I think that it’s becoming common knowledge that Yellowstone, in all of it’s beauty, is one big volcano. Thinking about how thin the earth’s crust is beneath your feet (only a few miles) gets kind of creepy. Perhaps that is why my visit seemed so…chaotic and frenzied.
About twenty years ago, I was here with a couple of friends. We came in a loaded up Chevy Van and we conquered – growing beards, that is.
I learned a few lessons over those several days. One: Yellowstone and the Tetons are truly wild. Two: A cloudless night sky is amazing in Yellowstone. Three: Don’t drink untreated water, no matter how clear, cool, and inviting it looks… It was, without a doubt, one of the best trips, ever.
As I entered the park, I came to the Mammoth campground, where we had stayed a part of the time. Looking over the land, a memory smacked me in the face. Feeling youthful (and with a few beers in us) we spotted a steep hill to run up. And there it was – hadn’t changed, at all. Given the time, I’ll be running it as a tribute.
After contacting the park service, the ranger who responded gave me a not-so-positive reply. She pretty much said, “I don’t recommend it, at all. Good luck!” Suggestions of carrying bear spray and wearing bells just sounded over the top – and so did getting mauled by a grizzly. So, I scrambled to find a safe approach. The result of trying to decide on a running route, turned into something very similar to National Lampoon’s Vacation.
Yellowstone is huge. A couple of big loop drives make up the park, with lots of trails branching out, all around. One trail I noticed when coming in. It ran along a creek and looked safe – not sure how long it was. I would come back when heading out.
My biggest problem that I faced wasn’t what trail and how safe, it was did I have enough daylight. It was afternoon by the time I got to the park – a typical “later than planned start” from Coeur d’Alene and an underestimated distance through western Montana.
First thing to do was hit the major points of interest, which is tough to narrow-down when you’re in a place like this. I made a beeline towards Old Faithful, on the other end of the park – did I mention that Yellowstone is huge?
When I looked at the map and saw that there was significant distance between points, I didn’t think much of it. It looked like I could get there and back and be able to fit in my run…whatever. Reality hit pretty quick.
You figure that the speed limits are going to be fairly slow…understandable. What you truly have to prepare yourself for is the traffic. The traffic is what made my short visit, Lampoon-like.
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Yellowstone is an incredible place to come if you want to see wildlife – they’re abundant. It’s like a zoo without cages or walls. We humans really love to look at creatures, don’t we?
Every bison, elk, deer, moose, coyote, rodent within the park, caught people’s eye. If I had the time, it probably would me, as well. I was on a mission…
It was clear with all of the slower drivers ahead of me, that I was hurtin’ for time. I had to formulate a plan. “Okay. Major points of interest are the canyon and falls, and Old Faithful and the geyser basin.” Those and everything that might pop up would have to be a quick in and out and move on. Yes, I was on a mission…
Undine Falls…stopped car, ran to a viewpoint, took a picture and ran back to my still running car. I drove on.
An interesting valley overlook…put the car in park, ran to a good viewpoint, took a picture, and ran back. Next stop…
The canyon would come and I knew this could be a time-consumer. Between the upper and lower falls, there was ground to cover. I stopped at the upper lot, weaved through the multitudes, took a few pictures at the first overlook, ran to the next while weaving through an even thicker crowd, took some pictures, and ran to the car. I drove on. The lower falls, I knew, was going to be a workout.
Two viewpoints – one was a good shot of the canyon with the falls in the background, and the other a more close-up look at the falls. The first was another stop, run, shoot, run, drive on. The other was a path, maybe a mile in length that has MANY stairs. I parked, ran down the paved trail, and then remembered how scary the stairs are – height fearing individuals, like me, hold onto the railing for dear life, as they carefully make their way down. But I wasn’t going to show the four year-olds, that were doing it, that I had no fear. I was sweatin’ bullets…
With the falls down in record time, I drove on and reality hit immediately.
Yes, this park has a lot of wildlife viewing opportunities. In fact, they love to block roadways – the bison, especially.
As I am sitting in my car, waiting patiently as people ogle over the two “bison-in-love” that were in the middle of the road, despair was sinking in. Not only would I be under the influence of wildlife on the roads, but the “fascination” factor in humans would dictate a lot. So, why do people get really close to buffalo, even after told not to? I was waiting for an attack that thankfully never came. I, eventually, drove on.
Delay after delay came because of bison and elk spottings. It started to get irritating but more because of the situation that I put myself in. If I had all day, I would probably be pulled over with everyone else, but nope…I have time management issues. I came to a great valley photo opportunity, stopped ran to my spot, took a couple of pics and drove away.
The sun was dropping quicker than I had prayed. The trail run was in serious doubts, sadly. In fact, I started to fear not getting to Old Faithful with enough daylight. I started skipping great viewpoints.
Old Faithful was nearing and I found hope. I broke free from slower traffic and was now in the lead. Just fifteen more miles and an hour of sun left. I pulled into the parking lot, changed camera batteries, and ran to her majesty…she was quiet.
The crowd was big and anticipating glory. I stood as she gurgled and fizzled, gurgled more and fizzled more. The steam was rolling out but nothing much else. Then two feet of hot water, then nothing. Two more feet and fizzle. I laughed.
Impatient for her faithfulness and needing to see the geyser basin, before the sun falls, I turned and headed down the pathway. I ran and heard a “no running.” Not sure if that was the rule, I stopped and started to do a sorta race-walk thing. Three minutes down the path and she blew her top. Patience is a virtue that I lacked.
I must have race-walked about two miles through the basin but slowed as the sun dropped further. I wasn’t in a hurry, anymore. No need to be. There was no way that I was going to get back to Mammoth with sunlight left. Trail run cancelled, and sadly so was the Mammoth hill tribute – sorry, Hartman and Knuth.
The next step was to get something to eat and sit for the next watery show. I sat, patiently.
She went off at about ninety minutes after her last show. It was dark and fittingly, where I sat was in direct line of where her waters would be blown. It was almost like she were laughing as the waters rained down on me. I just sat and laughed, silently. Perhaps the most poignant moment of my life…
The day was done and I was wet. I drove on.
Yellowstone is a place to spend a week, not just a day or even two…a week. Everything that you can possibly imagine is in this park. Just don’t step off the marked path or you could find yourself in hot water, literally. My pictures do not do this magical place justice.
Next stop is Devil’s Tower as the trip comes to an end, but not before I make a special stop in the Black Hills.
Peace and tranquility!
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Charity of the Day: Alzheimer’s Association
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Song of the Day: “Kite” by U2
