Wyoming – David Willett

Going Home Alone

Slowly exploring eastwards…..

Leaving Sally In Seattle (to stay longer with Drake), I resolved to return home driving small backroads, avoiding interstate highways , taking 8 days or so, for the trip.

After a rainy drive through Mt Rainier National Park it was critical that I make a supply stop at Johnson Family Orchard, Yakima, Washington to stock up juicy sweet fresh cherries and apricots so I don’t starve.

Not normally a big apricot fan, but these were delicious 🍑

Extensive fields of hops east of Yakima 🍺

All alone on 4th of July weekend at Jackson Creek Fish Camp on the Columbia River

Driving east through the Palouse I followed the Lewis and Clark Trail along the Clearwater River where lots of folks were picnicking and swimming on the sandy beaches along the banks. Great respite as the temperatures were in the mid 90’s. I found the Nez Percé National Historical Park an interesting short stop on my way to my campground in Kamiah on the Nez Percé Reservation. Trees, shade, a swimming pool and showers!

Storms over the plains on my way to Dillon, MT for a one night stay

Flaming Gorge

Flaming Gorge, Wyoming
Made of spectacular red canyon walls and arid green forest, the Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area sprawls across the southwest region of Wyoming in Sweetwater County. The area covers 207,363 acres of scenic landscape and wilderness. The area’s most popular destination is the Flaming Gorge Reservoir, measuring 91 miles long. You can also experience the Green River, separated from the reservoir by the towering wall of the Flaming Gorge Dam. Both the reservoir and the river provide a plethora of water activities to choose from.
Wyoming Tourism

FLAMING GORGE, Utah
Deep channels carved into rugged landscapes contain stained-glass waters that capture the play of light, shadow and color of the rising sun. Varying water temperatures through the seasons create unique scenarios for anglers after trophy lake trout and a number of other fish species. Flaming Gorge might be the West’s most spectacular reservoir. It certainly is one of the best fisheries around, with Blue Ribbon-designated angling on both the reservoir and the Green River for several miles beyond the dam. And then there’s the way the sun catches the red canyon walls, the revitalizing aura of the encompassing Ashley National Forest and High Uintas Wilderness, the prolific wildlife and the quaint, hospitable communities.
Flaming Gorge National Recreation area is an all-encompassing outdoor recreation destination. With more than 200,000 acres of land and water, Flaming Gorge is a scenic playground for boating, waterskiing, windsurfing, camping and backpacking in addition to some of the best fishing in the west.
To extend your stay in Flaming Gorge, Utah border towns Manila and Dutch John offer Flaming Gorge lodging. Comfortable rooms, cabins, and campgrounds encircle the area, ranging from handcrafted cabins with onsite recreation near the lake or rustic destinations on Forest Service roads in the nearby Uinta Mountains. Red Canyon Lodge, for example, features luxury log cabin lodging, fine dining, a private lake, horseback riding and more, providing a complete resort experience with those 200,000 acres of recreation standing by. There are also developed campgrounds and dispersed camping on the Ashley National Forest. To combine with Dinosaur National Monument, consider accommodations an hour south of Flaming Gorge in Vernal, Utah.
Local Highlights
Red Canyon Overlook: Beautiful any time of day, many visitors opt to get up early for sunrise to watch the gorge live up to its name as the canyon walls catch the fire of the intense morning light.
Flaming Gorge Dam: A year-round visitor center and summer guided tours unlock the history of the dam and accesses a stunning walk.
Browns Park: From Utes and Shoshone to fur trappers and outlaws like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, the area has long provided a sheltered retreat, and today is an excellent spot for fly-fishing.
Blue Ribbon-Designated Fishing: On Flaming Gorge, get ready to haul trophy fish aboard, from multiple trout species to bass, carp and Burbot. Below Flaming Gorge dam, the Green River is renowned for its trout fishing and excellent rafting. The brown trout on the Green average 15–17 inches in length but a record brown weighed it at 29 pounds in 1996. Read the Flaming Gorge Fishing Guide.
Dinosaur National Monument: Dinosaur National Monument and the Utah Field House of Natural History in Vernal combine for one of the west’s best dips deep into the region’s prehistory.
Sheep Creek and Spirit Lake Scenic Backways: Two gorgeous routes off the main highway that will guide you through impressive geological features and to the high country of the Uinta Mountains.
Visit Utah

I decided to spend a couple days camping in Manila, Utah near the Flaming Gorge to explore the area more thoroughly. While Sally and I have driven through it in the past, we never spent time poking around. Also, we always drove down the east side of the gorge. This time I decided to take the longer, but more beautiful road down the west side.

The Uinta Mountain range is a subrange of the Rocky Mountains. The Uinta Mountain range is unusual as this is the highest mountain range in the contiguous United States that runs East to West. North to South is much more common. The other two mountain ranges that run East to West are in Alaska!

Sheep Creek Geological Loop

This route winds through the dramatic geologic formations of the Sheep Creek National Geologic Area. The Uinta Fault, which runs for more than 100 miles along the north slope of the Uinta Mountains, is clearly visible in the extremely twisted rock layers along the upper part of the loop.
But stunning scenery isn’t the only reason to keep your camera ready on this backway. Expect to catch a glimpse or two of Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep as you wind through Sheep Creek’s awe-inspiring rock spires. This relatively small area is home to an impressive diversity of birds and other wildlife. Sharp eyes will spot the gravesite of the mysterious Cleophus Dowd along the western end of the loop.
Flaming Gorge Country.com

You can tour earth’s history from your vehicle. You will pass 20 interpretive signs indicating rock formations and fossils they contain. Rocks date Pre-Cambrian to Cretaceous in age representing millions of years of time and transformation. Overlooks, scenic pullouts, visitor centers, and nature trails abound along the way. Pick up a brochure with more information at any of the orientation centers.
USDA Forest Service

The Red canyon Visitor’s Center
This unique Visitor Center is perched high upon the rocky cliffs of Flaming Gorge and offers visitors a commanding view of the vast Red Canyon, carved by the Green River many eons ago. It is open daily from mid-May through mid-September.
Flaming Gorge

Deciding that it really was time to get home, I left the following morning and arrived home at 8pm. My little bed felt soooo good!

Trip Stats

Time on the road: 2 months
Miles Driven: nearly 9,000 miles
Ferry ride: 3 nights, covering approx 1,600 miles we would have driven otherwise

Next Post: “Best of Alaska” Summary

On The Cassiar Highway: Destination Hyder, Alaska

The best halibut fish and chips you can imagine…..

Finding the northward-bound Alaska traffic to be annoying (we now feel entitled to have Alaska and all her campgrounds to our selves), we decided to get off the Alaska Highway at Watson Lake and head south on the lesser-traveled Cassiar Highway.

Briefly leaving the Cassiar Highway, we drove through the beautiful coast mountains and along the Portland Canal to the twin towns of Stewart, B.C. and Hyder, Alaska, passing the Bear Glacier.

The Hyder – Stewart Border Crossing connects the communities of Hyder, Alaska and Stewart, British Columbia on the Canada–US border. It can be reached by British Columbia Highway 37A from Stewart and International Street from Hyder. There is no US border inspection station at this crossing, making it the only land border crossing where a person may legally enter the United States without reporting for inspection. The US closed its border station, which was located in the same building as the Boundary Gift Shop, in the late 1970s. As a result, all flights leaving the Hyder Seaplane Base to other cities in Alaska are treated as international arrivals, and all passengers, including Hyder residents, must be inspected by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers. Hyder is the easternmost community in Alaska.
On April 1, 2015, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) decided to close its border station at Stewart between midnight and 8:00AM Pacific as a cost-cutting measure. The road was closed with a steel gate when the station is closed, cutting off the only road entry point into Hyder. The decision was met with protests from Hyder residents, as they rely on Stewart for health care and mainland road access, although the Canadian authorities reassured that the residents would continue to have access to emergency services. The move also inconvenienced people wishing to cross the border early, such as mine workers working in mines accessible only via Hyder, as well as tourists entering Hyder for bear viewing. Following discussions between US and Canadian officials, starting in June 2015 the road is reopened for 24-hour access. Anyone crossing into Canada after border station hours is required to report to CBSA by video telephone.
Wikipedia

Upon enquiring of a local Stewart resident as to the location of a good seafood restaurant, she said we had to try “The Old school Bus” in Hyder

Diana and Jim run a small business in Hyder. Jim fishes for halibut each morning and Diana cooks them up fresh each afternoon and evening. We all agreed that this was the best deep fried halibut in all of Alaska! The whole town of Stewart, including the Canadian Border Guards are regulars at the “Old School Bus”!

If you have a bit of extra time, read the photos of the hand lettered signs below, to get a feel for the ambiance of Stewart & Hyder

Bears were out roaming all over town. We were told a story that afternoon of a bear climbing into a man’s pickup truck and sitting in the drivers seat eating his lunch scraps. Sally was followed back from the campground toilet by a black bear. Just part of life here, apparently! Read Diana’s sign below.

Sally’s “bear encounter”walking back to our beautiful rainforest campsite from the ladies!

Sally asked me to drop her off in Seattle to see Julie and family, so our route would now take us directly south. Ray and Shirley decided to head for home in a more easterly direction, so we decided to part ways in Kitwanga. The trip was certainly not the same without them!

Ray and Shirley head east toward Banff and Colorado

Next Post: Prince Rupert to Seattle (Bothell)

An “Old-Fashioned” Wyoming Horseback Elk Hunt

Grizzlies and Wolves and Elk, Oh My!

My son-in-law, Ben, and I recently returned from a guided horseback elk hunt with Lynn Madsen, at Yellowstone Outfitters, Afton, Wyoming. It was incredible!

Here’s what Lynn has to say about his outfit:

“Our Hawks Rest Camp is located in the Teton Wilderness northeast of Jackson…It sets off the southeast corner of Yellowstone Park between the Yellowstone and Thorofare Rivers (Area 60 on a Game & Fish map). It is one day-pack 28 miles, from our base camp at Turpin Meadows…The Hawks Rest camp holds the reputation of being the furthest spot in the continental United States from a road in any direction. Not only will you be hunting in one of the best trophy elk camps in the United States but you will also be hunting in country that looks the same as it did 100 years ago.

Our fully equipped camp consists of a large cook tent, shower tent, sleeping tents with cots, foam mattresses, and wood burning stoves along with plenty of fire wood. We are proud to say that our camps hold an excellent reputation earned by hiring reputable licensed guides, maintaining a clean comfortable camp, serving good food and supplying both good horses and mules and equipment.”

Well, our experience lived up to Lynn’s promotional material and then some. We had a “once in a lifetime” experience. Read on, if you are interested in the details.

Ben flew in from California and the following day we made the 8 hour drive from Fort Collins, Colorado to Jackson, Wyoming, where we spent the night. You can fly into Jackson’s small airport, but it’s kinda expensive and you have to pay hundreds of dollars to ship your elk meat back home, so driving seemed like the frugal option. Besides we were able to enjoy each other’s company and the lovely Wyoming scenery as we motored along.

On Monday morning October 9th we rose early, ate breakfast and made the 1 hour drive north and East to Turpin Meadows where we met Lynn, our guide, four other hunters and were introduced to our horses who would become our new and closest friends for almost 10 hours today.

Lynn provided quality, well cared for horses that are a cross between big, strong draught horses (for strength and stamina) and quarter horses (to reduce the size). They are still really big, tall horses and getting a leg up into the stirrup was my yoga/stretching challenge each time we mounted. Getting off was no issue, but is was a long way down.

fullsizeoutput_810e — The yellow marker highlights the beautiful pack trail into camp. We cross the Continental Divide at Two Ocean Pass and gain over 1,300 feet in elevation over the 28 mile trek.

fullsizeoutput_8107 — Hunters “chew the fat” while pack mules wait patiently

Heading up the mountain, we were passed by Lynn’s string of mules bringing our gear and replenishing needed supplies. On the way in we passed several sets of grizzly and wolf tracks.