Yellowstone National Park

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Yellowstone.  The name alone invokes a sense of wonder.  One of the things that encouraged this new drive to get back out into nature was the Ken Burns Documentary The National Parks: America's Best Idea.  Though there are many beautiful parks featured, Yellowstone stands out!  Since watching the documentary, I had this burning desire to see this place of wonder.

DAY - 1

So, on June 11, 2011 shortly after 1:00 a.m. (yes, really) we left our home in Lee's Summit, MO.  It was the year of the heavy snow, followed by flooding.  I had been tracking the road openings in Yellowstone and nervously waited as they opened two of the passes only a week before our trip, much later than normal.  Thought the mountain roads were clear there was the small issue of I-29 being closed because of flooding.  Adding an hour to the trip we headed up K-7 and across US-36 to US-75 North to Nebraska City.  I filled up with gas in Lincoln while Laura and Colin slept and then began our journey West on I-80.

I had planned this trip to take the scenic route, not the fastest, and we got off the beaten path (I-80) at Kearney, my birthplace.  After a quick drive through town and some breakfast we headed North on NE-10 to NE-2.  We took Highway 2 to Broken Bow and visited my grandparents grave sites and then on to Halsey to visit the National Forest.  Compared to your average National Forest Halsey is not very impressive.  That is until you realize that it is not natural, but planted by man.  The story goes there was a bet between two brothers on whether or not the sand hills could sustain a forest.  I had been driving on Highway 2 all my life taking trips from Omaha to my grandparents house, but I do not recall having been West of Halsey.  The plan was to take Highway 2 West rather than I-80 to experience the Nebraska Sandhills.  The sand hills are the largest sand dunes in North America and are stabilized by grasslands.  This is western Nebraska, ranch land, and it was a gorgeous drive!  We turned South at Alliance and headed towards Scott's Bluff with a stop at Chimney Rock.  At this point you are on the California, Oregon, Mormon, and Pony Express Trails, now part of the National Trails System.  It was not hard to imagine how the pioneers must have felt upon seeing Chimney Rock.  One can imagine the long journey and any sign of progress would be welcome, especially one so magnificent.  We finished out our 725 mile day visiting Scott's Bluff National Monument before the rain hit.  The storm made for some breathtaking photographs!

DAY - 2

After a good dinner and a good nights sleep, we started off on day 2 of our journey.  Leaving Scott's Bluff we soon found ourselves at Fort. Laramie.  The fort was well preserved and well worth our time there.  Just outside of the fort there is a historic cemetery.  We stopped to look and found a stray cat.  Colin wanted to keep him, but we settled for giving him some milk, and named him laramie.

Heading West on US-26 we came to Guernsey.  Just a few miles outside of Guernsey are remnants of the Oregon Trail wagon ruts.  It was neat to see such a record of the journey of so many!  Slightly West of Guernsey US-26 runs into I-25.  I wasn't too excited about getting back on the interstate, but after seeing the grasslands of Eastern Wyoming I have to say it was one of my favorite parts of the drive.  Between Douglas and Glenrock we took a brief detour South to Ayers Natural Bridge Park.  We stopped for dinner in Casper before getting back off of I-25 and heading West on US-20/26.

So far on our trip we had driven through Kansas and Nebraska farmland, and the Nebraska and Wyoming Grasslands.  At Casper the landscape started to change.  The tall prairie grasses got shorter and the sagebrush started to appear.  We were moving into the foothills!  A drive to Shoshoni left us disappointed because the famous malt shop had closed.  At Shoshoni we turned North on US-20 and drove to Thermopolis through the beautiful Wind River Canyon.  I would have liked to spend some more time in Thermopolis and explore the Hot Springs, but we were running out of time as we had spent so much time sightseeing already.

We left Thermopolis on WY-120 and found ourselves climbing into the rolling sagebrush covered foothills of the mountains East of Yellowstone.  Driving towards Cody the snow covered peaks gave me this feeling that they were protecting something.  It was like they were a castle wall with something very valuable hidden behind.  Now, I knew what was on the other side, but I still wonder if John Colter got the same feeling from these mountains.  Is that what drew him away from the Lewis and Clark Expedition and back into the park?  We arrived in Cody around 9:45 and did some shopping before heading towards the park at 10:30.

The drive from Cody into Yellowstone via the East entrance is stunning.  My only regret is that most of it was after dark and we had only the moonlight to see by.  Upon leaving Cody on US-20 you drive through a series of tunnels before emerging along the Buffalo Bill Reservoir.  From here you drive up the valley passing a series of guest ranches and private property before entering Shoshone National Forest and ultimately Yellowstone itself.  As we crossed over Sylvan Pass the way was light by moonlight and we drove by 12-15ft snowdrifts along the recently cleared roadside.  We drove down toward the ice covered lake and ultimately arrived at the Yellowstone Lake Hotel completing our 500 mile day.

DAY - 3

Monday morning in Yellowstone.  Rain.  We headed to the North shore of Yellowstone Lake and then stopped to explore the Mud Volcanoes.  Next, we drove into Hayden Valley and we say them.  Grizzlys!  There was a mother and two cubs foraging by the side of the road.  After stopping to take pictures we headed to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone to see the Upper and Lower Falls.  The rain had stopped and it turned out to be a chilly but nice afternoon.  We headed back South and explored our hotel from the previous night before heading on to Grant Village for our dinner reservations.

DAY - 4

Tuesday morning we grabbed breakfast in Gran Village and headed North.  Just before the Mud Volcanoes we saw the mother Grizzly and cubs again.  As we were watching them someone told us a Bison was giving birth at the Mud Volcanoes.  By the time we got there we had missed the actual birth, but only by 5-10 minutes.  The mother Bison was cleaning off her calf.  Springtime in Yellowstone...an experience like no other!

We spent most of the day on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone photographing the falls.  Other than the wildlife this was one of my favorite parts of the trip.  By mid-afternoon we headed North again, crossing over Dunraven Pass and on to Tower Roosevelt for our chuck wagon dinner.  We loaded into the 'wagons' and made our way through a bison herd to our dinner spot.  It was a very pleasant evening!

After we returned to our car we headed for our hotel in Cooke City.  This drive took us through Lamar Valley, and it started off right with a female black bear along the side of the road.  The rest of the drive was full of amazing scenery as the sun began to set.  It was a full moon that night and I cannot convey the feeling you get seeing a bison herd down in Lamar Valley by moonlight!  We made it to our hotel in Cooke City and had a very relaxing evening after another big day.

DAY - 5

Wednesday morning we drove back to Tower Roosevelt through Lamar Valley.  The wildlife was amazing yet again, but the highlight was seeing a mating pair of Grizzlys from about a half mile off!

We spent some time at Tower Fall before heading on toward Mammoth Hot Springs.  The drive was a pleasant one with a large male black bear sighting.  As we approached the bridge before Mammoth we were confronted by a road block of two bison at the end of the bridge.  After waiting patiently for a few minutes, they moved off of the road and let us pass.  We spent the afternoon and early evening touring the hot springs.  Sadly, they were mostly dormant, but the formations were amazing none the less.  We spent the night in the Mammoth Hotel, which was my favorite 'old' hotel of the trip.

DAY - 6

Before heading South on Thursday, we drove into Gardiner and did some shopping.  On our way back in we spent some time enjoying the arch.  "For the benefit and enjoyment of the people."  That really sums up what our parks are all about.  Even if we don't realize it, we really do need them.  And for those who have not figured out what wonderful, rejuvenating, places they are I feel sad.  Everyone should visit these places and learn the lessons they offer.

We spent a very busy day driving South to Old Faithful.  Along the way we saw the Norris Geyser Basin before driving across the middle of the park back over to Canyon for lunch and to visit the new visitors center.  After returning to Norris we continued South, visiting the Artis Paint Pots, Gibbon Falls, etc. before leaving the park through the West entrance and visiting the town of West Yellowstone.

We did not have much time to spend in West Yellowstone but we made time to visit the Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center.  Thought not as exciting as seeing a Grizzly up close in the wild it is much safer!  I would recommend everyone spend an afternoon here, especially if you have kids.

We drove back along the Madison River and then followed the Firehole River to Firehole Falls.  We spent some time exploring Lower, and Middle Geyser Basins before checking into the Old Faithful Snow Lodge and eating dinner at the Old Faithful Inn.  Dinner was wonderful and the hotel was amazing.  I would highly recommend both!  The most surprising part of the day was the even though it was June 16th, there was a heavy snowfall with very large flakes as we were walkign to dinner.  The snow only lasted a half an hour and it didn't stick, but it was very magical.

DAY - 7

Friday was our last day in the park.  We spent the morning at the Grand Prismatic Spring, but unfortunately it was cold enough there was a heavy fog.  Before leaving the Old Faithful area we spent some time in the new visitors center.  On our way out of the park we stopped by West Thumb and checked out the thermal features.  We were unable to visit on Monday or Tuesday because a family of elk has made the area their home and the rangers had temporarily closed it.

Though I was sad to be leaving Yellowstone, it was consoling to know that the Tetons lied ahead.  The drive out of the park was very scenic and we soon found ourselves along the shore of Jackson Lake with the Tetons looming in the background.  We spent most of the afternoon driving along US-89, seeing another black bear and cubs as well as two moose.  At Moose we took the back country road to Teton Village and check into our hotel, the Hotel Terra.  This hotel wasn't cheap, but it was fantastic, one of the nicest hotels I've stayed in.  We drove down WY-390 to an excellent local Italian place for pizza.  Exhausted from another long day we slept soundly in our comfy beds.

DAY - 8

Saturday.  This was the day were were supposed to start heading home.  But first we needed a little bit more playtime, so Colin and I started off our morning with a swim in the heated saltwater pool on the deck overlooking the gondola station.  It was only 50 degrees outside but the pool was heaven.  Seriously, I could have stayed in it all day.  Next we took the gondola to the top of Rendezvous Mountain where it was 40 degrees and there was still snow!  We had waffles at Corbet's Cabin before heading back down the mountain and driving into Jackson.  We didn't have any spare time to spend in Jackson so we just drove through the town square and headed out.

Out drive took us South along the beautiful Snake River on US-89/189/191.  How confusing...both 89 and 189?  Navigating from memory I took 89 when they split instead of 189 like I had wanted to.  i realized my mistake shortly after but went with it because it was not going to add much time because we were going to Fossil Butte National Monument next.  The drive out of the mountains was gorgeous and we even briefly crossed into Idaho (for 3 miles).  We got to Fossil Butte shortly before they closed, but got to see most everything we wanted.  From there we headed to Rock Springs where we had a somewhat late dinner.

The drive through Southern Wyoming was very scenic, much different than the other parts of the state we had seen.  Our original plan was to make it to Denver.  Now you are probably wondering how do you get so much into one day, eat a late dinner in Rock Springs, and still make it to Denver by a decent hour?  Answer is simple...you don't.  We ended up spending the night in Cheyenne after a very long, but fun, 543 mile day.

DAY - 9

Sunday was rather simple, mostly driving.  We went to look at the old train station before leaving Cheyenne and then headed straight to the REI store in downtown Denver.  After looking around there for a couple hours we headed out to Noodles and Company in Stapleton for lunch.  The rest of the 739 mile day was spent on I-70 with a stop in Colby for dinner.

Though we were exhausted it was hard to come home!  We saw some of the most beautiful places in our country and it was very hard to give that up.  We had seen 13 bear (8 Grizzly, 5 Black), 2 Moose, Elk, Pronghorn, etc.  We had seen mountains, grasslands, rivers, and dessert.  We had driven over 3,000 miles, and taken over 4,000 pictures.  It was truly one of the best weeks of my life.

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Big Sugar Creek Trip

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Having not been able to go on my trip to the Buffalo River the weekend before, I decided to plan another trip the very next weekend.  I decided I would give the Big Sugar Creek a try and arranged for a shuttle with Kozy Kamp in Pineville, MO.  I had originally thought about going solo, but Colin insisted on going.  I was glad to know that he had had a good time and wanted to do it again!

We left on the morning of May 8, 2011 and arrived in Pineville somewhere around 10:00 a.m.  After paying for our shuttle and buying a water gun for Colin, we headed up to our put-in at the Cyclone low water bridge.  The weather was near perfect but the water was still cold.  As we unloaded our gear, three others were launching their canoe on the other side of the river.  The creek was definetly narrower than most of the rivers I had been on, and I had apparently forgotten it was rated a Class II.  This, along with the fact that the floodwaters had just subsided the week before meant we were in for another interesting trip.

Now I had not flipped a canoe since I was probably 15, and even this it was because we were goofing around.  Do you remember how I mentioned that our new boat tracked much differently than a canoe?  Well, a mile into the trip we got hit with a strong side current and were pushed right into the roots of a downed tree.  Colin was paddling away when Dad tried to lean away from the roots so as not to be impaled.  Well, Dad leaned a bit far and we flipped.  I am pretty sure that I had one hand on the boat and the other on Colin before my head even came out of the water.  I drug the swamped canoe and the crying boy to the shore and got both secured.  Starting with Colin I let him know he was ok and that he had just been surprised.  When I reminded him it was just like when he jumped into the pool at home he seemed to contemplate that for a second, agreed, and went about cleaning the rocks out of his Keens.  Now the boat was another story all together.  All the gear had to be unpacked, the water dumped, and the gear loaded back up.  All in all we spent about 15 minutes getting set to continue on.

After another mile we came upon the canoe that had put in right before us.  They were un-swamping their canoe and collecting all their possessions as they had just dumped as well.  It seems that we had come upon a section with five newly fallen trees blocking the river, and they had tried to run it.  Realizing the danger, we pulled to the side and scouted the conditions before us.  After discovering tree after tree I decided that we would have to portage.

Having not planned on portaging we had brought everything we could possiblly need and then some.  We began unloading the boat and carrying our stuff about an 1/8th of a mile down the gravel bar.  While I carried most of the stuff Colin insisted on helping.  His first trip consisted of the fishing poles and his water gun.  By the time I was taking the boat (the last thing) he had started out with one of our rather large dry bags.  I offered to help him after I dropped the boat, but he refused and finished on his own.  What a trooper!!!  We decided this was a good time for lunch and took a break to get some energy back.

For the rest of the day we battled a narrow curvy river filled with debris.  It was absolutely gorgeous, but it was hard work.  For the first time, I used our "painter" and roped the boat through rough spots while we walked the gravel bar.  Fairly early in the afternoon we came upon an enormous gravel bar and decided to stop.  Not only were we both exhausted, but it was one of those places that was too perfect to pass up.

There were quite a few people out on the river...especially compared to our first trip.  Everyone seemed excited to get out given the nice weather after a long, cold winter!  We had many people float by as we were setting up camp that thought it was great we were spending the night on the river.

After we had set up camp and relaxed for a bit we were visited by one of the adjacent property owners, his girlfriend, and grandson.  Colin and the other boy decided to try and swim even though the water was cold. The swimming didn't last long because we saw a snake heading their way.  Turns out it was a copperhead.  They left to get some dinner and Colin and I got out the stove to make ours.  A bit later we were visited by another property owner and his friend.  They were trying a bit of fly fishing before dark and one of them almost had something before it got away.  The copperhead came back and the guys were nice enough to shoot it for us.  As the sun set they headed home and Colin and I headed into our tent.  We read some books and watched a bit of a movie before turning out the lights.

Noises.  When you are not used to being surrounded by wildlife it is amazing how many distinct noises there are.  This river had a much wilder feel that the Niangua had, and when the sun set it seemed to come to life even more.  Colin was snoozing before long but I had a hard time getting to sleep.  After heading back outside for a bit to look at the stars I finally dozed off.

The stars are beautiful...can actually see the Milky Way, but just barley.

Something squaked and splashed in the water...keep waking up...had to pee...Colin sleeping peacefully...finally.

About 2:30 a.m. I was woken up by a loud squawking and then a splash.  I went back to sleep only to be woken up again around 3:00 a.m.  This time there was not a loud noise and I had to think for a second about what seemed off.  Then I realized that I was hearing rushing water...as if something very large was crossing the river.  The river was split into two channels near our camp, each only 3ft deep and running fast.  After a brief pause I heard the noise again, but farther away.  It seemed that whatever it was was crossing the river away from us.  Knowing that whatever just crossed the river was large and having heard stories of black bear sightings in the area it made me wonder.  Somehow I managed to get back to sleep.

The next morning we leisurely had breakfast and packed up.  I hadn't exactly had a good nights sleep but Colin seemed well rested at least.  We started out on a beautify river with the perfect areas for swimming...if only it were later in the season.  After a couple miles of enjoyable river we soon encountered more fallen trees and debris.  At one point I had to let the boat go, scramble over a fallen tree, and run down the gravel bar to catch the END of our 50ft rope before the boat was swept down stream.  Had I been alone I would have run most of the stuff we encountered.  however, being with a 3 year old who would not be able to handle the swift current with strainers, etc. greatly changed things.  By the time we reached the Crag O Lea low water bridge we were exhausted.  With 4 miles of river to go I threw in the towel and called for someone to come pick us up.  It was hard to quit early, but I'm glad we did.  Otherwise a difficult but fun trip might have become just a difficult one.


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Longview Lake

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April 30, 2011 I was supposed to have been Canoeing the Buffalo River in Arkansas.  However, the people I was to go with had a breakdown and the trip got cancelled.  Given that the boat was already strapped to the car, and the gear was packed, I figured Colin and I should head over to Longview Lake and do some paddling.

We weren't on the lake for much more than an hour but it was an experience I wasn't expecting.  As we paddled away from the boat launch, we headed for Mouse Creek (the SE arm of the lake).  I figured we could paddle up the creek and do some exploring.  We soon crossed the "No Boats" Buoys (which I assumed mean MOTOR boats).  After a bit of paddling we came across a very large nest in the top of an old dead tree.  Sure enough, it was an eagle's nest and inside was a mother and a baby!  We paddled on by under her watchful eye and soon found another eagle.  This time it was the father, and he was out looking for lunch.  As we got closer he took flight and headed straight for us.  At first I figured he might be giving us a warning to move on, but as he got closer, he swooped down and pulled a fish out of the lake!!  Colin and I were both in awe.  Not only do you not see that every day, but being a mere 15 ft away was very impressive.

We continued on towards Mouse Creek but were ultimately stopped by the muddy marsh before we could even reach the bridge.

As we paddled back towards the car we came across the nest again.  This time we saw mom keeping watch and dad was in a nearby tree doing the same.  There was no sign of baby...I imagine he was enjoying lunch.

We loaded up and headed home with a very exciting but unexpected story to tell.