Day 6 - Thursday, September 10th, 2009
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For today, amy wanted a break from hiking and exploring around the park, but I just couldn't spend a day in Yellowstone without hiking. So while Amy's plan for the day would be to relax at our cabin with some good books and explore around the various Canyon Village gift shops without feeling rushed, my plan for today was to pick out a nice long solo hike.
For the first morning of this trip I actually slept in well past sunrise. Since I knew I would be leaving Amy alone for most of the day, I at least wanted to spend the morning with her. So after some morning snuggle time and a nice breakfast together I ventured out on my own.
I had planned about a 10-mile Loop hike:
- Starting from Artist Point
- Hike to Point Sublime
- Backtrack to the Ribbon Lake Trail
- Ribbon Lake Trail to Ribbon Lake and Silver Cord Cascade
- Backtrack back to the Ribbon Lake Trail
- Wapiti Lake Trail to the Clear Lake Trail
- Clear Lake Trail to the South Rim Trail
- South Rim Trail back to Artist Point
Lower Yellowstone Falls from Artist Point
The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone
There was also no good viewpoint to safely check out Silver Cord Cascades. I decided that the best view would be from the other side of the Canyon. Hopefully I would get to check that out later.
From there the hike was uneventful and nothing that pops out as being extraordinary. However the constantly changing landscape made for a very interesting and enjoyable hike.
I went through thick groves of pine, past scenic mountain lakes and ponds, across wide open meadows where only the Bison roam. Through dry creek beds, past thermal features, over rolling hills, all the time just enjoying my solitude. In fact the meat of the hike from Artist Point to the South Rim Trail I only encountered two other humans.
Along the Wapiti Lake Trail
The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone from the North Rim Trail
A steep series of switchback leads to a viewpoint right at the top of the Lower falls where a nice rainbow awaited me. Didn't find any gold, just crowds of people here!
Rainbow at Lower Yellowstone Falls
I drove over to Inspiration Point on the North Rim and hiked the Cascade Overlook Trail to see the view of Silver Cord Cascade from the North Rim. It's a distant view across the Canyon, but good enough that you can clearly see why it's called Silver Cord Cascade!
Silver Cord Cascade
The view of the Lower Falls from Red Rock Point is awesome and the sun had just descended below the ridgeline offering up some excellent lighting to photograph the falls.
Lower Yellowstone Falls from Red Rock Point
Jack at the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone
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2 comments:
Where are the grizzly bears?
I saw my one and only Grizzly Bear on Day 8. Unfortunately I didn't get a photo. That story will be in the Day 8 report coming soon!
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