The Uplands Hike

Today we drove out of the Yellowstone Club to the outskirts of the nearby town of Big Sky to take our morning hike on the Uplands Trail.  Ten of us hiked in single file on the narrow trail.  A woman in one group that passed us, smiled broadly and said “it is so nice to see all of you out here like this.” Craig and I interpreted this to mean how great at our age we’re hiking and not sitting in rocking chairs.  All of us are truly grateful to be mobile and to be here in this amazingly beautiful place.   The weather was perfect: the temperature was in the high 70’s with a clear blue sky filled with puffy white clouds and a gentle breeze that cooled us as we hiked.  For me, this hike was as close to heaven as it gets here on earth.  It is the peak of the wildflower season.  There were shady forests of lodge pole pines we hiked where we cooled off.  The sunny meadows were filled with a rainbow of multitudes of wildflowers: tall blue larkspur, yellow Arnica sunflowers, red Indian Paint Brush, hot pink Geraniums, creamy white Pearly Everlasting and many many more.  The abundance and diversity of the flowers took my breath away.  I thought how I’ve loved wildflowers since I was a small child.  I kept stopping to take a photo because each view seemed more beautiful than the last.  The two mile loop went through the flowery meadows, but the vistas were incredible too.  I couldn’t stop smiling.  We stopped in the little town of Big Sky to have a cool drink and tour some of the shops and art galleries.  Again the conversation as we sipped our cool drinks were deep and intimate.  Many of the folks have known each other for years and years, telling us stories of some of their bonding experiences.  They asked Bob and me questions too, about how we met, what we liked about each other, questions who’s answers for me are beautiful to remember.  After returning home there was a huge cloudburst with enough hail to turn the ground white.  Now most folks are napping.  Bob took lots of photos too, incredible photos reminding me of Sierra Club posters.  Tonight we’re going out to eat to the Rainbow Lodge nearby and afterwards, I hope we’ll all get to see the Photo Story Bob made from our hike today.