BACK TO THE CROWN

This summer brought the fortunate opportunity to visit this incredible area twice! And what a fun time it was. My clients were 7 great guys from Miami. One of our first hikes was to St. Mary's Falls. It is an easy 1.7mile round trip journey with spectacular payoffs.

The glaciers above St. Mary's Fall provide gorgeous Caribbean blue waters. Jump in though and you will realize the temperature varies greatly from the warming waters of the Caribbean.

View of St. Mary's Falls

Group portrait! Such fun gents to guide and travel with. They made my job easier by providing many laughs.

Virginia Falls is just over half a mile from St. Mary's Falls.  

Upper Grinnell Lake.

You may remember from my last trip to the area that we encountered two Grizzly. And even though you should always carry your bear spray when hiking in Glacier the leading cause of death here is not bear attacks, it is drowning. So hike and swim safe!

View of Upper Waterton Lake in Canada's Waterton National Park. This park is over the border from Glacier. 

Just outside of Fernie B.C.

Kudos to this group of adventurers. Their last hike was also their biggest and the bi payoff was this scenic view. I hope I get to guide these fine folks again.

Also outside of Fernie. Crystal clear waters on this little lake.

During our hikes in the Fernie area we got a glimpse of the curious Pika. This cartoon like creature chatted us up as we crossed his path.

One of the fellas filmed and slo mo'ed the footage of me demonstrating the Puffball mushroom. This mushroom, when squeezed or tapped, shoots out a cloud of its spores. 

MORE PICTURES FROM SCOTLAND

I was looking at some of my photos from my Scotland trip this July and thought I should share more of the country's beauty!

 Other views of The Pinnacles of the Quiraing

Elgin Cemetery

What is a trip to Scotland without a sighting of a Highland Cow?

Fairy Pools on the Isle of Skye. So charming!

And just for fun, here's a pic of a traditional Scottish Breakfast. It is sure to fortify for a day of hiking and exploring the countryside.

FIRST HALF OF AUGUST

After a pretty mellow July (at least for me) of mainly day trips after my Scotland trip, it was good to be back doing what I love: showing folks natural wonders in some of our best national parks!

DAY TRIPPING IN YELLOWSTONE

Day trips in Yellowstone are a great way to get a taste of what the park has to offer, and I always hope folks will return to explore more!

The Phillips family had very limited time traveling through the park to Big Sky. We maximized our time by driving through part of Mammoth Hot Springs terraces and then walking around the Norris Geyser Basin.

A column of travertine on top of the Mammoth Hot Springs Terraces

I had so much fun with the Phillips family! Here we are walking the Norris Geyser Basin. They told me, "We never could have done this much in this little time without you. We would have been clueless." It was my pleasure!


With another family on another day trip, I got the chance and the privilege to show off the Lower Falls of the Yellowstone which are located in the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. It is always spectacular. It was once called the Grand Falls but I guess since it is in the Grand Canyon the name seemed redundant. But truly grand it is.

Two young sisters enjoying the spectacular view. Ahhh, sibling harmony!

CROWN OF THE CONTINENT TOUR

The Crown of the Continent is the narrowest part of the Rockies, mainly between Glacier National Park and Canada's Waterton National Park. I spent a week exploring its wild and diverse ecosystem and features.

Our first day out on the tour! I am standing in front St. Mary's Lake in Glacier N.P. You can see a storm brewing behind me.

At Two Medicine Lake we found a grizzly claw scrape 6 feet high on a tree along our hike. Perhaps it was an omen because an hour later we spotted a griz across an avalanche clearing about 50 yards above us. Then another spotting near a parking lot by Many Glacier, this one a mere 25 yards from us. Thrilling, but glad I had my bear spray at the ready!

Fernie B.C. is an adorable city similar to my hometown of Livingston, MT. It has a great historic downtown and some of the best skiing in North America, including back country and cat skiing. (Cat skiing is back country by way of Snow Cat).

A view from our early morning hike just outside of Fernie.

A humbling site to any hiker and adventurer: Frank Slide is a rock slide that buried part of the mining town of Frank, Alberta. 90 million tons of rock fell killing 90 people in its path.

I will be visiting The Crown of the Continent again, leaving later this week, and I hope to share many more stunning views and places with you!

SCOUTING SCOTLAND 

Starting on July 1st I have the privilege of traveling with a family for the fourth time. They are big time hikers so I have been scouting the country for the best hiking Scotland has to offer! The many gorgeous options will make it hard to choose. 

Here are some of the highlights from the past few days.  They are all truly spectacular!

What a hike to start my journey with! Cliffs along The Isle of Skye which is located off the West coast of Scotland.  

This hike near Portree (Skye's largest town) is like walking through a scene from The Lord of the Rings. To step on these grounds felt otherworldly!

 

 The Pinnacles are located on the north side of Skye in an area called Quiraing (in Gaelic it's Cuith-Raing). The area is a landslip, or landslide, that is still moving. Because of this ground movement the road nearby needs annual repair. 

My hike in Cairngorms National Park was surprising. Carved by a glacier, the Northern Corries area is more akin to the Arctic than the rest of Scotland's topography. Snow is typically present in this rugged terrain year round. The prevalent mounds of granite were moved by the last glacial period 11,000 years ago. 

JUNE 2016 

The Busy Season Begins!

My trip with my sister and niece this year was a joy. So much exploring to do in Olympic National Park in Washington State's Olympic Peninsula! I really hope to make this a regular destination for Dodge Guides.

Cape Flattery is the farthest NW corner of the contiguous United States. 

It is located on the Makah Reservation.

My niece Maisie and her friend Nina reenacting that famous scene from Titanic. Ah, what nature inspires!!

After an awesome trip with family it was back to my backyard, Yellowstone National Park. My clients were three men who have been friends for decades. Good guys who plan to vacation every year together! We were lucky to catch a glimpse of many park critters. The Lamar Valley was crowded with hundreds of Bison and their new calves, fondly referred to as little red dogs. The twilight hours were great for spotting bull elk with their felt-like antlers. We even had a rare sighting of the nocturnal porcupine.

Dinner at the Old Faithful Inn is always special. Just take a look at the log dining room!

The lobby of the Old Faithful Inn is awe inspiring. The chimney also serves as a clock tower. 

Breath taking view of the Lower Falls in the Grand Canyon area of Yellowstone.

Geothermal features are constantly changing the Yellowstone landscape.

My clients and I wrapped up our trip by driving through the Tetons to Jackson, WY. 

These peaks are true marvels of the west!

LAKE POWELL

Every year in early June I go on an adventure with my sister Sarah, niece Maisie and there good friends Tracy and her daughter Nina. We have been to Yellowstone, Yosemite, Zion, Bryce, Escalante and this last June Lake Powell. Lake Powell is a reservoir on the Colorado River on the border between Utah and Arizona. We rented a houseboat and floated the lake and found hikes to wander. We also jumped off the boat, dragged the girls up a canyon on tubes, and visited the Rainbow bridge National Monument. 

Stunning views of Lake Powell from the houseboat.

More fun in the sun in and at Lake Powell.

Rainbow Bridge is a large natural bridge and also one of the most accessible of the big arches around the world. It sits on Navajo land in Southern Utah and is a wonderful sight.

YOSEMITE, SEQUOIA AND KINGS CANYON 

NATIONAL PARKS

In April and May I had three trip to these beautiful areas. Within just two months time the weather ran the gamut from snow and chilly to sunshine and 80 degree weather!

General Sherman is the world's largest tree. (Some would argue an Aspen grove is one tree). Sherman is the most visited spot in the Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Park. The new trail around the grove is amazing and surprisingly quiet to walk. One of my favorite hikes is the Mist Falls hike. Lots of effort and somewhat dangerous wet steps leads you to this lovely place. But because of low snow pack the waterfalls were low as well.

I'm standing on a narrow granite precipice on the Merced River as it snakes underneath me before plunging 318 feet over Vernal Falls. This is the signature hike in Yosemite.

The Ahwahneechee tribe in Yosemite used black acorns as their staple food. Over the years I have noticed spots like these pictured above, (Steve Gehman showed me some!) where the tribes spent many generations grinding acorns to make a flour like substance, and leaving these holes. This is very hard granite! Come with me and I can show you these spots, where history is right in front of you, if you know how to find it.

The big cone in this picture is a sugar pine and the small is a Sequoia. Not what one would instinctively think!

These funny plants are one of my favorite things about Yosemite in the spring. They pop up out of the snow and are very eye catching. These Snow Plants do not have chlorophyll and feed on fungus below the surface. They make for a great picture too.

Tuolumne meadows were spectacular to hike because of the lack of snow in the high elevations.