Located in North Yellowstone in Mammoth country there is a trail called Lava Creek. Near the trailhead you will see a sign along the road letting you know that you are at the 45th parallel. The begining on the trail is kinda difficult to follow because there are several forks along the path. However once you cross the bridge, the path is apparent. My hiking partner once attempted this hike but got turned away before crossing the bridge because of a bull snake. We never saw any snakes, but just be aware that they are out there.

At the beginning of this trail it starts off downhill then as you cross the bridge you follow the path along a fairly level path. However it slowly turns into an uphill climb getting steeper as you progress further. We pass rotting elk corpse and I continue to look for for bears beacause I am sure this was evidence of an earlier meal. I wont show pictures of that just because its kinda morbid.

But we do see a little rabbit that thinks he is invisible. Staying perfectly still, you just know his heart is pounding faster than he can hop. We are not there to hurt him, but to admire the beauty of nature so we just take a couple of pictures and leave him alone. I am sure his heart rate gets closer to normal the further away we get. And he goes back to doing his thing, searching for some grub.

 This hike is only a few miles long and connects into other hiking trails. I lost my hiking book to where I can give exact details, but when I go back to Yellowstone I will aquire more books.

We see some waterfalls in the distance and I believe the name of them was called Lupine Falls, which if I had my book I would be more certain. These falls graced the cover of National Geographic magazine once. We get a glimpse of the falls in the distance and the trail leads us to the top of the falls. We never get below to get a full picture, because we want to stay on the trail. As you can see the steep incline, the trail follows the top of the hill on the left. However not too far from the top of the falls we get close to the connecting trail and the road is nearby. There is a picnic area which we stop at and have ourselves some peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. One of the great meals of the decade.

As we are finishing up our meals we notice an elk grazing nearby. His antlers still has fuzz on them. This elk looks to be very healthy, you can tell he hasn’t missed very many meals This is early in the season and most of the elk in the area havent started growing their antlers yet, this is the first one I seen this year with his antlers, and I have to say it looks like its going to be a pretty nice rack. I get next to the creek, trying to get some good pictures and my feet sink into the wet marsh. So as I watch my footing, I stay a good distance from the elk, not wanting to disturb him from his meal. Because he didn’t bother me while I was eating.

 There are not many trails in Yellowstone National Park that you will take to where you cant see any wildlife. I am going to note here though, as the wildlife in National Parks seem to be tame, because they are used to humans, they are not. The wildlife is wild. You should respect their space and not get too close, they are unpredictable and territorial. So respect them and they will respect you.

 A beginners guide to backpacking

Find out how you can enjoy this fun, relaxing hobby even if you have no experience or are on a shoestring budget

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