Day Seven, 9/10/24, Grant Village to the Tribal Cultural Center and West Yellowstone, MT; 207 miles, 9 1/4 hours

Coming in from the South Entrance to Yellowstone National Park, the first visitor center available is Grant Village.  Getting back on the main road, you then come to the Old Faithful Visitor Center.  Within the Old Faithful Village is the Tribal Cultural Center.

The 27 Tribes associated with Yellowstone National Park

A map of the Associated Native American Tribes of Yellowstone National Park

  

Unfortunately, we missed the native artist who presents her work at the Tribal Cultural Center, Susan Stewart.  Stewart also makes and sells online buffalo tallow moisturizer. 

https://fiercewomenwarriors.company.site/

Woman artist showing at Tribal Cultural Center

Susan Stewart's the Fierce Women Warrior Society.com

We exited Yellowstone National Park through the west entrance directly into the town of West Yellowstone, MT.  Our reservation was at the Days Inn, and it was such a surprise.  Although this was one of the most expensive rooms of our trip, the advertised accommodations were present and functional:  free breakfast, free wifi, indoor pool, fitness center, elevators, hot tub.  Although we were too tired to swim, I did get up early and exercised on the bike and the treadmill.  Because I couldn't sleep through the night, I was up early, finished my exercise, and spend several hours in the breakfast room.  The breakfast room is actually a restaurant that went out of business and is now utilized by the Days Inn.  There are wait staff who keep the breakfast items refreshed at the buffet continuously.  It was really delightful.

By the time we finished Day Seven, we had driven 207 miles and spent 9 1/4 hours on the road!

What did Day Seven mean to me?  Wow!  So many new experiences (young bison males frolicking) and validation of previous knowledge and interests (fire ecology).

What did I learn on Day Seven?  You just don't know who you will meet on any journey.  Be open to meeting new people and having new experiences.

What would I do differently if Mary and I travel together in the future?  I might want to come into Yellowstone through the west entrance but stay two nights in West Yellowstone.  Drive into the park to the Tribal Cultural Center earlier in the day and travel to Grant Village later in the day.  I don't know.  That would mean backtracking on very sketchy, mountainous roads.  Or we could skip Grant Village next time.  I'm not sure there is more to learn there.  So find out what events at the Tribal Cultural Center are occurring so we can plan to be there.

Jo Mack -- ferret

back of Ferret card

Barbara Schelling -- Bison

back of Bison card

Day Seven, Tue, 9/10/24, Jackson to Grant Village, 3 hours

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.

 

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/)

Antelope

 

 

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.