Grand Tetons and Jackson Hole

I managed to get a little bit of sleep despite the cold. I woke up jonesing for a 49er Diner breakfast that's for sure!

Ain't I a pretty sight early in the morning?

The Chateau Green in Yellowstone.

Headed south to the Tetons.

The Grand Tetons.

Looking at Teewinot and the Grand Teton across Jenny Lake.

Exum Mountain Guides School. Definitely on my list when I come back.

The Jenny Lake boat tours.

"Death Canyon"!? No thanks.

I've lost track of how many times I've crossed it.

These guys like to congregate around the Grant Village intersection.

Of course I had to see Old Faithful. Less impressive than I expected.

The Old Faithful Lodge, worth a trip back to stay here I'm sure.

I can see why they put sprinklers on the roof after the Fires of '88.

The Grand Prismatic Spring.

Looking back over Yellowstone Lake and West Thumb.

Ooh, Ooh, I gotta itch. Can't reach it.

There we go. Got it.

Dinner of champions. Note the dining room table.

Ranger Daniel O'Leary gave the nightly talk, this time on fire in the Park. He started his talk with safety of course and talked about the danger of bears over the danger of say, wolves. Prescient stuff after yesterday's (July 6) bear attack.

Fortunately I was able to fit in the trip down to the Grand Tetons, Jackson Hole and Jackson, Wyoming. The Grand Tetons were extremely cool and it's definitely on my to do list for when I return. Also thinking of climbing the Grand with Exum. The Jackson Hole valley is really neat, about what you'd expect for a resort area. There are several interesting cabins, lodges and restaurants along the way south towards the town of Jackson. Jackson is pretty commercial, but worth a trip. I didn't have much time as I wanted to check out the geysers on the way back, but there appear to be several interesting museums and restaurants in Jackson. I didn't see any elk in the National Elk Refuge, but as Ranger Tom that's their winter habitat.

I motored back up the road, and headed west towards Old Faithful. Of course, I just missed an eruption so I waited the ninety minutes for the next one. Honestly, it was kind of a let down. It was probably tired and had a long day. The menu at one of the lodges near Old Faithful looked really good, but I still wanted to see the Grand Prismatic Spring, so I moved along. The Grand Prismatic was really cool and colorful, but it was hard to capture on camera. After checking that out, I turned back for Grant Village because I wanted to catch the Ranger Talk that night as it was on Fire in the Park. First I had to find something for dinner and it was getting tight on time, so I settled. I wound up with a center console dinner of crackers, ham, turkey, cheese and a Moose Drool Brown Ale. Dessert was peanut M&Ms. Oh, how far I've come.

The Ranger talk was well attended and afterward I steeled myself for the long winter's nap. This time it wasn't too bad and I woke up somewhat refreshed. Sadly I had to leave Yellowstone, so I struck camp and headed out on the road. Next episode: The Beartooth Highway.