Thursday, June 1, 2023
Richie and I did the Seven Mile Hole Trail at Canyon Village today. I do not know why it is called Seven Mile Hole, because the out and back trail is 10.4 miles round trip. We added a little more distance to the hike by walking the 1.2 miles from our room to the trailhead, and back again later, so the total was closer to 13 miles.
There is a sign at the trailhead, at all trailheads in the park, that warns of bears in the area. Be Bear Aware is a slogan around Yellowstone. We have bear spray that can be rented locally on a daily or weekly basis, and we make noise, talking as recommended, as well as me striking my hiking poles together as we walk. The fact that there is the possibility of an encounter with a bear concerns me, but not to the degree that I wouldn’t hike this trail. There are other trails that have information saying that it is known that "Grizzlies frequent this area," and I am hesitant to hike there. Still, as we began this hike I was a little apprehensive.
The first section of the trail had some minimal ups and downs. After a short way, it led to some great views of the Yellowstone River and the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. There is about a 1000’ difference in elevation from the canyon rim to the river below. The views are beautiful, breathtaking, and energizing. There was one place where it looks like that 1000’ drop is straight down off the cliff side. I would not go close enough to peak over the edge!
After rolling along the cliff side for maybe half a mile, the trail heads away from the canyon. The trail seems well used. Away from the canyon, thickly growing pine forest dominates the landscape. We were surprised at how the trail rose steadily for what seemed to be a mile or so. After that, it descended for a while, then it became flat for a while, where it bordered on a large meadow that was underwater not far from the trail. There were several short sections where crossing snow and/or downed trees was necessary. Neither presented a challenging situation, though some of the trees required care stepping in slippery conditions.
At 2.6 miles in, we reached an intersection where our trail went to the right and a trail to Mt. Washburn went to the left. From that point, it stayed flat for about a quarter mile. From there it went downhill, and wow, it went downhill steeply in several sections. Overall, according to that trailhead sign, it descends 1000’ over 2.3 miles. The terrain varied greatly over those 2.3 miles. It was still mostly forested, though less dense. There were sections where there was little vegetation, with the dominant entity being a bleak, sandy looking grey landscape of dirt, sulfur compounds, and minerals, due to several vents releasing steam and/or hot water from Earth into the environment. There was also a short section, as we approached closer to the river, of vibrantly green grass.
The trail ended at the confluence of the Yellowstone River and Sulphur Creek. I had not felt as thrilled about the hike so far, as I usually was, because I was still concerned about bears. But, when we got to the end, to the confluence, it was quite nice and relaxing. The river and landscape were beautiful. The canyon walls are multi-colored with a variety of mineral deposits. The rush of water made it a loud environment. We sat and had lunch, immersed in our thoughts, taking in the natural wonder.
Then, after about 15 minutes there, off we went to begin the hike out. It was a very strenuous hike out, starting with that 2.3 mile section that changes 1000’ elevation, some parts being very steep. It made us work really hard. I was breathing hard, sucking wind, really getting out of breath. Richie was leading, and he seemed to be pushing the pace. I let him get a little bit ahead of me, but I was not going to let him go ahead too far. We traversed through the changes of vegetation, the lush green near the river changed to some not-too-dense evergreens, still with some grass, then quickly into that barren landscape of dry brown Earth, several steam vents leaking their product into the air, numerous dead pine trees laying adjacent to each other alongside the trail. Steep grades, very steep. Sandy and small stones combining to introduce problems in gaining traction, on the steepest sections, increasing the difficulty. It was hard, but it was great, too!
We left the barren landscape, returning to live green pines growing in what appeared to be a dry soil. Still very steep. We met up with two women making their way down the trail. It was not as steep here. We stepped aside and let them by on the single track, wishing them a great day. They wished us well with their European accents, then on we went upward. A continual steep pitch, there were two degrees of slope: steep and steeper. Richie kept the pace high. Then suddenly, he stopped and said why don’t we take a break. I was fine with that. We stopped for about a minute to catch our breath, then we were back at it, more steep inclines, more sucking wind hard, until the trail leveled out, and we eventually reached the fork where we had noted our time check #1. It turns out the hike uphill took us four minutes less than the hike down.
From that point, we were back again at the sometimes flat, sometimes rolling landscape of evergreens, with downed trees and snow on the trail. That uphill energized me, mentally, emotionally, and physically. I stopped occasionally to take photos. The threat of bears seemed to dissipate, though we kept talking and I kept striking my hiking poles together to make noise. We reached the road in about 55 minutes, which is 12 minutes faster than we did on that section going out, though part of the difference had to do with stopping at overviews when we began.
Point of information, for our second day here at Yellowstone, my Garmin registered a little over 30K steps, which translated into about 16 miles, bringing our total to 32 miles in two days.
So, it was a great hike, a great day. Take a hike!
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