Today, we got up and moving over an hour before sunrise. We headed across the river and up the hill to “downtown” Gardiner, where we stopped at Bears Brew, a coffee food truck conveniently open before the crack of dawn. We filled up our mugs, and then headed into the park, still via the old service road because of the 2022 floods.
Blacktail Plateau Sunrise
The sunrise was just starting to show some color as we headed east on the Grand Loop Road towards Blacktail Plateau, a one-way gravel loop that climbs the plateau and offers some true solitude. Our plan was to drive to the top and find a spot to watch the sunrise, and then enjoy some leftover pastries for breakfast.
As we climbed, we were greeted by a couple of lone bison, but otherwise had the entire plateau all to ourselves. We didn’t see any other wildlife, but did enjoy one of the most peaceful (and one of the most beautiful) sunrises I’ve ever seen. It was dead quiet, and you couldn’t hear anything but the wind.
We stopped near the crest of the plateau and enjoyed some pastries for breakfast. Climbing up a sizable hill, we were able to see even more of the surrounding landscape as the sun covered the hills in golden light.
We continued down the backside of the plateau, stopping once again to split the pimento cheese and bacon scone from Wild Crumb Bakery.
During our descent, we spotted a black bear digging for food on the hillside, and watched her for a while.
Black Bear Spotting
Soon, we rejoined the main loop road, and headed back west to see a few more sights we’d never visited on prior trips. We hadn’t been back on the pavement long at all, when we saw another black bear in the middle of the road!
He started coming down the hillside right towards us, forcing us to scurry back to the Jeep to stay a safe distance away. It was a pretty amazing site to see one walk right by our car!
Wraith Falls
After a quick pit stop at the Lava Creek Picnic Area, we decided it was time to go for a short hike to Wraith Falls. The trail is a little less than a mile round trip, and leads to a 79-foot waterfall. It was a nice, easy hike, and definitely worth the quick side trip.
Calcite Springs Overlook
Backtracking east again, we turned at Tower-Roosevelt junction and headed south towards the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. At Calcite Springs Overlook (a repeat from our last trip), we saw yet another black bear by the side of the road, along with some bighorn sheep. While we were stopped, we walked up to the overlook platform to see the springs and the lower end of the Grand Canyon.
Dunraven Pass
Climbing up the Dunraven Pass towards Mount Washburn, we stopped to take in the view of the valley below. We could hear a wolf pack howling, but couldn’t see any of them; we only saw some bison in the valley below.
Silver Cord Cascade
Now at the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, we decided to do yet another hike we’d never done before, but first we saw a quick view of the Lower Falls of the Yellowstone.
Near Inspiration Point, we parked along the side of the road at the Glacial Boulder Trailhead and joined the Seven Mile Hole Trail. It is indeed close to a seven mile trail that descends over 1,000′ to the Yellowstone River, but we had no intent of going that far. We simply wanted to go to the overlook for Silver Cord Cascade, a waterfall that leaves the Ribbon Lake area and then cascades down the side of the canyon into the Yellowstone River.
The overlook for the cascade was about 1.5 miles down the trail, which was “no elevation gain”, but turned out to have quite a lot of up-and-down for a trail that simply followed the rim of the canyon. We actually initially missed the overlook for the cascade, walking right past it since it’s so slender and has low water flow this time of year. Since we had radios, I went up the trail a ways to make sure there wasn’t a more obvious overlook, and then we soon realized our mistake.
By this time, we were tired, thirsty, and hungry, especially after hiking around 4 rather hilly miles. Back at the car, we refilled our waters, and headed straight for Canyon Village to seek out some lunch. We grabbed a burger and a grilled chicken sandwich at the lunch counter, and ate outside on a picnic table.
Lamar Valley
We headed north back across the Dunraven Pass, and turned east at the junction headed towards the Lamar Valley. Out in the valley, we enjoyed the sweeping views of the river winding through the valley, and got to witness several bison rutting by the side of the road.
At the eastern end of the valley near Warm Creek, we saw yet another black bear by the water, and also saw an osprey in its nest. Somewhere in the photo of the mountainside below, there are also some mountain goats that are really difficult to spot.
Skyline Guest Ranch
Arriving in Cooke City just outside the northwest entrance station, we headed to our lodging for the night, Skyline Guest Ranch. I found this little bed and breakfast online, and thought it looked like an amazing place to stay. They offered guided horseback tours, and operate a fully functioning ranch and snowmobile tour business in this tiny corner of Montana. As we checked in, we were greeted by warm chocolate chip sea salt cookies, and very friendly staff.
We settled into our room in the lodge, FaceTimed home, grabbed another couple cookies (since none of the other guests were eating them), and headed back out.
Cooke City
Back in “downtown” Cooke City, we needed to kill some time before our dinner restaurant of choice opened, so we headed in Yellowstone Trading Post, which has a small wildlife museum in half of the store, and a very nice gift shop in the other half.
Soon it was time for dinner, and we headed into the Beartooth Cafe for a much-needed meal and time off our feet. We split a bison ribeye, Idaho Red Trout, a salad with huckleberry vinaigrette, and a cup of chili. The ribeye was a little disappointing (under-seasoned and a little overcooked), but the trout made up for it.
Beartooth Cafe
Cooke City, MT
This place really gets a star because it’s one of the only truly good restaurants a very long distance in any direction. Also, the trout is incredible.
* – Would definitely visit again
** – Exceptional, must visit if you’re in the area
*** – Worth making a special trip to eat there
Lamar Valley - Slough Creek
After dinner, we drove back into the Lamar Valley, where we saw a ton of wildlife, including black and grizzly bears, pronghorn, elk, bison, coyotes, and more. It was an amazing sight. We spent most of our time wildlife watching at Slough Creek, where we saw several bears on the hillside, in the meadows, and drinking out of the river.
Bedtime
Once it was finally dark, we drove back to Cooke City to the guest ranch, watched some football in the lobby with a older couple visiting from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, and then headed to bed.
Video
Here’s a video from today’s adventures.
The Best Things we Saw Today
Isaac
The best thing I saw today was… “sunrise on Blacktail Plateau”.
The best thing I ate today was… “the pimento cheese bacon scone and the Idaho Red Trout”.
Jerry
The best thing I saw today was… “the bear running down the road towards us”.
The best thing I ate today was… “the sea salt chocolate chip cookie and the trout”.
Conclusion
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Tomorrow, we’ll head further east into the Beartooth-Absaroka Range, and then south to Cody, WY. I’m hoping for some good Italian food along the way.
– Isaac & Jerry
4 Responses
So glad that you share your trips. Proud of Jerry for making this trip.
I can’t believe how many bears you saw. We were out there at the same time and saw none.
We have never seen a grizzly bear in all the times we have been out west. Made up for it on this trip!
The sunrise pictures on Blacktail Plateau were so beautiful! I remember that dirt road and the beautiful views.
All the pictures are great! I liked the one of Cooke City at night!