Adventures in Wonderland (Part 2)

The summer was pretty short because it was so cold in June.  I'm glad that September was as warm as it was.  It was an honorary summer month.  I finally was able to go outside and do stuff in the Park and have some fun.  The beginning of the summer was a lot of work in getting things fixed up at the house.

I was glad last month to see my friends Steve and Carole from Great Britain.  They've been coming out here each year.  Steve is always excited for his next trip to the Yellowstone area.  His wife doesn't really like doing some of the more aggressive hikes, but Steve was up for it.  He and I hiked up Mount Washburn on September 15.  It was a first time for both of us; I've been here for about seven years and hadn't hiked that trail yet.  I know it seems odd since that trail is one of the most popular trails in Yellowstone Park.

It wasn't too bad of a walk!  For those of you who are unfamiliar with the area, there are two trails that go up to Mount Washburn.  There's one on the north side called the Chittenden Road, and there's a second one on the south side which starts from Dunraven Pass.  Steve and I started from the Dunraven Pass side.  The entire trail was pretty wide and quite scenic.  Having started pretty early in the morning, we were able to see the clouds still covering the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone and Hayden Valley.  The trail wasn't very steep, but the incline was enough that it was a good workout for Steve.

The Mount Washburn Trail and Dunraven Peak

Dunraven Peak and Grand Loop Road

A cloud covers the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone and a haze can be seen in the distance.

There was still a lot of lingering smoke, so there was a thin haze that cut our ability to view long distances.  The smoke wasn't from any particular fire, though the Point Fire was still burning near Yellowstone Lake.  I guess there was an inversion, keeping the smoke from the summer in the Montana/Wyoming area.

Regardless, the scenery was amazing.  It's no wonder that there's a fire watch tower at the top of that mountain.  It's probably the best place to see the largest portion of Yellowstone National Park.  The watch tower is manned by a ranger who sleeps there at night.  That would be an interesting job: watching for fires 24-7 and visiting with Yellowstone Park visitors all day long.

The fire watch tower at the top of Mount Washburn

The observation room at the bottom of the watch tower.  Steve is getting some food out of his backpack.

From the top of Mount Washburn, Hayden Valley is very visible.

We could see Electric Peak, Sepulcher Mountain and Folsom Peak, even through the haze.

I was amused by one hiker who had signed the guest book in the observation room with an angry note that said that water should be provided at the top of the mountain.  What did that person expect:  a cantina?  Everyone who read the note laughed since it was obvious that this person had no idea what they were doing.  All the hikers I met, including Steve and myself, had water with us.  Round-trip, the trail is 5 or 6 miles depending on which route one takes.  It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that water might necessary while hiking.

We had a great hike, and Steve felt that this hike was the highlight of this particular trip to Yellowstone National Park.

I wonder what Steve is thinking...

Steve, Carole, and I had dinner together September 22, the night before they were supposed to go back to England.  We ate at the Yellowstone Mine and had fish.  I thought it was interesting that they hadn't eaten there before, but they enjoyed the food.  I was glad to have some time to talk with them before they had to go home.

Carole, me, and Steve at the Super 8

September 30, Jean completed and passed a test to become a certified nursing assistant.  I was glad that she was able to do that under the pressure she was under.  Celebration was in order.  Plus, Jean hadn't had any opportunity to hike with me in the Park this summer.  Pearl, one of my Taiwanese friends, is going to leave Gardiner this week.  We needed one last time in Yellowstone, so Jean, Pearl, and I hiked to Mystic Falls October 1.

I've been to Mystic Falls twice before, but I still think it's a neat place.  The rocks there are just plain weird.  There are hydrothermal features in the immediate area--including one that feeds the brink of the falls.

We had to start in the late afternoon because I worked at Super 8 the previous night and Pearl had to work in the morning besides.  From Biscuit Basin's parking lot, the hike is only 3 miles, round-trip.  We walked through the basin, watching Shell Spring roil (not boil!), and seeing Sapphire Pool's deep blue colors mix with the brown and yellow outer edges.

Black Opal Spring, Wall Spring, and Black Diamond Pool

Sapphire Pool

An unnamed thermal pool in Biscuit Basin

The trail wasn't difficult at all even though it was a narrow trail, because it was level.  For most of the way, we were next to the Little Firehole River, which this autumn is very pretty.  The weather was perfect, so we had premium conditions.

Little Firehole River

Autumn foliage near Little Firehole River

When we got there, we stayed for awhile.  Pearl and I went down to the river and saw a thermal feature that feeds the river at the bottom of the falls.  Jean was happy just to look at the falls from a distance.  Pearl and I went to the brink of the falls where we could see a hydrothermal spring feed into the waterfall.

A thermal feature feeds Little Firehole River.

Steam from a thermal feature that feeds the brink of Mystic Falls can be seen.

Mystic Falls

Mystic Falls

Mystic Falls

Mystic Falls

Mystic Falls

It was starting to get late, but we were able to see a great sunset.  The pink clouds over the Lower Geyser Basin area were awesome.  We could see Old Faithful in the distance.  Getting back to the car, I was a bit more wary because it was prime time for animals.  Fortunately we didn't see any bears, and only a couple of grouse scared me on the trail.  Grouse do that for some reason! lol.  We did have to drive back to Gardiner in the dark since we started so late, but we didn't encounter any problems.  I don't really like driving in the Park at night because of the narrow roads and wildlife, so I tried to stay behind other people's cars most of the way.

From our vantage point, we can see the Lower Geyser Basin, Old Faithful, and Black Sands Geyser Basin.

Sunset over Lower Geyser Basin

Sunset near Mystic Falls

Adventures in Wonderland (Part 1)

This summer I became friends with some of the girls from Taiwan who are working in Gardiner.  This past couple months we've had a fun time.  We met back in July when Adam came to visit me while he was moving to Helena.  They made a dinner at Absaroka Lodge.  I reciprocated August 11 by inviting them to dinner at my house.  We had a great picnic in my backyard.

At that point I found out that they hadn't had a very good opportunity to see Yellowstone Park yet.  They had been on the Yellowstone In A Day tour, but it's really abbreviated, and there was a guy on a bus-wide intercom that they couldn't understand very well.

For the sake of my English-speaking readers, I'll simply just use the girls' nicknames that everyone in Gardiner knew them by: Annie, Tina, Emma, Pearl, and Sue.

They weren't the only Taiwanese workers in Gardiner.  There were others from that country working in town too.  Gardiner has quite a few international workers during the summer months to help accommodate all the people that visit Yellowstone Park.

On August 23, I took Emma and Pearl around the north loop of Yellowstone Park.  We started early in the morning (for me) at 8:00 am, and saw Undine Falls, Wraith Falls, Petrified Tree, Tower Falls, Mount Washburn and Dunraven Pass, Upper and Lower Falls, and about half of Norris Geyser Basin.  We had a picnic lunch at the Norris Picnic area.  Since it was a Tuesday, I had to be back at work by 2:00 p.m., so I felt pretty proud that we got all that done.  They both had tennis shoes on, so I was glad that we didn't do anything that was too far away from the road.

A Uinta ground squirrel near the Wraith Falls trail

Pearl and Emma in front of Mount Washburn

Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone

Emma and Pearl stand at the brink of Lower Falls.

Emma and Pearl stand in front of Crackling Lake, Norris Geyser Basin.

I wanted to give all the girls different experiences so that they could share their special moments with the friends they were bunking with.  I figured that they would enjoy doing different things.

I found that Annie and Tina were probably the most adventurous.  Having scaled cliff walls in Taiwan, Yellowstone would probably be a walk in the park... so to speak.

Also, I found that they had an interesting perspective on Yellowstone's beauty.  They said that whereas Taiwan has a feminine sort of beauty, Yellowstone is more masculine.  The Yellowstone area tends to be very rugged and sharp, but Taiwan is very smooth.

I took Annie and Tina on an adventure August 31.  First we went to the Fountain Paint Pots because none of the girls had ever seen any of the mud pots.  While we were there, Twig Geyser and Jet Geyser went off.  Whenever I've been there, Clepsydra Geyser has always been erupting, but this time, Surge Geyser was spouting instead.

The Fountain Paint Pots

Jet Geyser

Surge Geyser

After visiting there, we drove to the Fairy Falls trail head.  We walked along the trail and then off-trail up the hill next to Midway Geyser Basin where we could clearly see Grand Prismatic Spring.  On the way up the hill, both girls ripped their jeans.  Isn't it amazing that they actually earned the tears in their pants and didn't have to buy them that way?

Grand Prismatic Spring

I was surprised to see how many people were actually trying to climb the steep hill.  I think it's time that a new trail be made that goes up the hill to where people can see the largest hydrothermal spring in the park.

From there, we hiked to Fairy Falls.  The falls area was pretty cold, but survivable.  Though it was a warm day, they were both glad that they brought their jackets.  We then hiked to Imperial Geyser, which is probably my favorite geyser in Yellowstone.  I noticed that the geyser wasn't shooting as high as I saw it shooting a few years ago.  Maybe it's just the difference between July and the end of August.  We ate and then went back to Gardiner because Tina had to work that evening.  On our way back on the trail, I noticed that there was a rock with mahogany and black obsidian in it!

Tina and Annie in front of Fairy Falls

Annie and Tina cross a log at Fairy Falls.

I walk around Imperial Geyser.

Tina and Annie give the Taiwan sign in front of Twin Buttes.

Mahogany and Black Obsidian

September 8 Sue and I hiked to Osprey Falls and the top of Bunsen Peak.  Sue wanted to go somewhere in Yellowstone that would make her cry for it's beauty, on instruction from one of her mentors back home.  She set the bar really high so I tried showing pictures of a couple places that we could go--including the top of Bunsen Peak.  This was Sue's first hike, and I knew it was going to be a doozy, so I told her to make sure she had good shoes and lots of water.  She had to make due with the shoes she had already, though.  Little did I realize that Sue didn't feel very comfortable with walking on narrow trails on great heights!  I think she was ready to cry during our hike... but for the wrong reason!  Oh well.  She made the best of it and was a real trooper through it all.  Sue confronted her fear and took her time on the trails.  I realized at one point walking down the canyon wall to Osprey Falls that she might feel more sure-footed with a walking stick, which I looked for and found for her.  It did help her out a lot.

When we got to the top of Bunsen Peak finally, I could tell that she felt a bit tired, but very proud and accomplished.  This was going to be a story that she could take home and was never going to forget.  She had climbed a mountain for the very first time, and it was on the other side of the world from where she lived.  She had hiked down the side of a cliff to a very tall waterfall.

Sue stands in front of Osprey Falls.

Sue wanted to touch the Gardiner River near Osprey Falls.

Where's Wayno?  He's at the top of Bunsen Peak.

Sue is tired, but she's proud that she made it to the top of Bunsen Peak with her walking stick.

During our hike, we saw both sage and blue grouse on the trail.  I was amused because the description that stuck for her was "stupid chicken."  That became the name for grouse to the girls.  As well, four mule deer crossed our trail--one of them was a fawn that still had spots.

A couple "stupid chickens" by the Bunsen Peak/Osprey Falls trail

Annie, Tina, and I were up for another outing on September 14.  We had decided to hike to Natural Bridge and then go to West Thumb Geyser Basin.  After driving through inclement weather, we got to Hayden Valley.  The girls were able to see a herd of bison for the first time.  Before this, they had only seen lone bison or a couple at a time.  While we were in the valley we saw several ducks.  To the best of my knowledge, I'd say we saw females of two species: American Wigeons, and either Cinnamon or Blue-Winged Teals (the female teals are hard to tell apart).

We went on our way to the Mud Volcano area.  We saw Sulphur Caldron, Dragon's Mouth Spring, and Mud Volcano.  Since we had other things that we wanted to see that day, we didn't spend a lot of time there.

Next the girls and I stopped at Bridge Bay.  From there we hiked to Natural Bridge, which isn't too far from the road, and is a fairly easy hike.  It's the only natural bridge in Yellowstone Park, so it's a fairly unique structure.

Annie and Tina under Natural Bridge

Don't try this at home: I stand next to Natural Bridge.

After finishing our hike there, we went to West Thumb Geyser Basin so that they could see some of Yellowstone Lake and a geyser basin.  The Thumb Paint Pots were definitely one of the highlights.  I noticed that they liked seeing the thermal features that were close to the lake.  Alas, we had to cut our visit short because Tina had to work one more night at one of her jobs.

Tina and Annie by Seismograph and Bluebell Pools

Annie looks at an unnamed thermal feature at West Thumb Geyser Basin.

Also this month, I was able to take Sue and Annie to Bozeman one evening.  We watched "Crazy, Stupid, Love" while we were in town and ate dinner with Jean and Bruce at Santa Fe Red's.  Also, I think this was their first experience shopping in Wal-Mart late at night.

The girls from Taiwan have been really gracious.  They've shown so much appreciation to me for taking them in the park by making dinners for me and Jean, and all sorts of stuff.

It's now that time of year when most of the international workers either go back to their own countries or go on vacation before going back home.  Annie, Tina, and Emma have already left Gardiner, but I think Sue and Pearl both stay until the end of the month.  I've had a lot of fun with the girls and hope to see them next year if they can make it.

Sue, Jean (with Thunder), Annie, Emma, Pearl, and me.

Camping and Other Adventures with Adam

I have been so busy this past July that I haven't had time to really reflect on what's happened!  I decided that today I needed to just do nothing and catch up with friends on what's been going on.  That's why I've made four blog posts today.

I still haven't forgotten to finish up on my Hawaii vacation!  I'll finish telling about that later once I've done more editing.  Video editing takes so much more time than photos, and I haven't had any time to work on that, with all the company and projects going on this summer.  I promise I'll get back to that though! :)

After Adam got squared away in his new house in Helena, he made a trip to see me in Gardiner because he still had a week left before he actually had to start working.  He was still technically on vacation, and had spent two of the three weeks moving.  What a great opportunity to come down to Yellowstone!

I have to say that I really enjoy having him around.  A lot of times I don't realize how by myself I am all the time.  My closest friends all live out of town.  Living in the dorms during college when friends were only across the hall is a distant memory.

On the other hand, I have had quite a bit of company while Jean has been out of town.  I haven't been in the house by myself any more than normal.  The company I've had has been great.  It's been a long time since I've seen Jalane and Adam.

Adam came out to Gardiner on July 25 and went back to Helena on the 31st.  A lot of our time at the house was spent eating, working or communicating on computers, and playing video games.  When Adam arrived on that Monday, I still had to work the rest of that evening and then again on Tuesday in the evening.  Regardless we made it work out.

Of course, Adam brought Douglas with him.  I was interested to see how my cats would fare with a dog actually living inside the house.  I was pretty amazed because Douglas was actually afraid of the cats.  In one incident, Lightning felt a little trapped and wanted to run out of the living room where Douglas was with her.  Douglas was unintentionally blocking the way.  She tried to dart into the hall and he yelped as he rolled on his side!  She didn't even touch him or try to attack him!  Adam and I had a great laugh with that.  Thunder was intently curious of this new animal in the house and kept following Douglas everywhere.  Storm generally stayed out of the way but touched Douglas' nose once to sniff.  Butterscotch was the real crank.  She'd swat Douglas if given a chance, but generally her claws were retracted, so there was no harm done except to Douglas' peace of mind.  Lightning was really wary of Douglas and didn't want to be near him at all.

Thunder and Douglas watch each other.

On Tuesday, July 26, Adam I attempted to hike to Apron Falls in the morning before I had to go to work.  We never made it there, but we did get to see a lot of Yellowstone.  Adam hadn't ever seen the Suspension Bridge before, so we hiked to it first.

I'm standing on the Suspension Bridge in Yellowstone Park.

From the Suspension Bridge, we hiked west along the Yellowstone River to the first ravine.  That's where we made our mistake.  We should have passed that ravine and went on to the next one to find Apron Falls.  Regardless, we followed the ravine south to see a pond and a small creek which we mistook for Garnet Creek.  We did find a very small waterfall, but it was nothing like the book had shown.  At the time I supposed that we saw Luxuriant Falls because it wasn't very tall, but like I mentioned, we were along the wrong ravine.  Unfortunately Apron Falls isn't on any trails and isn't listed on any conventional maps.  At least I know where to go next time!

This is the butte and the small ravine we hiked to.

When we were about to go down into the ravine, we were spotted by a pair of red-tailed hawks.  They weren't impressed with us, and this one cries above our heads.

We still had a great time in the Park and got to see some wilderness that we hadn't seen before.  I hadn't gotten into the Park very much this year, so this was a nice opportunity.

Adam and I went camping at Tom Miner Campground July 27-28.  When we got to the camp site we were amazed that we were the only people there!  There were a couple trucks in the lot near the fence, but they were getting ready to leave.  That night we got a fire going with green wood (yeah, I'll remember to bring my own saw and hatchet next time I'm camping) and made dinner.  Later that evening some other campers occupied one other site.

Afterward we hiked up part of the Interpretive Trail at Tom Miner.  I had been on it before with Jean a couple years ago, but we definitely missed the petrified tree that was embedded in the cliff side.  I'm pretty sure that it was an amethyst petrified tree:

Here are some other good photos from that short hike:

Adam and Douglas on the Interpretive Trail

The interpretive trail goes up to those rocks.

Daisies

Indian Paintbrushes and Daisies

We got to spend a lot of time talking that night about everything under the sun.  Good times!  It was another one of those times that I'll remember for a long time.

The next morning we ate breakfast before hiking.

Adam makes breakfast

After eating, we hiked for about six hours to the Gallatin Petrified Forest along the trail toward the top of Ramshorn Peak.  It was uphill all the way, and the end was more treacherous than any other part.  The end, however, was the most rewarding.  We did get to see quite a bit of petrified wood.  The entire trail was absolutely beautiful with some spectacular views.

Adam and Douglas on the trail to Ramshorn Peak

A field of daisies

I had no idea that orchids grew out here, but apparently they do!

Looking back where we had already walked

The trail goes around the hill on the right toward the middle of the photo.

Adam and I reach the crossroad trails.  We're going right toward Ramshorn Peak.

Sphinx Mountain in the far distance

Lone Mountain in the far distance

Can you spot Sphinx Mountain from where we're standing?

A large piece of petrified wood

More petrified wood

This piece of petrified wood looks like a large knot.

A petrified tree stump

A petrified tree stump in the middle of the trail

Can you spot the two petrified tree logs in this cliff?

I'm standing next to a petrified tree stump about 2 1/2 - 3 feet tall

Adam next to the petrified tree stump

Adam and Fortress Mountain

Adam and Douglas

Huge landscape

Over there!

Douglas takes five in the shade of Adam's pack.

Hiking back to the campsite

One of the cliffs on Ramshorn Peak

We got to the camp site safely and then drove back to my house near Gardiner.

Saturday, July 30 was Adam's last night at my house.  That afternoon we shot off rounds on a couple rifles.  I wanted to sight in my new 30-30 especially, but we also shot a semi-automatic .22 rifle.  We discovered that the stock wiggled on my new gun, and I was going to have to take it back to the dealer to get it fixed.

That evening I treated Adam to a steak feast.  We ate rib eye steaks with baked potatoes, Caesar salad, and steak rolls.  There was so much food that we had to put it all on two plates apiece.

Sunday he drove back to Helena.  It will be nice that one of my close friends isn't too far away to have some fun excursions occasionally. :)