The Sabbatical Journal: Sunday June 22 thru June 25

A few days of exploring the GTNP... both on foot and on wheels. Our camp was at Gros Ventres (site 300) which was acceptable considering the proximity to the Park but certainly wasn't the nicest or roomiest camp we've experienced. But our mission was to see the Tetons and get a few miles of hiking on the boots.

Sunday we started with the Jenny Lake boat shuttle over to a trailhead for the Hidden Falls and Inspiration Point hikes. Both are located right at the foot of the Teton peaks and provide some good training for muscles suffering from a little atrophy after a few days riding in the truck. The falls was OK but the more challenging and rugged Inspiration Point hike, with somewhere shy of 1,000 feet of elevation gain was more agreeable.

Afterward we checked out more of the park... an "overview" if you will... including Jenny Lake and Jackson Lake lodges. Our stop at Jackson Lake lodge was notable as we availed ourselves of nourishment and precious fluid replacement ($37.80) while watching thunderstorms forming over the peaks and sweeping down the valley. Photos often do not do justice to spectacles of nature, and that was certainly the case with these. We also checked out Signal Mtn. Lodge (too new and bland to be of much interest) and Signal Mtn. Campground, which rated a big "thumbs-down" from us. It's probably the most centrally located CGs in the Park but just too tight, hilly, and packed with campers to rate higher.

Monday started with a light breakfast at Dornan's Chuckwagon near the south entrance to the Park followed by a 4 mile hike back to Taggert Lake. A pleasant little hike with minimal elevation gain, it's another of the more popular walks mapped by the NPS. The plan was to have a snack lunch on the shore of the lake, which we did. However the experience was spoiled somewhat by a loud and irritating youth group of some kind that broke the quiet solitude for nearly our entire time at the lake. Don't know what they were doing but it just seemed like it would never end. But that's the way it is. There are so many people visiting some of the National Parks during peak season that the only way to see them is to put up with the hassles and irritations of masses of people. We got over it.

Later, we drove to the north end of the Park, checked out a couple other CGs, and stopped at a wayside viewpoint to have a picnic "lunner". On the way back to camp, just off Gros Ventres Road, we stopped and watched three moose going about their business along and in the Gros Ventres River. Wondered if we'd see any moose so this encounter took care of that.

Back at camp we had drinks on "the Lanai" (our picnic table) at 6pm. Later heard some commotion and saw a big ol' moose trotting right through the Gros Ventres CG. Certainly had our moose fix for the day.

Tuesday. Money-spending and chore day. Yes folks, even explorers have to take a break and get the laundry done once in a while. Besides the laundromat ($18), and considering the weather wasn't all that great, we did an hour or two at the Jackson Recreation Center ($17), had lunch at Chinatown restaurant ($20), Ace Hardware for a few supplies (including bear spray) (more $), and topped off the truck's wing-tanks ($3.66/gal). And no visit to Jackson would be complete without a stop at Snake River Brewing. A full day... I'm ready for another hike.

Wednesday, we broke camp and headed north into Yellowstone.