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Three surveyors and one other guy
This never gets old
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Day 2 & 3 Yellowstone
Tuesday, July 25, 2017 and Wednesday, July 26, 2017
In camp at Mammoth Hot Springs, Yellowstone National Park
We spent two wonderful days exploring the park especially parts that we had not seen before.
This is our campsite at Monmouth Hot Springs.
Tower Falls just above where Tower Creek empties into the Yellowstone River.
Dorothy took a picture of Luci and me in this same area in 1998.
More wildflowers!. We never get tired of them. Two years ago the park was so much drier but the drought appears to be over! Yellowstone Lake, the rivers and streams are all at full bank.
The bubbling hot spots and vents are fascinating.
Roaring Mountain – There is a bit of a Sulphur smell as the vents here puff away. It’s bigger than the photo suggests! For all the belching, only a small stream outlets here.
Along with Acadia, Yellowstone is our favorite national park, endlessly fascinating, endlessly beautiful.
On the road
Rory and Luci
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Yellowstone Day 1
Monday, July 24, 2017
Livingston, MT to Mammoth Hot Springs, WY
When our friends left us to head east yesterday, we decided to end this amazing adventure by visiting three of our favorite places. Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming, the Black Hills in South Dakota, and Clayton, NY. We drove the 50 miles south up Paradise Valley to the north entrance to Yellowstone at Gardiner, Mt. Five miles further on we were in line at 9AM to score one of the first come first served campsites at Mammoth Hot Springs. We have a lovely site facing east and looking out at the ridge on the other side of the valley. We set up camp, visited with our neighbors, and set off to see a little of the park.
Mammoth Hot Springs are a series of cascading geothermal features rather than geysers.
We found this little spitter on a side road near the top of the formations.
The Gallatin Range is on the northwest side of the park.
An impromptu lunch spot. There was petite silver lupin everywhere!
A beautiful little hot pool near the Norris Geyser Basin. We may not take Felix on any of the trails; dogs are allowed only in parking and developed areas. It was too warm to leave him in the truck!
Felix is fishing just above the Virginia Cascades. He tried to catch a few sticks.
Much to our delight the wildflowers are still putting on quite a show.
We drove up the side road to the shoulder of Mt. Washburn and watched a thundershower pass by to the north. The trees in the foreground are all fire killed.
About 60 miles to the campsite then about 100 miles within the park
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Rory and Luci
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Back in the USA!
Saturday, July 22, 2017
Radium Hot Springs, B.C. to Three Forks, MT
Today was a long travel day. We got up early and left the little town of Radium Hot Springs behind. Giant log yard on the right, and gorgeous mountains in the early morning light. The first 10 minutes of getting up early are tough, then it is the best time of day!
Soon we were following Jim and Barbara through US customs into Eureka, Montana. No eggs, no peppers, no lemons or limes…no issues!
We scurried down the west side of Flathead Lake, the largest fresh water US lake west of the Mississippi River to I-90 at Missoula. Then we headed east on I-90 to a nice campground at Three Forks we stayed at two years ago. There was a family of baby Western Kingbirds at our campsite. The landscape sure has changed since we left Alaska!
510 miles today
Sunday, July 23, 2017
Three Forks, MT to Livingston, MT.
We had Jim’s famous blueberry pancakes for breakfast and then said “Good Bye” to Jim and Barbara, as they were headed east.
The Corn Palace is on their “must-do” list!
We headed east to Bozeman for groceries, oil change, and laundry. After lunch, we stopped at the Paradise Valley KOA about 10 miles south of Livingston, MT. It was quite hot (91 degrees) and Felix swam in the very fast-moving Yellowstone River twice. We had baby Robins still in the nest right next to the trailer.
75 miles today
(Jim and Barbara had 579 miles to Rapid City, SD!)
On the road
Rory and Luci
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Jasper
Wednesday, July 19, 2017
Robson Provincial Park, B.C. to Jasper, Alberta
We drove east on Route 16 and over Yellowhead Pass into Jasper, Alberta and the Mountain Time Zone. With no reservations, we considered ourselves lucky to get into the overflow parking area at Wapiti Campground in Jasper National Park. It was better than a lot of the “campgrounds” we stayed in this trip. It was paved, but with electricity and a nearby brand new bathroom with hot showers we were happy after several days of being off the grid! Also, the elk went out of their way to entertain us!
Across the way, the Athabasca River flowed. Very pretty scenery, but hazy from forest fire smoke.
And it had a herd of Wapiti (elk) right outside our window. Felix was wary but they ignored each other.
Jasper was as beautiful as we remembered from two years ago but very smoky. During the afternoon, we watched a helicopter with a large bucket dropping water on a small fire just over the ridge from town. We ate dinner out at the Jasper Brewing Company Pub and watched trains on the Canadian National mainline. Both the VIA transcontinental train, and the Rocky Mountaineer, an excursion train, came into town while we ate. The VIA train was a very long train complete with sleepers, dining cars, dome cars, and a rounded end observation car very much reminiscent of the 50s and 60s. The Rocky Mountaineer was a modern high-level train with big observation windows like the current trains in the west.
This elk keeps in touch with the rangers! Note the radio collar.
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Rory and Luci
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Kootenay National Park
Friday, July 21, 2017
In camp at Redstreak Campground, Kootenay National Park, Radium Hot Springs, B.C.
We left camp and retraced yesterday’s path along Route 93 through the Kootenay River Valley. The river was too fast for Felix to swim although the man in the left of the picture did take a quick dip. Later some of the 6 children with him also went in the chilly water. We watched in amazement as the family of 8 piled out of the relatively small RV! Blue sky for the moment but a chilly day, temp in upper 50’s.
Marble Canyon is a beautiful glacial fed stream running into the Vermillion River. There are bridges and boardwalks as the cleft in the rock gets more narrow and deep. The new growth is overtaking the scars of the fire that consumed this area in 2003.
Tragically at the top of the canyon a sad story unfolds. In 2003 two young girls were hiking with their parents when a freak wind storm came up and toppled a 60 foot tall spruce onto the girls killing them. We found this stone two years ago and Luci remembered and went right to the spot. The two park rangers at the foot of the trail had no idea of its existence.
Fireweed is still in abundance. Depending on elevation, in some places it is starting to go by.
On the way back to the campground these male Big Horned Sheep were showstoppers right in the middle of the road!
Two years ago, this boys’ club of sheep were atop the bank, eyes nearly closed in the afternoon sun in Zen-like serenity.
We did not see the mamas and babies this time.
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Rory and Luci
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Icefields Parkway
Thursday, July 20, 2017
Jasper, Alberta to Radium Hot Springs, B.C.
We drove down the Icefields Parkway from Jasper to just past Lake Louise and turned west again back into British Columbia and Kootenay National Park. The weather seemed clearer (less smoky) but cloudy with intermittent rain showers. By the end of the day it was sunny and warm! The first stop was the amazing Athabasca Falls. A lot of water has cut a deep gorge through the rock.
The same river just upstream running over the flat glacier valley.
The glaciers are still impressive even if they are not Alaskan. They are clearly retreating but we didn’t see much difference from when we were here two years ago. We also did not stay there very long. The traffic was zooy, and parking impossible.
This is an animal bridge for animals to cross from one side of the highway to the other. There are also tunnels but they are less photogenic.
We found nice campsites at Redstreak Campgound in Kootenay National Park. After so many adventures for nearly 2 months, it that been nice the last couple of days to visit old friends! Stayed here 2 years ago.
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Rory and Luci
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Kinney Lake
Tuesday, July 18, 2017
In camp at Robson Provincial Park, B.C.
Last night at sunset the sky was bright and blue. This morning the smoky haze was beginning to settle in. We took a 5 mile hike (out and back) to Kinney Lake at the foot of Mount Robson.
It was a lovely walk with Mt Robson always ahead of us.
Felix was not deterred by the warnings of strong currents. He dove right into a quiet spot and wrestled this stick free from the bottom of the Robson River.
None of us were sure what made these odd snow sculptures on the peak of Mt. Robson. They must be huge! We are miles away.
Kinney Lake. The smoke is becoming more evident here. We later learned that this smoke is coming from a smaller closer fire, not the huge fires that are forcing thousands to evacuate. Either way by afternoon we could feel the smoke affecting our eyes and breathing.
Back at the campground we enjoyed lots of Rufus Hummingbirds at the host’s site.
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Rory and Luci
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Jasper Brewing Co.
Luci had the Sriracha Bloody Mary.
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Westward Ho! 