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A few years ago I went on a business trip to San Francisco, where I decided to take a few extra days to myself to do some exploring. On my first day in San Francisco I met up with my cousin who lives nearby. He took me on a driving tour of the Pacific coast. These photos are from 17-Mile Drive, a scenic route along the Monterey peninsula, featuring rocky coastlines, large crashing waves; and islands of sea lions and birds.
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These photos are from my September 2015 visit to Letchworth State Park in Upstate New York, covering my hikes of the trails leading to the stone footbridge across the Genesee River, the Lower Falls, and down to the floor of the gorge at the site of a lost town called St. Helena. Despite not being a national park, Letchworth is among the more beautiful American parks you’re likely to visit.
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The Mud Volcano Area of Yellowstone National Park is filled with hot springs and boiling pools of acid and mud, as well as the unmistakable rotten-egg odor of sulfur that bombards you as soon as you exit the car. The sulfur smell is abundant throughout the geyser basins and hot spring/caldron areas of the park. Nearly all of the pools of liquid in these photos would dissolve you instantly were you unfortunate enough to stumble into them.
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On my first day in Yellowstone National Park I detoured to Lamar Valley to take these photos before checking in to my hotel. Lamar Valley is supposed to be another prime wildlife viewing area, but in my case it proved to be less fruitful than Hayden Valley. Nevertheless, I did see a couple of bison herds here. On my way back out of the valley I stopped for a few shots of the Yellowstone River.
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These photos are from different areas of Yellowstone Lake in Yellowstone National Park. The West Thumb photos were taken near where I stayed in Grant Village and the Lake Butte Overlook photos were taken on my way out of the park on the day I drove across Wyoming into South Dakota.
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These photos are from my visits to where the buffalo roam: Hayden Valley in Yellowstone National Park. There were herds of bison everywhere I looked—it’s easy to see why Hayden Valley is sometimes referred to as the American Serengeti. On a good day you can also see many other animals passing through the valley, but I wasn’t lucky enough to spot a wolf or bear. When shooting bison (or any wildlife) it’s helpful to have a good zoom lens because you definitely don’t want to get too close to them. They look mild-mannered enough but will charge you if they feel threatened. I saw some people with smartphones getting way too close for comfort.
I went a little nuts with the photos (what can I say, I love animals)—I took so many that it was quite a task to cull them down to the smaller batch I’m sharing here. I forgot to switch over to shutter priority for the action shots, so they’re not nearly as crisp as I would have liked, but I still managed to get some decent ones. In addition to the bison photos I captured some avian wildlife (including a great blue heron) and snapped a few landscapes along the Yellowstone River.
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These photos are from the town of Mammoth in Northern Yellowstone, where I stopped for dinner shortly after entering the park. The main attraction here is the hot springs. I didn’t have time to visit the springs but I took a few photos of them from a distance.
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The Midway Geyser Basin in Yellowstone National Park features several geysers and springs. The crown jewel of this basin is the Grand Prismatic Spring, notable for its massive size and spectacular colors. I first saw the spring up close and then I hiked up a hill to an overlook to get a bird’s eye view, which is the best way to appreciate its beauty—truly one of the most memorable sights in the entire park. All of the mist you see in these photos is actually steam rising from boiling water in the geysers and springs.
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Seems appropriate, as I count down to my upcoming trip to the actual Grand Canyon, to share some photos of a different “grand canyon” in Yellowstone National Park. My day at the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone included a couple of hikes along the spectacular gorge with nice views of the lower falls, a short hike to the brink of the upper falls, and a stroll to a secluded area of the Yellowstone River just ahead of the falls. Of the many fascinating areas in Yellowstone, this among its most beautiful.
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These photos are from my long drive across the entire state of Wyoming from Yellowstone to Deadwood, South Dakota, a roughly ten-hour drive counting stops and other delays. The road trip began with a scenic drive out of Yellowstone via the East Entrance (first photo), followed by a gorgeous drive through Shoshone National Forest (middle nine photos).
After a stop in Cody for dinner and a visit to an Old West town, I got back on the road and spent hours as frequently the only car on a flat, single-lane highway—the kind of seemingly deserted road you see in the movies. I passed by myriad ranches and their large, wooden entry gates, as well as numerous oil derricks. For a moment I was concerned that I might have to drive through major cities during rush hour, but then I remembered I was in Wyoming, where there’s no such thing as a major city.
I was beginning to think that the rest of the drive through Wyoming would be mostly flat and uninteresting—until I hit Bighorn National Forest (the last four photos). What a stunning drive that was, up and down a mountain range through spectacular scenery. It’s a shame I only had time to stop for a few photos (ones that don’t do it justice) because I literally could have stopped every hundred feet. It’s an area that demands a return visit some day just to spend more time basking in its breathtaking scenery.
If you ever find yourself driving through Wyoming, I highly recommend leaving the freeway and taking a drive along Highway 14 through these amazing national forests.
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Michael Rappa 