Days 19-21, Yellowstone and Grant Teton National Parks

Awoke in deep in Bear Country in the Gallatin National Forest. A leisurely ride along Hebgen Lake brought me into West Yellowstone. Entered the park along the headwater valley of the Madison River, through a vast area of regenerating Lodgepole Pine from the 1988 fires that burned 1.5 million acres in Yellowstone. Had an encounter with a bison on the road that reminded me of a near death experience in Custer State Park, South Dakota on another bike trip. Needless to say I passed the beast carefully.

I made it a short day and stayed in the Park campground, surrounded by RV land yachts. I met a nice Swiss couple on a 13-month western hemisphere bike trek that included Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, and a plane jump to Vancouver BC, then east through the Canadian Rockies and down through MT, WY, CO and then west to CA. I greatly admire folks like Maude and Baptiste who drop everything and go on these epic bike trips. Someday perhaps…..

Next day up early to beat the hordes of tourists but it turns out they schedule their waking hour around the scheduled performance of Old Faithful, and I found myself battling traffic as I headed toward and through Yellowstone’s famed hydrothermal phenomena. I missed Old Faithful while on the phone with work, and could not stick around another 90 minutes for the next performance. I don’t feel like I missed much. It is amazing how developed the park has become around that one feature; for many people who come to the park I’m sure it is the only thing they do.

A hefty climb to Craig’s Pass and another crossing of the continental divide, then out of the park via the south entrance. The road parallels the Lewis River and an incredible canyon, again through vast burned over areas that are regenerating with profusion. Locals say Yellowstone needed a big fire after 100 years of human fire suppression, and it sure got it in 1988.

A long bike down to camp at Colter Bay on Jackson Lake with a full frontal view of the Tetons across the lake. I met another long bike trekker, this one a woman from France on her way from Anchorage AK to Mexico City over seven months. She was quite anti-social and clearly wanted to be left alone so I obliged.

Next morning started biking east away from the parks, sorry not to be able to see more of the Grand Tetons other than the obligatory roadside views from across the lake. The park include a vast beautiful wetland and riparian complex following the Snake River as it drains from Jackson lake, full of waterfowl of various species, and nesting ospreys and I believe at least one bald eagle seen from a distance.