Last Year Part Three

I went up to a secluded part of Yellowstone (actually a plateau between the two northern entrances) and after taking a walk along a self-guided tour, I came back at night to take pictures of the Milky Way. My camera isn't really set up to take pictures for as long as necessary (the stars move during the length of time it takes to take the picture - around 32 seconds - so there is a little bit of fuzziness). I also took a picture of the Big Dipper.

I went over to Yellowstone Lake. It was the first time I had ever been there. I started hiking a trail that led off from the lake but was unable to go very far (left knee). On the way back to my car, I saw this lovely little fox wandering through the meadow.

The lake is very beautiful.

In late July, I was asked to come to Flathead Lake State Park, Big Arm Unit. It is something that I see everyday, since I am stationed in the entrance booth, and my office window looks down on the lake.

While I was there, I went to Glacier National Park. I was able to hike the trail to St Mary Falls, which I couldn't do last year because of the fire in this area. I saw this woodpecker working on one of the fire ravaged trees. You can see all the fire damage done in the area and there were a lot of burned trees, unburned trees and regrowth.

Saint Mary Falls was worth the hike. You can see the burned trees in this area.

Some of the burned area near the road on the east side of Logan Pass.

Saint Mary Lake.

Some of the regrowth in the burned area.

East side of Logan Pass.

Wildlife at the site were I lived until late September.

During the winter, I was a camphost at Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. I was there from October 1 through January 1. While there, I wandered over to look at the Salton Sea. The dead fish smell was awful. The dead bodies were all over the "beach". Not a place I would ever want to stay.

In the desert around Borrego Springs, an artist had put up all these marvelous metal sculptures. The detail on all of them was incredible.

The desert was mostly very dry and while the ocotillo had some leaves and some blooms, they were mostly just the barbs

The sunrises were gorgeous.

At Font Point, you can look into the badlands. This overlook was quite a drop and an unexpected delight. I was led blindfolded to this place, so it was a shock to see the incredible view below me.

After having my left knee replaced in February, I returned to Flathead Lake State Park, Big Arm Unit for the summer of 2017. I will be working in the entrance booth again, and I will find time to explore more in the area.

So, now we're all caught up.

Last Year, Part Two

On the way out of the park, I saw a huge herd of bison on the lawns around the buildings in Mammoth. This mother had two calves – this year’s calf is on the left, last year’s is on the right. Mom didn’t seem to care.

This mother only had one and was totally unconcerned about the crowd and the constant click of photos being taken. I guess even bison get used to paparazzi.

The next day, on my way back to canyon falls, I went into the Norris Geyser basin. It was overcast and not easy to see the various features. It was obvious there were a lot of geysers there. A couple of days after I went through, some fool decided he was going to walk across the surface (strenuously discouraged) and fell into some feature. They never found his body, or even his bones. It was too hot for rescuers to try to search. It wasn’t like they could turn a switch and turn off the heat! The place was closed for several days because of this.

Some of the very colorful algae that grows around hot spots and geysers.

A somewhat strenuous hike up to the top of the upper falls (altitude and knee), which included stairs, allowed you to look over the edge of the falls and to see all the water rushing past. It was beautiful, but it could also give you a little bit of dizziness at the same time.

 Colorful algae was abundant around the area.

Then to the top of the lower falls. The same thing as far as rushing water, but it fell a lot longer to continue on through the canyon. The noise of thundering water was almost deafening.

I then went over to Tower Falls. It is near the northeast entrance to the park. It was busy but it was a very easy walk to take pictures. There were trails that led to closer views of the falls.

On the way home, I stopped at the recently completed road work through the Roosevelt Arch. The 100^th anniversary of the NPS was going to be celebrated here sometime in August. Rumors were that Obama was planning on attending, but it turns out it was just a rumor and it didn’t happen.

Enough for today.

Last Year Part One

Finally, I am working to catch up with this blog. It has been a year since I have entered anything, but I have been taking pictures during that time.

In mid-May, I left CC and traveled to Montana. I was scheduled to work at a retail store in Gardiner, MT, but things happened and I had to leave.

While I was in Gardiner, I made several trips into Yellowstone. A year ago, I went into Yellowstone the day the road opened, but I didn’t go many places. This time, I went to places in Yellowstone that I had not visited, even when I worked here in 1978.

There was still snow on the mountain tops when I arrived. It was cold, but clear at the same time.

The first place I went was in to Mammoth Springs. It is kind of the entry point for all adventures in Yellowstone when you start at the northwest corner (which is where Gardiner is).

The main road into Mammoth has some bison that like the lush grasslands in the area.

I went from Mammoth over to (brain fade) Falls and Wraith Falls. Both are minor walks up to the falls and I completed them easily. Of course, my left knee registered a few complaints, but it wasn’t too bad either up or down.

The next day, I went over to the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, and up to Artist’s Point. This is a familiar site, but always gorgeous.

This blog doesn't want me to put in any more pictures, so I guess that is enough for today.