To get to Silvergate we took the spectacular Beartooth Highway that many consider the most beautiful road in America. It is dizzyingly perilous; Sarah drove, and followed John’s instructions to stare at the yellow line in the middle of the road, and not to look over the precipices or at the distant valleys 8,000 feet below. Just when you think the road can’t go any farther, a way would open up and we would sneak through a tight pass in the mountains. Pullover spots in the road for taking pictures get jammed quickly. An hour and a half later you arrive in Silvergate. This is the road that John and often Beth take to work in Yellowstone, as they rent a cabin in Silvergate.
We took our time crossing northern Yellowstone, taking lots of photos as we went, which I will try to incorporate into this blog (may be beyond my pay grade!) I think the loveliest part is the Lamar Valley, famous for its wolf population. In between mountains on both sides, the valley floor is wide and then gradually slopes up to the foothills, the lime green, graceful aspens giving way to the forest green of the evergreens (lodge pole pines? Spruces?). We had our eyes peeled for a bear or a grizzly, but what we did see were herds of buffalo, mostly lying in the sun.
MT THE BEARTOOTH HIGHWAY IN CUSTER GALLATIN NATIONAL FOREST approaching Yellowstone National Park. This highway is not for the feint of heart as it is built into the sides of towering mountains. Sarah drove it very well, and kept her eye on the yellow line instead of the view…thank you, Sarah! The last photo is in the Shoshone National Forest, and I think is the valley described in the book “The Rivers Run North” as where the herds of wild horses roamed.
The traffic wasn’t bad, until we came upon a “bear jam.” This is when a person sees a bear, pulls off the road, abandons their car with doors left open and things falling out of the vehicle, grabs their long-lens camera and starts photographing. Soon others appear, pull over and repeat the reaction. The rangers, including John, have walkie/talkies, so very quickly they appear and impose a little more order on the scene, discourage those who want to get closer to the bear, and help people backing out to get on the road again. John and an older woman volunteer were working this jam, so after talking briefly we got on our way to Bozeman. We left the park via the northwest gate, where traffic is no longer routed under the huge arch built to honor Teddy Roosevelt.
MT SHOSHONE NATIONAL FOREST: Snow melt in a creek in early June, and still snow on this mountain peak.
Sarah had driven since early morning, so I drove us to Bozeman. We were in the Element Hotel, which is very modern and run by and for young people; we were the youngest people there by forty years. However they were very friendly, interested in our trip, and provided us with a room with two queen beds and a walk in shower. It was getting late, so we ate in the hotel. This turned out to be a mistake because the maître d, who perhaps was stoned, was acting peculiarly and our waitress had to have been on speed. We felt sorry for her because they were so badly understaffed the chefs ended up delivering food. We waited an hour before she literally ran to our table with our food. We ate up and couldn’t get out of there fast enough! One feature of this trip has been the frequency with which we see signs seeking workers in shops, hotels, businesses and restaurants. Owners are having to significantly raise salaries to attract workers.
During the night I got up, but the light wasn’t on, which was strange because we had left the door to the bathroom cracked with the shower light on. I did the feel your way around the room slide, feeling along the luggage racks, the sofa, the walls until I came across a light switch, but when I turned it on nothing happened. When I got to the door to the room I tried to open it, but the safety latch was on and I couldn’t get it undone. At this point in my sleep funk I started to be worried. Thinking the light I tried had burned out, I kept on with my tap tap tap headed in the total dark to where I thought another light switch was. My bracelets were jingling so I kept bushing them up my arm so they wouldn’t wake Sarah and Rosalie. Meanwhile, they both woke and lay still, convinced there was a robber in the room. Just at that moment, the lights came on. It had been a power outage! At no point had that crossed my mind while groping around. My sight was restored, and Rosalie and Sarah breathed a sigh of relief.