National Park – Paint Your Landscape

Lamar Valley Rhythm ~ Yellowstone National Park

August 3, 2017August 5, 2017LuAnn

“Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. … There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature — the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after winter.” ~ Rachel Carson, Silent Spring

Beartooth Mountains seen from the Lamar Buffalo Ranch

Golden fingers caress the eastern sky, drawing back the darkness and the sense of mystery that blankets this ethereal landscape. The playing of light and shadows across the mountain peaks seems to evoke a spiritual presence. It is the dawning of a new day in the Lamar Valley, a magical landscape that must be felt, as words fail to describe the sublime sense of serenity this wild landscape evokes.

Time spent at the Lamar Buffalo Ranch, immersing oneself in nature, can be soul-cleansing. It opens the senses more fully, forces us to move “in the moment”. Nothing here feels commonplace, from the robin who sings her melodious morning song perched on a rustic cabin, to the lyrical gurgling of the swollen stream that rushes past the ranch, to the tiny barn swallows perfecting their aerial dance above. Everything is observed through a microcosm of acute clarity.

One of the robins who greeted us daily with her melodic song

Welcome to the Lamar Buffalo Ranch

The lyrical sound of Rose Creek is always welcome.

The air smells like sage, sunshine, and fecund earth. Winter snow melt and spring rains provide Lamar a cool, deep drink, resulting in a verdant valley. Springtime heralds the arrival of the “red dogs”, bison calves cavorting in the supple green grasses, never far from mom when they feel the need to suckle. The swollen streams that rush through the valley in the spring slow to a languid crawl in summer and bison graze placidly along the valley floor as far as the eye can see. As the lushness of spring surrenders to the warming of late summer, snorts and bellowing grunts carry over the breeze, broadcasting the “rut”, the bison’s mating season, when bull dominance ranking is challenged.

A bull bison readying himself for the rut

Little “red dog” with horns beginning to bud

Bison dot the landscape of the Lamar Valley.

Beyond the human sight, wolf, grizzly, and coyote roam the shadows of the forest edges, awaiting that perfect moment when they are called to action, with the chance to provide a needed meal for their hungry families. A familiar wolf pack, the Junction Butte pack, can often be seen hunting in the valley, reminding us of the disquieting nature that is the circle of life in the wild. There is a poetic justice to knowing that these predators are part of the fabric of this lush landscape.

One can feel the sense of timelessness here in the Lamar Valley. As the sun sinks lower into the western sky, the trumpeting call of the sandhill cranes wafts across the deepening shadows. The majestic mountains looming over the valley floor reflect the geologic clashing of the forces of nature, and remind us of the intimate connection we all have with the wilderness, no matter our place in life. To lose any part of these untrammeled wild spaces would mean a loss of part of our humanity.

A double rainbow emerges over the Lamar Buffalo Ranch following an afternoon rain shower.

The Lamar Buffalo Ranch is an intrinsic thread woven into the Yellowstone history. A visit to the park would be incomplete without experiencing the magic of the Lamar Valley.

The Restless Giant ~ Mt Rainier National Park, Part I

July 13, 2015LuAnn

“In God’s wildness lies the hope of the world – great fresh unblighted, unredeemed wilderness. The galling harness of civilization drops off, and wounds heal ere we are aware.” ~ John Muir

Subalpine meadows, blanketed with brilliantly colored wildflowers, envelop a glacial volcano, while time-worn forests grace majestic mountain slopes. This scene enveloping are senses is better known as Mt. Rainier National Park, our 5^th National Park in the U.S., established in 1899.

Covered by 34 square miles of year-round snow and ice, this “king of the Cascades” boasts 25 glaciers on its rugged slopes, which have spawned six major rivers. As much glacial ice covers Mt. Rainier as on all the other Cascade volcanoes combined. It is still considered an active volcano, restless, geologically young, having formed ~ 500,000 years ago. Glaciers and landslides continue to erode Mt. Rainier’s surface, making this imposing mountain look older than it is.

We had read that Mt. Rainier is most often shrouded in a gauzy mist instead of proudly on display. We wondered as we entered the park if we would be fortunate enough to see this formidable giant without swirling clouds obscuring its peak. We were blessed to have several clear days. 🙂

With an average annual snowfall of over 50 feet, snow plays a huge role in Mt. Rainier’s ecology and the entire Cascade Mountain range. It shapes everything we see. Snow conditions determine when wildflowers bloom, when water will be available for wildlife, which glaciers retreat or advance, and which species thrive and which are diminished.

How were these 25 glaciers gracing Mt. Rainier’s slopes formed? For starters, more snow must fall than melts away. As snow piles up, the weight of the snowpack squeezes air out of the lower layers, where the compacted snow crystals start to break down. They recrystallize, forming an entirely different type of snow, called firn. It resembles wet sugar but is much harder and heavier than snow. As surface water trickles down, firn goes through many cycles of melting and refreezing, turning to ice in 3-5 years. Glacial ice scatters incoming light into blue wavelengths, which is why they appear blue to the naked eye. As ice rushes over rock, valley walls, and icefalls, it may break like glass, opening up crevasses up to 100’ deep.

We could hear the groaning and cracking of the glaciers as we hiked some of the ridgeline in the park.

Each year over 10,000 people attempt to scale Mt. Rainer’s highest peak. Nearly half reach the 14,410’ summit. John Muir and nine others climbed to Mt. Rainier’s summit in what became the 5^th recorded ascent. His trip to Rainier reinvigorated his efforts to preserve nature as National Parks.

With binoculars in hand on one of our hikes we were able to watch several at the overnight camp prepare for their summit attempt the following morning. We also watched another group making their final ascent. How blessed we were to have a clear day to see this unfold.

Those fortunate souls who do summit find themselves inside a massive crater. They can warm themselves near steam vents if they can stand the “rotten egg” smell of sulfur. There is even a lake underneath all the ice.