A Yellowstone Summer
It was Summer’s Delight in the Wild West. And the memories to show for it.
A car full departing Asheville at the end of April was the first time I got that feeling. One I could sense was meant for a moment like that. It was time to leave the east coast and get deep into my interests, in hopes to invest more time in them than ever before. A feeling that is a catalyst for dream-chasing felt like it was pulling me. And thanks to my Mars Hill community, it was a feeling of great accomplishment and new beginnings quite literally on my horizon. My first time going further west than Texas, my first time living in a national park, and my first job after graduation could only create excitement for the unknown prior to summer in America’s biggest national park.
Just over 2,000 miles stood between us. What was taking up all of that space?! Excellent question: some very unique and incredible nature had me caught up:
What beautiful parks that humbled me time and again. Through the cornfields and over the arches I got a chance to walk among some breathtaking natural wonders. It is safe to say this single trip made up a large chunk of my favorite parks this past year. Note that moments in parks like the Badlands, the Rockies, Canyonlands, and more were made possible by Mother Nature.
You have to learn a few things on the fly when traveling alone across the United States. Nothing says ADAPT like driving through sunny South Dakota by day, to nights’ Nor’easter in the Colorado Rockies. Including the incredible pouring snow, this was a fun state to get through. Along with the ever-awesome Garden of the Gods, I saw the Great Sand Dunes, Mesa Verde, and Rocky Mountain National Parks. In two days.
That reminds me of another teaching moment from a solo road trip: It’s okay if you don’t see everything - because there is always next time. Having only gotten a taste of Colorado, that next time could come soon, with how much it offers year-round. Another place I could not get enough of was Utah, and Moab particularly.
If it isn’t apparent, this was one beyond-exciting road trip and one that I plan to break into many smaller pieces to get all of it. It was also quite the tone-setter for a summer in Wyoming. It took one full day for everyone to hit our first trail in Yellowstone. Living within walking distance of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone certainly had its perks. Viewings of this 20-mile canyon were both frequent and equally wonderful each time, night or day, rain or shine. It didn’t take long to get the gang together and really get into the park. And in just a few short days, we got a taste of beauty in the space that is Yellowstone which is filled with all kinds of life, such as people; many of whom that stop on the road for most anything, including a goose…
Well, that’s one way to see new things.
May 17 ‘21 - A day we decided we each got one “left turn.” One by one, my dearest friends Jon, Emily, Margaret, and Tyler yell their tumultuous “LEFT!” when they felt it was time. By the end of the day, we enjoyed our Canyon in full, hiking the Mud Volcanoes, and a kickback at Lake Yellowstone.
May in Yellowstone did not leave quietly. Imagine being from the South watching snow fall (and a lot) as we are turning to JUNE. It was unusual to say the least but we had only one thought in our minds: the trails were waiting and no amount of snow kept us from them. One of our first big trails was the Cascade Lake Trail to Observation Point. This 10-mile trail was tough to find as we took to higher elevations, to a point where we realize we were the first people on the trail for the season. It was fun to watch my dear friend Nathan tread through snow that waist-deep. Side note: Nathan is well over 6-feet tall, while I waded in the same snow walking about 8 inches shorter so you can imagine how some of us smaller folk felt but good for you, Nathan, good for you.
It’s no secret that trails were the highlight of the summer. Being my first seasonal job, I was incredibly excited to get to them but overwhelmed at the same time. Yellowstone is the biggest park in the continental United States, with quite a few trails throughout. No matter what part of the park you ended up in, you could find an instant classic from Bunsen Peak at the north end of the park, to Avalanche Peak on the east side. It’s an obvious bias that most of my favorite trails were found in the Canyon Village area - where I worked and lived - and for the simple reason that they were incredibly accessible, as well as stunning every time I saw that Yellowstone Canyon. Though we got through our fair share over 4 months, there is still so much more to see in Yellowstone and I can’t wait to explore it some more.
It was surely perfect timing - albeit, my doing - that my gorgeous telephoto lens had come into my possession. The Sigma Contemporary 150-600mm did wonders in showing me some animals I’d never seen before and from so, so far away. We sure had our fair share of bison jams, and traffic getting stopped for the massive line of cars viewing the bison. We would normally roll our eyes to the traffic but, like everyone else, we’d get our views in of all the red dogs grow as the months went by. Here is just some of the incredible wildlife I captured….not in Lamar Valley ;):
There is an element of luck in photography and I must say I have gotten oh so lucky my fair share of times!
Friends, I am going to stop us to address one important part of our parks: respecting them. I’m doing so, we look at exhibit A, and exhibit A only because this should be enough to get the point across.
Just two dudes, who aren’t doing it right.
If this picture isn’t clear enough, STAY AWAY FROM WILD ANIMALS. Thank you for coming to my talk.
Regardless, I come to you to tell you how amazing and diverse Lamar Valley is. Most of my time there was spent during the morning hours of 4am-10am - I was told these were the best times for a lot of reasons and I was gladly able to witness every ounce of morning beauty. The best parts of those mornings were the people I got to spend them with. The likes of David, Maggie, Sam, and so many others braved the cold mornings for incredible sights. And, as much as I would love to talk about Lamar Valley, it’s best if I show you.
Of all the wild wonders in Yellowstone and Lamar Valley, nothing beats those Yellowstone wolves. I’m throwing in a special shoutout to a very good friend, who was up in North Yellowstone with me on a lot of those mornings. Victoria and I learned so much about those wolves from some friends we made in the valley, who just so happened to work for the Yellowstone Wolf Project! With the help of new friends, we learned a lot about these wolves. In a lot of my pictures, you’ll see the trackers on those good boys and girls since they are endangered! These wolves were killed off in the early 20th century for quite a few reasons but were reintroduced to Yellowstone in 1995. Today, we view them from miles and miles away, just to say we got to see some of these creatures at all. Okay but THIS ONE TIME RIGHT, Vic, David, and I got to Lamar Valley at about 6am. As the beautiful morning light was coming up, we noticed something juicy about 50 yards from the road…..A BISON CARCASS. LIKE WHAT?! So, we patiently waited for some wolf action as the cars piled up next to us. They were just a little shy, with so many cars trying to get a good view but after a solid 90-minute wait, we got what we came for:
I mean WOW, right? We felt so lucky to witness those wolves trotting around the valley. A few of us had afternoon shifts at work, so we could only stay for about 4 hours, bummer! 4 hours was plenty for us to lose our minds over and over again.
Wildlife played a big role in the summer but so did the wildfires. The west coast was certainly on fire. It’s important to practice fire safety, especially in times like these as the American West gets drier by the day. Please remember, when you go outside we encourage everyone to follow the fire ban rules, wildlife laws, and other regulations to keep all living organisms safe <3.
As if this past summer had not exceeded my wildest expectations already, the gang decided to get one last trip into Northern Montana, where I found my home park: Glacier National Park. I instantly fell in love with all of it; from camping at Apgar Village and driving all the way up and down Going-To-The-Sun road, and seeing even more wildlife in the Many Glacier area. It’s safe to say I had the best of times with the best of friends. Here is one example, of my good friend Maggie narrating an interaction that we had with a bull moose! And if you don’t think we had a great time, just look at these lovely smiling faces of Michael, Sini, and Jonah (just 3 of my coolest friends).
Much like this picture and this trip, summer was truly one of a kind. I got to meet new friends, and see so many new places. It was eye-opening to enjoy the one thing that came out west for - freedom. In all of that space, I was able to find myself just a little more. That’s not to say that I did not find comfort in the best of company. The friends I made are sure to last a lifetime and the only thing I could really end my first blog post with is the bucket full of gratitude I’ve got for these people, and these places.
