Road Trip - Day 6 - Another Day at Yellowstone

In the last post did I say how cold it was when we went to bed the first night in Yellowstone? The cold plus the bison in the campground make me wish that I didn't have that middle-of-the-night call of nature. However, maybe that's a good thing because it was starting to rain and I shut the tailgate and the camper window. When everything is shut up it is warmer inside, but it is also stuffy and the windows get wet with condensation. There are trade-offs and stuffiness is probably better than feet in a wet sleeping bag especially when the temperature dips into the 20's. The green truck is too old to show the temp but that's what my iPhone said when I asked. So instead of rain we had snow during the night. Not a lot, but nevertheless, snow. Once again we didn't linger over our breakfast of instant oatmeal but got in the truck and turned the heater on. I chose way too many photos for this day's blog and I should cut some out, but I probably won't. I like blogs that are mostly photos...

Our plan for this day was to drive the northern loop starting with Mammoth Hot Springs and ending with the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.Not far from the campground we saw our first grizzly bears - from the safety of our truck. (Even though I have been told by blog readers that the bear we saw in Grand Teton was a grizzly bear and not a black bear we thought it was a black bear at the time and I prefer to think that we were hiking with black bears, not grizzlies.) The one on the left was eating a carcass of something and was wearing a collar. They were being watched by a park biologist. I wonder if the park personnel always keep track of bears that are collared and monitor them when they show up near a road? One thing that we learned quickly is that being a Park Ranger in Yellowstone means Wildlife Traffic Patrol. Do you know an easy way to spot wildlife?Just look for parked cars and people walking along the road.It didn't take long to find more bison... …and more bears. This one wasn't alone. I know, the sagebrush is more in focus than the bears, but that may be my last grizzly bear photo.

It was still early and when we got to Mammoth Hot Springs Terraces the weather was not looking good. It was cold and windy and during our walk along the boardwalk trails it started snowing. But the changing conditions only made the views more dramatic. 

  We didn't hike any long trails on this day but there were many shorter hikes. There were people stopped on the road watching a black bear when we got out of the truck to take a half mile trail to see Wraith Falls. Dan was trying to decide if the bear was still entertaining people on the road or had retreated in our direction. Note bear spray with orange cap in the backpack pocket.

There are several one-way roads that you can use to get off the main road. Blacktail Plateau Drive is one of them and the scenery is majestic. To my surprise Dan asked if I wanted to stop and take flower photos. I am usually teased about this habit. This one is wild flax. Phlox.

I wish I knew what this flower is. From a distance it looks like single blue flowers. It's only when you get up close that you see that it is lots of little tiny flowers.We stopped at another waterfall trailhead and Dan took this photo of a 1936 touring van that he had just read about. These were canvas topped vehicles used in many of the national parks. They seated 14 people and in cold weather (at least in the northern parks) they provided Pendleton wool blankets for the passengers. At least some of the vehicles were used into the 1990's when they were just too old to keep running. The Park Service replaced the old vehicles with modern Dodge vans but the visitors wanted the old touring vans. So they are on the road again but Ford kept just the top part and replaced the chassis (and all the important things like brakes) with new parts. 

Speaking of vehicles it seemed as though each of the parking lots at the main attractions had it's own sentry. This one was eating crackers.

It was getting late in the day by the time we got to the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. There are several access points and trails on both the north and south sides. We knew that we didn't have time to hike all the trails, but we went to  all the overlooks and walked a few of the trails. We took Uncle Tom's trail to a viewing spot of the Lower Falls. Writing this blog I'm in a tank top and shorts with the fan on and it's hard to remember that just 10 days ago I was bundled in two layers of wool, my Carhartt jacket, wool hat, and gloves. Originally this trail had over 500 steps and rope ladders. Now it has only 328 steps and no ladders. The trail no longer takes you all the way to the bottom but you still hear and feel the power of the water cascading over the rocks. I love the green color of the water here. This is a scene of the canyon and the river taken from another viewing area. Simply majestic. I don't think that I would have spotted this osprey nest except that some other people were looking with binoculars. See what I mean? The top photo is a close-up of this one.Another beautiful evening. Again we got back to camp at dusk, ate a couple of cans of beans and went to bed.

Next post: On the road to Oregon

Road Trip - Day 5 - Yellowstone

The mosquito situation in camp was no better than the night before so we didn't linger in camp on our fourth morning. We took just enough time to get our food out of the bear box and for Dan to make his coffee and we got on the road. There are plenty more trails to explore in the Tetons and I hope to make it back there some day. But this was our next stop and we had two days to see as much of it as we could. Not far into the park we saw our first bison. Initially we didn't stop for much  because we needed to find a campsite in one of the non-reservation campgrounds. After we secured a spot we were free to plan the day. There are two main loop roads in Yellowstone and we spent the first day exploring the southern one.  This is the Norris Geyser Basin, not far from our campground. That steam on the left was rising out of the ground with the sound of a roaring a furnace. The trail traverses this valley and there are steamy, boiling, gurgling features everywhere. I took Geology my first quarter of college and decided that I would not be a geologist. I am definitely more of a life sciences type, but I can be awed by these spectacles even if I don't know the physical science behind them. This landscape is all about color, patterns, bubbles, steam, explosions.    Bison footprints.    Then there is the wildlife.On the way south towards Upper Geyser Basin (where Old Faithful is) traffic was stopped on the road. Going around a turn we saw the cause. Bison were walking alongside and on the road. Why not? It was certainly the easiest way to get from one meadow area to another, especially where this canyon narrowed. Passengers scurried ahead of their cars (leaving drivers) to get a better look.Eventually it was our turn to pass the three dozen or more bison as they turned from the road and moved into the forest.  Osprey over the Upper Geyser Basin. We got to the Visitor Center and Old Faithful just minutes before Old Faithful was due to erupt. After watching we faced a furious wind as we walked a couple of miles along the boardwalks and trails that traverse the Basin, seeing more of this amazing landscape.  It was getting later in the day as we completed the loop road to get back to camp. The road crosses the Continental Divide a couple of times in this area. Living on the West Coast we always think of all water ending up in the Pacific, but crossing the Divide twice in a short distance made me think about it.  We had been following two major waterways, but they end up in different places, the Snake River flowing westward and the Yellowstone River flowing east. As dusk falls even more animals are visible, although not easy to photograph. It was dark by the time we got back to camp for dinner. I walked up the hill to the bathroom and a woman who was waiting while her cell phone charged pointed out to me what looked like … nothing…well maybe more black than the rest of the dark. There were two bison munching on grass right next to an RV. In the dark it was as though there was a Black Hole. I would never have known they were there. The woman told me that the bison had just walked around the bathroom and stopped to graze there. At that point I decided that the weak batteries in my headlamp were not adequate for the task of walking around Yellowstone at night. 

No moths or mosquitoes at this campsite, but it was dark when we got back, we were out of firewood and it was cold. We quickly cooked our spaghetti and some hot chocolate and went to bed.

Stay tuned for Day 6.

Road Trip - Day 4 - More of the Grand Tetons

 It was cool in the mornings at Grand Teton National Park, but the main reason to suit-up was to keep the mosquitoes off. They were awful--not very conducive to hanging around camp in the morning. That was not our plan anyway -- too many places to see, too little time. As soon as Dan had his coffee we were ready to go. Look who came to the campground for breakfast. Our first hike for the second day in Grand Teton NP was around String Lake.  Yellow-bellied marmot.At several places there was evidence of avalanches that took out all the trees in their paths and...  …obliterated the trail in some places.  Crossing the river at Jenny Lake we saw our first moose. This is another moose we saw in a meadow along the road on the way to our second stop of the day.

We drove to trailheads at Lupine Meadows...…where we had lunch. You can't tell from the photo but it was very windy here. Dan sprinted to chase down a plastic bag that blew quite a distance across the parking area.  One of the visitors later stopped at our truck and told him that he and his passengers gave him a "perfect 10 for style and execution". We were near the south end of the park and decided to backtrack a short way down the valley to see the National Museum of Wildlife Art. That will be a blog post by itself. Back in the park we went for another hike, this time to Taggert Lake. There are magnificent views though out the park. 

As the sun was going down we drove to the top of Signal Mountain. More spectacular views, but also an unbelievable number of mosquitoes. Late evening view from Signal Mountain.

Once again we got back to camp after dark, so we cooked our meal (spaghetti) and went to bed.

Road Trip - Day 3 - Grand Tetons

Morning of the third day.This is the Snake River near where we camped. We were on the road to Primary Destination #1, Grand Teton National Park.  Moose is the headquarters and main visitor center for the Park. We found a campsite and chose a place to hike.We purchased the necessary supplies. That's Bear Spray on the right. Yikes! These warnings were everywhere you look - at trailheads, in restrooms, on brochures. OK. I believe...But it won't happen to me? Right? (Read the fine print on this--that's scary.) We chose the Hermitage Point trail, about 9.5 miles. Here's a view across Jackson Lake. The hardest thing about writing this blog is choosing only a few photos.The stunning Arrowleaf Balsamroot was everywhere.On the trail.I don't think National Geographic will be calling me anytime soon, but it was fun to try and get wildlife photos. I think I do better with flowers because I can get closer and they don't move. But maybe this isn't bad considering that my longest lens is only 135 mm. Ruffed grouse, according to my bird book. These tent caterpillars were everywhere. They eat all the leaves in the area of their tents and can be quite devastating when in large quantities.  I didn't see any swans in Swan Lake, but there were plenty of geese... ...and a sandhill crane.   We were less than a mile from the end of our hike and nearing dusk when we came upon this in the trail.OK. Time for 2 photos and then retreat. This is an enhanced closeup of the photo above. The signs all say that the bear is supposed to go away. She didn't. We backed up and Dan fumbled with the bear spray. I had read the instructions while he was driving but I don't think he paid attention. "Flip off the orange safety catch with your thumb and then position it in spray position. No, point it at the bear, not us…" Did you know that you have only 4 seconds of spray in one of those cans? Not like the wasp spray we have around here. The bear approached a little more and we retreated more. We were less than a mile to the end of the trail and I really didn't want to go back. Then we saw other people coming up the trail towards us. These were 3 kids (well, college age) who we had seen on the trail before. It turns out that they didn't have a map with them and had taken a wrong turn to a dead-end trail, backtracked, and were running to make up time back to headquarters. They were thankful that we stopped them or they would have been running straight at the bear. When we saw a cub come out from behind a log and it was evident that this mama bear was not going to retreat we turned around and started walking the other way. It added only about another two miles to the hike for an 11.5 mile day. (Is this over-dramatic to those of you who live in bear country? I'm sure that I have hiked in bear country before, but I've never seen them. The difference is that these animals are not as wary of people as they would be other places--which is great if you want a deer or grouse photo, but not so much an animal with big teeth and claws.) Sunset over Jackson Lake.

Road Trip - Day 2- Craters of the Moon

NOTE: As I was writing this I realized that I am back-tracking over yesterday's post. Oh well. Just like the book that I read on the trip--jumping around from generation to generation. On Day 2 we awoke at the rest stop to trucks rumbling out and millions (it seemed) of moths folded up in the truck. We shooed out as many as we could and packed up. As we followed the California Trail east we pulled off at the CA Trail Interpretive Center about 10 miles west of Elko. This looks like a brand new facility and is probably worth a stop on another trip, but it was closed at that hour.

At the town of Wells, NV (population about 1300) we turned north towards Twin Falls, ID and there we saw a marker for a CA Trail historical site. It showed a view of the route of the pioneers--dry, desolate, rough terrain, sagebrush. The town wasn't much. There were many abandoned old brick buildings but there was one in use and it showed a sign for the Wells Society for the Preservation of Western Heritage. Their CA Trail Museum was open. We were shown around by a young woman who grew up in Wells and told us that most of those abandoned brick buildings were in use until 2008 when the town was devastated by a 6.0 magnitude earthquake. 

Now we catch up to the photos of lunch and "Welcome to Idaho" in the previous post. Driving past Twin Falls to Shoshone and beyond we were awed by the green landscape. I am used to California's huge agricultural landscape but there was something different about this. Maybe because of the miles of wheat with huge pivot irrigation systems. Unfortunately I didn't take many photos and although this photo shows the huge pivot it doesn't give the feel of the landscape. Deep, deep green over rolling hills to the distant horizon. We read later that this area is fed from aquifers that are a result of the volcanic landscape north of us. And of course there is the Snake River and the dams up the river, including the 15-mile long Jackson Lake in Grand Teton National Park which was dammed in 1911 for irrigation in Idaho.

But Idaho isn't all green landscape. We stopped at Craters of the Moon National Monument. There was a short trail to the top of Inferno Cone.Can you tell it was windy? So windy that Dan's sunglasses blew off and he had to chase them down the slope. We gave up on wearing hats.This is the view from the top of Inferno Cone. The Visitor's Center is just right of center. Notice the plume of smoke on the horizon at the left. That continued to grow and drift across the whole landscape through the afternoon. This is on the trail around Broken Top, a cinder cone. Still windy.There are caves to explore. This is the path to three caves. Getting out of the wind to the quiet of the cave was a relief. This is Indian Tunnel, a cave with areas in which the roof has collapsed.Most of the time it's too dark in a cave for photos. The beauty of this area is in texture, color, and shape. (Hey, weavers, substitute  structure for shape and we're describing cloth.)       Craters was not our primary destination so after seeing what we wanted to see (and being tired of the wind) we got back on the road. The evening was spent driving through more beautiful ag land in Idaho, following the Snake River. At dusk we found an almost empty campground along the Snake River. After a meal of beans and popcorn we went to bed. No moths. No wind. Perfect.

Next installment: Grand Tetons.

Backpacking at the Lost Coast - Day 2

The goal for this morning was to hike south to Miller Flat where we would spend the night. After we set up camp I did some more exploring. Walking another mile or so was no problem once I was able to ditch the pack. The scenery and flowers were spectacular.Wild iris.As I've said in other posts the poison oak can be very pretty although its definitely best to avoid it. Back at camp there was no shortage of wildlife, although I wasn't able to do much about photographing sea lions or a river otter with my 40mm lens. (I tried, but won't bore you with those photos where you have to know which speck is the subject animal.)  Kaleena was photographing one of her favorite flowers right next to camp and was about to step over a log when she saw this: It eventually slithered under the log. Maybe the beach is a safer trek.My kids could be active-wear models.This made me nervous. Matt wanted to get photos of the surf as it rolled in under his camera.Another great dinner. This time it was mac and cheese with fresh veggies followed by s'mores with your choice of graham crackers or fresh apple slices or both.Of course there was always trail mix for snacking.  

Sunset on the beach. The  colors of the sky and ocean changed to pinks and greens as the sun went down.         My tent at dusk. (Rainfly necessary this night.)

Backpacking at the Lost Coast - Day 1

My son and DIL invited me to join them and a couple of their friends on a backpacking trip to one of their favorite spots. According to Wikipedia, "the steepness and related geo-technical challenges of the coastal mountains made this stretch of coastline too costly for state highway or county road builders to establish routes through the area, leaving it the most undeveloped and remote portion of the California coast". Since Matt and Kaleena did all the planning, food prep, etc all I had to do was gather up or borrow the right clothes and gear.  We drove about 5 hours north to a campsite outside of the town of Honeydew in Humboldt County where we spent the night. The next morning we drove to the the Kinsey Ridge Trailhead to begin the hike.  I borrowed  backpack since I couldn't find mine (and the last time I had used it was about 30 years ago so this one was probably a little better). There was a four mile trek down the mountain to get to the beach. After that the trail is along the beach or through meadows just above.  Every mile or so there is another river running out of the mountains into the ocean. This was where we camped the first night.Time to unpack the dogs and relax a bit. First order of business was to secure our site by setting up the tents. There were not very many people hiking the area, but Matt and Kaleena have their favorite spots and you can't exactly reserve a site.  This is the view of the ocean from inside my tent. No rain fly needed the first night.Matt and Kaleena's friends didn't bring tents but constructed a temporary shelter from the wind with rocks and driftwood. Next it was time to explore the area and wash the poison oak off the dogs.  Matt was the chef. He and Kaleena had prepared enough veggies to last us for 3 dinners.After watching the sun set over the ocean...…we enjoyed s'mores back at camp before turning in for the night.

Pinnacles National Park, Part 2

Does a 2-day camping trip warrant 2 blog posts? For me it does because we don't do this very often. And I took lots of photos. We discovered that we did sleep relatively all right in the truck, although I was told that I had more than my share of the "mattress". Huh!

The next morning we checked the map and chose the hike for the day. This was the first leg of a 5.5 mile hike. Notice the word Condor. I took my binoculars on this hike, determined to identify a condor this day. Pinnacles is one of the few remaining areas where the endangered California Condors live and nest.

This trail winds up the mountain and behind those peaks in the distance.Getting closer to the peaks. At this point we talked to a wildlife biologist who was using an antennae to try and pick up a signal of the condors who are banded with transponders. She said that they do nest in these cliffs but today she hadn't found any. They don't always stay in the park area. We saw plenty of soaring birds but they kept turning out to be buzzards.  More of the trail.   This is coming around the west side of those peaks. The vegetation was somewhat different than that of yesterday's hike except for one plant.There was plenty of poison oak, although these trails are wider than those on our Stebbins Cold Canyon hike so it's easier to avoid. I was struck by the beautiful shades of green in the poison oak. Color abounds.

 This was an interesting trail. Notice that railing under the overhanging rock.The Park Service (or maybe it was the CCC years ago) thoughtfully provided steps (and, thankfully, railings) so that hikers could get over these rocks. The views are worth the climb.What would a hike for me be without a few flower photos? Believe me, I took many more than this even though, due to the dry conditions in Northern California, there was not the abundance of wildflowers that I think there would normally be at this time of year. I think I have identified this as a patch of California Gilia (Gilia achilleifolia).  I think that this plant is Wild Cucumber or California Manroot (Marah macrocarpa). What we noticed on this hike is that the spiralling tendrils that look like a telephone cord (yes, that dates me) start out straight. When the straight tendril touches something it coils and hangs on. Amazing. 

As usual I tried my hand at wildlife photography. Those bee photos are the only ones I'll show. The bunny, the crow, and the lizard weren't all that great. The condor look-alike perched on a branch turned out to be a buzzard when I looked at the photo close-up. 

This looks like condor country to me……but this was the closest I got to a condor.  Good trip anyway.

Pinnacles National Park

Last week was Dan's spring break and we took two days to go camping while my son was in charge of all the sheep including the last few ewes left to lamb. We got to Pinnacles in the middle of the afternoon, secured a campsite, and went on a hike. We didn't have a plan other than to start with the trail that goes through one of the caves at the park.

These caves are sometimes closed when the bats are raising babies, but they were open at this time. This cave is not one big chamber but a series of smaller chambers connected by narrow passages under overhanging rocks, following waterways, or up stairs.

This is the exit of the cave. These photos don't do justice to the scenery. In fact I was disappointed in my photos from this trip because they all seem so washed out. I think I'm regressing as an amateur photographer. (You'll be glad that I didn't include my wildlife photos in this blog! I don't think National Geographic will be calling me anytime soon.)

This view is that exit but looking back down the stairs. We came out of the cave to this small lake.

We looked at the map and decided to hike the trail that went southwest to North Chalone Peak. It was getting late in the day but since we were camping there it didn't matter when we got back as long as it was still light. This is the view from part way up the trail looking back down to where the cave entrance. Do you see that small lake at the bottom center of the photo?

 We didn't know what to expect at the end of the trail until we came around another corner and saw what looked like a fire lookout in the distance.

 Here is what it is like close up.And this is one of the views from the peak.  This turned out to be an 8.5 mile hike so we both felt glad to get back to camp and put our feet up. We used this one-night camping trip as a trial run to see how we liked sleeping in the old green truck because we are thinking about a road trip during the summer. It wasn't like home, but was much better than sleeping in the back of the Explorer at the Grand Canyon a few years ago.

To be continued...

Hiking Close to Home

Dan suggested hiking today. The closest place for a hike is to go to Stebbins Cold Canyon Preserve in the Blue Ridge Mountains southeast of Lake Berryessa. There is a five-mile loop trail that has enough elevation change to make you feel as though you had a workout, especially for us flat-landers.Do you see those switchbacks on the map? The rest of that isn't exactly flat. This was perfect timing to hike in this area. We finally had enough rain for grass and wildflowers to grow (although not nearly enough rain to make up the deficit).Dan walks. I keep stopping to take photos and then I catch up. This is the lower part of the area in Cold Canyon where there is a lot of greenery. It is a completely different ecosystem than what you find up on the ridge.It is good to stay on the trail because there is poison oak everywhere. Even if dogs were allowed on this part of the hike I wouldn't bring them because they would be covered with it. The interesting flower of CA Dutchman's Pipe or CA Pipevine (Aristolochia californica). California Bay Laurel (Umbellularia californica)Shooting Star (Dodecatheon) Wild cucumber or California Manroot or California Bigroot (Marah macrocarpa). The flower books say that the root of this deciduous vine may weigh 50-100 pounds.Indian Warrior (Pedicularis densiflora) is parasitic, attaching to the roots of other plants.As you leave the canyon and start climbing through the chaparral the vegetation changes. This is a beautiful big digger pine.  Did I mention the poison oak? View of part of Lake Berryessa.More climbing to do before we start the downhill. We didn't get enough rain this year for the grass to grow up through last year's old dead grass. Those hills are faintly green, but not enough.  Dan recovered my lens cap after it rolled several feet down slope. Most of that is not poison oak, but "most" isn't "all". My hero.