Day 9: Burgess Junction, Wyoming – Missoula, Montana
May 9, 2008
The Passage Resort rests at a high elevation (8,000 feet or so) and it snows many May nights due to the high elevation.
We leave the Passage Resort and drive along Route 14 through Wyoming, and pass through the town of Elmblem, population 10.
The landscape changes enormously in a short amount of time. This morning we drove through mountain passes with tall pines and heavy snow from the winter. Now arid plains surround us and farming somehow occurs despite the conditions. There is no visible source of water nearby except for small streams the farmers divert throughout the fields to nourish their crops. I presume the soil is quite fertile; the reason why the farmers are here.
Our documentary filmmaker, Bruno, began to have health problems leading up to our departure. We all agreed it would be best for him to get healthy in Maine rather than hit the road for a month. I received an email from his girlfriend and all-around amazing human being, Kate, a few days ago and she said he is doing much better and has his Portuguese pizzazz back. We wish he would have been able to have made the trip but are thankful that he’s healthy again.
I am doing my best to make video with a Canon G9 but the files are too large to edit until I return to Maine and have sufficient time. A second ago I opened Ethan’s sunroof and raised my arms, head, and camera through it to make a video of the road, plains, and mountains off in this distance. The wind rushes through my nose so fast at 75 mph that it becomes a task to properly inhale and exhale, and I get my second bloody nose of the trip; the first because of the high altitude at the Passage Resort and the second due to making video through Ethan’s sunroof.
Yellowstone National Park resides less than 50 miles away. We enter and exit the tunnels before Yellowstone while listening to Explosions in the Sky – First Breath After Coma. Rain drops begin to fall from above and onto our windshield.
The weather is a beautiful mix of sunshine and snow upon entering Yellowstone. We gradually make our way around the largest lake in Yellowstone, appropriately titled Yellowstone Lake, and stop frequently to take in sights such as the lake, gases being released from the earth, and the occasional herd of buffalo. No grizzly bears have been seen but we do find fresh grizzly scat. I can attest to this because I use a nearby stick to break open the middle portion and it is slightly moist. Thrilling, I know; the Eagle Scout and avid outdoor lover inside of me comes out.
We arrive in Yellowstone at an ideal time. One of the main roads in the park opened today, May 9, and without it we would need to find an alternate route for our travels.
We push forward and make our way to Old Faithful. Unfortunately, she is not as faithful as perhaps millions before us and does not erupt in our presence. A strong snowstorm rolls through and the buffalo run to seek shelter. Ethan and I seek shelter at the Old Faithful Grocery Store and eat roast beef and turkey panninis, respectively. We depart and pass another herd of buffalo braving the elements. I image what it is like to be an animal and live through a winter at Yellowstone.
Missoula, Mountana will be our home for the evening. Tomorrow we depart to see Shawn Gust in Couer d’Alene, Idaho.