Fairy, Swamp, and Artist, but No Inspiration and No Uncle Tom, Part 2 - Mon., June 12, 2017

Continued from Part 1...

From Fountain Freight Road, we drove northeast through Madison and Norris on our way to Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. Lunch was a top priority because our last "food" had been Atomic Fireballs and Jolly Ranchers at the waterfall. It was about 11:30 a.m. when we ate. The weather forecast was for bad weather to hit at noon. 

Below are two of the tour buses that take people around the park. They were both in the Canyon Lodge parking lot.

Historic Yellowstone touring vehicle

After we ate, we immediately went on the North Rim Drive which, by this time, was completely packed with cars. 

I gave Susan and Darren some options for hikes: the very steep hike down to the brink of the Lower Falls (they passed); a short hike to Lookout Point for an awesome view of Lower Falls and the Canyon (which we did) or the Red Rock steep trail down into the canyon (we didn't do); another very short walk to Grand View for a view deep into the downriver side of the canyon (which we did); Uncle Tom's Trail (steep iron stairs down into the canyon for an up-close view of Lower Falls - more on this later), and Artist Point (which we did).

First up: Lookout Point. This is a great place to see Lower Falls. 

Lower Falls

Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone

Yellowstone River at the bottom of the canyon

Lower Falls from Lookout Point

Darren and Susan

Next stop, a short distance down North Rim Drive from Lookout Point: Grand View. No view of Lower Falls from Grand View, but you can see way downriver in the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.

Yellowstone River

Yellowstone River

Me at Grand View

Susan and Darren

At Grand View we saw this cool motorcycle with side car. That evening, the motorcycle with side car was parked very close to us at the Old Faithful Inn Cabins. 

I thought we could go to Inspiration Point along the North Rim Drive; however, that whole area was closed due to construction. We then continued down to the South Rim Drive. I really wanted to take Susan and Darren on the iron staircase down into the canyon to see the Lower Falls from a closer vantage point, plus it would have been great stair-stepper exercise. Unfortunately, the whole Tom's Cabin area was also closed due to construction. 

Our last stop in Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone is the iconic Artist Point. If you've seen any postcards of Lower Falls and the Canyon, or any famous photos or art work of the Grand Canyon and Lower Falls, they were most likely inspired by or photographed at Artist Point. 

With many of the other sites closed in the Canyon area, Artist Point was way over-crowded! Since I had been there before, Susan and Darren hopped out of the van and I took over driving, being stuck in traffic, and looking for a parking spot. The plan was, if I didn't find a parking space, I would continue driving around the parking lot and pick them up when they were done. Thankfully, lots of people were coming and going and a spot opened up on my first time around.

I was able to catch up to Susan and Darren. Artist Point is spectacular and breath-taking! It's hard to stop taking photos.

Lower Falls and Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
from Artist Point

Susan and Darren

Me at Artist Point

Lower Falls from Artist Point

 
It was after 1:00 p.m. and still no storm. We decided it was time to head back. If the weather held, we could see Roaring Mountain with Dragon Mouth Spring and Mud Volcano. 

It looked like our luck would soon run out. In the photo below, it is hard to tell, but the big, black, circular-shaped cloud looked like a super-cell storm. 

Dark, black, circular super-cell cloud

Super-cell formation

We made it to Roaring Mountain and saw Dragons Mouth Spring and Mud Volcano while it was still sunny. Dragons Mouth Spring roars and hisses. 

Boardwalk to Dragons Mouth Spring

Dragons Mouth Spring

Dragons Mouth Spring

The photos below are what's left of Mud Volcano. In 1870, explorers watched as Mud Volcano shot mud and steam into the treetops, shaking the ground with each eruption. Two years later all that was left was a lake of boiling muddy water. The volcano had blown itself apart.

Mud volcano's bubbling pool

Close-up of the bubbling, roiling mud

Shortly after, the rain started and the clouds lowered. We headed back to our cabin at Old Faithful and we ran into rain and rain mixed with snow. The temperature had dropped fast. I made a trip to the shower house for a shower, then walked 1/4 mile over to the General Store on the other side of the Old Faithful Inn. 

For some reason, an ice cream cone sounded really good. I got two scoops in a waffle cone and took it on the covered porch of the General Store. They have big wooden rocking chairs and a rocking swing. I sat on a rocking chair in the cold, eating my ice cream cone while watching big, fluffy flakes of snow come down. My ice cream didn't melt. Hey, a bonus when you eat it outside in the cold! 

Meanwhile, employees from the General Store were coming out and snapping selfies of themselves in the snow to prove to their relatives back home in the heat that, yes, it really was snowing in Yellowstone.

I contemplated eating ice cream while it was snowing. Did that mean I was eating a snow cone? LOL. I crack myself up.

The walk back to the cabin was in a fluffy snowflake blizzard. I didn't bring an umbrella, but I did have a hood on my winter coat. By the time I got back to the cabin I looked like an abominable snowman. Then the snow melted on my coat so I had to hang it in front of the heater in my room to dry it out. Oh, the adventures one has on vacation. Makes good stories to tell.

View from the door of my cabin

Yep, it's snowing!

I had the same view from the window of my room. As I looked out, I saw an elk walk across the far hillside. So cool!

It was a good night to get some sleep. We were pretty tired from the day's hike to Fairy Falls and the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. Let me re-phrase that, it was a good night to get some sleep until the loud, cracking thunder at 3:00 a.m.

Here's hoping we can get over the passes to Jackson, Wyoming in the morning.

Fairy, Swamp, and Artist, but No Inspiration and No Uncle Tom, Part 1 - Mon., June 12, 2017

In Yellowstone National Park, multiple trails beckon, but whose call do you heed? In our case, we opted to do a round-trip, 14k (8.68 miles) Volksmarch to Fairy Falls. 

Normally, Fairy Falls would be a 10k Volksmarch with a 2k option to Imperial Geyser; however, due to construction to the west of Grand Prismatic Spring for the past couple of years, the walk start point had to be moved north, which makes for a longer walk than in the past.

The weather forecast for Yellowstone today showed cloudy but dry weather for the morning. After noon, however, things looked really dicey with a big storm system moving in.

Our goal for today is the 14k Fairy Falls Volksmarch, and I want to take Susan and Darren to see Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. So...we were up very early and on the trail by 7:30 a.m. (This is also good in Yellowstone to make sure you secure a parking space before the big crowds arrive.) The trailhead is at the end of Fountain Freight Road.

We are some of the first hikers (a few cars arrived before us). It feels like we're all alone here this morning. Our walk instructions tell us to take the Freight Road almost four miles to our turn-off for Fairy Falls which we do. The road goes south toward Grand Prismatic Spring; however, construction blocks access to the Grand Prismatic Spring area. 

Ojo Caliente hot spring

Firehole River

Ojo Caliente flows into the Firehole River

A field of larkspur blooming

Me on the bridge over the Firehole - Old Freight Rd.

Straight and flat - Old Freight Road

Lake ringed by burned trees

Canadian geese (honkers)

Following the Firehole River

The wildflowers in the photo above and the photo below are unique in that they grow very close to the ground. At first, I thought someone had stepped on one, but in looking around, we found they all looked that way!

As expected, the Freight Road was closed at our turn-off point to Fairy Falls. Bob and I had been to Fairy Falls a couple of times before. The first time we went, there were only two-foot tall trees with no shade; new growth from the massive wildfire of 1988. When Bob and I returned in 2012, the trees had grown to 12-15' tall. Now, the trees along the Fairy Falls Trail are about 25' tall. They are finally providing some much-needed shade on this portion of the trail.

When we hit the shaded, treed portion is also when the mosquitoes descended in droves. Susan, Darren and I were killing mosquitoes on each other's backs. 

Earlier in the hike, we had warmed up nicely and tied our coats and sweaters around our waists. The mosquitoes were so thick, I took my red windbreaker off my waist and slung it around through the air to clear mosquitoes away before I put it back on for protection. (I had left my three cans of bug spray back at the cabin!) A man coming down the trail toward us laughed and said I looked like a matador when I slung my red coat around me. Funny!

So, even, though the day was a balmy 74 degrees, we all put our top layer of warmth back on to keep the mosquitoes away. When we reached the falls, we enjoyed the coolness of the splashing water and how pretty the falls looked. Note: When Bob and I came here both times before it was later in the year and Fairy Falls had only a trickle of water. Today, the falls were lovely.

At 220' tall, Fairy Falls is the park's tallest front-country waterfall. I think "front-country" means it's easily accessible by the masses, as opposed to back-country, which usually means longer hikes and more inaccessible.

Fairy Falls

Susan M. and me

Susan M. and me at base of Fairy Falls

Bottom of the falls is fan-shaped

220' up

Darren and Susan enjoying a bench at the
base of Fairy Falls

I think this is when we broke out the Atomic Fireballs and Jolly Ranchers. We had a little sugar feast. 

Our dilemma became our return trip. We could go back the way we came through mosquito alley **or** brave the lack of bridge across the stream below the falls and the swamps on the alternate return trip. We decided the excitement of the swamp was a better option than fighting off the mosquitoes again.

Between Fairy Falls and Imperial Geyser, I knew there were swampy areas that had wooden planks laid across the worst areas. Beyond Imperial Geyser, I had only seen photos of the mucky swamp. And the mosquito population along this swampy area could be as bad or worse than what we went through. Ah, the unknown.

First, we had to cross the stream at the base of the waterfall. There was a medium-sized, downed log about three feet above the stream. The log had sharp daggers where small limbs had broken off. All the bark was gone so we were dealing with a potentially slippery surface that wasn't very flat. I went first. I used my hiking poles to help with stability.

When I was in the middle of the log over the stream, my foot went down on a very uneven part of the log and I started to lose my balance. Thankfully, I had a class in tai chi at the convention. I stabilized myself, took a deep breath and thought, "Balance, balance." From there on, I was very careful with my foot placement and finished getting across. Susan used her hiking poles too. We all made it across! The old footbridge that used to be there looked like it washed away in a storm at some point.

You may have noticed that the wildflowers are in bloom and I love them! Susan and Darren kept on trucking while I took wildflower photos. They did stay in sight, though. They had bear spray and I didn't, so we didn't want to get too far separated. (Never did see a bear.)

We crossed a number of mucky or wet areas along the trail back. Most wet or muddy areas had planks on the ground. However, at one point when the muck got to be shoe-sucking deep, there were "balance beams" that we had to traverse across a whole meadow. No handrails! See photos below.

The "balance beams" across the meadow.

Ahhh, solid ground

Lots of larkspur

I thought I saw an animal in the distance. When I zoomed in on it, it was a small, dead stump.

Stump animal in wildflowers

Susan photographing Darren

At this point in our hike, we came upon two hot springs that were overflowing. Both covered the trail. What to do? What to do? We assessed the situation. 

On the first spot where we were stymied, I could see the water wasn't very deep and the trail was pretty well indicated. I marched right through it and the ground was nice and firm. The water didn't come over the soles of my hiking boots.

We weren't so lucky with our second encounter. This area was mucky, sucky, slippery mud. Again, the best path seemed to be to follow the trail through the middle of it, keeping in mind that going off-trail around here could mean falling through a thin crust of dirt into a 250-degree hot spring pool. The mud came to the mesh part of our boots, but no higher.

It was getting quite warm by 10:00 a.m. Since it was breezy and the threat of mosquitoes seemed to be in the past, Susan and I wrapped our coats around our heads to protect us from the sun. 

Stylin' on the trail. LOL.

Mileage sign on the right of us in the photo above

We saw this sign after we got back!

Notice that the sign above did not mention bug spray. That was something they should not have omitted! 

Before long, we were back at the van. After a long hike, we like to change our shoes and socks because them dogs are barkin'! What a nice relief.

Once again, Yellowstone blogs take up a lot of space. I am breaking this blog into two parts as well. To be continued in Part 2...