Grand Teton National Park ...From Idaho Falls, we headed to Grand Teton National Park. We left after breakfast on Monday morning. The drive was nice. We climbed a very high pass. I think the grade was 10% (I am sure Jeremy would remember), and the pass was about 10,000ft or more. We came back down 
and entered the Teton Range in a fairly flat plain area. The mountains were off the the left (I believe that is west). They looked high, jagged, and pretty incredible. The reality is that they were lower than most of the mountains we had been gazing at the past year. Grand Teton, which is the highest mountain there, is under 14,000ft. That being said, these mountains are very difficult to climb because of their jagged peaks. We set up camp at Colter Bay Campground. It was a short walk to a large lake bordered by the Tetons. We took it pretty 
easy at this park partly because Jeremy's knee was giving him trouble. So, we took a blanket and our books and headed to the lakeshore to enjoy the day and the view. We went back to watch the sunset as well. The picture to the left that has Jeremy's feet in it was at sunset with the rays of sunlight streaming between the mountains. The view was a bit hazy, but they said it is due to the wild fires all the way in 
California! It was still pretty impressive. In the evening, we went to the Ranger Talk. She has been a ranger here for over 13 summers. During the year, she is a fifth grade teacher in Florida (I think). It was interesting to hear her experiences and look at her pictures. She also showed us pictures of her climb up Grand Teton - lots of technical rock climbing involved! We left the park on Tuesday morning to see if we could catch some of the wildlife in Yellowstone, which is only about an hour from Grand Teton Nataional Park. 
and entered the Teton Range in a fairly flat plain area. The mountains were off the the left (I believe that is west). They looked high, jagged, and pretty incredible. The reality is that they were lower than most of the mountains we had been gazing at the past year. Grand Teton, which is the highest mountain there, is under 14,000ft. That being said, these mountains are very difficult to climb because of their jagged peaks. We set up camp at Colter Bay Campground. It was a short walk to a large lake bordered by the Tetons. We took it pretty 
easy at this park partly because Jeremy's knee was giving him trouble. So, we took a blanket and our books and headed to the lakeshore to enjoy the day and the view. We went back to watch the sunset as well. The picture to the left that has Jeremy's feet in it was at sunset with the rays of sunlight streaming between the mountains. The view was a bit hazy, but they said it is due to the wild fires all the way in 
California! It was still pretty impressive. In the evening, we went to the Ranger Talk. She has been a ranger here for over 13 summers. During the year, she is a fifth grade teacher in Florida (I think). It was interesting to hear her experiences and look at her pictures. She also showed us pictures of her climb up Grand Teton - lots of technical rock climbing involved! We left the park on Tuesday morning to see if we could catch some of the wildlife in Yellowstone, which is only about an hour from Grand Teton Nataional Park. 
Yellowstone National Park...
We were at Yellowstone from Tuesday morning through Thursday morning. This was the longest we stayed in any location. We arrived to the park through the south entrance. Although we were hoping to see some wildlife in the early morning, we didn't get lucky enough to see any. We traveled to the west to Old Faithful, which was our first stop. Old Faithful is a great geyser. It is not the biggest geyser, but 
it is one of the more reliable ones, and it is impressive. So, we waited for a short time before watching it in all its glory. From their we continued north through the rest of the geyser basin. We did take on trail to an overlook area (see pic on left) and then around to a waterfall (see pic on right). It was a good hike with a great view of 
most of the geyser basin to the south and all the way back to Old Faithful. The waterfall was pretty cool too. It was not huge, but it was pretty. There were a lot of people there - a whole boy scout troop, I think. So, our pictures seem pretty crowded. (Side note: This was probably one of the busiest places we visited, but we were lucky enough that it was not so busy as to get stuck in traffic jams.) We continued on through the smelly section of the park to our campgroud at Madison, near the West entrance. We set up the tent, hopped back in the car, and continued north to sight see in the upper loop. On our way, we pulled over at a large gathering of cars - usually this means great wildlife - and we were not disappointed. We walked into a grove of trees and saw two elk with the biggest set of antlers I have ever seen. I tried to get a good picture. We were only 20 yards away or so (I know that is not very smart), and I was nervous. They were pretty magnificent! (Note on pictures: The pictures are taken at two separate times in the same location. The one on the left is when we went into the woods. The one on the right is the next day; they look like similar elk.)
it is one of the more reliable ones, and it is impressive. So, we waited for a short time before watching it in all its glory. From their we continued north through the rest of the geyser basin. We did take on trail to an overlook area (see pic on left) and then around to a waterfall (see pic on right). It was a good hike with a great view of 
most of the geyser basin to the south and all the way back to Old Faithful. The waterfall was pretty cool too. It was not huge, but it was pretty. There were a lot of people there - a whole boy scout troop, I think. So, our pictures seem pretty crowded. (Side note: This was probably one of the busiest places we visited, but we were lucky enough that it was not so busy as to get stuck in traffic jams.) We continued on through the smelly section of the park to our campgroud at Madison, near the West entrance. We set up the tent, hopped back in the car, and continued north to sight see in the upper loop. On our way, we pulled over at a large gathering of cars - usually this means great wildlife - and we were not disappointed. We walked into a grove of trees and saw two elk with the biggest set of antlers I have ever seen. I tried to get a good picture. We were only 20 yards away or so (I know that is not very smart), and I was nervous. They were pretty magnificent! (Note on pictures: The pictures are taken at two separate times in the same location. The one on the left is when we went into the woods. The one on the right is the next day; they look like similar elk.)
We traveled all the way to Mammoth and all around the loop back to Madison before dark. We stopped at a number of places along the way, but saved the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone for the next day. We went back to the campground for night. We went to a ranger talk that night (surprise, surprise) on the reintroduction of wolves back into Yellowstone. 
The next morning we headed first to Grand Canyon of Yellowstone where you can see upper and lower falls - very beautiful. We got there early, which was nice because there were lots of people crowding the area by the time we were leaving. We drove pretty much right to the upper falls overlook. (This is Jeremy to the right at the upper falls.) It is a cool sight. If you have been to Niagra, you have an idea of how it feels to stand right at the brink of the falls. We hiked a short path to see the lower falls. There was no one at this 
falls, which made it really peaceful. This view is equally impressive. Apparently, the falls are higher than Niagra is, but the width does not rival Niagra. We then drove to Artist's Point. This is where a lot of pictures are taken, paintings are painted, and postcards are made. We took pictures too (see left). From here you look back on lower falls, but upper falls cannot be seen. We left the falls area and headed south to Yellowstone Lake. On our driving route today, we saw a few 
buffalo posing alongside the road and couldn't resist the picture - YIKES! We stopped at Bridge Bay for a picnic. We looped back around west, saw Old Faithful again, ate at the lodge, and took a walk on the boardwalks to see more of the geysers and hot springs in this area. The walk was long, and soon all the geyers and 
springs looked the same, but it was nice stretch our legs. We headed back to our campground before dark. Jeremy headed down to a stream in our campground to flyfish. I took a book, a blanket, and the camera. I don't think he caught anything, but if he did, he just released it anyway. This night we didn't go to a Ranger talk. We took o
ur tired selves to bed instead.
falls, which made it really peaceful. This view is equally impressive. Apparently, the falls are higher than Niagra is, but the width does not rival Niagra. We then drove to Artist's Point. This is where a lot of pictures are taken, paintings are painted, and postcards are made. We took pictures too (see left). From here you look back on lower falls, but upper falls cannot be seen. We left the falls area and headed south to Yellowstone Lake. On our driving route today, we saw a few 
buffalo posing alongside the road and couldn't resist the picture - YIKES! We stopped at Bridge Bay for a picnic. We looped back around west, saw Old Faithful again, ate at the lodge, and took a walk on the boardwalks to see more of the geysers and hot springs in this area. The walk was long, and soon all the geyers and 
springs looked the same, but it was nice stretch our legs. We headed back to our campground before dark. Jeremy headed down to a stream in our campground to flyfish. I took a book, a blanket, and the camera. I don't think he caught anything, but if he did, he just released it anyway. This night we didn't go to a Ranger talk. We took o
ur tired selves to bed instead. Thursday morning, we headed out fairly early after eating breakfast and cleaning up the tent. We first stopped at the Norris Geyser Basin for this cool shot to the right of all the steaming geysers. We were headed out the northeast entrance through the "Serengetti of Yellowstone." It is an 
open plain area. This is where the wolves were re-introduced. We didn't see wolves, but we did see, on our way there, a black bear!! It was on one side of the road foraging for food when we stopped to watch; it then meandered across the road - right beside our car! - and up the hill on the other 
side. It was crazy! We saw big herds of bison roaming the plains area. They are awkward looking creatures, but make great scenery. This was Jeremy's favorite area of the park. If we had had more time, I thnk we would have watched the bison for quite awhile. It was animal central on our way out. We took the scenic drive into Montana via Bear Tooth Pass. This was one of my favorite parts of my whole trip home. It was so beautiful. I don't know if 
captured it with the camera, but we tried. It was breathtaking - lots of mountain lakes, snow still on the ground in places, and green grass growing as well. Awesome! This is a pull over spot that we had some great people who had also stopped take our picture. We continued along the scenic route until we hit I-90, which we followed until heading south at some point to go see Little Big Horn Battlefield National Monument. For those who don't know, this was the location of Custer's Last Stand. We made it to the Monument just in 
time to hear a very desciptive Ranger talk of the battle. I didn't remember a whole lot about it, so it was a good learning opportunity for me. It was very hot here. From there, we continued south to Buffalo, Wyoming where we stayed in a very small cabin the size of our Four Runner (see bottom right pic). We went to historic 
downtown Buffalo for some ice cream. We visited the Occidental Hotel. It was a "full service" hotel (if you know what I mean) back in the day when all the outlaws would come to this area to seek refuge. The shot to the left is of the lobby area. It was really cool. 
open plain area. This is where the wolves were re-introduced. We didn't see wolves, but we did see, on our way there, a black bear!! It was on one side of the road foraging for food when we stopped to watch; it then meandered across the road - right beside our car! - and up the hill on the other 
side. It was crazy! We saw big herds of bison roaming the plains area. They are awkward looking creatures, but make great scenery. This was Jeremy's favorite area of the park. If we had had more time, I thnk we would have watched the bison for quite awhile. It was animal central on our way out. We took the scenic drive into Montana via Bear Tooth Pass. This was one of my favorite parts of my whole trip home. It was so beautiful. I don't know if 
captured it with the camera, but we tried. It was breathtaking - lots of mountain lakes, snow still on the ground in places, and green grass growing as well. Awesome! This is a pull over spot that we had some great people who had also stopped take our picture. We continued along the scenic route until we hit I-90, which we followed until heading south at some point to go see Little Big Horn Battlefield National Monument. For those who don't know, this was the location of Custer's Last Stand. We made it to the Monument just in 
time to hear a very desciptive Ranger talk of the battle. I didn't remember a whole lot about it, so it was a good learning opportunity for me. It was very hot here. From there, we continued south to Buffalo, Wyoming where we stayed in a very small cabin the size of our Four Runner (see bottom right pic). We went to historic 
downtown Buffalo for some ice cream. We visited the Occidental Hotel. It was a "full service" hotel (if you know what I mean) back in the day when all the outlaws would come to this area to seek refuge. The shot to the left is of the lobby area. It was really cool. 
Well, I think this was long enough. In the next post, I will tell you about Mt. Rushmore and the rest of our trip home.
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