I have stayed in wrangle national Park for three nights now. On the first day I went to the park service to get information on hikes and then headed out to do the Caribou Trail. This was a rather easy 7 mile 800 feet of elevation gain hike. It terminated at a public use cabin in the alpine tundra.
Public use cabin, looked pretty cozy
I did not see any caribou on the hike, supposedly they come through here in their spring and fall migration. I did however see six Spruce grouse. Not many bird species though.
Spruce Grouse
The second day here I had planned to do this Skookum volcano pass trail, which is a 2.5/5 mile fairly steep ascent up to the pass. When I first arrived at the trailhead the weather looked quite sketchy, the peaks along the pass were enveloped in clouds. I decided to drive to the end of the Nebesna Road partly to see what was there. The weather still looked sketchy but I did do the short Rambler Mine trail from the end of the road. This was a 1/2 mile 400 foot elevation gain trail to the mine.
Sign of approaching Fall
On the return I stopped by the volcano Pass Trail. The weather still looked a bit sketchy but I decided to go for it. This is a 2.5/5 mile in and out hike with an elevation gain of about 1900 feet. There were numerous creek crossings required and the literature indicated to carry extra shoes. I mostly stayed out of the water but on one crossing my foot slipped and got a good dunking. Fortunately I had recently applied water sealant to my boots and my feet did not get wet.
The trail travels up one creek and then a branch of the creek. Then you begin to see the rock formations from the volcano. There were a few sprinkles of rain, and then a very short period of actual sun shine. At the top, the pass, it was windy and very chilly. I did not stay there long, only long enough to take a few photographs.
From the pass, looking back down the trail
From the pass looking forward
Lava Flow Seam
On the hike I saw very little wildlife. In the beginning I did see some bear scat, and about halfway through I was able to see a half a dozen Dall sheep on the hillside. There was no bird activity.
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Buck's Travel 