NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC EXPEDITIONS ULTIMATE

This is the second year in a row I have done this trip and it really is an ultimate experience for my clients! 5 National Parks in 15 days: Tetons, Yellowstone, Glacier, Olympic and Grand Canyon. It was a whirlwind of exhilaration!


THE TETONS

Grand Teton National Park was established by Calvin Coolidge in 1929. The acreage of the park has grown since its inception from 96,000 to 310,000

A moose sighting is always a thrill, but when you get a mama and her baby it is an added bonus. The marshy parts of the park provide the perfect habitat for these ungulates.


YELLOWSTONE

 Being in Yellowstone multiple times a year allows me to share my love of the park with many travelers while I work on my photographic skills. Getting to know these phenomenal features aids me in capturing them on camera.

The majestic Grand Prismatic Spring! On a sunny day the colors are truly spectacular. The largest hot spring in the U.S. and third largest in the world.

Artemesia Geyser may look like just a hot springs when calm, but it goes through regular minor and major eruptions. After a major eruption its pool drops apx. 2 feet. I love the brilliant blue.

Morning Glory's current color is dramatic, but the result of a sad fact: years of tourist trash. Visitors to the park have unfortunately deposited refuse and wishing coins into the pool, which has lowered the temperature. This has allowed microbes that thrive in cooler water to grow, giving it this yellow and green color versus the blue that it would produce otherwise.

I just love the Mud Pots in Yellowstone. Their gurgling and bubbling never fail to astound new visitors.

I often post pics of the falls in the Canyon area of Yellowstone from a distance. This shot is atop the brink of the Upper Falls. Powerful and chaotic!

The water at Mammoth Hot Springs Terraces is mostly underground. Scientists say that only 10% is on the surface.


GLACIER

On this trip we were supposed to stay at the Historic Lake McDonald Lodge in Glacier National Park, and I had hoped to wow you with pics of this rustic yet impressive structure. Unfortunately fires were encroaching the area, so we had to make other lodging plans in Whitefish.

Along the way to Glacier we visited the Berkeley Pit. I is the sight of an open-pit copper mining operation that was active from 1955-1982. Since it closed, the pit has filled with contaminated water that includes arsenic and sulfuric acid. It is now a Superfund site, meaning the EPA has given it special status for cleanup as it poses a risk to humans and/or the environment. It is an example of how greed can bring devastation.

My client Marianne enjoying a smokeless moment in the bit of Glacier we were able to visit.


OLYMPIC

I was saddened that I was not able to show my clients all that Glacier has to offer, but nature is unpredictable so you just have to roll with it. I was pleased to get to Olympic National Park, where the air was clear and beautiful views were unobstructed by smoke.

Sun soon to set over Lake Crescent......

...and sunset!

I love this shot along the Hall of Mosses Trail. It has an impressionistic appearance, like Monet's "Water Lillies."

 A grove of mossy Big Leaf Maples. Their limbs reach out in dramatic gesture, thus giving them their nickname, "the grand dame" of the Maple family.

The plaque for this very special Sitka Spruce says it all!


GRAND CANYON

By the time we got to the Grand Canyon we'd been traveling for 12 days! Covering so much ground (literally!) is exhausting, but luckily the Grand Canyon is equally inspiring and invigorating. Can't think of a better finale to cap off an incredible journey.

I will just let these pictures of the canyon speak for themselves.

BACK IN THE CROWN

There is always so much to explore in this area of northern Montana and southern Alberta and British Columbia. Even though my previous trip had been in this region I was able to get more shots of other awesome places!

GLACIER NATIONAL PARK

Firstly I need to share some pics that my client on my last trek here got of a female moose in the Many Glacier area. Thank you Mary Lou Barritt for sharing!

Isn't she gorgeous! Enjoying a feast on aquatic plants. We found her dining again on my last trip as well. Very quiet and respectful crowds gather to watch this lovely lady.

Avalanche Creek is the sweetest spot on the west side of the continent divide. This magical place is comprised of fairy pools, ferns and cedars.

                                           

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   What an enchanted place! The picture on the right is about 6-8ft wide. You can see a cascade feeding into the same area on the left.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Boardwalks through the Avalanche Creek area provide views of Red Cedars, Rocky Mountains Maples and Tamaracks.

Going to the Sun Road, one of the most scenic drives in North America

A lunch break at Red Rocks Falls on our way to Bullhead Lake.

Many Glacier hotel. Newly renovated Swiss-like Inn in amazing surroundings. Grinell Point in the background.

Grinell Lake with Salamander Glacier back right. My clients and I watched the eclipse from here. 

WATERTON NATIONAL PARK

Sidewalk along Main Street, in front of Bay Shore Inn, in the town of Waterton which is in this National Park. 

Views of Waterton Lake from Bay Shore Inn. We took a boat to the end of the lake (actually in Glacier Park) which you can see on the right of the top picture.

FERNIE B.C.

The idyllic Island Lake Lodge

Brachiopod fossils in Fernie Provincial Park

Pikas, also known as "rock rabbits" love these rocky areas in Fernie Provincial Park. We watched this little guy gather a flower cache for his winter food supply. Pikas chirp as an alarm call and he did so when we approached to warn his kin.

The Spine Back Trail, looking down on Island Lake Lodge. As I mentioned, a truly idyllic spot!

I am currently on a National Geographic Ultimate trip, 15 days and five National Parks! Be on the lookout for pics and stories of this adventure.