Onwards to Alaska

Friday, September 20, 2013

Yellowstone National Park – Hayden and Lamar Valleys

September, 14, 3013

Day 1 was cloudy with showers. We stopped at the Visitors Center at Fishing Bridge and the volunteer laid out 3 days for touring YNP. Since it was not a very nice day we opted for the northern section of the park, north through the Hayden Valley to Canyon Village then over Washburn Pass to Tower-Roosevelt and east to through the Lamar Valley to the Northeast Entrance. This route is best for seeing wildlife. We were rewarded for our perspicacity. Buffalo are widespread throughout the park, especially the Hayden Valley, so we got some really good pictures of them driving north. We saw a black bear just north of Canyon Village. He wasn’t too far to take pictures, but was obscured by brush. The grizzly bear was in the Lamar Valley across the Lamar River and had killed a buffalo the day before and was guarding it jealously. The picture isn’t great but….

The Old Boy - We saw him 4 separate times, all along a mile stretch the road north of Fishing Bridge

Another bull in the Hayden Valley

Grizzly Bear guarding his Moose Kill

We stopped again on the return and just missed seeing a mom grizzly and 2 cubs chase a herd of buffalo and some prong horn antelope…hunting lesson? The later were still running when we arrived. The grizzlies had decided it was nap time and were invisible in the tall grass.

Also on the road to the Northeast Entrance we came across and number of Prong Horn Antelope and got some good pictures of those. We stopped further out the road along some cliffs in the Absaroka Range and were able to spot Mountain Goats way up on the hillside. On the way home we saw a number of cow Elk, but no bulls.

Prong Horn Antelope in the Lamar Valley

Day Off and Travel to Yellowstone National Park

Kalispell, MT – Day Off and Travel to Yellowstone National Park

September 12-13, 2013

We needed a day of to shop do laundry and sleep in, so we did. On Sept. 13 we had a 450 mile drive to Yellowstone NP. We made the drive easily, leaving around 0730 and arriving around 1730. We got checked in and set up in between showers. They NEED the rain here. We did see a young female moose on the way in from West Yellowstone.

Sunrise over Kalispell

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Glacier National Park and the Red Bus Tour

Kalispell, MT USA – Glacier National Park and the Red Bus Tour

September 11, 2013

At the urgings of our friend Vicki we reserved seats on the Red Bus Crown of the Continent Tour. This was one of the best decisions we made on the entire trip. We awoke to perfectly clear blue skies and no wind. The Tours were sold out. The best part is I did not have to drive the "Going-To-The-Sun-Road" through the Park (both ways!). That drive requires total attention to driving. The tour was exactly 9 hours as scheduled with lots of stop to take pictures, get out and walk around.

Lake McDonald Lodge

Our "Red Bus", a 1937 White Touring Bus built especially for our National Parks.

Roll Back That Toop

Twisted Rock - They are sedimentary layers twisted by up-thrust.

The passengers - I had the front seat to even things out since all others were couples...17 passenger and 1 driver/guide/bard of the west.

A stop for pictures.

Arches from the original road. The wooden guard rails are removed and stacked in the Fall and re-installed after the road is cleared of snow. Avalanches in winter will rip them out.

At Logan Pass

The "Garden Wall" That white line is the "Going-To-The-Sun-Road"

How Many Big Horn Rams Do You See? Hint: Look Carefully!

Jackson Glacier

"Reflections on Saint Mary Lake"

The Parfitt Family at Saint Mary Lake

Our lunch stop was at Many Glacier Lodge, on Swiftcurrent Lake. We had a great lunch in the Lounge. Folks who ate in the fancy restaurant were not so complimentary of the food. The pictures will really tell the story better than words, so enjoy.

The Lodge Atrium/Lobby

Swiftcurrent Lake

A picturesque cascade

Mountain Goat

Another Red Bus

Some wide angle photos.

Of course there is one story from our driver and guide who lives a Spartan life in a cabin he built (1978 after USMC) and has no electric service or indoor plumbing (that means an outhouse). His cabin is 2 miles from a drivable road in winter and has bears around frequently, both black and grizzly. He back-tracked a grizzly that went through his yard several winters to try to find its den. He wants to see inside a grizzly den! That’s still on his “bucket list”. Anyway, on the trek he found this dark long cylindrical object which upon later examination was mostly bear hair. A bear expert told him this was a fecal plug that bears form when going into their pseudo-hibernation (bears do not slow heart and breathing rates). Now if you ever wonder why bears are grumpy in early spring think of being hungry and trying for a couple of days to pass that flaming PLUG so you can eat again!! ;-)))

Revelstoke, BC and Back to the USA

September 6-10, 2013

Well, on Sep. 7, the storm broke a little bit and on our drive up the road to Radium Hot Springs we stopped to see the Giant Western Red Cedar Grove. It was wet, drippy, and downright cool. These sure are beautiful trees.

Katherine in the Western Red Cedar Grove

Sep. 9 was our day to sightsee. The storm left us but lots of moisture that meant early am fog for our trip up through Kootenay National Park. So we missed seeing lots of mountains. As we neared the summit the clouds broke as we entered Banff National Park for the second time this trip. We drove down to Banff (the town) and found it a whole lot less congested than in early July. We got chance to see some sights we missed the first time around.

Ridge in Kootenay NP.

The "Castle" in Banff NP

Back in Yolo National Park (west side of Continental Divide) we stopped to watch a freight train go through the Spiral Tunnels. As the locomotives appeared just above the entry, the end of the train was still to enter the lower portal. Further uphill is the second Spiral Tunnel. We went through these on our Rocky Mountaineer Trip in 2001. We also took the side trip up to the Takakkaw Falls. This road is a “joy” to drive as it has 3 major switch backs that busses drive up one, then back up the next. The 1260 ' falls make the trip eminently worthwhile. The picture does not really show the scale of these Falls. "Takakkaw", loosely translated from Cree, means something like "it is magnificent". The falls are fed by the Daly Glacier, which is part of the Waputik Icefield.

Takakkaw Falls (1260 feet vertical drop)

Mountains and Yolo River

September 10 was our day to arrive back in the USA. No real problems with Customs except the piece of carved Woolly Mammoth Tusk Ivory I bought in Dawson City. I refused to say it had a certificate because I wasn’t positive. I still do not know if it does. I guess it’s a good thing I did not have to declare the Whale Baleen Basket with a carved Walrus Tusk handle on the lid (purchased in Anchorage at the Native Heritage Center). He'd probably had a hissy fit over THAT. Walrus Tusk Ivory is legal only if purchased from a member of the arctic native Americans tribes.

Friday, September 6, 2013

More Mountains, Glaciers, and Wildflowers? Part 2

Revelstoke, BC – More Mountains, Glaciers, and Wildflowers?

September 5, 2013

The Ranger informed that tomorrow’s weather is rain all day. This is great for them as it is a bit dry here. So we decided to change our plans and head up the road (30 or so miles) to Glacier National Park (Canadian version). Wow! The first view of Mount Sir Donald looks just like the Matterhorn, a huge granite peak jutting upward to the sky. The best part is the mountains are very close to you. We could not do any trails up there due to bear warnings. You need 4 or more to hike any trails and bear spray is highly recommended. Seems a female grizzly and her 2 cubs are ruling the realm on trails just off TC1 near Rogers Pass. So we headed back to camp to relax and cook dinner with real and fresh vegetables we picked up yesterday…potatoes, yellow and green zucchini squash, green beans, bell peppers, onions done in a foil pack with lots of butter on the grill. Hmmm! Healthy? Probably too much butter but sure as hell TASTY!

Mount Sir Donald

Rogers Pass

Avalanche Tunnel

Close-up of Falls from glacier above. Looks like a Kite to me.

As I stood in the bathroom this morning, I saw a sight to behold…SCARY isn’t it?

More Mountains, Glaciers, and Wildflowers?

Revelstoke, BC – More Mountains, Glaciers, and Wildflowers?

September 5, 2013

We started our day with the Meadows in the Sky Parkway at Revelstoke National Park. This is a 26 KM drive up Mount Revelstoke to just below the summit. There is a shuttle to take you near the top. The last part is on foot only to the summit. On the way up you drive through the only North-American non-coastal rainforest with giant Western Red Cedar trees among many others. The hillsides are full of wild huckleberries ready to pick, big enough you can see them from the car.

There are two different loop trails at the summit that offer viewpoints in just about every direction including the firetower on the summit. None are especially difficult as even I did them. We did both the Koo Koo Sint and the First Footsteps Trails. The views of the nearby mountains are spectacular. Enjoy the pictures. I took quite a few pictures, so I’ll split this posting into 3 parts.