TR Week 2, Day 1 - Sunday
It’s Beartooth time! At the suggestion of
@Something Fishy and
@BCL I set myself up for the most scenic way to get to Yellowstone: The Beartooth Scenic Byway. I left my weekend resort early in the morning, after a last goodbye to the river and views…
And then was off. It was a long, winding way through the mountains…
And I had to stop many, many times to take pictures.
You are beautiful...
...no matter what they say.
Is that the Beartooth?
Truly worth it to take this windy road to Yellowstone.
At Silver Gate, I stopped to fuel up..
And then on to Yellowstone!
I used my Annual Pass to get it. Ka-Ching! If you’re going to any large National Park, I strongly recommend downloading the NPS app, and downloading the maps before you go (while you still have service). I used the maps function extensively - it was very helpful to know where I was on the map at any given point on the long, windy roads.
I did a great deal of planning to make sure to get as much in as I could in one day. This site was most helpful:
https://www.earthtrekkers.com/one-day-in-yellowstone-itinerary/I entered through the Northeast entrance, and traveled through Lamar Valley - one of Yellowstone’s best places to see wildlife. I was NOT prepared for what happened.
I stopped and took a picture or two and kept driving. Suddenly, the car in front of me stopped, and then began just inching forward. I did the same, and soon came across something huge flailing around on the side of the road. Eventually I realized that it was a bison, scratching itself on the dirt hill on the side of the road. I had no idea how large and powerful bison are! I caught myself with my mouth open as I inched past and tried to take some pics. Wow.
There were a fair amount of bison herds along the road, though none quite as close. At one point, two elk raced along the plains, parallel with my car. It was surreal.
Lamar Valley continued to amaze.
Some bison in the distance there.
I continued along to Mammoth Springs (out of my way, but there was a road closure) and headed toward the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. Again, surreal views. The pictures just don’t do it justice, but that didn’t stop me from trying. I focused on the South Rim here, I didn’t make it to the North Rim.
I drove and walked around with my mouth open, like a fool. Like a glorious, happy fool.
Next, it was time for the Midway Geyser Basin. The entire Yellowstone is on top of an active volcano. At some point it will erupt again and we’ll all be toast. Until then, we get to enjoy the volcanic activity bubbling to the surface in the form of geysers and springs.
There’s a boardwalk past a bunch of the springs. Naturally-occurring colors that you’ve never seen before. Don’t step in - you won’t make it out alive.
Luckily I knew when Old Faithful was going to erupt next, thanks to the NPS app and their predicted eruption times! It amazes me that we have this ability and technology.
I got to Old Faithful early and got a good seat. A middle-aged Mormon couple sat down next to me (a few feet away, COVID style) and we caught a good shmuz while we waited.
Soon enough….
I stopped at the gift shop. Had to get some goodies. They sure do like their huckleberry here...
By then, I was tired. I nixed West Thumb, and continued south to where I was staying in Grand Teton National Park. More on that next post!