The Hoodoos and Beaver Ponds

Even though we've faced bad weather on almost a daily basis, I'm still going inside Yellowstone Park to hike. I don't like to be out in bad weather, so I try to avoid the storms, but it's not always possible. I just don't want to get caught in a thunderstorm. On the other hand, I take rain gear with me every time I hike anyway, so as long as there isn't any lightning in the area, I'll be alright.

Last Friday (June 18) I hiked through the Hoodoos. The Hoodoos are a fascinating part of the park located on Terrace Mountain, just south of Mammoth Hot Springs. Terrace Mountain is aptly named because the summit is fairly level and is made of travertine, the deposit that is left from hydrothermal springs. Based on both models of Evolution and Creation, the Hoodoos were formed only thousands of years ago. During some terrible geologic event such as a landslide or an earthquake which caused a landslide, some of the travertine terrace at the top slid down the slopes of the mountain to form the Hoodoos. The Hoodoos today are a jumbled bunch of boulders that face in every direction and truly beg the question, "Who did this?" Google Earth clearly shows the Hoodoos from space, and it is quite a magnificent sight to behold. One can only imagine the kind of landslide that created such a landscape.

I started the hike from the parking lot located just outside the Golden Gate canyon in Swan Lake Flat near Bunsen Peak and Rustic Falls. First I hiked through some forest and then along the cliff edge of the Golden Gate Canyon. From there I was able to see Swan Lake Flat and Rustic Falls. Swan Lake even in overcast weather is beautiful. I hiked down the edge of the cliff on a good trail to the Hoodoos. There is a lot of fallen timber in the area, and in the recent past about three logs fell over the path, but they were hardly a hindrance. Once I got to the Hoodoos, I was completely amazed. There were small caves everywhere. Who knows what all was hiding in those caves. The travertine laying around had various colors—gray, white, pink, and orange. It really was spectacular to see. By the time I got to the end of the Hoodoos along the trail, it started raining, so I tried to double-time it back to my car. It didn't rain very hard, but I was still glad to bring rain gear. By the time I got back to my car, it was sunny again. It's funny how that works.


Swan Lake Flats and Rustic Falls


Orange and pink travertine



The Hoodoos



The Hoodoos and Bunsen Peak



Rustic Falls

Yesterday Jared, Kassie, and I hiked to the Beaver Ponds. Jared and Kassie had a lot of energy and they were a bit in the way of Jean and Zana getting things done around the house. I figured I could take them in the Park to see some animals (and hopefully not see any bears!). The loop was about five miles long, starting and ending in Mammoth. It's funny because so many Xanterra employees see the Beaver Ponds, the Hoodoos, and Osprey Falls right off when they live in Mammoth, but it's taken me about six years to see two of those.

We did see a lot of animals. We heard an elk make a noise and then saw several cow elk and one brand-new calf run toward the call. We also saw least chipmunks, Uinta ground squirrels, American beaver, lesser scaup ducks, and some other ducks that I couldn't identify because we were too far away. I was amazed to find iris blooming along the meadows near the Beaver Ponds.

Jared and Kassie look at a small creek from a bridge.
 

Kassie smells a flower 

One of the Beaver Ponds

American Beaver at one of the Beaver Ponds

Both Kassie and Jared are adventurers and did great along the hike. When we were done, Kassie zonked out in the car before we left Mammoth! While I was away, Zana and Jean got a lot done, and Jean was absolutely tired from all the work she did. Fortunately I still had some energy and I continued to water the lawn, made dinner, and watched "I Love Trouble" with Jean.