Wednesday, May 27, 2020
Pahaska Tepee, Wyoming to Jackson, Wyoming
Yellowstone Day 2
Highlights: Sparkling Yellowstone Lake, gorgeous hot springs, snowy mountains, steam vents, solitude, a hike overlooking Grand Prismatic Spring, two grizzly bears, a red fox, and an uncrowded Old Faithful
It rained during the night, and we woke up to a beautiful mountain morning, crisp and cool with low-hanging clouds, that would later turn into a sunny day. We'd been warned to be aware of our surroundings and check for bears before leaving our cabin. No bears this morning, but it was exciting to watch a great big bison traipse right by our cabin door!
Safety bear wears a mask
We headed back into the park at an early-ish 9:30, only to learn that a crane had tipped over at a construction site near Lake Village, blocking the bridge and all access to the Lower Loop. It was unknown how long it would take to clear the bridge, but at least several hours. For the time being, there was nothing to do but proceed the first 20 miles into the park on the East Entrance Road and wait. To go around to the South Entrance near Jackson would be 350 miles and take all day. Oh, well, there are worse places to be detained than the side of the road in Yellowstone.
Construction accident ahead
Crane lifts crane to open the road
The crane tipped over at 7:45 a.m., we took our place in the line of cars at 10:10, and traffic started moving at 12:10. As we waited, we talked to some fellow travelers from around the country with similar stories – Everyone was going nuts trapped in the house watching the daily bad news on TV and had to get out! As soon as things started moving, the crowd dissipated into the vast park, and we were alone again. Awesome!
A wait with a view, Yellowstone Lake
This time at the Lake Village intersection we headed south, beginning with stops along Yellowstone Lake, then proceeding clockwise around the loop to near yesterday's turnaround point at Norris Geyser Basin and working our way back toward the South Entrance. Another fantastic day!
West Thumb Geyser Basin, on the shore of Yellowstone Lake
A gorgeous hot spring in West Thumb Geyser Basin
This hot spring formed its own little island in the lake
We had two quite close grizzly bear sightings today, made lots of stops, and took many hikes, our favorite being the Fairy Falls Trail overlooking the iconic Grand Prismatic Spring. We ended our visit in Yellowstone by watching Old Faithful erupt with about 20 other people. Unreal!
Along Firehole Lake Drive
Artists' Paintpots
Gibbon Falls
Grizzly bear!
Grand Prismatic Spring from Fairy Falls Trail
Red fox (not to be confused with Redd Foxx)
Biscuit Basin
Old Faithful without a crowd!
Due to this morning's delay, we ended up making most of the 2 1/2-hour drive from Old Faithful to Jackson in the dark. I was sorry to miss the scenery on that pretty drive, but at least we'd seen it on previous trips. I was concerned about the possibility of hitting an animal in the dark, but we arrived at our hotel unscathed. We took the opportunity along the way to pull over for a few minutes in a remote area and enjoy the dark night sky. Beautiful!
Lodging: Miller Park Lodge in Jackson, Wyoming, finally arriving at 11:15. The proprietor was gone for the night but had left a key for us in a drop box. It was a large, nice room with a kitchenette. This hotel actually had quite a few guests. Good for them! 80 bucks for a hotel in Jackson – What a deal!
Driving distance: 230 miles. A very long and outstanding day in Yellowstone National Park!
Tom
Goetz's Homepage
|