Retreat

We woke up early on Thursday morning to drive to Cody. We drove in the north entrance to the park headquarters in Mammoth Spring, and from there we headed east towards Roosevelt Lodge. This is probably the least visited area of the park as there are no geothermal attractions there. But the scenery along the Blacktail Deer Plateau may by among the loveliest in the park. If only we had had more time we would have stopped and taken stunning pictures of Tower Falls. And if only there hadn’t been this idiot in front of us - with Nevada plates - who insisted on driving 20 miles below the posted speed limit….

It took us a little under four hours to get back to Cody. It’s strange on a trip like this how the second time you come to a place you had previously never been it somehow seems just like home. And Cody was to be our home for the next three days.

The Thomas the Apostle Retreat Center is located just to the southwest of the town of Cody, not far from the airport. It consists of one large house, originally the ranch house, and two smaller guest houses.  This is the view as you enter from the highway

and this is the view from the ridge behind the center.

The center was originally set up by Daphne Grimes, an Episcopal priest, on her family’s old ranch. She intended it to be basically an retreat center for artists. It never quite worked out as that, and some years ago the Episcopal Diocese of Wyoming made it their conference center. Despite the denominational affiliation, however, it is open to groups of any faith and to community groups as well. Daphne was an artist, and some of her work is found around the grounds of the center.

 

 

There is a large labyrinth on the grounds. As you walk the labyrinth, the sky is always changing. Of course, it would probably be a good idea to stop walking if you see lightning!

There are hiking trails around the center 

and places for contemplation, as well. 

From the one mile ridge trail, you probably will not see any people. But you can see llamas!

And they may be as curious about you as you are about them. 

John had to amuse himself while I was in class. One afternoon he headed up the Shoshone River to take a look at the Buffalo Bill Dam. Completed in 1910, it was for a time the tallest dam in the world.

John was less fascinated with the the 325 foot face of the dam than with the logs carried down by the summer snow melt. 

He loved the abstract shapes they formed. 

He also returned to the Buffalo Bill Center of the West. He is fast becoming an western art aficionado. 

After our two days of class, it was time for all to go back to their small towns and cities in Wyoming and Montana. John was drafted to take the group shot. That is probably because they figured out what a great photographer he is!

On our way out of town, we stopped at the “Poker Church.” According to the story, Buffalo Bill and some friends were playing poker. The pot grew so large that someone suggested that part of the winnings be donated to help build a church of the winner’s choice. And apparently the winner was an Episcopalian and this church was built as a result. 

On my right is Mike, the parish administrator and one of the mentors, and on the left is Roger, one of the other trainers. 

We had a basically uneventful flight out of Cody. It’s a small airport, but some of the people there are big on style! Hard to tell from the photograph, but she had matching pink shoelaces, too. 

At Salt Lake City, we were offered a large inducement to give up our seats: two vouchers worth 600 dollars each! I feel another trip coming on….

Yellowstone 2

We had a decent night’s sleep in our institutional Grant Village hotel room, and after a short breakfast we went off to explore. We had not gone long before we passed this sign. 

Driving a little further, we came to the Upper Geyser Basin. 

We walked past stunning thermal pools.

The minerals in the water created stunning colors.

And everywhere there was steam and the smell of sulphur. No wonder so many early explorers were certain that they had found the very gates of hell!

The thermal basin actually supports a surprising amount of life. Much of it is almost microscopic, but that in turn supports birds and other creatures.

We saw some smaller geysers,

and, of course, we saw the most famous geyser of them all.

Right by Old Faithful is the Old Faithful Lodge. 

About 20 years ago, John and I stayed here in a tiny room. I do not remember much about that trip, and that is probably the reason I now keep this blog! But I did recall that the main lobby was striking.

We joined a tour of the hotel, and learned that this was the first of the great Western hotels to be built in the rustic style. 

From Old Faithful, we drove on to another iconic Yellowstone attraction, Grand Prismatic Spring. An “off the beaten path” item suggested walking up the trail and then scrambling up a hill to get the best view. Apparently this suggestion had been translated into Chinese, because we were joined there by a couple dozen of foreign tourists. The exertion seemed too much for most of the Americans, but we thought the vista was indeed worth it. 

 

 

From there, we went on to the Norris Geyser area. We walked around the aptly named Porcelain Basin. 

 

 

The blue colored springs are the most famous feature of this area, but there are many other colors besides blue.

 

 

 

 We started to walk around the Back Basin, but it started raining heavily and we turned back. 

 

 

We stopped in the visitor center there. The interpretive materials were ho hum, but there were some wood cuts warning against leaving the trails.

 

 

We continued on to the Mammoth Springs area, dealing with some miserable delays along the road. We were frankly a little disappointed by the springs. When we had been here before, they had been much more interesting. 

 

 

There are still a few active area, and the colors there are pretty.

 

The Mammoth Springs area is the park headquarters. The Park Service uses buildings that once housed the U.S. Army. Today, however, this area is also home to a large herd of elk

 

 

and the tourists love them!

 

 

We continued on to Gardiner, Montana. We are staying at an overpriced Travelodge here. But the town itself is rather cute. We had dinner a little north of town in the tiny hamlet of Corwin Springs at restaurant decorated in New England nautical kitsch. Called The Lighthouse, it seemed a bizarrely out of place.

 

 

But the food was pretty decent. They were the best French Fries I’ve had in quite a while.

 

 

In the evening we returned to Gardiner to get some gas for the car, and to walk about the town for a bit. Like all tourists, we had to get a photo in front of the historic northern entrance to the park.

 

 

Tomorrow we are return to Cody where I will be leading some Education for Ministry training. 

Yellowstone 1

In the morning, we rose early,

determined to beat the crowds into the park.

The Cody Cowboy Village served a complementary breakfast. John discovered that the biscuits and gravy were awful; I had some kind of cereal coated with enough sugar to induce diabetes. We did not linger. We drove through the stunning scenery of the Wapiti Valley. 

And we saw the famous Smith Mansion, one man’s endless house construction project. 

As we approached the park, we could still see the results of the horrifying 1998 fire. 

As we came to the gate of the park, we learned that being old has its perks. John now had a lifetime pass to the U.S. national parks, all for the outrageous price of 10 dollars. It would have cost 25 dollars for a mere seven days only a couple years ago. This blog may be featuring a number of national parks in the future.

The first geothermal feature you see when you come from the eastern entrance is Steamboat Springs. The dark clouds, the sulfurous smell, and these large aggressive birds gave an ominous tone to our first view of the park. 

It had started raining about now, and we stopped at the first ranger station, hoping that it would pass while we looked at the exhibits. After it had let up a bit, we walked down towards Yellowstone Lake. 

From the lake, we drove up along the Yellowstone River.

Along the road, the tourists saw had to stop

to see the bison.

And then we came to the famed Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone

and the gorgeous colors of Artist Point.

John was fascinated by the number of Asian tourists, mostly from China.

At times the park seemed crowded, but we discovered that you only had to walk about 20 feet from the parking lot to find yourself alone.

From the Grand Canyon area, we headed back down along the river towards Grant Village. We admired the waterfalls

and, despite the drizzle, had a picnic on the shores of Lake Yellowstone.

We look at Lake Lodge, one of the smaller of the National Park accommodations. 

Unfortunately, none of the great old places had openings for the night, so we are staying in the modern and not particularly attractive Grant Village. Tomorrow, we will be off to see the Old Faithful and all the other iconic sights of Yellowstone.