We took a 4 mile hike.

This morning we took a loop hike from Uncle Tom's Point on the north rim of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. We started across a meadow, following some European tourists.  Oh, to be young and tall and loud.  I happily trailed their group of four.  For once, we were not alone.  We had packed water, snacks, and bear spray.  The only issue was George's footwear.  I bet he was the only guy out there wearing boat shoes and no socks.  Most people look like they robbed the REI.


A well worn trail in the meadow.

Then we hiked through the woods and past two lakes, Clear Lake and Lily Pad Lake.  At Lily Pad our
friends turned to the right.  We had to go left toward Artist Point.  Now we were on our own.  So I sang and wished for my Atlanta friends, especially Nancy Zarovsky, who has a lovely voice and enjoys singing camp songs.


in the woods

Having a cell phone that charts the miles helps with anxiety in the woods since that way I know how far we have walked.  We continued to Artist Point and started running into lots of people.  From Artist Point we just walked along the south rim of the canyon.  It was beautiful, full
of orange, yellow, white, and grey rocks.  At the bottom was the river.  The path was quite close to the edge, and we felt nervous when we saw kids walking ahead of their parents on the path.



See the river at the bottom?


This spot is an example of how easy it would be 
to step off into air.  Just one step too far...


We took a selfie, seated on a log that couldn't roll. We did see
two young women and a solitary guy step off the path and into
the canyon in order to take photos.  We moved on, not wanting
to hear their screams. As far as we know, all survived.  But the 
behavior of some tourists here is scary.

I finished my last paperback from Atlanta, The Mermaid's Chair, and bought Death in Yellowstone  today. There have not been that many deaths, about 300 recounted in this book, considering that there are 4 million visitors a year to Yellowstone.  We have had a great time here.  Tomorrow we are going to Grand Tetons National Park.  There are fires near two of the exit roads, so we'll have to wait to see how to travel in the morning.


This afternoon we went to the grill for ice cream cones (salted caramel for me) and smelled smoke.
The air carried light ashes.  Here is the view.  I asked at the registration desk about this fire and was told it is a new one, but it's small, just 100 acres.  This is a different world.