Gail South
Buffalo Jam
Terraces of Mammoth Hot Springs. Several key ingredients combine to make the Mammoth Hot Springs Terraces: heat, water, limestone, and a rock fracture system through which hot water can reach the earth's surface. Today's geothermal activity is a link to past volcanism. A partially molten magma chamber, remnant of a cataclysmic volcanic explosion 600,000 years ago in central Yellowstone, supplies one of the ingredients, heat. Hot water is the creative force of the terraces. Without it, terrace growth ceases and color vanishes. The source of the water flowing out of Yellowstone's geothermal features is rain and snow. Falling high on the slopes in and around Yellowstone, water seeps deep into the earth. This cold ground water is warmed by heat radiating from the magma chamber before rising back to the surface. Hot water must be able to reach the earth's surface in relatively large volumes to erupt as a geyser or flow as a hot spring. In Yellowstone, many conduits remain from the collapse of the giant caldera; frequent earthquakes keep this underground "plumbing" system open. Even though Mammoth lies north of the caldera ring-fracture system, a fault trending north from Norris Geyser Basin, 21 miles (34 km) away, may connect Mammoth to the hot water of that system. A system of small fissures carries water upward to create approximately 50 hot springs in the Mammoth Hot Springs area. Another necessary ingredient for terrace growth is the mineral calcium carbonate. Thick layers of sedimentary limestone, deposited millions of years ago by vast seas, lie beneath the Mammoth area. As ground water seeps slowly downward and laterally, it comes in contact with hot gases charged with carbon dioxide rising from the magma chamber. Some carbon dioxide is readily dissolved in the hot water to form a weak carbonic acid solution. This hot, acidic solution dissolves great quantities of limestone as it works up through the rock layers to the surface hot springs. Once exposed to the open air, some of the carbon dioxide escapes from solution. As this happens, limestone can no longer remain in solution. A solid mineral reforms and is deposited as the travertine that forms the terraces.
Sandhill Cranes Northern Shovelers
Entered Teton-Bridger National Forest at 12:45 and finally saw trees---mostly lodgepole pines. The first “Beware of Bear” signs outside of Jackson, WY. Up the Snake River Valley with Grand Teton on our left.
Back on the interstate about 10:30. Brave telephone poles marched along the hilltops and sorghum, now ripe and red, graced the black soil. Thousands of windmills brought energy to the prairie. The treeless plains gave birth to ingenuity in the pioneers. Instead of wooden fence posts, they used the native limestone. The ranger told us two strong men could make two fence posts a day. Maybe on the way back (if the sun is shining) I can get some pictures.
Entered Colorado and changed to Mountain Time at 1:30 and began seeing “living fence posts”, stands of sturdy pine trees planted parallel to the highway, along with “Got chains? Chain law enforced” digital signs. As I had persuaded Jerry not to bring chains along, the signs occasioned much merriment. Arrived in Castle Rock about 4pm and found a Super 8 just a half block from the RV rental place. Drove through pouring rain and heavy fog (how can they have fog and no ocean?) to The Fort, a restaurant recommended by our friends and specializing in wild game. It was a delightful place, and we were seated on a porch which would have had a grand view if the weather were better. We had buffalo marrow bone as an appetizer. Called “Prairie Butter”, it was better than beef marrow. Jerry had a buffalo steak, and I had lamb (which I couldn’t finish), with a nice Torres Santa Digna Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve 2010. Drove home through the fog.
Friday, Sept. 12
Woke to temps of 19 degrees and views of the Rockies we couldn’t see yesterday. We were told we couldn’t pick up the RV till 1, so we stopped at a Verizon store, where they told us to just turn off the phone when we entered Canada to avoid exorbitant roaming charges. Did some grocery shopping at Kroger (got a card, as this is apparently the most widespread grocery chain out her) and returned to theCruiseAmerica place. Did the paperwork and transferred supplies to the RV. Left just about 1:30. Traffic was brutal around Denver, but we made it through and entered Wyoming (greeted by an enormous buffalo statue high atop a bluff) at 3:30. THE SUN CAME OUT!! More windmills like the hairs along Zulu’s (our Rhodesian Ridgeback in France) back bringing power to the state. No sooner had we entered the state than we began to see Pronghorn Antelope, in herds, and in groups of three or four. It is easy to see why these are the Great Plains—unending vistas of undulating grasslands, interspersed occasionally with smallish groups of cattle. As we continued, dribbled sand castles of rock began to appear, and the hills got higher. Huge, greater than twenty foot, snow fences were everywhere, and the signs switched from “Got chains?” to “Route 80 closed when lights flash”. Got gas in Laramie at 4:30, then on. Ponds held Great Blue Herons, ?ducks? and a Western Grebe. “Strong Wind Possible” signs started to appear. Just before Rawlins was an absolutely huge Sinclair refinery rising up from the grasslands. Got to the KOA at 6:15; registered; and shopped in town (using our Kroger card for bargains). Came back, hooked up, and cooked hamburgers on the grill. Abner had a rough day, but I think he will be better tomorrow. (280 miles)
Saturday, Sept. 13
Four hundred forty five miles today, driving along the Continental Divide for a good bit of the day. Speed limits are up to eighty, and it is just FLAT, FLAT, FLAT. Got off route eighty and onto 191 north. Wild mustangs, antelope and sagebrush. No birds. This is the land of the Pony Express Trail, the Oregon Trail, and the California Trail. It’s hard to imagine doing this in a covered wagon. Huge ravines, magpies, and dry, dry,dry. Lots of Pronghorn antelope.
Decided to do Waterton Park today. This is the tip of Glacier which is in Canada. We learned that Yellowstone is the northern tip of the USA Rockies and Glacier is the southern tip of the Canadian Rockies, and there really is a difference. Canada is rockier. “Shaped by wind and fire, Watertonremains for all time a place of spectacular natural beauty—a Canadian legacy of mountains, lakes, prairies, forests, alpine meadows and wildlife.” The road up to the entrance was magnificent, awe-inspiring, unbelievable. This is what I had hoped Yellowstone would be, but the fire of 1988 pretty much decimated that park and it was a bit disappointing.
Tuesday, September 16—Abner met a friend at the KOA—a thirteen year old chocolate Lab named Maddie. We later heard that his old friend Maddie, in Beach Haven, died on Saturday.
Lamar Valley with Buffalo Herds
Saw Beryl Spring. A caldera is a cauldron-like volcanic feature usually formed by the collapse of land following a volcanic eruption. They are sometimes confused with volcanic craters. The word comes from Spanish caldera, and this from Latin caldaria, meaning "cooking pot". The Yellowstone Caldera is the volcanic caldera located in the northwest corner of Wyoming. The major features of the caldera measure about 34 by 45 miles. The caldera formed during the last of three super-eruptions over the past 2.1 million years.
Sunday, Sept. 14
Entered Yellowstone through the West Gate and headed north to Madison. Couldn’t drive the Firehole River Drive, as it is closed to RVs. Stopped at Gibbon Falls (84 feet high) and walked the new overlook. Abner came along.
Bison and Elk
Raven on a Bison Skull Red-tailed Hawks
Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2014
Left Beach Haven at 8 am and drove the NJ and PA turnpikes to Somerset, then onto Route 70, which we plan to take all the way to Denver. Into WV at 2:10 and Ohio at 3. Took the I270 south around Columbus and arrived in Richmond, IN at 6:30, after 644 miles. We checked in at a really bad Days Inn and went to visit our dear friend Dottie C., who suffered a stroke and is recuperating in a very nice facility there. Her daughter Becky, whom we know from her visits to Florida, was with her. I think Dottie was happy to see us and I’m certainly glad we stopped. Becky recommended a good Italian restaurant, Galo’s, where we had a delicious meal and slept to the tune of a train track right next to the motel.
Wednesday, Sept. 10
Left at 7:30, never to grace a Day’s Inn again. Headed west through fields of very healthy corn and soybeans. Many, many big rigs. Grey day with rain most of the time. Reached Illinois abut 10 and set the clocks back for Central Time. Stopped in St. Louis shortly after 11 for gas, and arrived in Kansas about 3:15. Saw the first cows since Ohio, and checked into a Super 8 motel in Junction City (Fort Riley). The receptionist had recommended Ike’s (after the “local” Dwight Eisenhower) as the best around, but it was just a tavern, so we had a drink and some wings and went to Cox’s Barbecue—not too good. Drove 678 miles today.
Thursday, Sept. 11
We were ahead of schedule, so we decided to see some of the Flint Hills of Kansas. The name of the area made me think of the optimistic soul who named Highlands, NJ. These were not really “hills”, but rather rolling areas of grass-covered layers of limestone. We took the scenic drive and were not disappointed. We started at Milford Lake, where I had hoped to see the sunrise, but it was cloudy and overcast. The Ranger was just fixing the flag at half-staff in remembrance of 9/11, and the visitor center there was open (at 7:30) so we went in and picked up some information about the area. “Few places capture the imagination quite so well as the Flint Hills of Kansas. It is the home of America’s largest remaining strand of tallgrass prairie.”
Entered on the Chief Mountain Highway, which led us toward the park entrance. After passing through customs, and just before entering the Park, we saw a black bear sow with two cubs, one black and one golden brown.
Lunch at Yellowstone Picnic Area
Western Scrub Jays
Passed through Golden Gate. Glen Creek flows north through the canyon en route to the Gardner River descending from 7,400 feet (2,300 m) at Kingman Pass to just under 6,000 feet in less than 3 miles. The northern portion of the Grand Loop Road traverses the canyon, connecting Mammoth Hot Springs with park features to the south. A road was first built through the Golden Gate in 1884-85, replacing a steep, difficult road over Snow Pass. The canyon's name Golden Gate was first documented as what visitors to the park called the canyon and pass because of the yellow hue of the rocks in the area. The work included a wooden trestle where a cliff face precluded grading. In 1900 the viaduct was rebuilt as a concrete structure which was replaced in turn in 1930-34, the outcome of a program to widen the road. The widened viaduct was itself replaced in 1977.
Green-winged Teals
Jerry just said—“Australia is nothing.” Saw our first bison. Entered Yellowstone at 3:15. The road to Madison and Old Faithful is closed, so we had a long detour up around the Canyon area, west to Norris, and then on through West Yellowstone to our KOA campground. Stopped for birds along the way.
Monday, September 15
Left Yellowstone shortly after 9 and drove north through the beautiful Gallatin National Forest. Founded in 1899, it comprises 1,819,515 acres and has portions of both the Absaroka-Beartooth and Lee Metcalf Wilderness areas within its boundaries. The forest is named after Albert Gallatin (one of Jerry’s heroes), U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and scholar of Native American languages and cultures. While the lower elevations are often covered in grasses and sagebrush, higher altitudes support Douglas fir, with several species of spruce, cottonwood and aspen being the dominant tree species. Of the 4,000 mi of streams and rivers there are major tributaries of the Yellowstone River, which bisects the western and eastern sections of the forest running through Paradise Valley. The Gallatin and Madison Rivers, major tributaries of the Missouri River, also are found in the forest. The habitat supports over 300 wildlife species, including the grizzly bear, bald eagle, and peregrine falcon. Many western North American species are represented in this climax ecosystem including elk, mule deer, bison, moose, bighorn sheep, antelope, mountain lion, wolves and black bear. Various subspecies of trout are plentiful in the streams and they contribute to the forest being one of the preeminent fly fishing regions in the United States.
We were also following the Lewis and Clark trial most of the way. Lewis and Clark's great journey west began in Washington D.C. and zigzagged along the eastern seaboard encompassing the states of Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsylvania; then proceeded through Ohio, West Virginia, Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois and Missouri. The trail then meandered through the great plains of Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, South Dakota, North Dakota and continues through the mountains and the valleys of Montana, Idaho, Washington, Oregon, concluding at the Pacific Ocean. The Lewis and Clark Trail is a cultural destination that covers over 4,600 miles, crosses four time zones, and showcases some of the most beautiful and rugged areas of America. It was surely a beautiful drive–389 miles. Check in at the KOA in St. Mary. Had supper and Jerry went to bed at 8.
Down the road through the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. Saw three elk crossing the river.