Yellowstone Roads Open And Geyser Mania Ensues

So every year we have lived in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem we have made it a tradition to head to the park on the opening weekend. This year we took a couple of new friends and headed to Old Faithful. As always it was amazing but this year we had an amazing geyser day in the Upper Geyser Basin (where we spent our whole day).

We pulled up below the Old Faithful Inn and there were maybe ten vehicles. We headed into the visitors center to get the predicted times for the geysers and headed out.

It's always good to know when the predicted times are so you can plan your route through the Upper Geyser Basin.

So we started out on our journey and headed out to get up to Observation Point thinking that it would be a great place to see Old Faithful from. We got to the bridge and our friend noticed that Beehive was erupting! As normal I ran to get next to it and WOW what a great first geyser of the National Park Service Centennial year! After that we caught an amazing show from Old Faithful.

BEEHIVE!!!

OLD FAITHFUL!

After this we headed out towards Morning Glory from Geyser Hill. The boardwalk from Castle to Sawmill Geyser is being redone so you could access the trails from Old Faithful and Grotto Geysers. We did the round and made it to Artemisia and sat there for a while. We decided to head to Biscuit Basin and caught Jewel from the other side of the lollipop loop. We watched some ravens eat a cormorant at Black Diamond Pool and headed back to the trail. I was the first to get back to Artemisia which started erupting upon my arrival. This was my first time as well as all my companions to see this geyser. It erupted for 24 minutes, we stayed the whole time.

Artemisia on the first pass.

Ephydrid Flies on a bacteria mat at Biscuit Basin.

BOOM! ARTEMISIA!!!

Great times with great friends!

After watching this amazing geyser action we headed back towards the main basin area to Riverside which had not gone. It was in overflow when we got there so we waited, it must have just started so we waited almost an hour in hopes that Grand had not gone yet. It was worth the wait because you can see Grotto from the Riverside viewing area. We finally got a show, it was amazing as always.

RIVERSIDE!

We stayed for the majority of the show and headed out to Grand because we had not seen any steam plumes from that area. We waited for two turbans and on the third we got the wave and Grand gave us an amazing show. It had quite a few bursts then paused for an amazingly large explosion of water from below! One of the local Geyser Gazers was super vocal and excited. That made me excited because these people live for these amazing unique features! It was awesome!

This is the large burst! WOW!

On the way back to Old Faithful geyser we were near the Lion Group when Castle Geyser let off a little steam, well and a ton of water. It's always great to see the big, predictable geysers erupt. They are so unique and we should not take them for granted.

Castle Geyser, one of the greats!

After this, on the way back to the car we caught another Old Faithful eruption.

What? No one else is at Old Faithful, this is very strange...

This was the end of our geyser day at Old Faithful but one that will go down in our personal history books as, well an EPIC geyser day.

On the way back home we got another show, thermal in some way but not the same.

Electric Peak at sunset!

The park is opening the roads at the normal rate. Happy hunting!

Thanks for reading my blog! I hope you enjoyed it!

Midwest Music Invades Montana!

Once again it's time for bands to hit the road on their Spring tours! And there are a lot of good ones out there. Obviously I have biased towards certain genres and musicians because everyone does. Most of the music that I listen to is based on local tastes of where I have lived in the past and present and is roots based, eg not mainstream. So here are a few shows that I would recommend people attend in and around Park and Gallatin Counties in Montana.

Charlie Parr 4/2/16 @ The Filling Station

First up is the immortal Charlie Parr! Charlie will be headlining the Filling Station on Saturday, April 2nd with Russ Chapman opening the show. The Filling Station is the quintessential Bozeman music venue. The décor is a reminder of past oil changes and neon signs. The place is ragged and dirty and the crowd eclectic.

Click the link below for a taste of Charlie from 2014 at The Filling Station.

https://archive.org/details/cp2014-04-03

Pert Near Sandstone and Head For The Hills

4/14/16 @ The Filling Station

Next up on the agenda is Pert Near Sandstone and Head For The Hills. These bands both rock! Pert Near Sandstone hails from Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota with an outlier that lives in Los Angeles (Hey Nate!). They have been playing together for over 10 years and have been here there and everywhere. This past year they threw one hell of a festival in Eau Claire, Wisconsin dubbed the Blue Ox Festival, very fitting for the north woods of the Midwest. Pert Near Sandstone has always focused on old time and bluegrass music, playing standards and their own originals as well as DEEP tracks. 

Head For The Hills is a great Colorado group that is also super fun! They definitely throw down in yo town. I'm not as familiar with H4TH but they never disappoint!

Click the link below for my recording of Pert Near Sandstone from last fall in Bozeman.

 https://archive.org/details/pns2015-11-03

Click the link below for my recording of Head For The Hills from Ed's(no name)Bar in Winona, Minnesota.

https://archive.org/details/hfth2013-03-02

The Last Revel and Lil Smokies @ The Filling Station 4/28/16

The Last Revel became an instant smash in Montana when they won the Best New Band title at the Red Ants Pants Festival a couple years back. They have been gaining steam in the Midwest as a new band on the scene and we hope they keep gaining and gaining and gaining. They will be playing with The Lil Smokies from Missoula who won an even more prestigious title of Best New Band at Telluride Bluegrass Festival last summer. This is one not to miss!

The Last Revel!

Here is a recording of The Last Revel from The Turf Club in Saint Paul from Tommy The Beard

https://archive.org/details/LR2016-02-25

The Lil Smokies are HOT!

Here is a recording of The Lil Smokies from Seattle.

https://archive.org/details/TheLilSmokies2014-07-16.akg481.flac24

The Lowest Pair 5/11/16 @ Live From The Divide

Some of my favorite people are playing at Live From The Divide on May 11th. The Lowest Pair consists of Kendl Winter and Palmer T Lee are who I would consider the second family of the banjo (behind Bela Fleck and Abigail Washburn and little Juno Fleck) These two are an amazing duo and should not be missed with dual banjo action and amazing harmonies. The Lowest Pair's debut album 36cents was produced by the one and only Dave Simonett, front man  of Trampled By Turtles. There is super limited seating for this show so get your tickets early.

How could you not trust a man with morels on his hat?

Here's a link to my recording of The Lowest Pair when they played The Filling Station from 4/7/14:

https://archive.org/details/TheLowestPairLiveAtTheFillingStation

Horseshoes & Hand Grenades 6/2/16 @ The Eagles Club

w/Special Guests TBA

If there was ever a show in Bozeman not to miss it's this one! Horseshoes and Hand Grenades have been on one hell of a roll. They have recently toured with Railroad Earth, Greensky Bluegrass and are about to jump on with Yonder Mountain String Band for a series of shows. These fellas hail from Stevens Point, Wisconsin and WOW do they have some fun. Just last year they released their third album Middle Western which pretty much sums them up! One thing you might want to beware of is they like to run around topless in the middle of winter.

 

Here is a link to my recording from Horseshoes and Hand Grenades first show in Bozeman!

https://archive.org/details/hhg2014-07-10

Last but definitely least we have our good friends Joe and Vicki Price!

Joe and Vicki Price @ The Murray Bar 6/9/16

Joe and Vicki Price hail from Decorah, Iowa and they have definitely made a name for themselves. Joe had been on the circuit for many years when he was picked up by Vicki and they became this immortal duo. Joe and Vicki are some of the most genuine people you will ever meet, and they will rock your socks off! Joe has been called Little Buddha by the legendary Greg Brown who also hails from Iowa. If you love the blues then make sure not to miss this one, as Joe reiterates, "I just came to play the blues!"

Here is a copy of Joe and Vicki live at Weber's Deck in French Lake, Minnesota recorded by Tommy The Beard and transferred by yours truly.

https://archive.org/details/jv2011-08-28

If you are from the Midwest and have a hankering for a taste of home here are a few options to cure the blues. All of these bands and musicians are world class artists and people so come on out and support them and the culture that they are a part of! Midwest music is on the horizon so get some while you can!

Yellowstone Getting Ramped Up For Centennial Celebration

Yellowstone National Park was the first in the world to hold the designation National Park. The park celebrated it's centennial in 1972 marking 100 year of protection and preservation. This year marks another big event, the centennial of the National Park Service whom protect and preserve Yellowstone and all of the other sites under their care. I'm sure that there will be celebrations happening in all of the satellite communities. I also expect the biggest to be in Gardiner, Montana which is the closest community to the parks headquarters in Mammoth Hot Springs.


I have read that community leaders in Gardiner are trying to attract president Obama to the community for the celebration that will take place on August 25th, 2016. I would expect big things to happen in Gardiner as well as all of the other communities in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.

Here's what Arch Park looked like back in the day, I wonder how it will look in 2016.



2016 will bring amazing events to all of these amazing places. I sure hope that you get out and explore your National Parks in 2016 for the Centennial.


For more information please join the Facebook group National Park Service Centennial at:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/579427665532340/

Find Your Park!

The Legendary Charlie Parr is coming to town!

Once or twice a year one of our favorite Midwestern musicians graces the stage at the Filling Station in Bozeman. Who may you ask, Charlie Parr. I have known Charlie Parr since 2006 when I met him at a Halloween party in the small town of Silver Creek, Minnesota. Charlie and our good friend Mikkel Beckman opened for local favorites Forty Watt Bulb. Forty Watt Bulb has since dissolved into legendary status in the local scene and plays very random shows here and there.

Charlie has persisted on making music his life and does it very well. He plays a National resonator guitar in the finger picking Piedmont blues style. He also plays a fretless open backed banjo. He has released thirteen albums to date which keep on getting better like a fine wine, although cheap wine is more his style.

He will be joined by Jack Klatt, Barabara Jean and Tales From Ghost Town this coming Saturday. Tickets are still available at Cactus Records so get them while you can because it will sell out, and always does. This is one not to be missed by any means!!! I hope to see you there dancing and having a merry old time!!!

Here is a link to the last show he played in Bozeman.

Check it out!

https://archive.org/details/cp2014-04-03

Seasoned Yellowstone National Park Hiker Killed By Grizzly Bear While Hiking Off Trail Near Lake Village

A man whose name had not been released has been killed in Yellowstone National Park by a grizzly bear. The man, a fifth season employee, was found dead off trail near the Elephant Back loop trail which is very popular with Lake Village employees. His body was found partially consumed and cached on Friday August 7th. A preliminary report confirms that the man has defensive marks on his forearms confirming a bear attack. The bears involved are possibly a sow with a cub of the year. There has been a large amout of rain in the park so collecting evidence in the investigation may be very hard. An official autopsy is scheduled for Monday.

Here is a list of bear related deaths throughout the history of Yellowstone National Park taken from

(http://www.nps.gov/yell/learn/nature/injuries.htm)

During the 140-year (1872-2011) history of Yellowstone National Park, seven people have been killed by bears in the park. More people in the park have died from drowning, burns (after falling into thermal pools), and suicide than have been killed by bears. To put it in perspective, the probability of being killed by a bear in the park (7 incidents) is only slightly higher than the probability of being struck and killed by lightning (5 incidents).

• August 2011 - a day hiker, hiking by himself, was killed by a grizzly bear on the Mary Mountain Trail in Hayden Valley.
• July 2011 - a day hiker in a party of two was killed by an adult female grizzly bear with 2 cubs on the Wapiti Lake Trail in Hayden Valley.
• October 1986 - a photographer was killed by an adult female grizzly bear near Otter Creek in Hayden Valley.
• July 1984 - a grizzly bear killed a backpacker in a backcountry campsite located at the southern end of White Lake near Pelican Valley.
• June 1972 - an old adult female grizzly bear killed a man in an illegally established camp. The man surprised the bear when he returned to his campsite at night. The bear was in his camp feeding on food that he had left out unsecured in the campsite.
• August 1942 - a bear killed a woman at night in the Old Faithful campground. The species of bear involved was not determined.
• 1916 - a grizzly bear killed a man in a roadside camp.
• A possible fatality supposedly occurred in 1907 when a man was attacked by a female grizzly bear after he prodded her cub with an umbrella. The account of the incident appeared in a popular book, "Book of a Hundred Bears" published in 1909 by F.D. Smith. However, the validity of this incident is questionable as there is no mention of it in official park reports or local newspapers from 1907. The "Book of a Hundred Bears" contains many stories without providing back-up documentation. The 1907 story appears to be an unsubstantiated legend.

 

To avoid conflicts with bears always make noise while hiking especially around blind corners and in thick wooded areas, hike in large groups and carry bear spray and know how to use it.

Bear spray does no good in your pack, have it accessible at all times!!!

 

Not a photo of this incident.



Albright Visitor Center's Grand Opening Sunday at Mammoth Hot Springs

Sunday July 12th marks the official re-opening of the Albright Visitor Center. The building has been newly renovated and has actually been open since Earth Day this year, April 22nd to visitors. The Albright Visitor Center is named after Horace Albright. Albright helped to establish the National Park Service in 1916. He then served as Superintendent of Yellowstone National Park for ten years, where he saw his mission as “improving Yellowstone and its services to visitors as the flagship of the National Park Service.”  After his stint in Yellowstone he served as the director of the NPS and drastically increased the amount of NPS sites east of the Mississippi River including expanding the scope of locations included in the system.

This will only happen once folks so if you want to experience a historic event in Yellowstone National Park and are in the area this is your chance.

The celebration is set to begin in front of the Albright Visitors Center at 10 AM or in the Map Room of the hotel if there is bad weather.

Historic photo of Superintendent Horace Albright, don't try this at home folks. You must be 100 yards from bears these days.

Horace Albright.



BOILING RIVER RE-OPENS!!!

This one goes out to all the coeds that come down to Yellowstone National Park to enjoy the thermal waters that are legally soakable.  It's time to bust out those bathing suits and get some soaking in.

The Boiling River has re-opened for the summer!

I personally never go the the Boiling River in the summer because the crowds are too large. I prefer the extra push of speeding back to the car with wet hair when it's 20 below zero, but that 's just me.

Come on down and enjoy the hot and cold.  I would get there in the EARLY morning if you want any bit of privacy.

 

 

Just make sure you look out for the locals that frequent the area, they can get a little cranky.

 

Enjoy your soak!!!