Off to Seattle

Super excited to be traveling to Seattle this week to workshop a new play with Seattle Children's Theatre. I'm often afraid to fly, but am working on being calmer while above the clouds. The view as we approached Seattle was especially inspirational.

Looking east

That's Seattle Children's Theare below, near the Space Needle.

Mount Ranier, 14,410 feet above sea level, is part of the massive Cascade Mountain Range that stretches up into northwest Canada

Another travel month in the books

June stats

Air miles traveled: 3,722

Road miles traveled: 2,850

Gas money spent: $500.81

Tire tread left on: Interstates, state highways, city streets, back roads, dirt roads, driveways, alleyways, parking lots, college campuses

States visited since June 1: California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, Idaho, Montana (together), Illinois (Lo), Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Minnesota (John)

Federal lands crossed: Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Bridger-Teton, Caribou-Targhee, San Bernadino, Mojave, Custer-Gallatin

Worst traffic: I-90 in Chicago or Laguna Canyon Road

Wildlife spotted: Bear, moose, bison, elk, mule deer, regular deer, marmot, rabbit, antelope, hawk, eagle, osprey, falcon, snake, fish, plus dogs and cats

Places slept: 3 campgrounds (Utah, Montana, Wyoming), 11 beds

Theatre performances attended: 2

Baseball games attended: 1

Museums & nature centers visited: 4 

Jars of peanut butter consumed: 2

July, get ready! I'm comin' for ya!

Time to head home

What a glorious trip it has been! Our final days here did not disappoint even though we spent less time hiking and more time on the computer, but such is real life. That said, there were some highlights I want to share.

Columbine in full bloom

I was delighted to discover another Thomas Dambo troll seated in the Snake River. If you recall, we walked through a forest of trolls in Acadia in Maine. 

Snake River view of the Tetons

Elks grazing on Cathy's lawn in the evening

The herd includes lots of young ones

Alas, it's time to run... Wyoming/Montana 💖

Grand Teton National Park

After living across the street from one of the Teton's most legendary climbing rangers, Leo Larson, and his brilliant writer-naturalist wife, Helen, for more than a decade, we FINALLY made it here to Grand Teton National Park. And, to quote Leo, Man oh man, I wish I'd listened and come here years earlier, as it is spectacular!

Seriously, is this the best vista you've ever seen?

Or perhaps you prefer this classic highway shot?

Even close up, nature is stunning.

Helen worked on many of the Teton's Visitor Center displays, including this one about climbing rangers and mountain rescues. Leo's pano photos are also a highlight of the many visitor centers here.

While in the Jackson area, we also visited the Teton Raptor Center to support their work in raptor rehab, research and education and to meet some of their bird ambassadors. This is a Swainson's hawk.

The National Museum of Wildlife Art provided a different perspective on the natural world that we have so enjoyed here in the Rockies.

This Carl Rungius landscape of the Canadian Rockies was one of my favorites.

I wish that I had more photos to share, but sadly, summer in the Tetons is super-crowded with tourists, and we couldn't find any parking spaces near Jenny Lake, Lupine Meadows or any of the other trailheads that we had identified. Instead, we drove on, opting instead for solitude at our friend Cathy's home in Wilson, just outside of Jackson, Wyoming. A pretty great alternative to the crowds for the next few days.

So now I'm here with Louie the Elk watching over me as I read, relax, and write a new play that I will workshop in Seattle next month. Life is, indeed, so very, very good. 

Yellowstone National Park

What can I say about Yellowstone other than it exceeded all of my expectations for beauty, nature, wildlife and geology? No wonder it's the first and probably the most famous national park in the America, designated as such by President Ulysses Grant in 1872. 

Since it's the peak of summer, we wanted to beat the crowds and see the bison during their early-morning feeding and mini-migration from the hills to the valleys, so we left Bozeman at 4 AM and drove 2.5 hours to the Lamar Valley at the north end of the park. Our timing couldn't have been better, as the bison were everywhere.

Bison calves have the nickname "red dogs" because of their rust colored coats. This one was probably born in early May, so it's only a month or two old.

This guy looked right at me!

We were lucky enough to get stuck in two bison traffic jams...

As dozens of adults and babies moved together from the hills to the Yellowstone River as the sun rose and the valley floor warmed up.

In case you're wondering, we took these photos from the truck or very near it. Bisons can charge if they feel threatened.

The weather was perfect all day, cool and sunny with blue skies.

Wildflowers were in bloom all over the park.

Look who else we stumbled across by the side of the road!

This black bear was helping itself to roadside flowers, grass and whatever it could find digging in the dirt. As we slowly passed, he smelled like wet dog.

We stayed away from most of the geysers and fumaroles because of the crowds, but we did walk around some fascinating mud pots, in which the mud was boiled by steam and sulphuric gasses that arise from deep under ground.

These mudpots are highly acidic, so much so that they literally dissolve the earth around them. The pH (power of hydrogen) in Sulphur Cauldron is 1, nearly as low as battery acid. As with the bison, you don't want to get too close.

Yellowstone River

Picnic spot on Yellowstone Lake. 

Spent the night at a campsite in Flagg Ranch, between Yellowstone and the Grand Teton National Park, forthcoming. With so much to see and do in Yellowstone's nearly 3,500 square miles, we hope to visit again, but for today, we are so grateful.

Montana Shakes

 We've been having SO MUCH FUN that I've fallen behind on my blog posts. To catch you up, we spent a few more days in Bozeman and enjoyed a hike in Bear Canyon and a picnic with the Montana Shakes folks while we enjoyed Much Ado About Nothing that Johamy directed. Here are a few pix to enjoy.

Always fun to see Shakespeare outdoors

Charcuterie, naturally

Mi amiga

John took his Nikon on the hike and caught this pretty butterfly

Goofing on the trail

Summer flowers

X-ing a stream. No one fell in today!

Blue skies, only blue skies from now on...

Next post: Yellowstone Wildlife!

Bozeman, Montana: I Can't Think of Anyplace I'd Rather Be

Perhaps I'm channeling a past life as a mountain man or a black bear, but I feel 100 percent blissful in the Rocky Mountains. The last two days in Bozeman have been super special. Not only have we spent time with our good friends, but we've hiked some gorgeous trails, seen stunning vistas, eaten some great food, relaxed in a very chill Air BnB in Bear Canyon, and enjoyed an excellent production of The Merchant of Venice directed by Kevin Asselin at Shakespeare in the Parks. 

Hyalite Reservoir and Palisade Mountain

We're at about 6,000 feet and it feels like the Swiss Alps.

John and Matt on the trail

Hello from a mountain meadow

I feel like spinning and singing, The hills are alive...

A happy place for both of us

Our Air BnB called Bear Canyon Casita, which is the house on the right. The architect-owners live in the main house.

Another perfect day in paradise!