A Tale of Two Winters

There is nothing quite like Yellowstone in the winter. Ken and I spend more time in the Park in the cold months than in the regular tourist season of summer. But conditions can be very different depending on the year. Last year at this same time we spent five days at Old Faithful during a period of record cold temperatures. The high while we were there last year was -30 degrees. We were warned by everyone not to ski because of the frigid conditions. But we know our capabilities and so we went ahead and enjoyed day after day of cross country ski adventures where we had the backcountry all to ourselves. 

This year is a marked contrast. The road in by snow coach from Mammoth was bumpy because of lack of snow in so many areas. The temperatures were at record highs with averages in the mid 40's each day and night temps barely making it to freezing. Again we were warned to stay off the ski trails, this time because of incredibly icy conditions caused by the daily freeze-thaw cycle. Even walking the boardwalks was a challenge because of the ice. And again we ignored the naysayers and enjoyed the incredible peace and beauty of near empty trails. 

 We saw very little wildlife on our trip into Snow Lodge. Even the swans on the Firehole River seemed to be in hiding. One exception was a pair of healthy looking coyotes who were hunting rodents along the river's edge.

Once we arrived at Old Faithful we threw our stuff in our room and headed out on a hike around the boardwalk. This Hairy Woodpecker entertained us for a while as he searched for bugs in a downed log.

 There was a small herd of bison hanging around the Upper Basin for most of the time we were there. I know they must have been enjoying the chance to get at the winter vegetation without having to push through inches or even feet of snow.








Our big plan for our time at the lodge was to try and get a winter shot of Grand Prismatic - no easy feat in a normal year but definitely possible this year with the incredible stability of the snow making the avalanche danger much smaller.

On our first morning back at OF I ventured out alone with my camera before sunrise in the hopes of capturing some special light on one of the features in the basin. As it turned out the light was extremely flat and nothing very exciting was happening with the thermal features. I wandered around for about an hour, enjoying the amazing opportunity to "own" the boardwalk with not another person in sight. About 7:30 am I found myself back in front of Old Faithful debating whether or not to return to the inn and join Ken for breakfast when I saw my first fellow humans of the day. As social creatures are wont to do they approached me and began making small talk. It turned out they were a very nice couple from Atlanta, Georgia; newlyweds despite being about my age. After we exchanged a few pleasantries, I heard the woman ask a question that I have only heard before as a punchline.

Her: So what time do they turn Old Faithful on?
I laughed politely then turned to see her indignant expression and realized she was dead serious.  Her husband, to his credit, was looking decidedly embarrassed.
Me: Ummm…they don't turn it on. It is a natural phenomenon.
Her: Well then, how did they turn it off during the sequestration last year?
Me: They didn't. That was a joke.
Her: They certainly did! I read that they shut it off to save water while the Park was closed.
Me: They didn't. It was a joke.
Her: I DON'T THINK SO!
At this point her husband, embarrassed for her, interrupted in an obvious effort to save face.
Him: What is that can you're carrying on your belt?
Me: (relieved at the change of subject) That is bear spray. With the warm weather we have been having, a few grizzlies are already leaving their dens.
Him, to his wife: Honey, I should get you some bear spray since you like to hike so much.
Her, obviously still upset: Why on earth would I need bear spray? The only bears in Georgia are black bears and they don't hurt people.
Me: (Bite your tongue, bite your tongue, damn…can't do it) Ummm…actually black bears are just as dangerous as grizzlies. Any wild animal is dangerous if it feels threatened.
Her: Well you obviously have a different kind of black bear here than we do in Georgia because OURS DON'T HURT PEOPLE!

At that point I decided the safest thing to do was to go have breakfast. I walked away feeling depressed. This was not a stupid woman. She was just incredibly ignorant of the natural world. How does nature stand a chance when humans are so blind to the world around them??

Once Ken and I started out on our mission of ski touring/climbing above Grand Prismatic, my depression quickly evaporated. It was a perfect day in so many ways. We managed to climb to the top of the ridge above the hot springs and I captured a five shot panorama of the area with no people and no vehicles, just pure white snow and glorious sunshine. On our 7 mile ski back to the lodge we crossed fresh wolf prints followed a short time later by fresh grizzly prints. As we entered the Upper Basin we encountered a charming woman from California who was absolutely overjoyed that she had just witnessed the eruption of Riverside Geyser. Her enthusiasm was contagious.

All in all we did about 12 miles of skiing on our first day and loved every minute of it!