Our goal for the day was to get back through Yellowstone and head out the west gate for Dillon, Montana.
We rode back into the park and then did a dirt road loop for fun which backtracked us a few miles. Somehow I forgot making the turn at Tower Junction onto Grand Loop and was highly confused when we rolled into Mammoth Hot Springs. Señor moment...
The local vagrant elk herd wandered aimlessly and carelessly on the grass lawns of the buildings no more than 10 feet away from the throngs of tourists snapping photos. Luckily no humans were injured in the making of the film while we watched the people and elk melee from our late lunch snack location on a picnic bench.
The heat and traffic was taking its toll as we stopped a couple of times to walk around the hot springs and roadside attractions.
We were fading fast and the day had grown late due to our stops and park traffic jams, and by the time we exited into West Yellowstone we were done. After gassing up and hanging out in the gas station for coffee and a snack, our energy levels came back up and we decided to finish the run for Dillon, Montana, roughly 2 hours away.
As we rode north, a big storm to the west moved towards us, racing us to Ennis. At a gas station in Ennis we were able to get cell service, I checked the weather radar and found the storm lay directly on the westward route to Dillon. The winds began to pick up and I knew we'd not make it to Dillon without a major lashing from the storm. Calls to the local motels proved fruitless and we had options for two campsites locally.
As we sat there discussing what to do, very high winds and rain hit, driving Kim inside quickly. The huge winds and rains killed any thought of setting up tents. We hung around the gas station long enough to irritate the clerk, but I finally found a room in the old historic mining town of Virginia City about 15 miles to the west. The hotel manager said the storm had hit Virginia City hard but there were glimpses of clear skies to the west. I told her to hold a room and we'd wait until it got better in Ennis before heading that way.
The winds finally began to slow a bit and shafts of light began appearing through the clouds to the west which gave me some hope we'd be able to get to Virginia City by dark. I called the hotel manager again and she said it was clear and the winds had died down, so I told Kim we'd wait a bit longer before leaving to give the storm time to clear. It was already 9 pm and some serious light was showing to the west signaling the end of the bad weather. As the winds slackened some, we rolled out and headed west. However when we reached the edge of Ennis the winds picked up again and I could tell Kim was nervous.
The light ahead was absolutely stunning, but as we worked our way up in elevation the winds increased, gusting heavily and blowing rain, despite the golden setting sun ahead. I could feel Kim's tension and fear as we got higher, her asking me if it would get worse. I could only say I didn't know, but everything would be fine. I could hear and feel the fear in her voice as the winds gusted harder and harder, our bikes climbing the road ahead towards a summit. There was still blowing rain hitting us, despite the clear skies almost upon us.
The Butterfly is the strongest and bravest woman I know, but she's had two bad encounters with heavy winds on this trip - the first being a microburst in northern New Mexico that pushed her off the road and the second being the gale winds we suffered at the top of Red Canyon outside Lander. Her fears are well founded, weighing half what I do and on a bike about 3 inches taller than it should be for her leg length. Needless to say when she hears we're about to ride in winds it references the two previous moments. I can say that the winds we experienced at Red Canyon had me a bit uneasy as well...
As we approached the crest of the ridge, I had no idea what we'd be hit with. The fear in her voice betrayed the words she said. I began to pray a prayer out loud in my headset for slackening of the winds and for God's peace to overtake any fear. Suddenly in my left periphery I saw a brilliant coloration tempting me to look towards the valley, as did Kim at the same moment. The wind was strong enough that it was difficult to look to the side, but we simultaneously saw a stunning circular rainbow over the valley below - absolutely brilliant and intense in colors, forming almost a complete circle.
It was truly breathtaking and I heard only silence from her as my exclamations seemed to go unheard. It turned out that the scene was so breathtaking Kim had been unable to speak, both at the beauty and at the promise. Ahead I saw a series of trees and pulled off the roadside. There was no wind, hidden under the tall trees at the top, and we watched as the most marvelous light I've ever witnessed played all around us. We were bathed in bright golden light, a brilliant rainbow over the valley below, blue skies above the distant mountains and a swirl of purples, pinks and all combinations in the clouds wrapped around us.
There was nothing to do but try to take it all in and all we could do was to keep saying "Oh my God!" As a professional photographer, I know light and have seen some amazing moments in life. This light was like nothing I've ever seen. It so affected The Butterfly she had no words, only tears, wiping her eyes and saying that she'd never seen anything like it before. It was indeed a God moment in our lives, bathed in light and stunning colors, the promise of the rainbow glowing before us. As we sat and watched, the color of light changed constantly, bathing us in heavy gold, then magentas and pinks and even blues.
By the time the light began to fade, it finally dawned on me to grab my camera. My photos were only of the remains of the moment and I missed the most amazing moments. Even so, the images that came from the camera look false and oversaturated, but they're not.
We had been able to do little but sit and watch something so special, so overwhelming and so deeply felt that words didn't come until the rainbow faded and darkness began to come. I was worried about cresting the top and getting blasted by remaining winds, but we headed over the pass into gentle breezes and a stunning sunset, made more spectacular by the reflections of gold and orange on the winding, wet road ahead.
When we finally reached the old town at dark, the hotel manager asked if we'd seen the incredible light at sunset. I told her we had a front row seat on something never seen before. She said in the 17 years she'd lived there she'd never seen such an amazing sunset.
After dumping our gear in the room, we wandered down to the Bale of Hay Saloon and got some dinner - a Frito Pie and Pasty - the pasty being a beef, onion and potato pie covered in gravy that was popular with the Cornish Miners according to the menu. As we walked back to the hotel, a group of tourists on a ghost tour walked past, their guide telling some of the history of the hainted town.
Room 10 in the hotel was rumored to be replete with ghosts, guests saying they get pushed or tapped while staying in the room. We were in # 17 and nothing weird happened other than my BMW pants crawled around the floor on their own. I suspect they were desperate to find a washing machine or attempting to throw themselves off a cliff to end their suffering.