In Glacier
We drove up to Glacier. Everyone was feeling groovy.
The last of the pictures from Yellowstone. Most of these are taken early in the morning at Mammoth Hot Springs.
Chittenden Loop Trail
On Sunday we drove to Tower Junction on the only road in Yellowstone that is open during the winter to do some cross country skiing on the 10 mile Chittenden Loop Trail.
Practically the whole way out on the loop was uphill. When we got to the top the map had indicated that the remaining terrain was steeper than what we experienced coming up.
About this time we were hanging out and a fairly serious looking skier was passing by. We decided to consult with him about the rest of the trail.
I asked him if the way back was steep. He asked us if our skis had metal edges and we said they didn’t. Regarding the way we were about to go his exact words were “I wouldn’t do it”.
I laughed at this nervously, alternating between thinking he might actually be right, we should turn around, and that he was just underestimating our abilities to navigate what lay ahead. It did turn out to be steeper than the way out, but it wasn’t a big deal.
Mammoth Hot Springs
The first evening we spent the remaining daylight walking around the boardwalks of the upper and lower terraces at Mammoth Hot Springs. Say Wikipedia
Mammoth is a large hill of travertine that has been created over thousands of years as hot water from the spring cooled and deposited calcium carbonate (over two tons flows into Mammoth each day in a solution). Although these springs lie outside the caldera boundary, their energy has been attributed to the same magmatic system that fuels other Yellowstone geothermal areas.
Yellowstone: West Thumb Geyser Basin
This was my first visit to West Thumb Geyser Basin near Yellowstone Lake in the southeast corner of the park.
Yellowstone Canyon, Cascade Lake, and Mammoth Hot Springs
Our second day we drove over the the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone and walked over to Inspiration Point on the north rim. The road was closed and we had the place all to ourselves.
We also did a 5 mile out and back to Cascade Lake, where we saw a couple of mellow looking bison hanging out under a tree.
In the evening we ended up checking out the geothermal features at Mammoth Hot Springs. I hadn’t been there all summer and it was interesting to see how the area changed.
Yellowstone October
Hilary and I just got back from a weekend trip to Yellowstone. Cold weather finally hit Montana and everything was looking rather wintery.
Our first evening we ended walking around Norris Geyser Basin as darkness set in. In the low light the rising steam from the geothermal features combined with the barren landscape made for a surreal experience.
Going Home
From Static Peak at 11,303 ft, about 10 miles of hiking to Death Canyon Trailhead at 6800 ft. Load up the car, down highway 287 to Jackson, west over Jackson Pass, north through Idaho to West Yellowstone, through Gallatin Canyon to Bozeman, drop off Busy, 200 more miles west down I-90 to Missoula, Montana. It was a long day.
To Static Peak Summit
Our last day was the most epic. After eating breakfast and packing up, we hiked out of Alaska Basin, and alongside the base of Buck Mountain. After cutting around Buck Mountain the trail takes you up some really steep mountainside with some amazing views until you are within a couple hundred feet of Static Peak.
Busy and I made a short excursion to the top of Static Peak and were rewarded with some really nice views of the Grand Teton, Jackson Hole, and the scenery we had been hiking through for the last day or so.
Teton Backpacking Day 1 Continued
A few more pictures from the evening of our first day in Death Canyon.
Backpacking Grand Teton National Park
Just got back from an uber-crunk 2 night backpacking trip in the Tetons.
These pictures are all from the first day. We started a little south of the Grand at Death Canyon Trailhead, and hiked about 8 miles or so past Phelps Lake, up into the Canyon, where we camped.
