Grand Tetons by John W. Uhler - 30 May 1998 ©
May 1998 Trip Report
30 May 1998 - Saturday We were up at 6:00 am and on the road by 6:30. We took a nice leisurely drive to just south of Idaho Falls and then took Idaho Stateroad 26 East to Alpine, Wyoming and then Highway 89 North. The drive was beautiful. It was a nice semi-clear, not too hot or cold day. This was the first time we had driven this route and it was a very nice drive. We drove through Swan Valley and then into the Palisade reservoir area. Fantastic area. It looks like it would be great to camp and fish there. We saw a golden eagle just flying along the side of the lake. At Alpine we took 89 North towards Jackson, Grand Teton and Yellowstone. The Snake River was high and muddy, but there were groups of kayakers and river runners making the float down the river and it looked like fun. We pulled over at a turnout and watched a couple groups of each make their way through the rapids. We had a nice drive through Jackson and the little town park with the four elk antler arches and old western look. The town was not too crowded with visitors yet but it looked like the season had started. We took a look around the Elk Refuge, but all the elk had already headed back into the forest and up north. Slimpod Shooting Stars by John W. Uhler - © We then drove north to the Tetons and took some nice pictures and slowly drove through the park. We had a great afternoon. Beautiful rocky mountain scenery, wildflowers, streams and lakes surrounded us on all sides. We saw five trumpeter swans on Jackson Lake. Two took to flight and "wow" are they impressive to watch in the air. We also saw Canada Geese, Mallards and other birds along the way. We had a nice easy drive from the south entrance into the park. Still a lot of snow on the road sides and hillsides. Great scenery along the way and we were just thrilled to be back home. We stopped and took some photos along the way. We saw a moose just west of West Yellowstone in the park. We use to see a moose every year at this place on our first few trips, but hadn't seen one for the last two years. We checked into the Three Bear Lodge and had a great stay with the folks there. We had supper and then walked around the town and visited the gift shops and smelled the wood burning in the fireplaces and felt at home. 31 May 1998 - Sunday Brink of Lower Falls by John W. Uhler - June 1998 © We got up around 7:00 am Sunday morning and drove north of West Yellowstone towards Ennis, Montana. We turned off the road toward Quake Lake. It was a flat area full of sage bushes and several large houses and beautiful Rocky Mountain scenery. We drove around part of the Hebgen Lake area. The lake, on the east end, looked small, which was very deceiving because as we came around a bend in the road, a huge beautiful blue area of water opened up before us. It was really an awesome sight. We went back to West Yellowstone, went to church and then headed into the park. We started about 2:00 pm and had a nice drive to Mammoth. We saw a trumpeter swan sitting on a nest on the Madison River, and elk and buffalo with calves between West Yellowstone and Madison Junction along with Canada Geese and some mallards. On our way from Norris to Mammoth we saw a few elk and not a lot of other wildlife. We arrived at Mammoth about 3:30 pm and checked into our cabin, unpacked and headed for Lamar Valley. The elk in the Mammoth area have gone to greener pastures as we did not see near as many as we had in April. We stopped and took some photographs of the muskrats and yellow-headed black birds and just had a nice easy drive to Lamar. We stopped at several turnouts along the way, but we did not see any bears or wolves. Osprey Chick by John W. Uhler - June 1997 © When we arrived at the Lamar Picnic grounds it was like old home week, alot of our wildlife watching friends were there - Bill and Bobby Clark from Texas, Mark Schwartz from Minnesota, Dale from Pennsylvania, Bill from England, Terry and Beth Cooper from Kansas and others. If was fun to meet again and see how the year had past. There were new friends and it was fun as we reminisced and told of our past experiences together in the park. A good time was had by all as we shared our lives and time together. Good friends are a treasure! We saw a pair of Sandhill cranes soaring above the Lamar River and land on the bank. They are impressive to watch fly, very graceful birds. Joseph counted 32 buffalo calves in one small herd along the road. We saw a few elk calves but not as many as usual. They are starting to calve right now. When we arrived at the turnout, folks were watching a lone mountain goat high up on the north side of the road. It was fun to watch this nimble animal pick his way along the rocky cliffs. We visited and scanned the hillsides until about dark, then we headed towards Roosevelt while stopping at the turnouts to look for bears and wolves. At the last turnout in Lamar, some other friends stopped by and reported seeing four of the Druid Peak Pack cross the road and head out to do some hunting. We watched and visited until it was too dark to see and then listened to some bird calls and coyotes yipping and then headed back to our cabin at Mammoth. It was pretty late and very dark by the time we reached our cabin. We crashed and burned. I don't think any of us even moved until morning. Wildlife Seen on This Trip Yellow-bellied Marmot Antelope, a bald eagle, buffalo and calves, Canada geese, ducks, elk and a few calves, a golden eagle, ground squirrels, some magpies, a moose, a mountain goat, mule deer, muskrats, the fun loving ever present ravens, sandhill cranes, trumpeter swans, and a few yellow-bellied marmots. See the June 1998 Trip Report for the rest of the story! |
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