On route to the Tetons. |
We retrace about 70 miles of the route we drove yesterday to the park
entrance and part of the south loop before turning towards the Grand Tetons.
At the gate the Ranger warns us it is snowing 8 miles ahead with 4-6 inches
forecast. As we ascend, the drizzle changes from rain to snow. The trees
are pretty and fortunately no snow is remaining on the road. Over the pass
and out of the snow.
We had considered visiting Yellowstone in the mid 1980’s but put it off because of the damage caused by fire. We stop at a visitor center and watch a short film about the 1988 fire. You can see where the trees burnt, but the new growth of pines is 15-20ft tall, hiding the ground. Many of the older trees have sprouted at the top, even though the lower branches are gone. The overall appearance is pretty. We learnt that the result of the burn has been to create a mosaic of open areas which provides more ‘edges’ to the forest. This is where most wildlife thrives. The result has been an unexpected increase in the population. |
