The Race: Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Posted on Saturday, May 21, 2011

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Papa T had been asking for a number of months prior to this trip whether or not Lewis was faster than me. My answer was always “maybe”; I wasn’t willing to sacrifice my knees to find out. Lewis had challenged me to several races on this trip and I had won my share of them—but always through the use of trickery and distraction. If it was a foot race of any distance and he was prepared and paying attention, he would always win. The whole time Papa T had been sizing up his competition and, on the way back from climbing up to a viewpoint of Grand Prismatic Spring, decided to give it a go. One second we were all walking back together; the next, they were gone.

The Boy won. As Papa T tells it, the race was close until Lewis left the trail and cut across some rough ground while taking a more direct route to the camper. I’ll let the viewer examine the evidence and decide for him/herself. Regardless, my money is on The Boy this year. We’re going to have to start calling him Secretariat. He’s fast.

©2011 Timothy Linn. All Rights Reserved.

Grand Prismatic Spring: Yellowstone National Park, WY

Posted on Saturday, May 14, 2011

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

One of the most impressive sights in Yellowstone is Midway Geyser Basin’s Grand Prismatic Spring. Yet, despite being able to walk right up to and over it, it is impossible to fully appreciate from the official park viewpoints. Yes, one can get a sense of it from the pastel blue steam cloud rising from its center; and by following the boardwalk over its burnt orange tendrils. But this provides just a hint of the spectacular beauty that inspired its name. Grand Prismatic Spring can only be fully appreciated from the air.

If you’ve seen a park video featuring a flyover of the spring you already know what I mean. However, unless you’re willing to sneak an ultralight into the park (and suffer the consequences) this isn’t an option. Fortunately the higher ground that surrounds Midway Geyser Basin on two sides provides an alternative. There are no officially sanctioned trails leading up in either direction but there are trails nonetheless. They are steep and slippery with no railings at the viewpoints—in other words, proceed at your own risk—but they offer the best and only means for an aerial view of Grand Prismatic Spring.

Which view is better, looking east or looking west, is going to depend on the light. A nice day with the sun shining at your back while you view the spring is ideal. Cloud cover dulls the colors dramatically so be patient and wait for a sun break on a partly cloudy day.

The view looking east is accessible via a trail-bike path that takes visitors north along the back of MGB to Fairy Falls and Goose Lake. Park in the first parking area south of Midway Geyser Basin to access the trailhead. (RV’s will have to park in a pullout along the main road.) Follow the bike path north for a short distance until you see distinct trails leading up the side of the hill. There are many paths up which should all lead, more or less, to the one clearing on the hillside that provides a relatively tree-free view of the spring.

The view looking west is accessible via one or more roadside pullouts to the south of the parking area for MGB. They are on the east side of the main road, opposite of the Firehole River. Parking at Midway Geyser Basin and crossing the road is also an option. You’ll see ad hoc trails going up from the road. It’s worth emphasizing that, while you don’t need to be Ueli Steck to climb up to this viewpoint, carelessness could get you killed at the top. It’s straight down. Parents keep track of your kids.

I find it a little surprising that the park service doesn’t provide a reasonable trail to either of these viewpoints but the upside is that neither viewpoint is particularly crowded. We shared the western viewpoint with a handful of other people; the eastern viewpoint we had to ourselves. That’s something that can’t be said about very many places in Yellowstone at this time of year.

[Click on a thumbnail to view the entire image.]

©2011 Timothy Linn. All Rights Reserved.

Firehole River: Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Posted on Saturday, May 7, 2011

Monday, July 26, 2010

We were about ready to return to our campsite after a long day of exploration when one of us, probably Darla, spotted an osprey fishing in the Firehole River. We parked along Fountain Flat Drive and walked down to the river to watch. This is where Lewis made an unexpected discovery; the grass along the riverbank was thick with blue damselflies. Lewis and Mimi were both delighted by this turn of events and each sought to enjoy it in his or her own way: Mimi, by photographing them; and Lewis, by touching as many of them as he could sneak up on. This conflicting set of priorities had them working at cross purposes for a while but eventually Mimi got her shot, which they both paused to enjoy.

Darla gets photo credit for the second image.

[Click on a thumbnail to view the entire image.]

©2011 Timothy Linn. All Rights Reserved.

Artist Point: Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Posted on Saturday, Apr 30, 2011

Saturday, July 24, 2010

We’ve had a photograph of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, taken from the brink of Lower Falls, hanging on our wall since before Lewis was born. When The Boy was much younger (and shorter), I would carry him up and down the hall looking at all the different photographs. It never occurred to me that doing so would ingrain these images in his memory for a lifetime, yet every once in a while Lewis will say something that makes me realize this has happened. Such was the case when we walked down to the brink of Lower Falls, seen in the image on the north (right) side of the falls. “This is our picture, Daddy!” he exclaimed as though he had made a great discovery. Then he took out his camera and made a darned good duplicate of that original picture from memory.

This story illustrates one of the neat things about the view from the brink of Lower Falls: it’s hard not to end up with a beautiful photograph. One doesn’t have to get up before the sun rises or wait until the sun sets; the best light is right in the middle of the day. With the sun relatively high in the sky, both of the canyon’s golden walls are lit up with saturated color. The waterfall is lit up as well and—as long as the sun is shining—if you arrive at the brink of the Lower Falls in early afternoon, you’ll get to include a nice rainbow in your composition.

If the brink of Lower Falls is my favorite spot in the canyon, Artist Point is a close second. It provides the best view of Lower Falls and the giant plume of mist it generates. In late morning, visitors get to enjoy the canyon in all its saturated glory along with a fully lit falls. By mid-afternoon, the falls drop into shadow and the view is far less impressive. However, later in the evening as the canyon becomes back lit, the Yellowstone River turns into a breathtaking ribbon of light running through the middle of the canyon.

©2011 Timothy Linn. All Rights Reserved.

Lamar Valley II: Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Posted on Saturday, Apr 23, 2011

Saturday, July 24, 2010

If our late evening safari through the Lamar Valley was great on Friday, it was even better on Saturday. The light was even more beautiful; and wildlife was everywhere. We saw a grizzly bear wandering along the banks of Soda Butte creek, pronghorn antelope grazing among the sagebrush, and the ubiquitous herds of buffalo.

Once one spends any time at Yellowstone, it is easy to take buffalo for granted. They are everywhere. Yet it was our encounter with these creatures that was the highlight of this evening’s drive. It began just after the grizzly disappeared into the sagebrush. We had driven less than a mile down the road when we spotted yet another herd. What made this sighting special was not the animals but the light. We parked along the side of the road and, with no other cars in sight, Lewis and I jumped out of the truck to take a look.

It was completely quiet except for the sounds of buffalo snorting and chuffing. The mosquitoes that had plagued us along Soda Butte creek were completely absent here, making it easy to focus on shooting what ended up being hundreds of images. My 100-400 was long enough to capture compositions featuring individual buffalo and, eventually, buffalo head shots. It wasn’t until I started having to back up to get these head shots that I realized how close I was; the entire herd had walked over to me. This explained why Lewis had bolted for the truck…

In some circumstances my situation would be cause for concern but, in this case, these buffalo all knew I was here. They had been watching me the entire time I was watching them. Clearly, if they were approaching me, I was safe. Besides, they couldn’t see me if I didn’t move. No. Wait. That was the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park. I wondered if this was the conversation a person had with himself right before he was gored. I moved behind the truck, then into it, as they all crossed the road in front of me. Awesome.

[Click on a thumbnail to view the entire image.]

©2011 Timothy Linn. All Rights Reserved.