Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons

Many Americans love Yellowstone National Park even if they have never been there. I’ve been privileged to visit it twice, but the nearby Grand Teton National Park had a much greater impact on me.

Grand Teton for the first (and second) time

I had decided to base myself for a week in Idaho Falls. There were a number of reasons, but the main was the RV park I spent a week in was dirt-cheap: $146 for an entire week.

But it was also within a couple of hours of the national parks I wanted to see and Idaho Falls had bits of “civilization” such as McDonald’s, Wal-Mart and all the other exploiters of child and senior labor which make our lives so interesting.

The road at the entrance to the RV park was called “Yellowstone Road” and the people who named it that had a lot of gall as Yellowstone was well over 100 miles away. But it was also a direct route to Grand Teton. I decided that, even though Yellowstone was just 20 miles further on, that I would give it a day to explore.

About 40 miles out was a rest stop along the Snake River. I had passed along the river in many places in both Idaho and Oregon. It is the location of much of the Oregon Trail, something that as a historian, I have been interested in as I have been along much of it. At some places, the river was shallow and one could cross it on foot. Yet a few miles away, where the bed had narrowed, it became violent and dangerous. Here, was a lovely landscape showing the river in a small canyon.

The Snake River about 40 miles north of Idaho Falls, ID

Moving on, the road went deep into Idaho farmland and then through narrow, winding roads in Targee National Forest. I had been here before and I had no idea what I would see. And that was part of the wonderful surprises of the journey. As with all journeys, getting there is just as important as the arrival.

Targee offered plenty of beautiful views, especially of Pine Creek, which meandered through the forest. I had a close encounter with a semi-suicidal elk, which just didn’t want to get off the road as cars were coming from each direction and the panicked animal just didn’t know which way to turn, especially when the damn fool behind me started honking his horn.  The animal kind of reminded me of myself at times, having to make a decision, but not knowing what to do, but having to make one anyhow.

Targee National Forest offered a pleasant ride as I headed to the Grand Tetons.

There were many, many winding mountain roads with sharp turns and low speed limits. It was fine on the drive out, but very scary on the way back. I have recently been afraid of heights. It started last July in the South Dakota Badlands when I realized there was nothing to stop me from falling hundreds of feet. It takes a lot for me to stop and take a picture in these situations no matter how beautiful the scene is.

But at the top of one mountain there was a turn off. Far below was Jackson Hole. A sign told me that and it was next to a snow filled mountain. The thermometer was at 31 degrees. It was certainly not the type of weather I expected just before the Memorial Day weekend.  Take a close look at the sign. That is snow there.

Top: Jackson Hole, the huge valley where Yellowstone and the Grand Teton parks are located. Bottom: The welcome sign, Note this is taken on Memorial Day weekend and there is snow in the grooves. It is on a mountain with several feet of snow.

One has to understand the difference between Jackson and Jackson Hole. Jackson is a small town devoted mainly to tourism, as the entrances to both Grand Teton and Yellowstone are only a few miles away. Jackson Hole is a geographic term that describes a huge valley in which the parks lie.

Anyhow, I slowly descended along the mountain curves into the “Hole,” passing through a small town called Wilson before reaching Jackson. Jackson has a visitor center where one can purchase any number of high-priced souvenirs related to the parks, and I indulged myself in picking some patches. I have to start a new patch sweatshirt, as the one I have is full. I actually purchased some Yellowstone Tees at the Wal-Mart in Bozeman Montana. Anyhow, it is adjacent to a stream and a wildlife viewing area. I don’t especially like Canadian Geese as the crap all over wherever they settle and this was true of the visitor center. But I forgave them this once because they had recently-hatched goslings who were simply adorable. The ducks were kind of cool. There was a mallard swimming side by side with a wood duck. They were fishing together. It reminded me of my friend Bill. We are completely different yet remain strong friends over decades.

I proceeded on to the park. It was stormy in the mountains and I had some really dramatic photos. I stopped at the Park’s visitor center to see the exhibits and make a deal with the rangers. I showed them my “volunteer” pass and explained that my “home” park in Oregon has a wall filled with junior ranger badges and I would like to trade one of our’s for one of theirs. I guess my home park is just about the only one with a display like that because the rangers simply give me the badge rather than trade.

While there, I saw a live radar picture of the mountains and while the storm was increasing in intensity (I could hear thunder) it was moving fast and would probably be over in about an hour.

A couple of facts about the park might be in order at this time. The park runs along one side of the mountain range. A series of lakes separate the mountains from the visitors and climbing by the typical tourist is not available.

At the same time, it is a place to simply slow down. Take a drive along the range and stop at many areas. Just sit there and perhaps picnic or walk a trail (though it annoyed me that Pup wasn’t permitted on the trails – what difference is there between bear, deer, moose, elk and other crap and the small droppings of my poor corgi?).

Top: Mountains when clear. Bottom, during a thunderstorm

I stopped at a picnic area by Jenny Lake and took some photos, at the same time trying to outwait the storm. I really didn’t mind the rain at all. It was refreshing and I was refreshed by the wonderful view. My friend the professor says it is his favorite place on the planet and I can pretty much put it in my top ten.

As I continued to wend my way along the park road, the clouds began to clear and I got a few more beautiful pictures. At the same time, I did a lot of thinking about life in general. The ex had gotten re-married the day before and I thought about how we had once wanted to travel through this area. But it was not to be. I hope she has the chance to do so with her new husband. It is well worth the trip. But that too made me aware of my solitude. It is something I expect to live with, but hope that my eventual return east in the autumn will change that situation. But I have been gone for a year and then will be a time to evaluate things. I sometimes think of the Simon & Garfunkel verse: “I am a rock. I am an island. And a rock feels no pain. And an island never cries.” It’s nice to claim at times, but completely unrealistic. This year’s holiday season was absolute misery.

Lake Jenny, just a place of peace with incredibly clear waters.

Because of the weather, the park was pretty much empty. But somehow, it gave me comfort. For all its majesty, it was still rocks and islands.

Two days later, I returned to the park while en-route to Yellowstone. I simply wanted to grab a few photos on a much clearer day. It was well worth it as it gave me much peace.

Yellowstone a second time around

Timing is everything.

I visited Yellowstone National Park last July en route to Oregon. I hadn’t a clue about the park and thought it was, at most, 50 miles away. I had camped near Bozeman, Montana a couple of exits west of the Yellowstone exit on Interstate 90. Little did I know that it was 100 miles more to be inside the park. Then, my agenda was simple. I wanted to see Old Faithful, the geyser that erupts about ever hour and ten minutes. That would take me almost two hours longer.

Then, I had left Bozeman around noon and didn’t reach the geyser until around 5 p.m. I had to wait an hour for its eruption and spent time at the souvenir shop. So following the eruption, I had little real time to explore the park. I left the area somewhat disappointed. I had hoped to return the next day, but was exhausted from all the driving I had done in the non-stop haul from the South Dakota Badlands to Bozeman.

And so, I proceeded on to Oregon.

But this time, the return trip was different. My Idaho Falls locale is about 100 miles from the West Entrance. After taking my first day in Idaho Falls to explore Grand Teton, headed out around 6:30 a.m. to Yellowstone, relaxed, refreshed and ready to explore.

A general rule for tourists is if you take their picture, they will take your's. Courtesy of one of the many Japanese tourists I encountered.

To get to either park, you have to take the same mountain roads through Targee National Forest. So I enjoyed a repeat of the beautiful views. After my stop at Grand Teton, I moved on to Yellowstone, arriving around 10 a.m. Like my first visit to Yellowstone, I had an agenda – to see the magnificent canyon and waterfalls in the park. Ironically, I had to go to the Old Faithful area to reach the Grand Loop Road, which went through the park with many of the major sites.

So I stopped at the Ranger Visitor Center and again traded Junior Ranger Badges. I hope to have around a dozen before the end of the year to send to my “home” park in Oregon.

And the timing was right as Old Faithful was scheduled to erupt in about 20 minutes. The last time, I waited nearly an hour. There are many places around Old Faithful to buy stuff. But I used the non-profit store to get a DVD for myself and a Yellowstone “ranger" hat for my granddaughter, part of her Christmas parcel.

Old Faithful erupts

I ventured over to the geyser, and waited. I noticed something odd. I was surrounded by Japanese tourists. Throughout the day, about half the people I encountered were Japanese. I had worked for several Japanese companies over the years and I recognized a little of what they were speaking. Apparently several tour buses were here, as well as rental cars. Later in the day, one had run off the road and had to be hauled out and towed away.  It seemed impossible to go off the straight road where they were, but I also had several close calls as the many scenes distracted me.

From Old Faithful, I began the loop and stopped at many geysers. Many of them could be seen fairly close as we walked along boardwalks more than a mile long.

It was difficult to take photos as the air was cool, in the low 40s, and the vapor from they geysers blocked views. But the colors of the pools were extraordinary. Topaz, sapphire, emerald and more were vividly deep, as the absolutely clear but boiling water had reacted with the minerals in the ground underneath.

The many colors produced by the reaction of the waters with the minerals are visualized by clear water

I went to several of these sites, enjoying each of them. At one point, the steam was so great that the visibility was zero and the smell was disorienting. I had to frequently stop until the vapors cleared, afraid I might trip and fall into the turbulent waters.

The eruptions can turn the observation boardwalks into fog.

Moving on, I went through a few meadows. I had been apprehensive that Pup might go a little crazy as I remember a description by Steinbeck in “Travels With Charlie” as Steinbeck’s normally placid poodle had to be locked in the camper and tore it apart when it smelled bear.  In both visits to Yellowstone I did not encounter bear. There were deer and elk, and a herd of bison and pup had no reaction. But we passed by a lone coyote and as I stopped to take a photo, Pup let out a sharp, alpha-male bark that was about as loud as I have ever heard from him. The coyote went on his way and I didn’t get the shot.

I saw plenty of Bison but failed to see Yellowstone's famous bears for a second time.

We finally started reaching the falls. I know the lower falls is the largest, but from the parking area, the hike is nearly a mile each way on rough terrain. I just wasn’t up to it after several miles of geyser hikes.

And so I moved on to the upper falls. I was entirely unprepared for this. To reach them, you had to move along Yellowstone’s “Grand Canyon.” Now I’ve flown over the real Grand Canyon many times, but have never been there. From my Yellowstone experience, I would probably just as well take it or leave it. The Yellowstone Canyon is magnificent and incredibly deep as the Yellowstone River wends its way through it. There was little in the way of barriers to prevent one from falling hundreds of feet to their death other than small boulders about knee high. I got my photos, but told myself that what I would do for my “art” could be downright stupid.

The incredible Yellowstone Grand Canyon, All that was between me an the river when I took this photo was a two-foot rock.

There is a place in Sullivan County, NY along the Delaware River called the hawk’s nest. It is a road with many winding cliff-side curves that is frequently used for automobile commercials. I took my friend Emily to the overlook there and she was very scared. I couldn’t understand it then. But now I do. As I think of that place, it too was very deep. Multiply that by a factor of 20 and I have had enough Rocky Mountain Highs to last the rest of my life, thank you very much!

I drove past some other waterfalls and cascades but the next really impressive thing was Lake Yellowstone. It is immense. When you consider the Great Lakes border Canada, this is the largest lake in the continental United States. With mountain backgrounds, it is something of beauty that one can only understand by visiting there. Photographs only give you a minute perspective. It is, in my opinion, the only thing of beauty I have ever photographed that I couldn’t capture adequately.

Waterfalls, such as the Keppler Cascades, are abundant.

Throughout the park are many dead trees surrounded by thriving smaller ones. I thought they had been killed by disease, as there was no charcoal black on them. But more than 1/4^th of the park was destroyed by fire in 1988 and I suppose the blackened part has simply washed away over the decades since.

It, too, is a thing of beauty in some respects. The trees that have risen from the ashes could only have been grown from the pinecones that require fire to burst open seeds. The dead trees are filled with insects that birds prey on. It is a brutal exchange of nature, which can often be unforgiving.

I left the park around 6 p.m., hoping to get out of the mountains before darkness. But I chose to stop for dinner in Jackson rather than open up the can of stew I had brought with me. And as I went into the mountains, I encountered any number of suicidal deer in the Forest.

But there was a full moon and as I finished my mountain crossing I saw this image. It is a little blurry since such a long exposure time was required and the camera shook.

A full moon near the mountains watched over me on the way back to my campground.

I made it home alive and spent the next two days recovering from my two trips.

My memories of the two parks will remain in my heart for a lifetime. I don’t know if or when I will return to the West, but you can be sure that if I do, I will continue to drink in the wonder.