“Where’s the hiking??” I know that’s probably what you are asking at the moment, and I wish I had good news but I don’t. Aside from boardwalks and a few of the smaller trails, the ones I had planned to do were still closed.
To explain more clearly, many of the trail areas in Yellowstone are closed through Spring into early Summer due to bear management. The two trails I had picked out, ones that were fun but still doable for our kiddos, are in these closures. Now, don’t be fooled. I always do my research and for the most part know which areas are open and which aren’t. The Fairy Falls and Mystic Falls trails both sit within these areas but open again on May 26th to hiking travel. That should be fine, right? Well because of the heavier and longer than usual winter, the grizzlies appeared a little later in the spring than usual and were still frequenting these lower areas. That and the trail-head for Fairy Falls was closed for construction for the Grand Prismatic Springs overlook. It was a bummer but that’s life. Cant plan everything like you think. We will be back to do them another time and we are still having a fabulous time!
Today was fun filled and very enjoyable! From waterfalls, to geysers, animals, fabulous sunsets and the lake… we were busy. The day started out with a morning drive from Mammoth to Lamar Valley. On the way we stopped at Undine Falls. The sun was shining, the day felt like it was going to be a warmer one and the clouds from yesterday were gone. This made for some beautiful photos of Undine Falls and we watched a pair of ground squirrels play within the roots of the surrounding lodge-pole pines. We also spent some time looking for a marmot that tends to hang out in the area but he or she was nowhere to be found. Probably up sunning on a rock away from the people. Can’t say I blame them.
Undine Falls
After our stop at Undine Falls we continued on out to Lamar Valley. We drove the gravel road through Black Tail Plateau in the hopes of seeing a bear or maybe a wolf, but luck wasn’t on our side this time. We then stopped at the Petrified Tree, my oldest daughters favorite stop. The idea of a tree now being rock fascinates her to no end.
Our drive out to Lamar Valley didn’t bring us much in the way of wildlife, even the usual wolf den activity was nonexistent. However, the views were spectacular. Our route back from Lamar and over Washburn was sunnier than yesterday and offered some ever changing scenery. This time we decided to head to Lake Hotel for lunch and a little exploration. This lodge is gorgeous, done in an art deco, and one I know we will have to stay at in the future.
After a much needed recharge, we set out over Craigs Pass to Old Faithful. A request made by both A and E. Our hope was to get there and have enough time to watch Old Faithful erupt. And… we arrived just minutes after an eruption. That’s OK! This gave us some time to explore around the inn and then walk the trails in the Old Faithful Geyser Basin. I have not done this in a long time and it was impressive. The view of Old Faithful Inn and Old Faithful Geyser was beautiful and in the end, we watched it erupt from the trails and boardwalks. This allowed me to get a great shot of both the geyser and the inn! We may come here a lot, but there is always something new to see.
Old Faithful eruption from the basin boardwalk and trail.
Old Faithful Inn and Old Faithful eruption.
After catching the eruption from our unique viewpoint, we made our way back to Old Faithful Inn for a break and some yummy ice cream. At this point the day was starting to slip away from us, so we started to make our way north back to Mammoth Hot Springs. We took the road along the west side of the park in hopes that the waning light would bring us some wildlife, perhaps the elusive wolves that we had not seen yet.
Sunset over Gibbon Meadows
We did not find a lot of wildlife on our journey from Old Faithful back to Mammoth, but what we lacked in wildlife we made up for in stunning sunsets. Truly, the sunset over Gibbon Meadows took my breath away and was a wonderful reminder of how lucky I am, we are, to have what we do. A reminder of how much I love this place and how magical it is. Are there places on this earth with more spectacular views and craggy peaks and alpine lakes? Sure, but there is something about Yellowstone that will always stick with me. Perhaps its the memories of childhood associated with it but there is more to it that I just cannot explain. This will always be my happy place.
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Pavement to Trail 