Backpacking Adventures in Yellowstone National Park 

I'd woken up in front of the old faithful inn in Yellowstone national park,. I'd sat up to see a group of Japanese youths moving across my windscreen like a strange cinema screen. I sat up watching from the back seat. They were walking along a walkway all sort of stiff limbed and tight thighed like the wooden tops. It looked like their flip-flops were heavy and they were pushing them along with their feet. It seemed to be taking a lot of effort. The landscape behind was all steaming clouds and white smoke. The earth all around for 180 degrees was stained an unhealthy yellow white. It was very surreal and I thought at any moment a great rubber Godzilla was going to appear out of the steam and snatch the fat one at the back off the walk way. Who looked like he was having serious trouble with extra heavy flip-flops.

After the trailer had ended I got up and out of the car and pushed my own flip-flops round to the back of the car and packed my bedding away. My legs were very stiff today and it crossed my mind that perhaps they'd all been sleeping a few cars up the parking lot.

That done I checked the map to see exactly where the showers were that I'd noticed yesterday and then drove there which was about a mile round trip. I ended up parked about 500 yards from where I'd slept around the other side of the hotel. Out I got and just in front of me a hundred or so people all sat round on the great semi circle plastic walkway that weaves right through the upper geyser basin and is made from thousands of recycled plastic bottles apparently. There were more people drifting in from all directions and even in the state I was in I thought that it must be Old Faithful . So I joined in, went across and squeezed in. I sat down and waited with the other hushed people who all seemed to be "murmuring" quietly amongst themselve's, waiting.

I seemed to have timed it just right as I wasn't sat there for more than a few minutes when Old Faithful erupted right on cue that day. It erupts on average about every 65 minutes sometimes more frequently and sometimes less these days because of some fairly recent earthquakes.

A great spout of white steam and water shot into the blue sky and stayed up there for quite some time. All the Japanese on either side of me went "oh..oh" and the Americans gave a rebel yells. Me, I cracked up laughing.

You see I'd arrived at the hotel car park the night before, after dark. I'd been too tired too to realise exactly where I'd parked. I went straight into the hotel, drank gallons of coffee and Scribbled away until they were closing the bar. I'd then gone out to the car and crashed out, well I'd tried to. I was just going off when I saw somebody a few cars down getting something out of their van. I lay back down but they just kept opening and shutting their sliding door, it really began to really annoy me, at one point I very nearly got out and told them to shut it and shut up as there was somebody trying to sleep here. But as it was "technically illegal" for me to be there, I didn't. Though I was greatly irritated I tell you.

Now then close your eyes and imagine the side door of a van rolling shut. Rumble, rumble, crump! As it shut, then silence except for a strong wind blowing through the trees nearby. Got it? Well that is exactly what Old Faithful sounds like or any of the other bigger geysers dotted all around the car park. It just clicked as I saw and heard Old Faithful go off. I Pictured myself stood in the car park in my undies shouting and waving my fist why don't you switch the damn thing off at night there is somebody trying to sleep over here you know. It could have been embarrassing. I was always notorious about being woken up to early or having my sleep disturbed. People, wildlife or naturally occurring phenomena, I make no distinction when awoken from my beauty sleep.

It set me off in an excellent mood though and I chuckled all the way to the Lodge, through crowds that seemed more cosmopolitan then Camden Town on a Sunday afternoon. Happily paid my $3 for a shower. The woman behind the desk where I paid said

"Just the one sir?"

Well I looked to either side of me all hamming it up, as there was nobody with me and said

"That's a bit personal isn't it, do you really think I need two?"

She laughed nervously as I handed over the cash. Though I could have walked straight in as there was no guard and so didn't need ticket. I felt good though buying a ticket. Least I could do really for such a nice stay.

Once in there I "oh'd"and "aah'd" I think I even "aarghed" a bit. Then came out, put my trouser kit back on. Scraped my face and splashed about in the sink and the lovely hot water, just like a little bird. The Japanese folk there that day had not seen anything like it I don't think. Some walked in and walked straight back out again and those that were at the sinks just looked, then also quickly left, leaving the taps running, which I very quietly turned off after them. "Tsk"

Next on my list of luxuries was a large hot coffee. I spied a counter in the big lounge room and went to join the queue. Got myself a large double strength Americano and looked around for somewhere to sit. At the far end of the room was a great full-length window, which looked across and down onto Old Faithful , actually right across the geyser basin. So you could see all the other geysers going off as well. Rows of chairs had been placed in front of it and old-timer Americans had occupied the front row. They resembled grumpy old lizards, with

"I ain't moving for nobody" written all over them.

To one side of them was a table with 6 seats and a middle aged Japanese couple sat at two of them. So I went up and said

"Mind if I join you"

"Naw naw go head" they said.

The lizards all shot me creepy looks. I wondered what they were thinking. They obviously didn't like each other, didn't like foreigners, especially Japanese who had bombed them for no reason. They didn't look like they liked old faithful. They didn't like their ice cream or their blue berry muffins. Maybe they should have ordered some nice crunchy bugs that would have sorted them out.

Anyhow, a young girl and lad arrived. She sat with her back to me on the edge of her chair. He sat playing his bleepy hand computer game. Obviously their family, I thought. I scribbled on not taking too much notice although the girl defiantly seemed odd. Then all of a sudden the dad said something on the lines of

"woochie womanah woka"

Waved his hand in the air. The girls' head fell forward as if she'd been guillotined. Then she jumped up and wandered, zigzaging across the room as if she was avoiding lots of invisible things her head wobbling and bobbling and looking in need of same oil on those joints. It was a strange thing.

It then fell silent again except for the occasional slurp of ice cream. Then another couple arrived closely followed by grandma. At which every woman stood up and sat down 2 or 3 times until she took a seat. It was actually very cool showing courtesy for their family elders. More relatives showed up and were stood around not saying very much, most eating ice ream very slowly and self-consciously. There was I sat with this big oriental family, like a cuckoo. I realised they'd been far too polite to tell me the seats were about to be taken and I thought it's time this bird flew the nest. So I tried to make a move to leave. I felt the vibe.

"Naw naw you sit, you sit" they all said at once and with such a fuss that I just sat back down and we struck a very difficult conversation. Where are you from type of thing. It turned out they were from Taiwan and in the USA for 10 days. They really were very sweet but after another relative turned up I said I really had to go. We shook hands and nodded

"Very pleased to meet you" said the father

"Welcome to Taiwan " said the mother

I looked at her I had to keep my face straight. Behind her Old Faithful went off again.

"Thank you" I said "I'm very pleased to meet you too"

She nodded, I nodded, we all nodded and we all shook hands. I went outside and I started laughing again not at them just the whole thing. It was just a great start to the day. I was ready for that hike over to Shoshone lake.

I'd arrived there the day before and had decided to do all the tourist sites that first day as I was really tired and though I'd drive round the great figure 8 road and see the sites or see what I could. Then go hiking the rest of the time. I'd come in at the northern entrance. Into the neat barrack town of Mammoth Springs. Which was really very busy. I quickly went into the headquarters and got some good advice from a ranger there on some long and distant hikes.

"You ain't got any hidden injuries or war wounds have you," He said with a twinkle in his eye.

"Erm, no?" I said straight faced and serious. I really wanted to go on some good long walks. So he pulled me in all conspiratorially and showed me the trail from Kepler Cascades past the Lone Star Geyser and off the map to Shoshone Lake , roughly 17 miles round trip. Off the map,17 miles? That was just up my street. I think he was having a laugh with me. But the next day I thanked him many many times.

After that I joined the crowds on the boardwalks over the mammoth hot springs which looked like great circular slabs of dirty icing sugar and smelt like steamy boiled eggs. I have to say here that I was truly tired and I just didn't want to be with great crowds of people. On the way round I got chatting to a guy called Wilson from North Carolina . We'd kept bumping into each other and he was out there, up on the walkway, escaping from his wife and teenage daughter. Whom he said, he wasn't bringing on holiday with him ever again until she'd learnt some respect. He was also thinking about not bringing his daughter again as well. He seemed like a nice man too, but did have that hounded look. It turned out he had three sheep back home that he liked very much called George , Bill and Rambo. Rambo still had his balls he said and had a slightly deeper voice than the other two, which demonstrated for me.

"BAAAH" (Rambo) and "baah" ( George and Bill )

All this was going on as big clouds of boiled egg steam blew up around us on the wooden walkway and moose wandered round the outside of the great boiling pots below. I liked Wilson .

From there I took the road via Tower Falls . Where from an overlook, down onto the Yellowstone river you could watch Bald Eagles and hawks swoop and screech through the air, and you didn't even have to be lucky. I walked down to the falls and straight back up. Now, I don't know what I'm doing. But people just gawped at me that day and I have not felt so image unconscious for years, relaxed and casual. But people have been just staring at me for weeks. An old guy had made a beeline for me at Old Faithful and actually rammed me. Hikers have made snide comments all he way along

"Hey mountain man" and
"Hey he's got camouflage on. How do you expect all the animals to see you"?

People have stopped in their tracks. Women have nervously reached for their husbands who inflate their chests like she'd just pulled the rip chord or something. Small kids have dropped their ice creams and missed steps. It's been truly strange. Maybe my mum was right and I am a funny looking bugger. I've just begun to keep my head down and walk right on by. I remember one guy and his family when he'd recovered from seeing me come up the trail. Then hearing me speak. Said cockily

"Oh you must be from down below"

I said "No actually I'm from up above" He just looked very puzzled.

His wife whispered

"He's from England , from England " to him.

"Oh, so you're not a bloke then, right?" I really couldn't be bothered to explain that in actual fact yes, on two counts, I am a bloke. So instead I politely explained that I have a Northern English accent and that to most people in the US it seems to sound Australian.

"Oh well then" he said as I was leaving "As they say they say in the south of England , adios, right?"

I genuinely felt bad for him. I laughed and said

"No. We say goodbye" and just walked on. I must say though that mostly it has taken me by surprise and at times stung. But I digress.

Then I drove over to the Yellowstone Canyon via canyon village. Where I stopped in for a coffee. On the road coming over past Mount Washburn I had a couple of scary fatigue blinks. "Whoa there Micky boy" The coffee did the trick and I sprang up and down the various trails of the canyon and the falls like "Tigger" and just as happy.

Even now after all we see on TV some things still just make you blink when you first see them in the flesh so to speak. The canyon and falls are one of those places. Magnificent. The walls are jagged crumbling and are stained yellows reds and oranges from the iron and minerals in the earth all around here. Steam rising from fractures here and there spreads the colour through the porous rock, like pastel inks on blotting paper. The upper fall is 109ft and the lower 306ft a great roaring blanket of white water with a permanent green streak down one side. A fabulous place. It was the type of place that would be nice to share with your lover. It was getting a little chilly though and as a little kid said on the way back up

"Brrr its colder than pokemon" he was probably right. All in all my easy day of sitting and driving had turned into about 7 miles of short walks and I really wanted to rest up for the night.

The Yellowstone Park has the highest concentration of geysers anywhere in the world. The drive from Madison through the 5 geyser basins to Old Faithful was surreal. Clouds and eruptions of white steam were blown and lifted above the forest wilderness like ectoplasm all the way along. Smaller white steamy clouds drifted across the road from cold looking streams. I'd drive through them and around the next bend would be buffalo just stood there looking at you or a stag deer or a couple of elk having supper by the road side. The coffee had helped but it had begun to wear off. The sun was setting and I was most certainly moving into a dream state. Or was I, this was all real wasn't it. I think fatigue really helped me appreciate it if you know what I mean.

Once at old faithful inn I was too tired to be bothered checking my bearings. I got my bag and walked in like I was staying there. Well I was,it was just in the parking lot. But they weren't to know that. I walked in the front entrance not even looking until I was inside. I'd really expected a bland hotel. Then after a moment or two I happened to look up and realised I really was dreaming. I was in the largest log cabin in the world. Really. It was designed by a young architect of the time called Robert C. Reamer . Building began in 1903 and it was finished in 1904. It was absolutely enchanting and again from that magical 1900 period in America when they seemed to build with such style. I was sure it was where Father Christmas came to hang out after the Christmas rush was over.

Central was the most enormous fireplace that had taken 500 tons of stone to build. There were log tiers and balconies supported by trident shaped twisted logs all around. Somewhere a grand piano played and spilled it's melodies over one of the balconies into the great wooden room. This place had style. The prices to stay a night ranged from $153 for a Premium room to a room without a bath for $64. The suits went up to $329, a little out of my prince range, but defiantly a maybe another time. For now I was directed to the "Bear Pit bar" When I stepped down into the warmly lit room I knew I was home for a while. I spent every night I was in the park in that great copper coloured, wood and glass room. Tucked up in a cosy armchair scribbling until it was dark outside and they were closing inside. They played great music too from Blur to Johnny cash, the Doors, Elvis, even the Banshees. Jeff the body builder waiter and big sexy Rebecca from Texas the barmaid made sure I was over flowing with coffee and pretzels. What a place.

Anyway I'd planned to do this walk over to Shoshone Lake . All the rangers I'd spoken to took a sharp intake of breath and said "At least 8-9 hours" So I again set off at a good pace not ballistic just a good steady stride. I seemed to draw fire again from hikers between Kepler Falls and the Lone Star Geyser. Which I never stopped to see go off. I just walked on until pretty soon I seemed to have passed the "local" hike line and was on my way to the continental divide out on my own again. Oh.. and it was so absolutely perfect, such peaceful beauty is hard to describe and I'm sure a little sickly sweet when put to paper. Through Forest 's, open meadows and hills, I Watched trout almost motionless in the streams, seams of pure sweet water that seemed to sew the whole place together, glittering in the sunshine. I won't go on but I will say this, if you ever get the chance to go to this place, go, and go for a walk. I'm sure there are a thousand hikes to go on, and that anywhere in this place would be as good any other. Just go. Or find some peaceful place to sit there, until it gets into your bones, if you give it a little time it does and it feels good once it's in there.

I made it to Shoshone lake in a couple of hours wandered through the geysers there and then went for a skinny dip in it the shallow fresh water. Then wound my way very slowly and very peacefully back to civilisation. The next day I walked the Lewis Lake trail and skinny dipped there too. The forest was recovering from the great fire of 1988 that burned so much of the place and has left huge areas of the park looking ravaged and blackened. It is shocking to see how much of it did burn. They say in the long run though it has done it a lot of good and already the small new trees are coming up and the earth is carpeted green.

On my last night there I'd been scribbling in the Bear Pit as usual and they'd closed up. So I went out onto the walkway took my guitar from the car and went to play quietly in the shadows for a while. There was nobody around except I remember this little boy and his granddad who stopped to talk on the way back from Castle Geyser just up from where I'd sat. It was nice because they couldn't actually see me and chatted away without fear. A man with a guitar that you can't see is apparently a safer bet than a man in fatigues that you can see. They went on back to the hotel and I played on.

Car headlights like searchlights shot out and across the lunar landscape as they turned in the car park, freezing the warm ectoplasm for a second or so. Geysers would go off every now and again away in the darkness somewhere, rushing and hissing. Behind me the hotel, the great log cabin was a fairy grotto. Yellow-orange lights in all its windows, it made such a cosy scene. Above the gift shop the silhouette of a naked man and woman. The woman sat down and gently pulled the man on top of her and they disappeared from view. It looked beautiful and for about 3 seconds it made me melancholy. I looked up into the cloudless sky to see the shimmering Milky Way, shooting stars and all, resting on the silhouettes of the mountains.

"Nah, I was in the right place"

It was such lovely warm night. I sat on that bench, played and sang every song I knew, ever so gently, was one of my best gigs. I'd noticed a glow over to my right behind the Mountains. I didn't give it too much thought just wondered what bit town was near enough to glow so brightly. I'd thought it as West Thumb or Grant village. Then I watched the tip of the moon peep above the cardboard cut out Mountain range. It took me a moment for it to sink in and it stopped me mid song when I realised it was moving. I sat and watched it rise high into the sky. I rested on my guitar just smiling, then sang on until it was right above the hotel. Old Faithful was going off again over there again and I thought. "Time for bed"

Then as I got up to go back to the car, I noticed a guy sat outside the front of the gift shop who got up to leave when I did. He'd been the all the time I think. I'd said when the moon came up

"Mick It doesn't get much better than this" And I had a witness too.

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