Camping with Bambi
By
the time the alarm clock went off I was already by the
Fountain Paint Pot taking pictures of the stars
above the foggy plains. It was very cold and so I decided to wear my gloves. At
this point a honorable mention goes to my dear wife, who kindly packed my gloves
when I called her from work, as she was still at home. She packed two left
gloves, hers and mine, even neatly tied together with that baby carabiner, you
know. Thinking that one glove was better than nothing I opted for the Michael
Jackson look and froze only on the right side. During the very long exposures
(of which none really worked out) I enjoyed the only radio station oozing
through the rear hatch of the truck - the AM station from Casper, Wyoming. At
this early hour I learned a lot about rodeos, cowboys in general and the
hardship of being a young cowgirl in particular.
The
art of avoiding bison droppings in tall grass in the darkness is something I
haven't quite mastered yet, but my boots are waterproof for a reason. All too
soon the "good light" was over and I returned to the campsite and packed up my
tent. From there I drove to the Norris geysers, where I was one of the very
first people this sunny morning. Unfortunately, most hiking trails were closed
due to unusually high activity - not that I saw anything unusual. With the first
2GB flash card filled (bracketing in raw mode, baby) I headed further north to
Mammoth. On the first time around the Springs Drive I witnessed an obviously
very stressed German tourist who was rushing around with his camera, while his
wife (or actually it could have been mother, who knows) was impatiently making
not very subtle hints to leave. I enjoyed his colorful curses each time when
something didn't quite work out for him - which was unfortunately quite often.
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There is a restaurant at Mammoth. You guessed it - I did try the chili, and it
was as good as ever. Ok, the chili at Old Faithful was much better, but this was
a chili nonetheless. With no springs to blend with I took a mental note not to
consume chili on the same day of a trip on a plane. Also, based on what I saw in
the restaurant on the screen of my Powerbook I was clear that I had to perform
some emergency sensor cleaning, as a turd had been seen in a very visible area
of the sky. An expertly blow with the dust gun and it was confirmed, the large
turd was blown away, and onlookers were only moderately confused.
With
new energy from lunch I headed to the Mammoth Springs Drive again, this time for
a hike through the scenery. Unfortunately, even here the trails were closed,
this time due to construction. Watching the unusual volume of boiling water
flowing down the mountain I am sad to report that I
joined the ranks of the outlaws and even so modestly crossed the "Do Not Cross"
line. I didn't go more than maybe 30 feet or so, but it was sooo worth it.
Last year it was glowing lava, this
year it was sheer volumes of boiling water. With rugged boots and on safe
footing I stayed clear of present danger, but got the full bubbly and steamy
experience.
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From
Mammoth I wanted to go to the north east entrance, a place I have never been
before. It is also said to be rich on wolves.
Last time I was here was with Essan in 2001,
and we did see a few coyotes in the same general area. This time I was less
lucky: driving all the way to the end didn't uncover any wolves nor people with
long lenses, usually signifying something worth stopping for. I drove back and
this time around I was again the one who started a crowd - aiming 600mm of big
white glass at three antelopes. Even with them it was clearly mating season, and
while Mr. Antelope had only two Mrs', he was getting much luckier than Mr. Elk
the day before with all of his women. Goes once again to show that it's not
quantity that counts.
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After
this heartwarming experience I thought it would be a good time to pitch my tent.
Since the Pebble Creek campground was already full, I went to Slough Creek where
I found a campsite right by the ... well, creek. As I drove into campsite #22
which seemed ah so inviting, I was greeted by Bambi and her daughter (or son,
hard to tell when they are so young, and they weren't wearing pink nor blue).
Without disturbing the local wildlife, I set up the tent and went back hunting
for wolves and other furry mammals. Unfortunately, I was not very lucky this
time. Other than the common bison I ran only into a family of mountain goats.
Trying
to get to bag earlier than yesterday, I embarked on the 2.5 mile dirt road to
the campsite, which this SUV bravely mastered. I was pleased to be able to
challenge it in such a way, since chances are this must have been the roughest
road it will ever have to face. So I arrived back at #22, warmly greeted by
Bambi & Jr. I have no way of knowing whether it was the same two, but let's
assume so. I managed to clean things (SUV) up a bit, downloaded the last
pictures, and wrote these lines before turning in. Let's hope it will be warmer
tonight.