September 3-4, 2006
It is funny to me that all the time I was looking forward to visiting Yellowstone, I actually had images of Yosemite in my mind. I know by admitting such a thing that I am putting my ignorance on display, but isn't that what traveling is for, to shed light on our misunderstanding and encounter the unexpected?

The changing landscape

Driving from Los Angeles to Yellowstone is a journey worth experiencing. Anyone who has driven from LA to Las Vegas knows the expansive desert that lay just outside of suburbia. Traveling beyond Vegas to Utah, the desert transforms into impressive canyons with an inspiring palette of color. Entering Colorado brings another level of depth and life as you reach the beautiful forested, rocky mountains. It wasn't until I was in Colorado that I recognized the meaning of its name. Driving North into Wyoming the mountains flattened out into endless grassy plains and rolling hills. Cows, horses and cowboys dot the sparse landscape with a farm house or broken down shack every few miles. And this isn't even to mention the difference in people you get, from LA to Vegas, to Utah to Wyoming... well you can imagine.

I'm just a kid from the city

Being in my little Mini Cooper, wearing my 'kix' novelty t-shirt and a used pair of Old Navy flip-flops, I felt perfectly at home... in Los Angeles that is. Stopping at an Arby's in Wyoming for lunch, nearly everyone was wearing cowboy hats, blue jeans, cowboy boots with nice tucked-in, long-sleeve, collared shirts and flashing large belt buckles. I felt compelled to lower my voice, speak clearly and make enough eye contact to be polite, but not too much... don't smile too much either, and be friendly but not too friendly. You never know who is carrying a gun, though it may be a safe assumption to think everyone might be. I have never been much interested in cowboy lifestyle and aesthetic and the wild-west has never captivated my imagination, but I do appreciate the wilderness and admire the stout hearts who pioneered the land. The folk who live there now are still of that quality and wouldn't give it up for all the world.

The Yellowstone experience

Entering Yellowstone is entering the West as it originally was, though minus a few million bison. The land is wild with a mix of large grassy planes, hills and meadows and thickly forested mountains. The traumatic fire a decade past is fully evident by the decimated forest mile after mile. There are innumerable dead tree trunks like giant tooth picks sticking out of the ground. There are also dead, fallen trunks scattered everywhere as though a massive wind blew through knocking them down. But despite the first appearance of a huge grave yard, it is a booming ecology with as many new trees and wildlife as ever in the past 100 years.

Seeing Yellowstone is like going on a Safari. A main road travels in a huge circle around the park, divided in the middle by a road that goes East-West, making a large figure 8 like that of a digital clock. You need at least a couple days to make the tour, doing a half loop each day. As you drive along there are signs and pullout areas for both minor and major attractions. Some are trail heads, others lookout points and others are self-guided paths along wooden walkways.

The photo-hunters

As you drive along the road, traffic may be blocked by bison crossing or people stopping to watch elk grazing or even a bear cub eating in a tree. Wherever there is something to be seen, there is inevitably a crowd of professional watchers too. Armed with their telephoto lenses, tripods and kit bags they are like game hunters that shoot pictures instead of bullets. Early in the morning as you drive along, you might make the mistake of pulling into a turnout that one of these enthusiasts is staking out. You get their sneers and glares as though they are saying 'you stupid tourist, your scaring away my prize!'. But by 9 am the tourists are out in force and the pros retreat.

Camping with bears

During my stay in Yellowstone I camped in the canyon region. There are tons of campgrounds to choose from, but I decided on the canyon area on a whim. It turned out to be a good choice since it was close to the store, the lodge cafeteria and gas station. The site I had was decent and amongst the trees. Really it was just a place to pitch my tent and I was out site-seeing most of the day.

Upon entering the park and the campsite everyone was warned over and over about the danger of the wild animals. I received a special flyer warning of bears and that all food related items should be placed inside the car... nothing is to be left out or in your tent! Rangers even came by after I had setup camp to discuss this in person with me and to make sure I knew of the real threat of bears. 'This is bear country', was their motto. But I was thankful for the warning and made sure to follow the instructions carefully.

A strange, terrifying noise

My first night I was awoken in the wee hours of the morning by a loud snort. It must be a bear! I recalled the ranger's warning and wondered if maybe my scented chapstick would attract it. Oh no! I listened but didn't hear anything more and went back to sleep. The next day as I was sitting at camp, I heard this same noise but it seemed to be further off. I kept listening intently, cupping my ears toward the forest, and sure enough I would hear a whole series of these sounds. It sounded to me now like bullfrogs, scattered about in many directions. I asked some rangers if they knew what the sound was, but the sound had subsided and I feebly described it to them. They were mystified and probably thought I was a bit nuts. They encouraged me to investigate and report back what I find. I wasn't about to walk off into the forest to chase an unknown wild animal, even if they were just frogs. Instead I chose just to listen and become absolutely terrified.

It wasn't until the end of my stay there that I finally discovered the animal making the noise... it was humans. No, there weren't little people out in the forest making these noises! Just across the forest beyond sight there were several roads and stop signs. All the stop signs in the park were preceded by rumble strips. We all know rumble strips at the edge of the highway that alert you when your drifting off the road (you know, when you fall asleep). The strips were only a meter or two in length and spaced out. Each time a car drove over these strips, it would create this noise, which changed pitch and quality based on the speed and weight of the car. Mostly I didn't hear the cars, but just the disembodied sound of rumbling. Feeling very stupid, I laughed and reflected on an old Indian story in which a person mistakes a piece of rope in the darkness for a snake.

Learning from the wise

One of the aspects of Yellowstone I really enjoyed is the degree of knowledge and involvement of the rangers. Each night at the campground a different ranger would give a talk and a slide show on some aspect of Yellowstone. They had a special outdoor assembly area for these gatherings and it was free for everyone. The first night a ranger spoke of the importance of wolves to the forest ecology and how they are a keystone to the well-being of many other species. When the National Forest Service was first established in the early 1900's, rangers removed predators such as wolves and mountain lions from the park for the safety of people and out of ignorance to the importance of such animals. It was only about 10 years ago that wolves were re-introduced and they have already made a remarkable, positive impact on the wilderness. Listening to the rangers was a very educational experience and brought a lot more meaning to my stay there.

A lurking super volcano

Beyond my gripping tale of strange noises, I had few encounters with the wildlife in the park. I saw some bison and elk and such, but after a minute or two I found it more entertaining to watch people watching the animals. People are funny. Besides the wildlife, the other main attraction in the park is geology. As you may have heard before, Yellowstone is a super volcano. If it were to erupt, it would be a mass extinction leaving the world in another ice age.

Given that most of Yellowstone is within the super volcano's caldera, there are a multitude of geyser spots where you can walk out along wooden planks to see gurgling, bubbling mud holes and serene pools of deep blue water, some of which are so acidic they could melt your skin off. Each year apparently, many people are hurt despite the multitude of warning signs to stay on the path and not to touch. It was interesting to see but I don't care if I never take another picture of a geyser.

The impact of man

By the time I left Yellowstone I felt I had gained a whole new understanding of the wild forest. We are all fortunate that this land has been set aside and not completely destroyed by urbanization. It is serving to help educate humanity on the delicate balance of ecology and teaching us to recognize the adverse affects of our actions on nature. It is certainly worthwhile to visit Yellowstone and I recommend it to all.