If you find this article of benefit and would like to use it in a publication, contact me at gbonsack@execpc.com or by mail at G. A. Bonsack, N6261 Jason St., Onalaska, Wis. 54650. If you are a private individual and want a hard copy (16 pages long), with paragraph links versus the hot links, mail $2.00 and a large SASE ($0.55) to the above address. Thank you.
This article will take you into and around Yellowstone National Park, with you selecting the route you wish to take. For this article you will be entering Wyoming, from the east, on Interstate 90. Once you enter Wyoming, you will start to see Antelope along side the Interstate. Your first choice will take place at Sundance, Wyoming, continue west or turn north to Devils Tower. At the end of each leg of the trip, you will be giving the option to jump back to the previous branch point(s). That is, if you continued west and selected the Buffalo Exit and go over the Big Horn Mountains to Worland and on to the east entrance, or you could jump back to Gillette and go south from there, versus turning north or south at Worland.
A quick overview would be the southern route through Casper, Shoshoni, and Riverton and into Yellowstone from the south, plus the Tetons. At Shoshoni you could turn north and visit Thermopolis and take a dip in a thermal hot spring, from there you could go cross-lots to Meeteetse and Cody, with a small painted desert or continue north to Greybull before turning west to Cody and entering the park from the east. At Cody you could also choose to go north, on the new Chief Joseph Memorial Highway and enter through the northeast entrance. This entrance is also accessible from the north as well. If you decided to come in through Montana, you have the northeast, the north or the west entrance to choose from. Even the west entrance route has two ways of getting from Bozeman to West Yellowstone and for those "State Hoppers" one of those routes gives you the option of driving through the State of Idaho.
Whichever route you pick, I will try and give you points of interest and photographic locations. Since I have visited Yellowstone in June, July and August, I will do my best to fill you in on what you will see during a given month. In June you might see newly born Elk Calves and baby bear cubs, July will bring a different variety of wild flowers and partially grown babies. August will give you photographic opportunities of the big buck loosing their velvet and later on the rut and fall flowers, colors and migration. Which month and route you choose to visit Yellowstone is up to you.
I do have one suggestion for you, get up early and shoot with the morning light. Travel, hike to your next photo opportunity or do tourist things during the mid-day, unless it is partly cloudy or overcast, thus reducing the harsh shadows. Then begin shooting again later in the day and continue on until it is dark. Even after dark, during a full moon, one can get some interesting photographs out here.
Once you enter the grounds, you will pass by the Prairie Dog Town, take all the pictures you want, but do not feed them, nor drop any food wrappers or other items which might carry the scent of food. Abandoned prairie dog holes may be home to black widow spiders and rattlesnakes, so go with caution. Once you reach the Visitor Center and Parking Lot, you can hike the trails around Devils Tower or just walk up near the base of it and photograph the rock climbers. For more information check out their website at www.nps.gov/deto or call 307-467-5283.
Once you are finished and ready to hit the road south, follow 110 back to 24 and go south on 24 until you intersect with highway 14. Follow highway 14 towards Moorcroft and I-90 west. Once in Moorcroft, pick up I-90 west to Gillette and your next decision point.
At Gillette you can continue west on Interstate 90 to Buffalo or turn south on highway 50 to Casper and Shoshoni.
The route from Gillette to Buffalo is just more of the same wide-open country. Watch for sheep and Antelope along the road and for the monster snow fences. Once you reach Buffalo you could turn south on Interstate 25 to Casper and pick up the Casper, Shoshoni leg, but you would have saved mileage and time by going down Highway 50. You could also turn off of Interstate 90 and pick up highway 16 and go over the Big Horn Mountains and on to Ten Sleep and Worland, or you could stay on Interstate 90 to Sheridan and Ranchester and another route to the East Gate or elect go on into Montana.
Partway down the canyon you can look across the canyon to the other side and you will see what is left of the old road. I can remember going down the old grade, in the late 50's, when I first went to Yellowstone. It was a 1 and 1/2-lane road, with turnouts here and there. To our left was a shear rock wall, going up as far as I could see and to the right was a drop-off to the canyon floor. In places they had wire mess screens, holding back rock slides. Even today you will be able to look down into the valley and see the road doubling back on itself several times, on its way to the canyon floor.
Once out of the valley you will come to the town of Ten Sleep. I was told that the name Ten Sleep comes from Indian days and from their to some other point, was a ten-sleep travel. After leaving Ten Sleep, you head out across the flat lands to Worland. If you think that you smell oil, you are correct, as Wyoming is rich in minerals as well as beauty. At Worland you have more choices to make.
At Greybull you will turn west on 16/20 to Cody. From Greybull to Cody is just over fifty miles. When you reach Cody you can spend some time in town, head north to the northeast entrance or go west to the east entrance of Yellowstone. Wm. F. Cody founded the city of Cody in 1897. In Cody one can check out old west history at the Buffalo Bill Historical Center, The Buffalo Bill Museum, Whitney Gallery of Western Art, The Winchester Museum, The Plains Indian Museum or at Bill Cody's boy hood home, which was moved here from Le Claire, Iowa in 19XX.
Further down the road you will see a turn-off, to your right, to Lake Butte. This road takes you to an overlook above Lake Yellowstone. It was on that same day that during lunch I watched an electrical storm roll across the lake, driving lightening bolts into the lake. Here the knowledge of light reduction, by using a neutral density filter or dual polarizing filters would have come in handy. Using either method I could have gotten a longer exposure and may be captured one of those lightening bolts on film. Also in this area one will find moss growing from the trees, so dig out your macro or close-up equipment, or may be even a telephoto lens, with a close-up filter. Turning right, when you come down off of this wayside will take you to the junction at Lake.
Further down the road you will come to Highway 212, coming in from Red Lodge, Montana. This road is in need of some repair work, but once you enter the park, it should be a good surface. Take a left on 212 towards Cooke City, Montana. That is right, you will cross over into Montana for a few miles. You may remember Cooke City from 1988 Yellowstone Fire Stories. Watch for foot traffic as you go through Cooke City and start noting the damage caused by the fires of 1988. Cooke City is popular during the winter months, for snowmobiler's. Just after Cooke City you will come to the Northeast Entrance. The road from here to Tower Junction was scheduled for re-surfacing in 1998, so it should be in good condition this year. In Lamar Valley you might be lucky and see the Wolf Pack that lives there.
Just before you get to Meeteetse, you will come to a small Painted Desert, with a scenic overlook. Not only will you have some interesting rock formations to photograph here; you can find a variety of wild flowers and cactus to photograph. Meeteetse has a couple of western museums and several shops to check out and then it is on to Cody.
To West Entrance via Quake Lake
This route crosses the Madison River first at Bear Trap Canyon Primitive Area. Plan on stopping here for a few photos's, either from the shoreline or from the bridge. Here you are in this deep canyon, with the Madison River rolling down the canyon just below you, talk about "leading lines." Continuing on, turn south on Highway 287 to Ennis. I can remember stopping there and have a bowl of Corn-Cheese Soup, in a little cafe just across the street from the city square. Add a little bit of hot sauce and you have some good eating. About forty-one mile south of Ennis you can turn left on a dogleg into Idaho, or continue on to Quake Lake. Quake Lake was formed when an earthquake released millions of tons of rocks, which made a natural dam, blocking the Madison River. If you elected to come this way, stop and view the scarred mountain face and read about the campers who lost their lives that night. Further down Highway 287, you may still see the fault line, where the earth slipped by several feet. Just east of West Yellowstone, you will enter the Park via the West Entrance. You will be following the Madison River upstream and joining the Yellowstone Loop at Madison Junction. Watch for big game feeding along and in the Madison River, along with Trumpeter Swans, in the Seven-Mile Bridge Area.
Highway 20/26 is a straight, fast run to Shoshoni, again, Antelope, oil wells and rock formations. At Shoshoni you follow Highway 26 south to Riverton, unless you wish to head north to Thermopolis. Follow Highway 26 through Riverton, heading northwest out of Riverton will take you up the Wind River to Dubois, Togwotee Pass and down into Moran Junction, where you can go south to Jackson or north to Yellowstone. As you climb towards Togwotee Pass, you will find some interesting photographic opportunities. Being out west, you will have blue, blue skies and depending on the time of the year or the amount of rainfall, lush green valley floor, with red cliff. Watch for horses or other animals along the road for added interest. This road has also been recently black topped and the slowest I took any curve was forty or forty-five MPH.
In the Togwotee Pass Area, if you are there in the early summer, you will see skiers hiking up the side of the pass and skiing down. As you come down the north side of the pass, heading into the Tetons, keep a watchful eye open for the Tetons framed in the wooden arch along the road. There is one archway, with a wooden fence leading up to and away from the arch, that won a place in one of the national photographic magazines monthly contests. Whether you turn north or south, you will be traveling along side Jackson Lake, which can give you some powerful morning reflections, of the Tetons. At Moran Junction you can turn north to Yellowstone or south to Jackson.
There is a great deal to do in Jackson area, regardless of the time of year. You can browse the various art galleries or take the chair lift up into the Tetons and walk down or ski down, depending on the season. South of town the Snake River becomes "White-water", so you can get some action photo's, if you like or get wet yourself. There are plenty of places to eat in and around town, but if you like a fresh hot cinnamon roll, that fills your plate, get to the Bunnery early. You can take a drive along the base of the Tetons, with a stop at the many waysides along the route, for a hike up into the Moran and glacial lakes. At Jackson Lake Dam you can photograph Osprey and Pelicans fishing in the river or go west of the dam and drive to the top of Signal Mountain. There the view is something else. I could go on and on about other things in the area, but what I like and what you like may be different, so head north out of town to the south entrance.
Just after you enter the park, you will see a small falls along side of the road. Depending on the time of year and the amount of rainfall, this can be just a trickle or a small flow. Further down the road is a pull out, with a sign for MOOSE FALLS, which is down over the hill to your right. You will have to walk about two blocks from the parking area to the falls, but it has fairly good flow. There are large rocks, which add to the dimension of the falls and if it is early in the day and clear, look for a rainbow in the mist.
Further down the road is LEWIS LAKE, RIVER and FALLS. If you are lucky there will be someone standing below the falls fly fishing, thus giving size to the falls. Just past the falls, to the left of the road, an Osprey has built a nest for years. Throughout the summer the parents can be seen and photographed bring food to the young chicks. In mid-August, you might be lucky enough too see the young birds take to the wing.
At Grant Village/West Thumb Junction you can go left to Old Faithful or right along Yellowstone Lake to Lake Junction and the road from the East Entrance. I'll stop here and add a link to the Yellowstone Loop Text.
At Thermopolis you can take a dip into the worlds largest mineral hot spring. This spring discharges 18,600,000 gallons of 135-degree water per day. Stop by and rent a locker, slip into your swimming gear and enjoy Mother Nature's hot tub. From Thermopolis one can continue north to Worland and then turn east to Buffalo and I-90 east, or follow Highway 120 northwest to Meeteetse and on into Yellowstone via the east Entrance.
For the Yellowstone loop text I have selected the option of going counter clockwise around the figure eight loop, with Yellowstone.
From West thumb to Lake you will be traveling along the western shores of Lake Yellowstone. Across the one can see mountains reaching upwards towards the sky, just imagine a rosy red sunrise reflected off of the lake or the mountain tops bathed on the warm glow, off the setting sun. At mid-day, add a polarizing filter to heighten the western blue color. All along the shoreline, one might see waterfowl and fishermen, to add dimension to the photo.
At the Mud Volcano Area one can pick up a trail map and walk the loop through this geo-thermal area. If you plan on keeping the map, as a souvenir, please pay for the map before you leave, otherwise just return the map. Here timing is the key to get a photo of a mud-bubble partially broken. Just down the road from here is the Sulphur Caldron. When I was there last spring I photographed a Buffalo cow and calf lying amongst the steam vents.
Around the next corner one enters Hayden Valley, home of hundreds of Buffalo, Mule Deer, Moose, Pelicans and Geese and may be even a Grizzly Bear. Get back here just before sunrise, for the morning glow reflecting off of the water or frost covered Buffalo's. Here one might try for a backlight photograph of the "steam" rising off of a Buffalo's back, at sunrise, of course use a telephoto lens. As with any wild animal, they have their "flight zone". In some cases they will take off running away from you and in other take off running after you. I'll tell you a story about this in the Mammoth to Norris Junction Section.
As you approach the Canyon Area, watch for the road leading to the East Side of the river. From the Uncle Tom's Area you can get a good photograph of the Upper Falls (109-ft) or the small falls across the valley. You can also take the Uncle Tom's Trail and hike down into the canyon below the Lower Falls, for that morning photograph of a rainbow. Here again the light will hit the Falls only in the early morning (9:00AM or earlier) and if you hiked down into the canyon, the hike up and out will be difficult in the thin mountain air.
Continuing down this road even further, you will come to Artist Point. Here you can get a straight on shot of the Lower Falls (308 ft), but a larger telephoto lens is required for full frame images. It was in this area, on an earlier camera club outing that we came upon a pair of twin fawns feeding in the under-brush. So the real winning picture may be behind you, instead of the normal tourist picture.
Returning to the main road, turn right and continue on to the Upper Falls Viewing Area, on the west side of the valley or on into the Canyon Area itself. At the Four Corners area, you can take a right and drive back to Inspiration Point, Grandview Point and Lookout Point, again for a different view of the Lower Falls.
At Canyon you will find numerous services and even a stable to rent a horse, for a trail ride. At the Visitors Center one can get plenty of help from the Park Rangers and information regarding what is happening within the Park. You can get groceries or snacks or a full sit-down meal, all within walking distance of the Visitors Center. Since I mentioned food or snacks, I should mention the fact that at higher altitudes your body will loose water faster than you realize, therefore drink plenty of fluids though-out the day. If you start to feel ill, from the altitude or lack of body fluids, seek first aid at the various first aid areas.
Just before you get to Tower the road re-joins the river and you have Tower Falls. Shortly there after you will come to the road coming in from the Northeast Entrance and Tower-Roosevelt. If you elect to take a trail ride, I found that if I carry my monopod I could stick the lower end inside my shoe, next to the stirrup and gain an extra stop or two. This comes in handy when I am using my larger telephoto lens, for photographing items and animals along the trail. Keep in mind that being on horseback, will get you a lot closer to large game, than on foot.
As you crest the mountain, coming from Mammoth, you enter what is called the "Golden Gate". Right after the Golden Gate, is Swan Lake Flats, home to more big game. Further south one comes to Sheepeaters Cliff, this is worth a side trip just for the kids, or the kid in you. Here you will have Ground Squirrels dashing all around, in and out of the rocks, up and down a tree next to your face. Also in the rocks one will find a colony of Yellow-bellied Marmots. In June the young ones can be seen playing amongst the rocks. In the area referred to as Willow Flats and Indian Creek, watch for Moose feeding, especially in the morning and evening.
Just south of here, during the fall camera club outing, another member and I each ran through a full roll of film photographing a six (6) point Royal Elk. This Bull Elk was just grazing along side of the road, when we first spotted him, but with the increase in traffic stopping and people, he moved back away from the road and into the brush. Since both of us were using big lenses, this move did not bother us, but since we each banked 36 exposures, we returned to the road to help break-up the traffic jam that formed. It seemed that some of the southbound traffic did not want to stop and view this beautiful animal, so they pulled out into the northbound lane and proceeded south. Unfortunately, some of the northbound traffic had the same feeling and they pulled out into the southbound lane. So there we are trying to get the cars and trucks back in their proper lanes, with our tripods and camera draped over our shoulders. Talk about a traffic tie-up, but things like that happen.
Continuing south you will come to Obsidian Cliffs and then to Roaring Mountain. The steam being vented to atmosphere causes the roar. To the west of the road will be a wide-open marshy area; were you can see Moose and Buffalo. I have even seen a Coyote in this area.
It was just south of here that I stopped and photographed three Elk Cows and two newly born calves. When I walked back into the woods, I would walk a few feet and stop and take a picture or two and then walk in another few feet, sort of grazing my way in. At the end the calves were running up towards me and stopping about thirty feet away from me, while the mothers grazed a fifty feet away. When the pressure from other people started to increase, the five of them walked out of the woods and across the road and down the hill.
Now here is where it got interesting, I told the man, who had stopped to photograph the Elk Calves, to walk slowly down into the woods and then cut left to where they were heading. During the time he was gone, I was talking to his wife and all of a sudden this car pulls up and three or four boys jumped out and started running into the woods, to get a picture of the Elk. As soon as I saw them running into the woods, I could see that the mother Elk was getting nervous, so I started to yell out for the boys to stop. No sooner than I had repeated myself two or three time, did the mother Elk put her ears back and charge the boys. Now The calves were further back into the woods than she was and I had been much closer to her than the boys were, but they were charging like a pack of Wolves, so she was just protecting her young calf.
At the junction of this road and the road leading over to Canyon Village, one will find the Norris Geyser Basin, the largest active Geyser Basin in the world. This basin has the Steamboat Geyser, which when it blows (300 feet), it will discharge over a million gallons of water, in an arch out over the walkway. Just past Steamboat you will come to Echinus Geyser. This geyser puts on a regular show every 35-75 minutes and is one of several geysers within this basin. Also visible in May/June, will be Cow Elk birthing calves or Cows with young calves.
In the Lower Geyser Basin contains many minor springs and paint pots, along with the Great Fountain and White Dome Geysers. The colors that you see in the pools and streams flowing away from a vent are created by various strains of bacteria that grow in the water, along with various minerals.
The noted features found at the Midway Geyser Basin are the Excelsior Geyser and the Grand Prismatic Pool or Spring. If you go to http://www.terra-serve.com you can actually zoom in on Yellowstone, from the air. Please just note this website and finish the Yellowstone Loop before you become an Eagle and view it from the air.
The Biscuit and Black Sand Basin Area are shown on the Old Faithful Geyser Area Map. Both have their own parking areas or can be reached by walking paths from the Old Faithful Area. Biscuit Basin has the Shell Geyser, Jewel Geyser, Avoca and Mustard Springs and the Sapphire Pool. The Black Sand Basin has the Cliff Geyser (25-33 feet), Opalescent, Rainbow and Emerald Pools. From the Biscuit Basin one passes the Mirror pool, Gem Pool, Atomizer Geyser, Artemisia Geyser on the way to the Morning Glory Pool.
In the Old Faithful Area you have Old Faithful, Geyser Hill, Castle Grand Group, Giant Grotto Group, Daisy Group and the Morning Glory/Riverside Group. Working backwards from the Morning Glory/Riverside Group, with its Morning Glory Pool, Fan, Mortar, Spiteful Geysers, you come to the Riverside Geyser. When Riverside Geyser (75 feet) erupts, it sends a stream of water and steam arching out over the river.
The next group is the Giant Grotto Group. On this group you will find the Grotto (10 feet), Giant and Oblong Geyser, along with the Chromatic Spring and Beauty Pool. I will interject here; the Park Service now has estimated eruption time for the major geysers. The posted times are based on the normal minimum and maximum eruption times, from the last eruption. This will help some of you get the photograph that you wish. Across from the Giant Grotto Group is the Daisy Group and the trail to the Black Sand Basin. Here you will have the Splendor, Comet and Daisy (75 feet) Geysers.
The next group will be the Castle Grand Group, followed by Geyser Hill. In the Castle Group you have Turban, Grand, Spasmodic, Sawmill and Castle Geysers and Crested Pool. Castle Geyser (90 feet) has the largest cone and may be the oldest geyser in the park. The Grand Geyser (200 feet) erupts every 7-15 hours, erupting with 1-4 burst, lasting 9-12 minutes. On Geyser Hill one will find Solitary, Aurum, Giantess (100-200 feet), Plume (25 feet), Beehive (130-180), Anemone (10 feet) and the Lion Group, The Amemone Geyser is a fun geyser for kids, as it erupts every 7-10 minutes. Some days you luck out and others you don't, just as I finished photographing Amemone, I turned around and there was Plume going off. It was later that day, when I was waiting for Old Faithful to go off, against the red evening sky, that Beehive blew just as Old Faithful was starting to get ready to blow.
This now brings me to Old Faithful (106-184 feet). Old Faithful erupts every 45-100 minutes (79 minutes average), spewing out 3,700-8,400 gallons of water in 1 1/2 to 5 minutes. If you walk around the Lodge and continue around the observation platform, so that you are between the first and second walkway, the setting sun will be behind Old Faithful. Continuing on to between the second and third walkway will put the North Star directly over Old Faithful, if you plan to shot Old Faithful by the light of the Full Moon. I tried on two nights, but the cloud cover moved in before Old Faithful Blew, may be I'll be lucky on my next trip.
This concludes my trip tick to and around Yellowstone National Park
and the Tetons. If you find this article of benefit and would like to use
it in a publication, contact me at gbonsack@execpc.com or by mail at G.
A. Bonsack, N6261 Jason St., Onalaska, Wis. 54650. If you are a private
individual and want a hard copy (16 pages long), with paragraph links versus
the hot links, mail $2.00 and a large SASE ($0.55) to the above address.
Thank you. Back to the selection menu, with a link
to my main page and the BLACK HILLS TRIP TICK
