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(Continued from page 1)
during our climb the evergreens returned and we found ourselves driving through forests of evergreens and aspens.
Finally, the Grand Tetons appear over the hill. The mountains are sheer, rugged, pointed, and rise dramatically from the Snake River below. Scientists estimate that the Tetons are the "newest" of the Rocky Mountains - only ten million years old (if you tend to believe scientists' estimates on the age of our planet). They differ greatly from all other mountains we've seen thus far.
We entered Grand Teton National Park at mid-point and had to drive twenty miles north to enter Yellowstone. We passed an animal in the distance - either a moose or a bison. Ann and I disagreed about which it was. There were sparkling lakes and huge meadows but we didn't see any more animals.
Entering Yellowstone seemed undramatic at first. The great fire of 1988 left its mark on South Yellowstone. Dead trees were everywhere and stretch for thirty miles to the north. But suddenly the terrain to the right of the road dropped off dramatically. Within moments there was a huge drop just off the edge of the road - five hundred to a thousand feet. The Lewis River was rushing through a canyon and the road was at the top of the canyon. Ann was driving and I was in the passenger's seat, sitting high in our van looking over the edge of a road that had no guard rail and ran right up to a sheer rocky cliff. I have never known any phobias in my life (fear of heights, etc.) but suddenly I got the heebie-jeebies. I don't know if "heebie-jeebies" is psychological term but I think you understand what I mean.
Yellowstone is a rugged place. Park management warns tourists all the time that dangers lurk everywhere. Sheer cliffs, boiling springs, and wild animals injure and kill tourists regularly. Tourists are warned that the park presents many dangers and that it has not been "idiot-proofed". I recall a news story from a few months ago about a toddler who got away from his mother and fell into a boiling spring and died. Okay, enough morbidity. But this is not for the faint-of-heart.
This is getting long so I'll just say that we arrived at Old Faithful in time to check into the inn, walk out to Old Faithful, set up the video camera on the tripod, and start filming. It erupted within two minutes. Perfect timing.
I did see a coyote just outside of the Old Faithful area. Another car had pulled over and was gesturing wildly at the coyote. I thought that the coyote might be a wolf until a park ranger told me that wolves are three times as large as coyotes.
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