East Entrance to Fishing Bridge

Book Excerpt : From the East Entrance to Fishing Bridge Junction

The East Entrance Road is most noted for passing among high mountains and over Sylvan Pass as well as for spectacular views of Yellowstone Lake and of nearby mountain ranges. Sparkling Eleanor and Sylvan lakes catch your eye at the top of the pass, and farther along are viewpoints from which you can often see all the way to the Tetons. Before reaching Fishing Bridge, the road closely follows the lakeshore. It's 26 miles (42 km) from the East Entrance to Fishing Bridge Junction.

NOTE: Parts of this road will experience major road work through 2008. Check with Yellowstone authorities before you go.

Special Caution: Much of the area accessible from the East Entrance Road, especially around the Pelican Creek drainage, is prime grizzly bear territory in the first half of the summer, when the bears are feeding on spawning trout. It is prudent to check with rangers before hiking and never to hike alone.

Road Log

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6.9/19.1 Sylvan Pass (8541 ft/2603 m). In 1901, Army Engineer Captain Chittenden, who designed this road, wrote that Sylvan Pass [GEO.6] is "unique among mountain passes in that it is almost entirely loosened from the cliffs on either side by the action of frost. This broken rock varies in size from fine pebbles to pieces a cubic yard in volume." You may wonder why it was named Sylvan, meaning forested, when it's so rocky. The pass is named after the larger of the two tree-ringed lakes near it.

North of the road is Hoyt Peak (10,506 ft/3202 m), named for John W. Hoyt, first governor of the Territory of Wyoming and later University of Wyoming president. Hoyt Peak is part of the volcanic Absaroka Range.

7.6/18.4 (2) Eleanor Lake, probably named in 1901 by road engineer Chittenden for his infant daughter. Look above the east end of the lake for a delightful small waterfall, named Crecelius Cascade for Chittenden's subordinate, who was responsible for building this stretch of road.

You can park in the picnic area at the west side of the lake for Avalanche Peak Trail. This trail takes you in a very steep 2 miles (3.2 km) to the top of Avalanche Peak. Rangers sometimes lead hikes up this trail; inquire at Fishing Bridge Visitor Center.

Snow avalanches are common in this area of steep mountainsides. In the spring, park rangers fire a cannon to try to create small snowslides and prevent the snow buildup that causes greater avalanches.

An unmaintained fisherman's trail, not shown on current maps, starts south of Eleanor Lake and follows Clear Creek down to the Thorofare Trail.

From Eleanor Lake to the edge of Mary Bay, evidence remains of the Grizzly East complex of fires, which burned over 25,000 acres of forest in late summer of 2003.

8.5/17.5 Southeast end of Sylvan Lake.

Sylvan Lake may retain its ice into early summer (2008).

8.7/17.3 (8) Sylvan Lake picnic area, with tables near the lake and across the road. Fishing in Sylvan Lake is catch and release only.

The mountain visible beyond the southeast end of Sylvan Lake is the aptly named Top Notch Peak. Above the trees to the south and closer to the lake is Grizzly Peak. Look on Grizzly Peak's northwest side for an obvious cirque, that is, a steep-sided natural amphitheater gouged out by glacial ice.

9.1/16.9 Northwest end of Sylvan Lake.

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CREDITS: The photo of Sylvan Lake, new to the 3rd edition, is by Bruno Giletti.

This is an excerpt from the road log to the 26 miles of road from the East Entrance to Fishing Bridge Junction, Yellowstone Treasures, 3rd edition, page 159 and pages 161–63.

Note: After "Sylvan Pass" above, the [GEO.6] means it's a point of geological interest that is explained in the book's "Geological History" chapter.

Read Nugget 9 for more about High Mountain Passes.


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