https://wilderness.org/keep-our-wild-public-hands-0
The sound is electrifying. It’s like we’re walking under power lines, hearing an ever present buzz....but we’re not. As we move over the trail, flying objects come out of the tall grasses and sage brush that lines the trail. They have yellow stripes visible on their sides when in flight and they are seemingly everywhere. They’re grasshoppers, by the thousands! We’re on the Crystal Creek trail in the Gros Ventre Wilderness area on a beautiful, but cool, Summer morning in August. To get here we drive about 1.5 hours from our campsite at Shadow Mountain in Moose, WY. By the time we arrive at the end of a rutted and bumpy dirt road, the sun has warmed up the air from 38°F to 44°. Our first order of business at the trailhead is to cross the creek so we take off our hiking boots and put on river walking shoes. We unzip the bottom legs off our hiking pants that turn them into shorts and throw our hiking boots over our shoulder. Then we each take a hiking pole and tell Rocket to go across the creek. The crossing is wide as creek crossings go, and about knee deep and the creek bottom is full of rocks and little sand. But most importantly, the water is frigid! We want to move quickly, but don’t because slipping on the rocks and getting our packs wet right at the start would not be a good way to begin the day. As Terry exits the creek onto the bank, I hear a yelp telling me his feet are pink and frigid. When I hit the other side, I too have feet numb with cold. We dry off our feet with a quick drying hiking towel, put our boots back on, and continue hiking this beautiful trail which winds through woods at times, desert landscapes, and lush riparian areas when near the creek. As it turns out, we cross Crystal Creek six times (3 times each way), with the last crossing being the most difficult. As the day progresses, the water temperature appears warmer, although maybe we just get used to it. Of course the air temp rises to around 60°F which also helps. We move through a wooded area that smells of pine trees and fir, and then through the desert area where the distinctive sage brush smell fills the air. As we get about a mile from our destination, the wind shifts, and smoke is the predominant scent. For days now, fires from other states have blanketed the region with a haze and often, the smell of smoke. It gives me a mild headache when we’re in a smoky area for hours, but this is a great hiking trail. We love being in wilderness areas because typically that means no one else is around, and today that’s true - much to our delight. Often it means the trails are overgrown, but this one is well marked and easy to follow. I am hopeful of seeing a bear, a moose or other wildlife. We see tons of grasshoppers and small butterflies, orange and brown ones and yellow ones. We hear the chirping of songbirds in places and hear the knocking of trees as the wind moves through the forest. Also in the woods, I hear the squawking of gray jays and watch them fly through the trees. This trail is a recommendation from the ranger at the Jackson Hole forestry office which we visited in town a couple of days earlier. We are camping nearby in the Teton National Forest and want to find a place to hike with Rocket. He isn’t allowed on the National Park trails in Grand Teton National Park or nearby Yellowstone. I am happy to write that we’ve found a few national parks where dogs are allowed to hike on trails: Wrangell St. Elias in AK, Acadia in ME, Petrified Forest in AZ, Great Sand Dunes in CO, and part of the Pacific Crest Trail running through North Cascades Park. There may be a few more, but most do not allow dogs on trails. In our travels, we always visit visitor centers in the parks and especially like to stop at National Forestry ranger offices. They have information about dispersed camping, hiking trails, maps and wildlife information. The nice ranger we speak with in Jackson Hole tells us that the Crystal Creek Trail is interesting not only because of the diverse environments along the trail, but because at the trail’s end is a natural landslide (happened 10 years ago) on one hill with a deep green pool below. When we arrive there, it’s a bit eerie. The landslide is huge and devastating. The pool is an odd color of green with some gray silt coloring on the sides. There are dead pine trees - long slender gray sticks rising out of the water - and because of the smoky haze hanging over this part of the state, things look even eerier. I do see some Mergansers gliding through the pond. We find an old tree stump to rest on as we have lunch, and then we begin our journey back to the car and the cold creek crossings. I am writing about this hike because it takes place in the wilderness area. We do a lot of hikes in developed areas and often run into other hikers, horsemen, bikers and ATV users. But to us, the best hikes are where there is no crowd, where you stand a chance of seeing wildlife because noise hasn’t scared everything into the brush. And today we don’t see any big mammals - predators or prey. But we challenge ourselves with the creek crossings (maybe that’s why no one else is here), enjoy a long hike with Rocket, and see a very interesting part of the country. Also while in WY, we hike to Grizzly Lake, also in the Gros Ventre Wilderness area. On that trail we run into a cowboy whose two dogs helped move some cows (they’re allowed to graze on public lands), and he tells us there are wolves in the area. It’s exciting as we hike that trail to know they may be in the woods or along the ridge top. We don’t see them, but do see their sign and on two nights at our campsite, we are fortunate enough to hear wolves howling before they go hunting. The Grizzly Lake Trail isn’t as easy to navigate as the Crystal Creek Trail and we go off trail twice - following horse and cow trails. (I blame Rocket who was leading, and is very interested in livestock...he was on high alert when the cowboy came down the hill. Rocket showed no interest at all in the two dogs, but lay down in his herding position and stared at the horse for 15 minutes.). This trail also is more popular and so for our last mile, we see three other couples who begin the hike (one turned around after a half mile). But I think it’s worth writing that while our national parks have great hiking trails, our national forests also have some fabulous hiking opportunities. Our public lands are under threat of being turned over for mining and development, and this is true in Wyoming as well as other states. I hope my blog in its own small way can help people understand how wonderful these recreational lands are and how vital they are to many users. As we travel across America, we are constantly amazed with how many national forests, lakes and streams, and mountains are available for hiking, biking, fishing, ATVing, horseback riding, boating and wildlife viewing. If you are interested in following what’s happening with our public lands and the latest threats, please check out the link below on the Wilderness Society website. And enjoy your public land! https://wilderness.org/keep-our-wild-public-hands-0
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AuthorFormer documentary film producer, wife and mother of one...I'm taking time off to see the US with my husband Terry. Here's where I'll write about our adventures RVing until the money runs out! Archives
August 2021
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