Carolina’s Notes from the 16th
Well we woke up later than we wanted for our return tour of Yellowstone and then continuing onward to Grand Teton National Park. We threw on clothes and got off to Yellowstone to see ‘Old Faithful.’ Yellowstone is so wonderful; it really is God’s Country. I was in awe of the sights that were right before my eyes. I wasn’t seeing the sights on a ‘Discovery Channel’ program; all these sights I was experiencing with my own senses. It is a chance of a lifetime and I’m having a blast. Despite my lack of care to use sunscreen and take water while touring ‘West Thumb’ and ‘Old Faithful.’ I had a terrific time.
Again, Tony & I were running out of time and trying to beat the setting sun to get into the ‘Grand Teton National Park.’ We were tired, hot, thirsty, and ready to crash but we had to get to the next stop to bunk down. This part of the journey for the day got intense then Tony & I were at odds once again. He was driving the ‘Jenny Lake’ drive and I was done and just wanted to bunk. See, we ran into construction getting to Grand Teton National Park and it took a lot out of both of us. We tried to get a room at ‘Jackson Lake Lodge’ but it was out of our price range for showing up after 6:00 p.m. We did manage to snap some pictures with my phone. These were the sights and sounds Tony had been dreaming about and wanted to experience. Well it got ugly because the weariness settled. We stopped the sight seeing and got a place in Jackson Hole. Once we got a place at ‘Cache Creek Motel’; the motel needed to clean the room. This was the only room that was available because there was a convention in Jackson Hole.
Tony & I tried to calm down and enjoy the rest of our evening. We were unable to freshen up so we found the infamous ‘Million Dollar Cowboy Bar’ where the customers sit on saddles at the bar. We literally saddled up to the bar. I proceeded to shoot Jack Daniels to calm my nerves from traveling and bickering with Tony. The bartender was a dud considering he was serving drinks at one of our nation’s infamous bars; he could have tried to have some kind of personality. Let’s just say he didn’t make this ‘Michigander’ feel welcomed. I decided no matter, I’m watching baseball and drinking and I was going to ignore the &^%$#@! Men. After leaving the infamous ‘Million Dollar Cowboy Bar’, Tony took us to a second bar and by that time we were feeling no pain so neither of us could remember the name of this bar. I’ll tell you what I do remember; I remember that this bartender knew how to treat his out of state customers. We had one then left to find food, which was pizza. I don’t know the name of the pizza joint because I was too tired of walking around trying to find it and too drunk. I need to stress that Tony & I were walking around Jackson Hole. Our car was parked at ‘Cache Creek Motel.’ We did not drive around in that condition. In fact, we walked at least another mile just to find ‘Cache Creek Motel.’ We finally found our room, ate lousy pizza then crashed for the night.
Tony’s Notes for the 16th & 17th
It was a long drive to get back to Yellowstone’s East entrance. However, it was still full of spectacular views and worth the drive. Along the way, we passed a couple of really nice RV resorts that were much closer to the Yellowstone entrance. I am not sure if they had good cell phone signals, Wi-Fi, or Cable, but they were appealing and my mind thought about how I might go about things differently on our next cross-country extended journey. Every place we had traveled, I learned more and more about what I thought might be the right or wrong way to plan these travels.
When I was visualizing our sabbatical, back in June and July, I pictured me boondocking in the middle of nowhere, and creatively writing my thoughts; kind of like Emerson or Thoreau.
We knew this would be a two day journey and that we would end up sleeping somewhere other than at the RV. We wanted to venture around Yellowstone’s West Thumb and Geyser Basin areas. Then, the plan was to drive from the North entrance of the Grand Teton National Park to the South Entrance, and stay in Jackson Hole for a night. The plan was to spend time in the Teton’s area heading from South to North, and back up through Yellowstone toward home base before nightfall of the second day.
The West Thumb area of Yellowstone felt like we were standing on some foreign planet. It was very strange. We were surrounded by geysers and hot pools everywhere. It is very hard to put into words, and the pictures we will post can hardly give the full impact of being there in person. It was extremely amazing.
When we drove up to see Old Faithful, by the time we parked, and walked up to it, Old Faithful was erupting. We caught it just on time. However, I would have liked to have been standing a little closer watching it erupt. Anyway, we decided to hike around the area, and trails near Old Faithful.
What I did not realize was that there was about seven miles of boardwalks and trails to walk. It was a very sunny day, and we should have been carrying water, and had hats on our heads. I could not believe the amount of geysers and pools in this area. If I thought the West Thumb area was like a different planet, this ‘Old Faithful’ area was just the strangest place on earth that I had ever been. This was the area everyone from childhood on up thinks about and sees when they think about Yellowstone National Park. It was beyond amazing. The colorful pools, like “Morning Glory” and the multiple geysers of boiling water spewing up in the air with steam vents and so on.
We were worn out, hot, thirsty, and tired before getting through the boardwalks in this massive thermal area. We pressed on and were quite happy with the experience.
Once we got back to the car, it was time to drive down to the south entrance of Yellowstone and get to the Teton’s. It was quite a long drive, and we stopped and made ourselves a little picnic by another smaller mountain lake in Yellowstone. It was peaceful, pretty, and relaxing. Then, we made our way south. Once we were out of Yellowstone, and in the north entrance, the road work Carolina mentioned was horrible. The construction crew had stripped the old highway down to dirt, and for over thirty miles, it was a one lane rough dirt road. So, in a huge line of cars, motorhomes, and fifth wheels, we ‘caravanned’ southward. That took a couple hours and it was getting late.
As we passed Jackson Lake, and Jackson Lodge, I had to stop because I had heard of the spectacular views from this hundred year old resort. Jackson Lake Lodge was very beautiful, and the extremely spectacular view from the restaurant dining area and terrace was truly amazing and calming.
I thought this might be a good place to stay for the night. I figured, we should get a room, eat, and drink wine while watching the Sun set over Grand Teton. They had a nice room with a view; however, it was over $300 a night. If it was early afternoon, I might have considered it. It was after 6:30pm, and the cost was just not in the budget. Although, I was very tempted to just suck it up and do it. Anyway, we snapped a few photos and headed south.
Grand Teton’s views along the drive were awesome. I saw that there was a paved bicycle path for many miles along the valley that we could have road. Our tandem bike had been everywhere with us. We have taken it on rails to trails in multiple states. However, I left all the bicycles back at Harry. So, I was a little bummed out that I did not bring the bike. It would have been great for us to make a good bike ride in the Teton area.
We finally made it, exhausted and a bit whiny, down to Jackson Hole. Jackson Hole was a very cool cowboy town. The town is actually called Jackson. However, because it is located in the valley between several mountain ranges, it gets the slang of being in a hole. So, it is called Jackson Hole. Again, something of historical significance from the old west.
We were lucky to find a motel with a room. Everywhere we looked there was No Vacancy. It was $132 for the night, and it reminded me of a hole in the wall cheap motel that would charge hourly rates in Detroit.
The next morning, we headed up into Grand Teton National Park. As we made many stops to take photos, we got to Jenny Lake and did a six and a half mile hike around Jenny Lake. We also took a short diversion up to Hidden Falls. It was a very beautiful area that has not changed in well over a hundred years. This was a long day of hiking, but we had plenty of water this time.
We continued our day around the area. However, it was getting late and I was worried about having to drive through Yellowstone in the dark. So we headed north, and made our way through the Tetons and Yellowstone. It was sunset as we exited the East Entrance of Yellowstone. I drove through the scenic byway and Buffalo Bill State Park, and got back to our RV, Harry Hurricane quite late in the evening after leaving it sit for two days. All was fine, and we were happy to be back to our base camp; our home.
Well we woke up later than we wanted for our return tour of Yellowstone and then continuing onward to Grand Teton National Park. We threw on clothes and got off to Yellowstone to see ‘Old Faithful.’ Yellowstone is so wonderful; it really is God’s Country. I was in awe of the sights that were right before my eyes. I wasn’t seeing the sights on a ‘Discovery Channel’ program; all these sights I was experiencing with my own senses. It is a chance of a lifetime and I’m having a blast. Despite my lack of care to use sunscreen and take water while touring ‘West Thumb’ and ‘Old Faithful.’ I had a terrific time.
Again, Tony & I were running out of time and trying to beat the setting sun to get into the ‘Grand Teton National Park.’ We were tired, hot, thirsty, and ready to crash but we had to get to the next stop to bunk down. This part of the journey for the day got intense then Tony & I were at odds once again. He was driving the ‘Jenny Lake’ drive and I was done and just wanted to bunk. See, we ran into construction getting to Grand Teton National Park and it took a lot out of both of us. We tried to get a room at ‘Jackson Lake Lodge’ but it was out of our price range for showing up after 6:00 p.m. We did manage to snap some pictures with my phone. These were the sights and sounds Tony had been dreaming about and wanted to experience. Well it got ugly because the weariness settled. We stopped the sight seeing and got a place in Jackson Hole. Once we got a place at ‘Cache Creek Motel’; the motel needed to clean the room. This was the only room that was available because there was a convention in Jackson Hole.
Tony & I tried to calm down and enjoy the rest of our evening. We were unable to freshen up so we found the infamous ‘Million Dollar Cowboy Bar’ where the customers sit on saddles at the bar. We literally saddled up to the bar. I proceeded to shoot Jack Daniels to calm my nerves from traveling and bickering with Tony. The bartender was a dud considering he was serving drinks at one of our nation’s infamous bars; he could have tried to have some kind of personality. Let’s just say he didn’t make this ‘Michigander’ feel welcomed. I decided no matter, I’m watching baseball and drinking and I was going to ignore the &^%$#@! Men. After leaving the infamous ‘Million Dollar Cowboy Bar’, Tony took us to a second bar and by that time we were feeling no pain so neither of us could remember the name of this bar. I’ll tell you what I do remember; I remember that this bartender knew how to treat his out of state customers. We had one then left to find food, which was pizza. I don’t know the name of the pizza joint because I was too tired of walking around trying to find it and too drunk. I need to stress that Tony & I were walking around Jackson Hole. Our car was parked at ‘Cache Creek Motel.’ We did not drive around in that condition. In fact, we walked at least another mile just to find ‘Cache Creek Motel.’ We finally found our room, ate lousy pizza then crashed for the night.
Tony’s Notes for the 16th & 17th
It was a long drive to get back to Yellowstone’s East entrance. However, it was still full of spectacular views and worth the drive. Along the way, we passed a couple of really nice RV resorts that were much closer to the Yellowstone entrance. I am not sure if they had good cell phone signals, Wi-Fi, or Cable, but they were appealing and my mind thought about how I might go about things differently on our next cross-country extended journey. Every place we had traveled, I learned more and more about what I thought might be the right or wrong way to plan these travels.
When I was visualizing our sabbatical, back in June and July, I pictured me boondocking in the middle of nowhere, and creatively writing my thoughts; kind of like Emerson or Thoreau.
We knew this would be a two day journey and that we would end up sleeping somewhere other than at the RV. We wanted to venture around Yellowstone’s West Thumb and Geyser Basin areas. Then, the plan was to drive from the North entrance of the Grand Teton National Park to the South Entrance, and stay in Jackson Hole for a night. The plan was to spend time in the Teton’s area heading from South to North, and back up through Yellowstone toward home base before nightfall of the second day.
The West Thumb area of Yellowstone felt like we were standing on some foreign planet. It was very strange. We were surrounded by geysers and hot pools everywhere. It is very hard to put into words, and the pictures we will post can hardly give the full impact of being there in person. It was extremely amazing.
When we drove up to see Old Faithful, by the time we parked, and walked up to it, Old Faithful was erupting. We caught it just on time. However, I would have liked to have been standing a little closer watching it erupt. Anyway, we decided to hike around the area, and trails near Old Faithful.
What I did not realize was that there was about seven miles of boardwalks and trails to walk. It was a very sunny day, and we should have been carrying water, and had hats on our heads. I could not believe the amount of geysers and pools in this area. If I thought the West Thumb area was like a different planet, this ‘Old Faithful’ area was just the strangest place on earth that I had ever been. This was the area everyone from childhood on up thinks about and sees when they think about Yellowstone National Park. It was beyond amazing. The colorful pools, like “Morning Glory” and the multiple geysers of boiling water spewing up in the air with steam vents and so on.
We were worn out, hot, thirsty, and tired before getting through the boardwalks in this massive thermal area. We pressed on and were quite happy with the experience.
Once we got back to the car, it was time to drive down to the south entrance of Yellowstone and get to the Teton’s. It was quite a long drive, and we stopped and made ourselves a little picnic by another smaller mountain lake in Yellowstone. It was peaceful, pretty, and relaxing. Then, we made our way south. Once we were out of Yellowstone, and in the north entrance, the road work Carolina mentioned was horrible. The construction crew had stripped the old highway down to dirt, and for over thirty miles, it was a one lane rough dirt road. So, in a huge line of cars, motorhomes, and fifth wheels, we ‘caravanned’ southward. That took a couple hours and it was getting late.
As we passed Jackson Lake, and Jackson Lodge, I had to stop because I had heard of the spectacular views from this hundred year old resort. Jackson Lake Lodge was very beautiful, and the extremely spectacular view from the restaurant dining area and terrace was truly amazing and calming.
I thought this might be a good place to stay for the night. I figured, we should get a room, eat, and drink wine while watching the Sun set over Grand Teton. They had a nice room with a view; however, it was over $300 a night. If it was early afternoon, I might have considered it. It was after 6:30pm, and the cost was just not in the budget. Although, I was very tempted to just suck it up and do it. Anyway, we snapped a few photos and headed south.
Grand Teton’s views along the drive were awesome. I saw that there was a paved bicycle path for many miles along the valley that we could have road. Our tandem bike had been everywhere with us. We have taken it on rails to trails in multiple states. However, I left all the bicycles back at Harry. So, I was a little bummed out that I did not bring the bike. It would have been great for us to make a good bike ride in the Teton area.
We finally made it, exhausted and a bit whiny, down to Jackson Hole. Jackson Hole was a very cool cowboy town. The town is actually called Jackson. However, because it is located in the valley between several mountain ranges, it gets the slang of being in a hole. So, it is called Jackson Hole. Again, something of historical significance from the old west.
We were lucky to find a motel with a room. Everywhere we looked there was No Vacancy. It was $132 for the night, and it reminded me of a hole in the wall cheap motel that would charge hourly rates in Detroit.
The next morning, we headed up into Grand Teton National Park. As we made many stops to take photos, we got to Jenny Lake and did a six and a half mile hike around Jenny Lake. We also took a short diversion up to Hidden Falls. It was a very beautiful area that has not changed in well over a hundred years. This was a long day of hiking, but we had plenty of water this time.
We continued our day around the area. However, it was getting late and I was worried about having to drive through Yellowstone in the dark. So we headed north, and made our way through the Tetons and Yellowstone. It was sunset as we exited the East Entrance of Yellowstone. I drove through the scenic byway and Buffalo Bill State Park, and got back to our RV, Harry Hurricane quite late in the evening after leaving it sit for two days. All was fine, and we were happy to be back to our base camp; our home.
Carolina's Notes for the 17th
Well we woke up to construction noise outside our motel window. It must have been 6:30 am. We were both not ready to get up so we stayed in bed trying to rest despite the noise of construction. Once we got up, we showered and checked out. Surprise, surprise the construction crew were nowhere in sight. Go figure. We got going to tour ‘Jenny Lake.’
We stopped and picked up coffee and a yogurt parfait then proceeded to ‘Jenny Lake.’ We ate our breakfast at a scenic lookout and the view was gorgeous. We were trying to put the bickering out of our minds and enjoy our day ahead. We stopped at the ‘Jenny Lake’ Visitor Center. I suggested that Tony & I do a hike because our bicycles and boat were back with Harry. He liked that idea so we found out the details from the visitor center and got on our merry way. Once we started on this 5 to 6 mile hike around the lake, the nature made stairs spooked me. I still don’t know why. Let’s just say Tony wasn’t in any mental, spiritual or physical condition to deal with me. He let me know it too. So we left that trail. I still wanted to hike so I suggested that we try another path. I was still trying to salvage the hike despite my tears and mental anguish. Tony exasperated with me gave in and went a different way. We found the trail to ‘Hidden Falls’ and took the two and a half mile hike. Along the way we worked out both of our frustration with each other and decided to enjoy this beautiful day and gorgeous terrain. We had fun and got quite a workout. We took as many pictures as we could to try to capture the breath taking sights on the trails. Believe me being this was magical. As I took my steps I felt like I was conquering my demons of the heights. I asked Tony to help me when I needed his hand at some uneasy passes and he was there. He was very encouraging when we were almost to the falls and I was afraid to go up the natural stairs. He told me, “I’ve come this far. It would be ashame for you not to finish. You can do it. Press on.” He helped me and I pressed on and had the time of my life. The falls gave me peace, which I was in short supply. Well again, we were running against daylight and the ferry to take us back to our starting point. We would have hiked back but time was running out on us. We hurried quickly to get the boat back to the beginning and made it by luck. We had actually missed the last scheduled ferry shuttle by 5 minutes but there was one last one arriving just by happen stance all the while we were crying the blues to the attendant. Tony & I weren’t the only passengers; there was another couple just as grateful. We got over to our starting point and continued on the ‘Jenny Lake’ driving path so Tony could finish the tour. He accomplished everything other than the dining experience at Jackson Lake Lodge. We had to go so he didn’t have to drive through the mountains in the dark. So away we went. Again, tired, hungry, thirsty and ready to crash we pressed onward through the construction, Yellowstone, and the state parks home.
This trip home was a white knuckle one for me because I was just raw. We managed to eat some of our food while waiting for the construction guide to take us along the eight miles being worked. While traveling through Yellowstone our last time we saw a heard of buffalo, a bear that we presumed to be a Grizzly, and an individual moose or elk (Tony said moose and I say elk). This was truly an unexpected surprise and treat. We didn’t pull over to soak in this experience but we did quickly click the pictures to have as mementos. We pressed onward trying to beat the setting sun. Tony almost made it out of Yellowstone then the night fell as we were exiting the East Entrance. We finished the ride home in the dark and I was on pins and needles all the way. I couldn’t have driven as well as Tony. We made it back to Cody, WY. We stopped to get my DQ fix and Wendy’s because we were hungry. We had only eaten the yogurt parfait and peanut butter and jelly sandwich. We got home, ate, unloaded car, and then unpacked. I decompressed by watching TV and Tony was on the computer. I fell asleep on couch and Tony took me to bed when he went. Goodnight.
We stopped and picked up coffee and a yogurt parfait then proceeded to ‘Jenny Lake.’ We ate our breakfast at a scenic lookout and the view was gorgeous. We were trying to put the bickering out of our minds and enjoy our day ahead. We stopped at the ‘Jenny Lake’ Visitor Center. I suggested that Tony & I do a hike because our bicycles and boat were back with Harry. He liked that idea so we found out the details from the visitor center and got on our merry way. Once we started on this 5 to 6 mile hike around the lake, the nature made stairs spooked me. I still don’t know why. Let’s just say Tony wasn’t in any mental, spiritual or physical condition to deal with me. He let me know it too. So we left that trail. I still wanted to hike so I suggested that we try another path. I was still trying to salvage the hike despite my tears and mental anguish. Tony exasperated with me gave in and went a different way. We found the trail to ‘Hidden Falls’ and took the two and a half mile hike. Along the way we worked out both of our frustration with each other and decided to enjoy this beautiful day and gorgeous terrain. We had fun and got quite a workout. We took as many pictures as we could to try to capture the breath taking sights on the trails. Believe me being this was magical. As I took my steps I felt like I was conquering my demons of the heights. I asked Tony to help me when I needed his hand at some uneasy passes and he was there. He was very encouraging when we were almost to the falls and I was afraid to go up the natural stairs. He told me, “I’ve come this far. It would be ashame for you not to finish. You can do it. Press on.” He helped me and I pressed on and had the time of my life. The falls gave me peace, which I was in short supply. Well again, we were running against daylight and the ferry to take us back to our starting point. We would have hiked back but time was running out on us. We hurried quickly to get the boat back to the beginning and made it by luck. We had actually missed the last scheduled ferry shuttle by 5 minutes but there was one last one arriving just by happen stance all the while we were crying the blues to the attendant. Tony & I weren’t the only passengers; there was another couple just as grateful. We got over to our starting point and continued on the ‘Jenny Lake’ driving path so Tony could finish the tour. He accomplished everything other than the dining experience at Jackson Lake Lodge. We had to go so he didn’t have to drive through the mountains in the dark. So away we went. Again, tired, hungry, thirsty and ready to crash we pressed onward through the construction, Yellowstone, and the state parks home.
This trip home was a white knuckle one for me because I was just raw. We managed to eat some of our food while waiting for the construction guide to take us along the eight miles being worked. While traveling through Yellowstone our last time we saw a heard of buffalo, a bear that we presumed to be a Grizzly, and an individual moose or elk (Tony said moose and I say elk). This was truly an unexpected surprise and treat. We didn’t pull over to soak in this experience but we did quickly click the pictures to have as mementos. We pressed onward trying to beat the setting sun. Tony almost made it out of Yellowstone then the night fell as we were exiting the East Entrance. We finished the ride home in the dark and I was on pins and needles all the way. I couldn’t have driven as well as Tony. We made it back to Cody, WY. We stopped to get my DQ fix and Wendy’s because we were hungry. We had only eaten the yogurt parfait and peanut butter and jelly sandwich. We got home, ate, unloaded car, and then unpacked. I decompressed by watching TV and Tony was on the computer. I fell asleep on couch and Tony took me to bed when he went. Goodnight.
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