The Park continues to make progress fixing the damage caused by the flood and remaining very cognizant of the economic needs of its Gateway towns.
Recently, they opened 3 miles of road between Silver Gate and Lower Baronette to foot traffic and non-motorized bikes, allowing businesses on the northeast end to attract visitors and charge for e-bike rentals.
On the Gardiner side, the Park’s massive project to widen, re-grade and pave the formerly gravel stagecoach road continues. The Park also has found a way to accommodate one-way travel up and down this road for employees, deliveries and licensed guides during precise windows of time three times a day.
There are two crews working on the Northeast Road between Lamar Canyon and Lower Baronette – working towards each other. Those crews stay in the Gateway towns which give the towns some business, too.
In the meanwhile, Dan and Laurie need to pay a visit to their Silver Gate home for some summer maintenance. Since there is still no access from Gardiner nor any way for them to get to their Silver Gate home through the Park, their only choice is to drive east from Bozeman on I-90 to Laurel, then up and over the Beartooth Pass to Cooke City.
Until recently the Pass was closed due to the flood damage in Red Lodge. But recently alternate routes to Cooke City from Laurel became passable.
We formed a plan in which we would meet in Hayden Valley and spend some time looking for Wapitis. In the last five days, visitors in Hayden have been reporting fairly regular sightings of the pack and their puppies, so that sort of news spurs us on.
Once their plans are set, I decide to arrive in Hayden a day early in hopes of learning more about
their habits. Fingers crossed!