We chose only three (3) Visitor Centers to visit in Yellowstone National Park because we only had two (2) days to spend. I wanted to stop at Grant Village because that is where the exhibits for the Yellowstone fire ecology are housed. Most Americans will remember the catastrophic fires in 1988, the signs of which can still be seen. And smaller fires have occurred throughout the park since then.
Karen Wildung Reinhart published "Yellowstone's Rebirth by Fire: Rising from the ashes of the 1988 wildfires" in 2008, and it is an excellent almost day by day account of the 1988 fires across the Yellowstone National Park and surrounding areas. More recently, for instance, there were nine (9) fires in Yellowstone in 2020; six lightning caused and three human caused. In 2021 there were thirteen (13) fires, 11 were lightning caused and 2 human caused. Of the seven (7) fires in 2022, 6 were lightning caused and one was human caused. Five (5) fires in 2023 were all lightning caused. (source: https://www.nps.gov/yell/learn/management/fire-management.htm)
This year, 2024, there were nine (9) fires, 8 by lightning and 1 of unknown cause. (source: https://www.nps.gov/yell/learn/management/current-fire-activity.htm)
Every day on our trip I consulted a fire map on my phone: Fire and Smoke Map 4.0
Grant Village Visitor Center offers the following attractions related to fire ecology:
- Exhibits on fire ecology and the 1988 fire.
- Small theater with screenings of Experience Yellowstone and Ten Years After the Fire.
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| Grant Lake |
While I was walking around outside, down to the lake and back, I ran into two lesbian couples with two dogs. It turned out they were also on their way to Canada, but they were going to Jasper! The Jasper Fire had burned their lodging to the ground, but they had found alternative lodging. They were continuing their journey because they wanted to spend money in Jasper to help bring the town back.
In the Grant Village store, we came across another artist, Barbara Schelling. Barbara is a retired graphic designer living in BigFork, Montana. Her website explains, "I am a member of the Nakoda (Assiniboine) tribe and I’m continuously learning about cultural, personal, and historical aspects of my indigenous heritage. My mother’s family is based out of the Fort Belknap, Montana, reservation and have been storytellers, craftspeople, and artists going back generations. Seven years ago, I started painting the wildlife around me. In the paintings, I want to capture the details and anatomy of local birds and animals but add in a quirky personality through a fantastical embellishment and brief story. These illustrations reveal our own human condition: our fragility, our questions, our experiences, our emotions, and our humor. I want to create a connection between humans and wildlife – to foster empathy and compassion towards our wild cousins by proving that beauty, light, and humor are in the details." (source: https://bschelling.com/about/)
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| Antelope |
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| back of Antelope card |
What was meaningful to me about Grant Village? Finding another artist who is so creative.
What did I learn in Grant Village? I learned even more about the fire ecology of forested lands.
What would I do differently if Mary and I were to travel again in the future? More days inside Yellowstone National Park. Even though the lodges are very expensive, and lodging outside the park is also through the roof, it would be worth it to spend more days if we could find a time of year not so crowded.
