Wildlife Bingo

We have kept a log of wildlife we saw on the trip. Mostly large mammals as if you listed every bird or every ground squirrel, chipmunk, pica, and marmot, we would be even more long, boring and pedantic than usual. So this more a log of animals we found interesting and for those playing wildlife bingo we missed two large mammals, a grizzly bear and the mostly solitary moose:

1. Deer (white tail, black tail, mule), lots of deer
2. One male deer in Waterton who visited our campsite two mornings in a row in Waterton Lakes
3. Rock Bass
4. Common Loons
5. Brown Heron 
6. Snapping Turtle
7. Dead Skunk in the middle of the road
8. Pelican or Ibis (white bird)
9. Range Cattle
10. Wild Horses
11. Domestic Range Sheep
12. Rocky Mountain Sheep
13. Bison (solitatry and in herds - TRNP,Yellowstone) LOTS of bison
14. Antelope
15. Rabbits
16. Prairie Dogs
17. Vultures
18. Hawks
19. American Bald Eagle - one mature, and one juvenile both fishing in lakes
20. Lazuli Bunting
21. Black Bear
22. Mountain Goats
23. Owls (we actually did not see but heard various owls in Banff, Yoho, and Yellowstone)
24. Grouse
25. Golden Eagle
26. Weasel or Mink
27. Rainbow Trout
28. Cutthroat Trout
29. Green Cutthroat Trout
30. Brook Trout
31. Canadian Magpie
32. Great Blue Heron
33. Wolf
34. Elk (lots of Elk especially in Yellowstone)
35. Trumpeter Swans
36. Black Racer Snake

Happy 38th Anniversary!

Tomorrow we will observe our 38th Wedding Anniversary. As we will be driving for most of the day we celebrated this evening by going out to dinner. On a recommendation from Joey of Joey's Birdhouse we took a tour of the Stone Hill Winery in Hermann, MO. It was great. The property was a producing vineyard and winery started by German settlers in 1847. It was interrupted by Prohibition of course and had to make a comeback under new ownership in the 60's-70's. It has great wine cellars original to the property and was a lot of fun. We ate at the German themed restaurant on the property. Here are somepictures and below a YouTube video I dedicate to my wonderful wife:

 

The Katy Trail - McKittrick, MO

The Katy Trail is a 250 mile rail trail of packed crushed limestone that follows the Missouri River from about St. Louis, to Kansas City. With our swing through Colorado, we were far enough south to spend a day riding on it. We were only able to complete 30 miles on a hot sultry day around the eastern town of McKittrick. That is OK as our main purpose was to get information for a longer trip here.

We stayed at a great B&B called Joey's Birdhouse just off the trail.  A little offbeat but very nice, very quiet. Our host (Joey herself) was a wealth of knowledge and went out of her way to make her guest comfortable. She had a great tip for dinner, and more about that in the next post. Other folks staying here shared some great tips on doing the whole trail, shuttles and places to stay.

 

 

We really liked the trail. It goes from river townto river town, mostly through quiet farmland and small towns. Trail markers were clear and up to date. Trail was well maintained and well paced with rest stops. The web site is great, and the trail map we found was even better. Joey says that while the trail is on the north side of the river, plans are to have an alternate route on the south side so you could doo a 500 mile loop.

Here are some pictures. I call your attention to the red public bike work stand complete with a a tire pump and chained on tools. I don't have much more in my home set of tools and here they had it on the side of the trail.

 

 
 

For Babinski

Needed to post this picture as the sticker on the Thule box is peeling off. I don't think it will make it to CT. Had to document that we indeed celebrated Frankenmuth, MI for most of the trip.

Harry S. Truman Library - Independence, MO

We had skipped the Eisenhower Library, in Abilene KS as we drove by on I-70. It was a concession to a long day of driving. The Truman Library and Museum fit just nicely to break up  longish drive and place our arrival at the bed and breakfast for late afternoon.

What a great move this was. The Truman Museum is a phenomenal place. The exhibits goe from his childhood to his rise in politics, to Washington, his presidency and his return to Missouri to be a private citizen. thing is tasteful, the hard questions are not shied away from and it really takes you back in time. Worth a stop if you are ever in the area.

You forget all the things President Truman dealt with during and after WWII. Deciding to drop two atomic bombs, rebuilding Europe to thwart Soviet expansion, the rise of Communist China, rebuilding Japan, the recognition of Israel, the Korean War, the decision to fire MacArthur, McCarthyism and corruption in his administration, to name a few.

Again the museum is great, very well done and worth the drive off the highway.

Hammerstrom's Hi-Adventure (Work) Camp

It is no secret that Doug Hammerstrom and I are on opposite ends of the political spectrum. I respect him for it. He comes by it honestly, and tries very hard to make his politics and life match his deeply held religious beliefs. He is also thoughtful, smart, and thinks deeply about his life and the world around him. Woe to the liberal who comes to the table with the weak sauce, with this conservative. 

It is only after visiting for a few days that understood the depth of his conservative beliefs and where it has led him. He is now in southern Colorado, but soon will relocate to eastern Washington. His current lovely house is on the market.The story is that it is to be nearer the kids, great new job, now is the best time economically and blah, ba-blah. What I have come to realize is that it is all a cover story to hide the depth of his ongoing conflict with liberals.

Colorado is sometimes called a purple state. In national politics it will sometimes end up on the Democratic side, and sometimes on the Republican side. Calling it purple, the middle between red and blue is wrong. Colorado has entrenched pockets of scarlet red and deep navy blue. They are not mixing, it is just that one sometimes one side wins and then sometimes the other wins. You are on the outs or on the ins. You are too entrenched to compromise.

For example, on our way out of town we saw a car with those cute little back windshield stickers that describe your family. You know, a big male stick figure for Dad, a stick figure with a skirt for Mom, couple of kids and maybe a dog or cat. The car we saw had the family described on the male side with two gray stickers of assault rifles, and on the female side a pink automatic sub machine gun and another pink sticker for an automatic pistol.  Talk about your hard line positions.

As we arrived on Friday night, we were put to work. The cover story was something about a surprise open house their real estate agent was pulling on Saturday, but I was not buying it. There are no handouts in red America, you need to work before you are fed. So we found ourselves out in the flower beds pulling up weeds, clipping the ragged edge of the lawn, and sweeping the sidewalks. Now it was worth it, as Chef Jodi Hammerstrom is by far one of the best cooks west of the Mississippi. But it was pretty clear, no work, no free room and board.

Now on Saturday, we had to get out for the open house. Literally 15 minutes before as the real estate agents were coming in and we were headed to the cars, a bang in the garage and the room began to fill with yellow dust. The cover story here was that a fire extinguisher spontaneously exploded, but as I put two and two together things became clear. Doug had antagonized enough liberals that he was on an enemies list and they were getting revenge.

Think about it. Moving to eastern Washington is a ruse. What is near eastern Washington? Northern Idaho, a place where you can fortify a cabin back in the woods and become ready for the apocalypse (i.e., Bernie, Liz or HILLARY being elected) by joining a survivalist community. What better gift to smuggle into a survivalist community than a canister of yellow cake uranium?

That's the stuff that was all over his garage! It all made sense to me then. He had ticked off enough Colorado liberals that he had to move on, with a fake to Washington and a jump into Idaho. However, the liberals must have found out, and blew up his supply of yellow cake uranium hidden in an old fire extinguisher! And they did it at the most inopportune time they could find for their old nemesis! Politics in Colorado is really hardball.

As for Marsha and I, we again had to earn our gruel on Sunday. Sweeping, wiping, vacuuming, and washing everything in his yellow garage before the word got out. Where did we send it? Washed it down the driveway into the gutter and sent it on its way. Once it was off Doug's property, it was not his problem any more.

At least we earned another 5 star meal from Jodi and one more night in the guest room. However, on Sunday we had to drink some concoction from Doug's juicer. It was looking good until the last minute when he added beets, and turned the pitcher - you guessed it, a bright RED!

He was born in the summer of his 60th year,
Going home to a place he had been before,
He left Colorado behind him,
He has always been born again,
He ran before he was hit by the door.

Spokane-high-plains-desert high in Washington State
Spokane-high-plains-desert high in Washington State
Knew he'd be a poorer man if he couldn't make the liberals cry!
He crazy enough to make even Bobby Jindal sigh!

Estes Park Scottish Heritage Festival

I have never see so many kilts in one place. Ate haggis and meat pies for the first time. Saw guys throwing empty beer kegs in the "Keg Over Bar" competition. Heard some talented Celtic bands and solo performers. And, of course, pipers and drummers -

Rocky Mountain National Park - The Last Hike, Adding a Comma and the Revenge of the Fishes

We are finishing up two days in Rocky Mountain National Park. There is some big Scottish Festival in Estes Park this weekend and it starts today so we thought we would check out the pipers and the drummers before its Hammer time in Colorado Springs where I will gratefully entrust my gullet to the skilled hands of Jodi Hammerstrom for the weekend.

Yesterday we figured out the shuttle system to get up into the heavily travelled Bear Lake area. It was a short hike up along a string of lakes but it started at 9475 feet which we knew would be taxing even after living at 8000 feet in Yellowstone for a week. It was taxing but it seemed to me that as the day progress the heavy breathing eased up. The last lake was Emerald Lake and to get there we added 605 feet. So, the total elevation at the lake was 10,080! Five figures and a comma! Good to be in five figures once again and a wonderful way to end the mountain hiking portion of our trip.

Now on the way down I noticed a couple of folks carrying rods and casting out in the lakes. This is a heavily used trail and it is "smoothed" out and constructed in many parts. Along Dream Lake, The trail runs right up next to the edge of the lake along much of its shore. As we hiked out in the afternoon, I looked over at the water at the head of the lake. FISH! Rising to the surface and visible in the shallow water.

They were green cutthroat trout a sub-speices found in these lakes, all about 6-8 inches.  We stopped to watch. They were right there, swimming in a foot of water, rising to all kinds of crap, sticking their lips above the water and gulping or spitting it out. They were mocking me! They were saying , "You fool! Once again an alpine lake, and you have no license or a fly rod! I spit dead caddis pupa in your general direction!"

And I am not kidding, they were right next to shore. If the well groomed trail was a sidewalk, they were in the gutter. I could have taken off my hat and scooped them up (except it was my sacred Mets cap and it was not going into the water). They lazily swam in the shoreline eddies, chased each other off, swam back in, tasted a few more surface items, swam back out. Even as we moved down the shore to new access points, new fish doing the same. I could see them clear as a bell. Green on top, yellow leopard spotted hind quarters, rising, ever rising. It was as if they were saying, "We are Dream Lake fish but the only way you will catch us is in your dreams!"


It was a fine hike and a nice way to end the mountain portion of the trip.

Emerald Lake, Rocky Mountain National Park, 10,080 feet.

Can You Love It Too Much? - Rocky Mountain National Park / Estes Park, CO

All along this trip I have been remarking at the changes in the parks and areas around the parks. I have been wondering what happens next in terms of the conflicting mandates of conservation, tourism, wildlife protection, preservation for the next generations and human access. Everything is not like the Ken Burns documentary, there are forces beyond the "greatest idea", mostly economic, pushing and shaping what comes next.

Perhaps the mountain town of Estes Park and its park "partner" Rocky Mountain National Park are an example of where lots of other parks/pretty places paired with tourism centered towns are headed. Like North Conway and the White Mountains, Banff/Canmore and Banff National Park, Jackson Hole and the Tetons, people gather here to enjoy the amenities of a tourism town, with the ability to visit nature.

Estes Park is small but growing. We visited just a few short years ago, and you can already see the growth in building of condos and town houses, and commercial building centered on tourism. I think the best example is the development of their free shuttle bus system. There are loops to all parts of town that connect at the visitors center, and a connection into the park to a place called Park and Ride. At Park and Ride you can transfer to a National Park Service bus, and take a ride to trailheads, where then you can get out and hike. You can still drive into the park, but every parking lot we saw was packed and there were Rangers doing parking and traffic duty in some lots.

Is this the future? Is it a good long term strategy to leave the cars behind and just do buses? One of the bus drivers remarked that even with the bus system in place there were times this summer when the Park/Town roads went into gridlock and the shuttles were locked in traffic. They estimate that ridership on the shuttle system was up 30% this year and that 30% more figure we heard in other parks about overall usage this summer. Can we move from a drive your Winnebago into the park to leave it in this nice place outside the park and we will drive you in with environmentally friendly electric hybrid buses?

In any case Estes Park is crowded with people and too small for the level of traffic that comes here. They do make their money off of tourism, so it is a self perpetuating cycle. You want better business, you need more people and cars, which lock up the roads, and make it a less valued experience. There are political signs opposing something called the "loop" road, so it looks like there is some effort to solve the problem by building a bypass of some kind. Ultimately, long term comprehensive planning could provide ways out,  concentrating on non-motorized transport (yup, tough to do when most of the visitors are gray haired and don't operate well at 9000 feet), but it is much harder to do when the crisis is on you rather than looking down the road 25-50 year sand saying if we act NOW this is the out come we will get. Long term planning takes political courage and dollars, both of which are in short supply until the crisis is upon you.

The Road to Perdition - Actually, Fort Collins & Loveland

Our route to Rocky Mountain National Park dropped us out of the Wyoming hills and down through Fort Collins and Loveland, Colorado. And I mean right through. The GPS took us right through the main boulevard of both towns. It was America again! Lots of stores and brand names we recognized, interspersed with quaint shops. Fort Collins is home to Colorado State University and that section of town had a lot of college influence. We ran into lots of road construction in that area that said it would be done in 2016, but when done it will be a nice wide street with trees and flowers on an island in the center. It will be a very nice "college town" area.

We did get to see some new things. Among them, the Up 'N Smoke Shop, a Hookah bar, a Rasta themed and  painted shop advertising bongs and pipes, and waxing salon graced with a painting of a scantily clad lass in a bikini and a slogan that promised to get you "as smooth as a peach". My innocence is shattered forever!

However, there in mind jumbling chaos of re-entry to the main stream American culture, a light in the darkness of westernesse. Off on the side of the road a symbol of genteel east coast living - a Dunkin' Donuts! We truly are headed back to the best!

A Note About Wyoming - RT 287

To get from Yellowstone to Rocky Mountain National Park, we drove across Wyoming on RT 287, a designated scenic road. It was a wonderful (if long) drive. The road cuts through some weathered canyon country showing off red banded rock and twisted rock formations. The terrain got drier as you went along. We got to see a large herd of antelope. It was a very pretty.

Wildlife Bingo

We have been keeping a list of the wildlife we have run into, especially large mammals. Suffice it to say that there multiple species of ground based chipmunks, squirrels, prairie dogs, marmots, and pikas a that have graced our picnic tables, boldly tried to steal our food, made lots of chattering noises, and yesterday ran up my pant leg (when I was wearing shorts! Hantavirus of the groin I can do without.) About the same for birds. Lots of western type jays and smaller birds around our campsites that we did not specifically add to our list.

1. Deer - Mule & Black
2. Rock Bass
3. Snapping Turtle
4. Dead Skunk in the middle of the road
5. White bird - pelican or ibis?
6. Wild horses
7. Bison - lots of places
8. Antelope
9. Prairie Dogs
10. Rabbit
11. Vultures
12. Bald Eagle
13. Lazuli Bunting
14. Black Bear
15. Mountain Goats
16. Heard Owls
17. Male Deer with big rack at Waterton
18. Partridge or Grouse
19. Weasel or Mink
20. Rocky Mountain Sheep
21. Rainbow Trout
22. Cutthroat Trout
23. Brook Trout
24. Canadian Magpie
25. Great Blue Heron
26. Wolf
28. Elk galore
29. Trumpeter Swan

This list may geta few more additions but we think a grizzly bear. di pretty well. I do not think we can claim a full card bingo. Two animals that did not show up to the party were a moose (they are pretty solitary) and a grizzly bear. 

Yellowstone Part 6 - The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone

The second most iconic image of Yellowstone after Old Faithful is the the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. The Yellowstone River is the longest free flowing (undammed) river in the US and in Yellowstone National Park it drops through a spectacular canyon. Artists, photographers, poets have celebrated the canyon. The river and the park do not take their name from the yellow rock that lines most of the canyon (it is a corruption of a French word to describe something else along the river) but the rock does make it spectacular.

A short word about very pretty but crowded spaces. The south rim drive is where you get the best views of the falls. The parking lot is always full and you go down a narrow trail to a lookout called Artists Point. When the tour buses arrive it is every photographer for himself. I have never seen so many selfie sticks in my life and such unthinkingly rude behavior.

I guess I get part of it. Your are on a bus being driven around. It stops you get out and only have so much time to see this place before getting back on the bus and on to the next place. You are kind of in a other worldly bubble as you get off the bus. But, holy moly, realize that there are lots of other people around you trying to do about same thing. A little awareness,politeness and sharing and we all can have a good time. Zoo-rama with selfies of you, selfies of you and your sister, you mother, you and your sister and mother, and lets try it again standing on the rock....

It is wonderful that beyond the crowd control problems, the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone prevailed. Note to the Babinski School of Photography - I did a lot of shooting of the canyon in RAW format. Will be looking on post production advice.

Yellowstone Part 5 - You Can't Rollerskate in a Buffalo Herd!

To get one last hike hike in in Yellowstone we took the advice of a couple of neighbors who were on full touring bikes and spent a couple of days camped next to us. They had gone up to the Pelican Valley trail expressly to see grizzly and were successful seeing one with cubs across the meadow. We decided to go for it!

The Pelican Valley is an offshoot of the Lamar Valley. The trail does not gain much elevation until you are a good ways out so we thought it would be a good out and back.

The Pelican Valley is prime grizzly habitat. It is only open after August 15 and you can only hike there from 9AM to 7 PM when it is open. It is also an area where groups of 4 or more are recommended making noise as they travel. We learned all this at the trail head info kiosk, as our neighbors had not mentioned the above.

The parking lot was full of cars, some with horse trailers. We were two but had seen a group of four head out just as we were pulling in. We had bear spray. We went back and forth, forth and back, and finally decided to pack up and go out.

We went through a the trees that separated the parking area from the grassland of the valley floor. It was a big, expansive meadow about three miles from side to side and at least a half mile to the next tree line.

As we stepped out, we noticed a herd of bison on our left about 200 yards away. As we watched it was clear that they were grazing slowly, but moving from our left to our right. Their path would take them grazing over the trail we would be on.

Dilemma. If we went down the trail it would put us on the far side of the herd with them blocking our way back to the parking lot and safety of our car. We could keep moving to reach some safety by going all the way across and getting to the trees on the far side, but faithful readers will know that we described the power and speed of buffalo we saw in the Hayden Valley a couple of posts ago. We decided that we should just kind of watch for a while and take some pictures.

Bison herds don't move together as much as they mosey here and there. The also don't move in a straight line. As the moved closer we became aware of some of them moving through the trees that bordered the parking lot. We stepped back, all eyes peeled. More of them moving into the trees and now threatening to cut off our escape route to the car. Couple steps back to compensate. More bison moving closer. We stood near the car. Closer. We opened the doors. Closer. Crap! We threw off the backpacks, shoved them in the back and and dove into the car. The parking area became full of bison, all around the car.

They did finally move on but for about 10 minutes we were in the middle of the herd. We got to see one young fella nursing on his mom. Now I don't want to upset the Wyoming Chapter of the Bison La Leche League, and I have nothing against nursing in public or nursing until the child is ready, but this guy was a teenager, and he had horns! No way should he been digging around in there with that apparatus. Momma bison should have cu the cord a while ago!

So here we sit. Bears somewhere out in front of us, bison off to the right but still in the area. If we walked out into the meadow and they decided to wander back, the bear spray could get a couple but just might tick off a couple more. We decided to abandon the hike, take a few more pictures and hike a shorter trail just down the road. Our last hike in Yellowstone. Here are some pictures:

Yellowstone Part 4 - The Buffalo & Others Do Roam!

We knew from previous visits that Yellowstone's Hayden Valley was a prime place to see bison, especially in the evening. And as it turns out, so does everybody else. We made it our business to make our trips take us through Hayden just after suppertime. It was crowded with car pulling over to yank out cameras, and we saw one car that went over the edge of the road not in a designated turn out (no one hurt, but if the car went much further it was going down a steep hill) . The Park Rangers were taking pictures and the car was scraped on the side, so maybe it was a the result of a side swipe.

It also was clear that some folks had this Hayden Valley thing down to a science. Spotting scopes, long lenses, and bag chairs set up in the best places for viewing. The animals did not disappoint. Lots of elk, antelope, deer, and herds of bison.

We enjoyed bison near, we enjoyed bison far, we enjoyed bison playing, and running near our car! Bison kind of scoot as they run and they move FAST! We had the experience of having a herd split into groups on both sides of the road, and having a couple of males disagree on what side of the road whom should be on. It got sorted out but not before a couple of young guys came barrelling across the plain, and cutting through the parking area where we were to get back to where they should be.

The Hayden Valley is beautiful in its own right with subtle colors of green sage, yellow grasses, green trees, brown valley sides and big blue skies. Add a few wild animals and it is wonderful.

One of our big learnings was that Hayden is not the only beautiful valley. In our explorations of thermal features (aka driving Steve to yet another river so he can try to fish) we got to explore other valleys with wildlife. I would put the Lamar Valley in the northeast corner on a par with Hayden, big beautiful with lost of animals and especially bison (see upcoming story).

We got to see a wolf in the Norris geyser basin! Light gray, just turning and heading into the woods. We heard multiple stories one day of an elk that had died near the road in Hayden and wolves coming down to take care of the carcass. A grizzly also came for lunch, and that was enough for the Rangers as people with rocks for brains were running up with cameras and they had to take the carcass away.

Where were we? Steve was annoying trout!

Yellowstone - Part 3 - I AM a fisher-MAN!

We went to the Madison River, threw dry flies, hoppers, beetles, minnows, and nymphs. Nothing! We took a hike up to Bradley and Taggert Lakes, another set of small alpine type lakes. Fish everywhere, slurping, jumping. Of course, the fly rod was in the car 2.5 miles away. Talked Marsha into hiking back there again the next day, armed with weapons of destruction. Windy again. No fish rising, nothing underwater that they would take. Next day we drive along Yellowstone Lake and I take out the spin rod and cast as far out as I could. Nothing. Move up into the Yellowstone River (described in the guide book as THE blue ribbon trout stream of the world). Nothing. Windy, wide, no hatches. Nothing. We went to Gibbon River.

Nothing on the Gibbon really, until we stopped for a nature break. There on a small curve as the river twisted through a meadow was a small thermal spring. As I took care of business, I looked over at the small pool created by the curve near the thermal spring - Trout rising! Back to the car, grabbed the pole and you the end to this - a six inch brook trout!

I AM a fisher-MAN!

Yellowstone - Part 2: Wildlife - Elk

I think that the best part of Yellowstone is the wildlife. It is a BIG park, although my New York friends will remind folks that Adirondack State Park is actually bigger than Yellowstone. We did a lot of driving to check out places where we had not been before. We were rewarded everyday with new wildlife experiences.

I have already chronicled the adventures of the lovesick elk in our campground over on Facebook. When we arrived the wonderful concessionaires of Xanterra put us up in the group camping area away from the main campground loops. Until the weekend people were sparse but not so the elk. Lots of male bugling, most nights all night. It was the first time I had heard the cows (thank you, Douglas, but you know a doe by any other name will taste as good - if you are cleaning out the freezer before you move) mewling back.

We saw lots of elk all over the park. Roadways, across meadows, up valleys. At Mammoth one fine gentleman bull had gathered 20 cows on the grassy islands between the parking areas in downtown (Our guy at the Grant Village Campground was holding on to 5). Talk about an elk jam. People are generally nuts about wildlife and leave all reason at the car door. Pity the poor Ranger girl who had to politely but very firmly get the thrusting and diving throng back far enough for pictures without interspecies mayhem. And the dude was in no hurry to round 'em up and get them someplace more private. He had the harem of harems and strutting your stuff in public was just fine. He had twenty babes at his beckoning, why not show the city peeps, what a  lucky man he was.

Yellowstone - Part 1: Thermal Features

OK, lets get his part over with. Of course you go to Yellowstone to see the geysers, mud pots, hot springs, color pools and to get the smell of sulphur up your nose. This would be our third trip to Yellowstone and we have done the Old Faithful walk each time. It is amazing every time. One of the things that strikes me as odd is that as the crowds gather at the appointed time of eruption you can collect on benches that form a semicircle around the fountain. Everything is quiet. People are silent or talk in quiet voices as they wait. It is very much like a church before services. Perhaps it is THE American church. The eruption happens and then very quietly and gently, the crowd melts away. There is something about it. You don't applaud, you don't cheer, you don't jump to your feet. It seems to engender a quiet awe in your soul.

We went to the geysers on the days before the labor Day rush it. Not that Yellowstone wasn't crowded on Thursday and Friday, but better then than the weekend. It gave us time to wander and to spend time in the smaller geyser basins (Norris, West Thumb) and small thermal feature that we had not visited on previous occasions. If it was hot and stinking we checked it out. We also re-visited the Old Faithful basin (improved boardwalks and pathways here) and Mammoth. Mammoth was later on Friday and it was a zoo so we declined the option of walking through and did a wifi download and elk study.

Here are some pictures:

 

 

 

Skunked on the Snake

We did a nice hike up to two small lakes in the Tetons, Taggert Lake and Bradley Lake. As usual, fish rising to the surface, everywhere. From where we sat to have lunch, I counted at least 30 fish rising and slurping insects on the surface in 5 minutes.

Since it was an easy hike, I talked Marsha into grabbing some fishing licenses and heading back the following day. She opted for the one day license, I opted for the 3 day. Of course we hike in and the wind starts blowing. By the time we got to the first lake the wind was pretty steady, rippling the surface and disturbing any surface hatch.  No fish action. In the periods where the wind died down a little we threw surface flies. We threw hoppers and beetles. We threw nymphs. Nothing.

The next day I tried the Snake River, one of the premier trout rivers in the world. I had bought a guide book and we located some of the access points suggested by the authors. Again a very windy day and the Snake can be a big open river in places. It was tough to cast with the wind and the surface was rippled.

We did find one place about 1.5-2.0 miles below Jackson Lake Dam, called Cattleman's Bridge. It is a long gone bridge site down a dirt side road that is not marked from the main road. It opens into a broad curve in the river with a big beach on the inside of the curve and deep quiet water out into a deep channel. Easy wading (even for me who did not bring waders as a concession to space) and a very nice spot. It was obviously a place where local come to swim and fish after work. This afternoon it was big enough to accommodated swimmers, and 4-5 fisherman. Fish were rising in the quiet spots in the periods when the wind died down enough to make the water go flat.

As late afternoon moved toward supper time the periods of wind increased and the periods of calm decreased. I got pretty good at "shooting" my line into the wind to get it out to calm spots, but the river was big and wide and the wind was very tough. More and more wind, less and less calm. By the time I got a cutthroat to flash up to a parachute adams, it was no longer worth the effort. So, zero for the Tetons, but I'd love to go back. You can drift boat the Snake with a guide that cost some bucks but that really is the way to fish it.