Storm Point

The day that Tammy and I drove south to Grand Teton National Park, we stopped at Yellowstone Lake and hike the Storm Point Trail. This trail takes you through fields, two different types of forest, and right up to and along the edge of the lake. After this hike was finished, I was trying to identify some ducks and had a very close encounter with a coyote (unfortunately without my camera in hand). Here a few photos from the Storm Point hike.

First up is a picture of a female American Three-toed Woodpecker. This is a new bird for me, and it took me a moment to realize that it was not a Hairy Woodpecker (which does not have the black barring on its sides). This picture was taken in the dark cover of some kind of evergreen forest (not pine, but spruce or fir...I am not very good with tree identification).



After you come out of that dim evergreen forest, you are looking at the actual Storm Point and the expanse of Yellowstone Lake. We were also suddenly back in the wind. Once the cover of the trees was gone, the wind was a non-stop force to be reckoned with. I had to take care to prevent my hat from blowing away, and it was difficult facing the wind and taking pictures. This is a photo from Storm Point across the water of Yellowstone Lake.



After a short walk along the edge of the lake, the trail turned back into the forest, but this time it was Lodgepole Pine. The floor of this forest was nothing but long dead and fallen trees (I think it might be from the fires of 1988, but I am just guessing). There were still plenty of live trees, however, to block the sun and protect us from the wind.