memorial day

Is it warm where you are? Because it's not here...while the rest of the country is at the beach, wearing shorts, having BBQ's, we're dealing with snow, snow, and more snow.

Here's a shot from the Hayden Valley today:


This week has found many road closures in the park due to weather. The openings of Dunraven Pass and the Beartooth Highway have been pushed back (6/10 and 6/3). There's a rock slide that has indefinitely closed the road between Mammoth and Tower, isolating the NE corner of the park. The East Entrance is only open between 8 p.m. - 10 a.m. due to Avalanche danger, and the roof of the Fishing Bridge service station recently collapsed under the weight of the snow.


We decided to brave the snow and drove the lower loop today. Steve patiently waited out a snow storm


so that he could jump in the Firehole River for a bit.


I snapped a few pics of an Osprey flying overhead before retreating to the comfort (ie, warmth) of the car.


Yellowstone Lake, still very much frozen.


It's always nice to be out and about in the park, but we're ready for some warmer weather to come our way...

2 and 2

Drove past 2 grizzlies and 2 black bears on our way down to Old Faithful tonight:

elk calf, born in mammoth today

lava creek

This morning we woke up to sunny skies and 60 degree temps. Sarah and I decided to hike Lava Creek, a short (5ish) hike that skirts the base of Mt. Everts. It didn't take long before we ran into this guy, trying to scratch off the last of his winter coat by rubbing it against a tree.

After about a mile we crossed a footbridge over the Gardner River,


and the trail followed the river


until we had a great view of the suspension bridge on the Grand Loop Road.


Behind us, we could see the red roofs of Mammoth (that's our apartment building on the far left, green roof).


As we neared the end of the hike we had a great view of Sepulcher Mountain and the Terraces.

Like all of our good hikes, we ended it with chili-cheese fries at the Terrace Grill.

thursday in lamar

The sun starting to rise over Electric Peak as we left Gardiner at 6:00 a.m.


Spring in Yellowstone means death,


and life.




In addition to spotting a couple of grizzlies, we were extremely lucky to see this yearling wolf from the Lamar Canyon pack running alongside the road.


Last night I was back in the Lamar for a work dinner, and I saw a moose at Petrified Tree, 5 grizzlies in the valley, and a black bear near Hellroaring pullout. Just another work day here in Yellowstone...

first grizz of the season

sunday

spring

run this town

After stuffing our faces at the food trucks one last time, we hit the road to Eugene. We made a beeline for the Marathon Expo, where I was treated like a VIP by everyone who realized I was from Yellowstone. I think it's safe to say that I was the only runner from Yellowstone in Track Town USA.

I was excited to hit up the original Nike store, but sadly we found out that it's now a construction site. The new Nike Running store had a little bit of a museum built into it,


but I'm sad they tore down the original.


My pre-marathon meal is always pizza, and I remember an old Runner's World that had an article about Track Town Pizza in it.


We ordered a pizza with fresh tomatoes, and the three of us cracked up when it arrived: by fresh we didn't think they meant "we'll put three whole raw tomatoes on top of your pizza after it comes out of the oven."


Race morning started at 5:00 a.m. and Steve dropped us off as close to Hayward Field as he could. I was excited but nervous at the start.


Here we are in our corral, ready to go.


After a brief computer delay, we were off.


Sarah and I were able to run together for the first 11 miles until the half marathon split off from the full.


It was a beautiful day, sunny with temperatures creeping close to the 70's. For a small race, it was fantastic--they handed out Cliff Shots and bananas twice, and we ran along the river with enthusiastic spectators cheering us on. The race finishes on historic Hayward Field,


and there was an announcer calling out finishers' names on the PA as you crossed the finish line. And oh yeah, at the finish? FREE PANCAKES! Along with the biggest and coolest finisher's medal I've ever received.



Eugene was a great #7 for me, and I'd definitely do it again if I have the chance.

While we were in Eugene, I kept seeing people wearing these AWESOME sweatshirts:


I. Had. To. Have. One.

We figured out that they were sold only by a local running store in Portland, and our chances of showering, checking out of the hotel, eating lunch, and making it there by 5:00 p.m. were slim to none. Yet...we pulled off the highway at 4:55 and the chase was on. Steve roared into the parking lot at 5:03 and we all cheered when we saw the "Open" sign still illuminated. He ran in, and I hobbled after him. Sarah snapped this hysterical picture of us exiting the store, victorious.


And with that, we said goodbye to Oregon.