Upper Terraces with my Hiking Buddy
Sometimes in life you just click with someone. Elizabeth and I have been hiking together for four years. I met her my first year in Yellowstone and we hiked the park together. The next year she worked in Glacier and Irv and I met her there for a hike. Last year she was back in Yellowstone and we met her for a hike again in September when we went for a visit.
This year Elizabeth didn't arrive in Yellowstone until late July and I was so happy to be back together with my hiking buddy.
The only bad part is that I work at the west entrance and she works in Gardiner, Montana for the park's foundation so we're a couple hours apart. For our first hike I met her in Mammoth and we went off to discover the upper terraces.
There's a drive through the upper terraces, but the Park Service closed it this summer. That means that the only way to see it is on foot.
In Yellowstone if the only way to see something is on foot you're probably going to have the place to yourself. All these beautiful and unique formations and we only saw a handful of other people.
Unfortunately, I can't tell you the names of all these formations. When old friends get together we do a lot of chatting and not paying attention to name signs. I can tell you that they are all amazing.
How does a tree grow in something like this?
We still got a glimpse of some amazing terraces from the trail.
Don't you just love gnarly old trees. This was in a burnt area possibly from the 1988 fires. What causes some trees to twist like this?
After a few miles we got a glimpse of the lower terraces and the hoards of tourists.
We jumped in our car and drove over to Undine Falls.
Then we drove a few more miles up the road and jumped on the trail to Graith Falls.
Both Elizabeth and I are believers in science and follow the guidance of the leading epidemiologists and wear masks even when we're hiking. Elizabeth knows how many people I come into contact every day and we agreed to take precautions.
We went back to Elizabeth's condo for lunch and then she took me over to view the aftermath of a fire that Gardiner suffered last month.
Gardiner is one of the Park's border cities and it was hit hard by this fire.
At one point the fire department went in with a bulldozer and took out a building to stop the fire from spreading to the rest of the block.
This year Elizabeth didn't arrive in Yellowstone until late July and I was so happy to be back together with my hiking buddy.
In Yellowstone if the only way to see something is on foot you're probably going to have the place to yourself. All these beautiful and unique formations and we only saw a handful of other people.
Unfortunately, I can't tell you the names of all these formations. When old friends get together we do a lot of chatting and not paying attention to name signs. I can tell you that they are all amazing.
How does a tree grow in something like this?
Before long we intersected with our intended trail. It's the Golden Gate/Howard Eaton Trail. Howard Eaton goes all the way to the south end of the park and has been around since the 1920s.
Yes, bear spray is required in Yellowstone no matter where you are.
Don't you just love gnarly old trees. This was in a burnt area possibly from the 1988 fires. What causes some trees to twist like this?
Both Elizabeth and I are believers in science and follow the guidance of the leading epidemiologists and wear masks even when we're hiking. Elizabeth knows how many people I come into contact every day and we agreed to take precautions.
Elk roam the streets of downtown Gardiner. I think I'd rather run into a bear than a mama elk with her calves.
Elizabeth and I didn't have matching days off this week so no hike together. My days off never change so hopefully Elizabeth's have some flexibility. One way or another we'll find a way to get more hikes in.
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