Log for Friday, July 4, 2003

Cooke City, Montana
Cutler Lake, Montana
Yellowstone River
Three Forks, Montana
Cardwell, Montana

I spent a very restful night at the Antlers Lodge (no apostrophe) after yesterday's exhausting trek up the Beartooth Highway. This is one road you really want to travel only once in your lifetime. It is extremely beautiful, but it is a stressful drive near the Beartooth plateau.

As I was leaving the cabin in the early morning, the very nice young man at the desk said to me, "Be careful, you adventurous one." As I had checked me in the previous night he noted the kayak and bicycle on my SUV roof and had exclaimed, "You sure are an adventurous one!" Somehow this comment pleased me a great deal. After having made a successful crossing of the Beartooth Mountains I did indeed feel like an adventurous one.

The young man recommended the Log Cabin Cafe in Silver Gate, Montana, for breakfast and said that it was about a mile up the road near the entrance to Yellowstone National Park. I drove to the Log Cabin Cafe where the daily special turned out to be biscuits and gravy. My father would have been delighted at such a breakfast! But I ordered the scrambled eggs and enjoyed the early morning light as it streamed through the window panes. Although it was chilly outside the cafe was cozy with the warmth of the sun and the smell of bacon. This was some of the tastiest food I'd had on the trip, and also one of the nicest settings.

After photographing the Log Cabin Cafe and the main street of Silver Gate, I drove headed for Yellowstone. Having recently developed a heightened awareness of elevation after my trek across the mountains, I happened to notice the readout on my GPS at the north entrance to Yellowstone National Park was 5,314 feet. After nearly 11,000 feet this seemed like nothing to me. Immediately after entering Yellowstone National Park I saw a female moose and a deer on the right side of the road. They didn't budge so I was able to get a few photos.

The Soda Butte Creek runs on the left side of the road as you enter Yellowstone National Park from the northeast entrance. Along the drive I saw prairie dogs, buffalo, a pack of wolves and elk.

The buffalo seemed to be everywhere in the Lamar Valley. I stopped and photographed Undine Falls, the Gardiner River, and Rescue Creek. I stopped briefly at Mammoth Hot Springs before setting out for Gardiner.

US 89 outside of Gardiner, Montana, was marked for 70 mph. It was the first time in two days that I had driven over 20 miles per hour. The Yellowstone River runs along US 89 and is made accessible by the many named fishing access points. There were also many people rafting and floating the Yellowstone River.

The best place for launching a kayak seemed to be the "Point of Rocks" fishing access point so I put in for a half hour. The current was not that strong so I was able to easily get back to where I started. This was a very nice kayak.

I exited US 89 at Tom Minor Basin road and crossed the small bridge over the Yellowstone River. I followed the road uphill about 6.5 miles. The GPS unit was really my only guide as the roads were not well marked. I stayed left whenever the road forked and found my way to Cutler Lake. This was a small lake I had located on a map and wanted to kayak. It turned out to be a much smaller lake than I thought and much more difficult to locate. However, once I finally arrived after the 5-mile-per-hour bumpy drive I was delighted to find that I had the entire place to myself.

I set up my tripod and did a quick Quicktime VR panorama to capture the barren hills surrounding this lake. This 360 degree panorama can be viewed by clicking here. Just as I was completing the pano a pickup truck drove up on the over side of the hill. He didn't stay long so I again had the place to myself.

There was a launch area with a campfire and parking area. The shoreline is very reedy. I kayaked in the small lake and enjoyed the sense of total seclusion the area provided. However, I was happy to get back on the road and head back to US 89. The view driving back to US 89 was stunning since I was high above the Yellowstone River on the opposite hillside.

I drove along the wandering Yellowstone River alongside US 89. The Gallatin Valley provided great scenery. I stopped to kayak briefly in the Yellowstone River at the "Point of Rocks" Fishing Access site where many others were rafting and floating in tubes.

I joined back up with I-90 at Livingston, Montana, and made a note to stop and spend more time in this town on my return trip. Time pressures forced me now to head towards Bozeman. After many hours of 20-mph curves and slow going, it was great to at last be back on I-90. Between Livingston and Bozeman I passed through the Bridger Mountains named for mountain man Jim Bridger. I had recently enjoyed reading Larry McMurtry's book entitled "The Wandering Hill" in which a fictionalized version of Jim Bridger appears. His namesake mountains were very windy and I was forced to stop along I-90 to tie down the kayak more securely.

I stopped at the Missouri Headwaters State Park near Three Forks to see the confluence of the Madison, Jefferson and Gallatin Rivers. The state park was a bit disappointing. I had somehow expected to see more Lewis and Clark historical exhibits. I didn't bother kayaking here since the water levels were very low due to the drought.

I drove on to Cardwell, Montana, and drove down US 10 South over a small bridge to kayak in the Jefferson River. The parking area had a nice launch site and bathroom facilities. This would be a great place to start an all-day trip, having someone to pick you up further downriver. It was a bit shallow because of the drought but had a nice manageable current.

Exit 208 off of I-90 led to Georgetown Lake Recreation Area and Exit 130 to Beavertail State Park, both stops I would try to make on another trip. I arrived in Missoula, Montana late at night and fell into a deep sleep at the Fairfield Inn near US 93.

What a great way to spend the Fourth of July!