Yellowstone-Lemar Valley and the Beartooth Hwy

Our route from the furthest point, Jasper AB, to the north entrance of Yellowstone National Park

Ahhh….Yellowstone.  This is a park that you dream of your whole life.  The largest and oldest of all our National Parks.  221,000 acres.  Where one sees an abundance of wildlife, spouting geysers, bubbling mud, colorful canyons, sparkling streams, lakes and waterfalls.

Wednesday, July 24th, 2014 – Day 54

As we approached the park from the north, I had the excitement of a Christmas morning.  I couldn't wait to get around each bend to see what natural “present” I was going to get.

Wow!  As we drove near the north entrance to Yellowstone, I could not believe how it looked like another world!

 What is so amazing about Yellowstone is that there are so many different landscapes - different climates. From Mammoth Hot Springs to the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone from quiet solitude to throngs of people; Yellowstone should not be missed.

The Roosevelt Arch at the north entrance to Yellowstone

We came to Yellowstone through the north entrance, staying at Rocky Mountain RV Park; a very nice, meticulously maintained private park a couple of blocks from the entrance, in Gardiner, Montana.    This was our “base camp” for the next 5 days.

 We were shocked by the heat here in this part of Yellowstone.  The car’s thermometer registered 104 degree’s!  Over the past 2 months, we have been blessed with cool conditions, necessitating polar fleece. Now, for the first time, I have had to locate the “summer” clothes, smooth out the wrinkles, and hope they still fit.

 We headed to our usual first day activity, which was checking out the Visitor’s Center. As we drove up the mountain to Mammoth Hot Springs, the air was much cooler, but as we approached, we were horrified by the crowds!  The giant herd of elk with their calves certainly was a large contributor to the confusion in the area. People (myself included – hey, I am a tourist too) jumped out of their cars to capture these cuties before they disappeared.  (As the week passed, we found that they are actually there all the time, for some reason).

This is one of the many baby elk hanging around the Mammoth Springs Visitor Center.

 We quickly learned that in order to avoid these crowds, we had to get up and out very early.  7AM was going to have to be the goal. Ugh.

You would never know where these Elk will show up!
They must have come downtown for Happy Hour!

Armed with more brochures and maps, we went back to make a plan.  I did a mega load of laundry in preparation for a busy couple of weeks, and washed off the car’s caked-on mud at the local car wash.












Thursday, July 24th, 2014 – Day 55


Norm and I decided to make our first full day here a long one.  I had read so much about the Beartooth Highway, (east of Yellowstone NP toward Red Lodge ) that it became a “must do “.

We discovered these swallow nests on the backside of a rock formation

 We drove through Lamar Valley where they claim you see the most of the large animal life.  We did, in fact, see a herd of bison, an elk or two, and a small herd of pronghorn.

Peek-a-boo!  Swallow inside next

Note:  Here in Yellowstone, there is another phenomenon; the behavior of tourists in the event of a possible animal sighting.  Many of them have no regard for their own personal safety. Or that of others.
We have seen idiots who will get within 20 feet of a wild, potentially dangerous animal ( you’re supposed to be outside of 75 feet with elk, 300 feet with a bear or wolves ) and turn their back to them and take a “selfie”! Crazy!

All it takes is to pull your car over.  It doesn't matter if you just needed to consult your map, you can be assured that nearly every car following will pull in behind you.  If you get out of your car, look toward the woods with a camera or binoculars?  Mayhem. Tires will squeal, the road will be blocked, and within 10 seconds you will be in the midst a crowd. (Great way to meet people, actually.)  I must admit, there have been many times I have made Norm stop so I may join in for perhaps another photo op.

People seem to collect animal photographs like trophies.  Let’s see; pronghorn, black bear, elk, etc.  “Have you seen a grizzly yet?” someone will ask.  “Coyotes?”  We still need to find a bald eagle, moose and grizzly, hopefully from the safety of the car.  Norm wants to see a beaver.

Another awesome why to get to know Yellowstone is by horseback.
( We chose not to join this "herd" of people )

Bison are frequently seen in the Lamar Valley

We turned onto strange, unmarked roads just to see where they were, looking for some wildlife of our very own.  We found a road leading to a fire tower where there were volunteers manning it. They explained how they would determine the exact location of a fire with a very antique-looking device.  The elevation was about 10,000 feet and the wind was incredibly strong.  Brrrrr.  Very picturesque though.

We stopped for lunch and a little nap overlooking the "Bear tooth" in the background. ( the peak in the middle )

When we reached the top of the mountain at the Firetower, this beauty was a complete surprise!
Beartooth Butte is the remnant of this 500 million year old seabed.  It's sedimentary rocks are  rich with fossils.

Ho-humm.... just another breathtaking scene!

We drove on, stopping to take pictures of the breathtaking alpine lakes and snow-capped mountains.  The sprawling meadows of wildflowers were exploding with a variety of colors. Fifty photos later, we were back in the car.

This little lake was up at 11,000 feet!  Wind was about 90 mph! The wildflowers were just amazing!

The road twisted and turned with numerous tight switchbacks, finally topping out at 11,000 feet!  There was a trail at the top that we contemplated hiking, until we got out of the car.  Here, the air was thin, and the day was late, but the bigger problem was the wind.  While parked in the lot, the car rocked like a boat on the turbulent seas.  Stepping out, our clothes were nearly ripped off our bodies!  My tight headband earmuff got ripped off, and Norm’s Tilly hat with strings around his throat blew off his head and was practically strangling him!

Hard to imagine how much snow was here if by the end of July
there is this much left beside the highway!

Now this is serious snow moving equipment!

Because the wind was so brutal, I had to lie on my stomach just to take a picture.  We guess the wind had to be over 90 mph.  I have no idea how motorcycles were possibly staying on the road, nor how tall motorhomes where making it up these incredibly steep grades.

The Beartooth Hwy is an extremely steep road, loaded with switch-backs!

At this point, we turned around to head back. After 11 hours of exploration, we happily arrived home, and had the beef stew I had cooked the day before.  What a great day!

Alison, you don't need to make snow-angels!