BISON PARADE AND OUR HIKE AROUND PHELPS LAKE

We were delayed on our trip to the Rockefeller Preserve by a herd of bison which have returned to the road that goes by our campground.  Notice how the bison follow each other in line as they wander towards the Gros Ventre River for a drink of water.  Where one goes, many seem to follow..  Does this remind you of elementary school going to recess or the lunchroom?

This visit to the Rockefeller Preserve was to hike around Phelps Lake.  We were treated to many great views of the mountains (we never tire of this) as well as many kinds of flowers in full bloom (which will be a separate post).  We took several pictures of the mountains relflecting in the calm waters of Phelps Lake.

Notice how there is very little snow left on the mountains.

The Preserve is full of lodgepole pine trees.  These trees lose their lower branches as they grow upwards towards the sky.  Lodgepole pine trees can grow to heights over 50 feet tall.  Other varieties of trees include spruce (mostly known as Christmas trees), quaking aspen and some fir trees higher up the mountain sides.  When we were walking among the spruce trees, it smelled like a Christmas tree lot.

The water is very clear as shown in this picture.  Most of the water is from snow melt up in the mountains while some is from springs along the lake bottom. 

Death Canyon is on the northern side of the lake.  Here is a view from a huge boulder along the edge of the lake. 

This view of Death Canyon is from the southern side of the lake.  Here you can really see the contrast between the heavily wooded mountains and the ruggedness of Death Canyon.

We completed the 9+ mile hike in time to get to happy hour at Snake River Brewing Company.  The beer today was well earned!
    

SEVERE WEATHER IN THE TETONS

On Wednesday, July 21, the Jackson Hole area was hit with severe thunderstorms beginning around noon. You may have read about 17 climbers on Grand Teton mountain peak struck by lightning that day. We saw this rainbow on our trip back from town. If you look closely, you can see a 2nd rainbow on the left. These rainbows are the most vivid rainbows we have ever seen. The sky was still dark yet there was bright sunshine in the meadow.

The picture was taken along the road from Jackson to Grand Teton National Park next to the National Elk Refuge. The small building on the lower right is one of the entrances to the Elk Refuge which is a gathering place for hundreds of elk during the winter. This is where the antlers are gathered for the big auction held in May. 

  

HAPPY HOUR AT 9095 FT.

We returned to Teton Village where we rode the aerial tram to the top of the ski resort back in early June.  The weather for this trip was considerably warmer than back in June.  We began with a picnic lunch followed by some easy hiking during the afternoon.  Teton Village is a large ski resort west of Jackson.  Nine different hotels, including a Four Seasons Resort, are all part of this resort. 

After our hike we rode the Bridger Gondola up to The Deck (name of the outdoor bar) which is 9095 ft. above sea level.  The Deck is only open from July 4 until September 10 due to the weather at that altitude.  The 15-minute ride up to The Deck is complimentary (a ride on the aerial tram costs $25).  Even though the gondolas are much smaller than the tram car (6 passengers as compared to 100), the ride was still smooth with a gentle swaying after each pole along the way.  We were able to see the ski runs, some of which were very rocky or covered with tree stumps, but no wildlife during our ascent to the top.  In the winter, there is enough snow that the rocks and tree stumps are buried.  The white square in the upper left of the picture is the far right side of the station at the top of the gondola ride.  I'm guessing "Poma" is the name of the manufacturer of the gondola ride. 

The view from the Deck, overlooking the Snake River and the Jackson Hole valley, were fantastic.  Unfortunately, our camera could not do the view justice. 

The sign just beyond the deck gives directions to the various ski lifts and ski runs near the top of the resort.  I was comfortable in shorts and a t-shirt because of the warmth of the sun's rays, even at 5 pm.

The beer has finally arrived so we sipped and enjoyed sitting at 9095 feet - what a grand place for happy hour.  What appears to be a white space ship in the background is the roof of the station at the top of the gondola ride where the passengers disembark.  Notice how barren the land is beyond the gondola station. 

The building to the left of the Deck houses a gourmet restaurant during the summer and serves as a ski shop and warming station during the winter.
 

The ride and the views were priceless, even though our drinks were paid with Visa and not  MasterCard.

Trivia fact for the day:  The valley between the mountains is called Jackson Hole while the town is called Jackson.

BREAKFAST CRUISE AND A DIFFERENT KIND OF WHITE STUFF

On a recent day off, we took a breakfast cruise on Jackson Lake.  After working our 5 consecutive days we still were able to get up and on the road to Jackson Lake by 6 am.  When we took the Fire & Ice cruise several weeks ago, captain Jim said his favorite cruise was the breakfast cruise.  We made the hour-long drive to the Colter Bay Marina and checked in at the marina office a few minutes after 7 am.  It is a good thing we are morning people!

The water on Jackson Lake was extremely calm in the early morning.  The boat was a 45 passenger cruise boat although it doesn't look that big below on the left.  The small boat on the right is the boat used to bring the cooks and food from the mainland to Elk Island, which is in the middle of Jackson Lake and our breakfast destination.

The temperature was in the upper 30's while we enjoyed a breakfast of scrambled eggs, sausage links, home fries, fried lake trout, pancakes and fruit.  The folks in the left rear of the photo are huddled around a campfire while waiting their turn in the buffet line.  While eating, a deer wandered less than 50 yards from where we were sitting.  Upon arriving on Elk Island, we were told that there is wildlife and not to wander away from the eating area unless we walked in pairs.  
 

After breakfast we climbed to the top of Elk Island and were treated to these views of Mt. Moran, even though the top of the mountain is covered by a cloud.  The two cruise boats are visible in the lower right hand portion of the picture below.  

Here is captain Jim as he gave the Coast Guard required pre-trip briefing to those of us on the "fun boat".  Jim mixes humor with the serious information during his talks to the passengers about the history and geology of the park.      

July brought a lot of white stuff falling from the sky.  The white stuff is not snow but small pieces of "cotton" from the many cottonwood trees in our campground.  The wind blew the cotton along the side of the road, where it stuck like a quick snowfall. 

FAMILY VISIT TO JACKSON HOLE

Our oldest daughter Wendy and her family (husband Scott and children Amelia and John) came to Jackson Hole for a weeklong visit.  American Airlines has a non-stop flight from DFW to the Jackson Hole Airport, remember--the only airport inside the boundaries of a national park.

We visited the evening they arrived and then met them for dinner after an early work shift.   Where do you go with family for dinner in Jackson Hole?  Yes, you guessed it.  We all went to the Snake River Brewing Company for a nice familly dinner.

On Sunday, we spent the day with the children so Scott and Wendy could have a day for adult hiking.  First stop for us was to the Jenny Lake Store where we allowed each grandchild a shopping trip to Grandma and Grandpop's "store".  They each were allowed to choose a t-shirt, Christmas ornament or book , and another souvenir.

On the way from the store to town we saw several pronghorn antelope along the bike path adjacent to the park road. 

During the 2 months we have been living here, we have often seen tourists taking photos of the Moose Post Office.  We couldn't pass up the chance for a photo of the grandchildren in this unique location.  The moose tail is actually made of rope.

We decided to take the grandchildren for a stage coach ride after lunch.  Grandpop is sitting with the children waiting for the stage coach to arrive.  Notice the fleece vest.  The temperature was in the upper 60's during the early part of the day before the sun finally came out around 3 pm to take the temp into the low 70's.

A passenger photo before the stage coach leaves the station.  Notice the leather interior roof.

Here is the stage coach as we begin our journey.  The station master (cowboy on the far right) is about to tell the driver to go.  The ride was about 10 minutes long around the town square and several blocks to the east of the square.  

Wendy and Scott came back to our RV site for a cookout over a campfire.  Here the children are telling Scott all about their day with Grandma and Grandpop.  No, Ann and I are not wearing matching shirts.

After a dinner of hamburgers and hot dogs with all the fixins, Scott is watching the children toast marshmallows for "s'mores".  Notice that John's marshmallow is not close enough to the fire to get toasted.  Ann is in the background opening the Hershey bar in eager anticipation of the warm marshmallows.

After Scott's coaching, John has lowered his marshmallow close enough to the fire to melt.

By the end of the "s'more" activity, there was melted marshmallow and smeared chocolate on Amelia and John's faces - Amelia said it was the best vacation evening!  This was a great way to end the day.  

FLOAT TRIP

We took a late morning float trip on our 2nd day off during the last week of June.  After an early morning drive to Jackson Lake Lodge, we boarded a van to take us to the launch point, Dead Mans Bar.  The story (very brief version) of the name of this point on the Snake River comes from some gold miners back in the late 1800's who ended up killing another miner because he thought the others were holding out on him.  His body was found on a sand bar since known as Dead Mans Bar. 

Our river guide was Jeff, who is a college senior studying conservation and land management in Utah.  Jeff was very knowledgeable about the geology of the area.  The raft holds 12 passengers, six on each end of the boat with the river guide in the middle.  Sometimes you are going down the river while you are watching ahead, other times your back is to the direction of the current and sometimes the boat is going down the river sideways.  This was a float trip, not to be confused with white water rafting, where everyone has a paddle.

 The Snake River has huge banks that are not always along the side of the river as seen in the background here.  These high banks were caused by the rock sediments from the melting glaciers many millions of years ago.  Erosion sometimes washes away part of the river bank.  However, mother nature then causes dirt/rock slides which helps maintain the 70 degree angle of the river bank.  During our trip we witnessed a small rock slide.

Beavers cause this destruction of the lower parts of these tree trunks.  The beavers eat away the bark and eventually the tree will be dead, and the beavers can use the downed trees to build their dams.  Below the trees you can how the high water in the spring have caused the river to eat away at the sides.  On this side of the river the "high side" was a few hundred yards back from the actual river bank.

We spotted several bald eagles along our float.  This is the best picture we were able to get.  Notice the white head which indicates this eagle is over 4 years old.  That is your wildlife fact for the day.

 Yes we have shown many views of the Tetons and especially Grand Teton Mountain.  However, the view from the river is most impressive.  Jeff pointed out the two glaciers on this mountain, the largest of which is called Teton Glacier. 

During some calm water, Jeff was able to take this picture of us with Grand Teton as a backdrop.  The mountains do not look as high because of the high river bank.  

Several weeks ago we explored Menor's Ferry and showed you a picture of a replica of the ferry that was used to cross the Snake River before a bridge was built.  Here is a view of the same replica ferry from the river itself showing the mountains in the background.  

This raft trip was another benefit of being an employee of Grand Teton Lodge Company!