left. Later we took a stroll around the lake for a better view of Mount Gould.

Although it would get cold in the evening, we could sit in the lodge and enjoy the large fireplace with its roaring fire.

To get a sense for the whole park, we spent the day with one of the red bus tours, refurbished convertible busses from the 1930s (see links at the end for more information). Our driver and guide was Eric (left), who introduced us to his father (right), also a driver with the red busses.

Among the several points of interest were Saint Mary Lake, which contains a tiny solitary island, Wild Goose Island. We took the Road to the Sun to the point where we could see Mount Jackson and the Jackson Glacier. Beyond that point the road was still closed by snow. While viewing the glacier we were approached by this curious mule deer.

Upon our return that evening we were greeted by a bighorn ram, who had decided to visit the hotel and entertain the guests ("Please forgive the scruffy coat - it's that time of year".

After dinner we sat on our deck to watch the sun set behind Mount Willbur.

Perfect weather today encouraged us to take a long hike up the Swiftcurrent valley towards Swiftcurrent Mountain. The trail took us past natural rock gardens towards Redrock Lake, at the head of which is Redrock Falls. The rocks in the valley (Grinnell argillite, named after George Grinnell, one of the people most responsible for this national park) make it clear why the lake and falls are called "Redrock".

We crossed a suspension bridge, and hiked through patches of snow as far as Bullhead Lake, the last in a chain of lakes stretching up the valley. That's the continental divide up ahead, and later in the season one can hike over to the other side.

On the way back we heard strange bleating sounds behind us. They came from a young mule deer, who had clearly decided to follow us home (when do you see a wild animal walking towards the camera?). That is, until he realized we were not his parents .

Further away was a flock of big horn sheep, and above them on the cliff a grizzly bear with her three cubs. The bear showed no interest in the sheep.

For our last day we hiked along another glacial valley, through meadows that were rich with glacier lilies and other wild flowers, towards Ptarmigan Falls.

JoAnn took a short breather on a rock above the falls while Gordon explored views of the Ptarmigan Wall further along the trail.

Later that day we took a boat trip to the head of Josephine Lake. From the boat we saw mountain goats high on the cliffs above, and later encountered a fearless grouse on the trail right ahead of us.

From where the boat dropped us, we set out on a short but tricky hike along boardwalks and past flooded streams. One stream was crossed by another suspension bridge that is restricted to one person at a time. Violating this rule could be rather scary. Some of us were more circumspect.

The hike ended when we encountered deep snow banks. But we had reached our main goal, Grinnell Lake, a beautiful glacial lake set below the Salamander Glacier (the name comes from the shape of the glacier).

The day, and the vacation, ended with a perfect view of sunset on Mount Gould.