June 3-Signal Mountain Campground

Today we were up and out earlier than usual. We still seem to have a problem with our trailer battery holding a charge. We plan to go back into Jackson after the float trip and buy a new battery. We got everything ready and I packed our lunch last night so we got a good start. We were happy to see a big buck Elk on our drive into Moose, along with a small herd of females (4-6 unsure of count). We also saw a couple of Pronged Horned Antelope both on our drive there and back. So anyway we arrived an hour early for our trip but we took Tony for a long walk along the side of the Snake River and wore him out so he wouldn’t be too unhappy waiting. We were relieved it was a cool day and he would not be hot at all in the van waiting. Soon the three Solitude Van rolled up, they run this concession for the Nat’l Park Service. Our guide is Mike who is from Idaho but has lived here for 27 years, he doesn’t look much older that that! One couple never showed up so we waited about 15 minutes and then went ahead. There was a total of 28 people in 3 rafts, but we never really saw the other people, just the 8 people in our raft, 6 from CA, and 2 from NC. The couple from North Carolina spend a couple months in this area and in West Yellowstone every year, they love it. It is their 12 raft float! The water looks like it is moving faster than it is but it is fast, just under 10K cubic square foot gallons per minute, it peaked a couple days ago. They have a pretty slick way to get into the rafts, they back down of course, then slide the raft off the trailer, then you walk across the trailer and step down into the raft and you’re all set. The views were fantastic. The river banks look like man-made levees but of course they are not. Even at the speed and volume of this water one can hit bottom, which we did twice. You can also hear the rocks tumbling along the riverbed in places. Mike shared a lot of geological information and facts about the river. I was a surprise that potato farmers in Idaho have the water rights because they build the dam at Jackson Lake. There is other interesting history about the area. I finally found out why so many places have French names, it was explorers, hunters, scouts coming down from Canada that gave the names. Makes sense, I just didn’t’ think about that. We saw a flock American White Pelicans and one just sitting there but I couldn’t get a good photo. They are pure white with a bright yellow/orange bill and sack. They don’t dip in the water for fish like at the ocean but just sit on the water and bob down for their meal. We saw lots of Canada Geese, a few Red Tailed Hawks, a few Bald Eagles, and a Bald Eagle nest with one adult and two youngsters in it. Mike said they have been in this area trying to have a family for four years but this is the first year they were successful, no one knows why. There was one other nesting bird with a red head but I have forgotten the name. We saw a lot of evidence of beavers but none to be seen. Near the end of the float where the river is just one solid river, no divisions or tributaries we saw a couple of moose feeding, both females and they look so scrawny you do feel sorry for them. Mike said they had a very hard winter and there hasn’t been time for them to recover yet. That makes sense. We were hungry so we ate our lunch then headed into Jackson. Thankfully Mike had told us the only place in town to buy the battery we needed. We got that and headed back. We are tired to we are saving a couple roads we want to go on for tomorrow. Bison were the last treat of the day, just two in the far distance grazing. I think it might have been those we saw at Gros Ventre because they were in the same area. John got the battery switched out and we stayed around to run the generator to be sure it is fully charged. We played cards, watched a few minutes of brief rain from beneath our awning, and listened to the wind howl, or I should say the trees moving in the wind, it was a beautiful sound, and really loud! We had a loaded baked potato for dinner.

Elk-Male

Elk-Female

Our Guide Mike

Deadman’s Bar

Ready to Go!

Launching Process

Fabulous Views

Having FUN!

Bald Eagles on Nest

Young Female Moose

Weathered Female Moose, Rough Winter

Bison in the Distance

 

 

 

 

June 2-Signal Mountain Campground

We had a rather quiet day. Our little patch of snow in our campsite has melted away. After breakfast we went to the lodge and used the Wi-Fi there to post my blog and do other things on the computer. We made a reservation for a float trip at National Park Float Trips. We will need to be across the road from the Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center at Moose Landing at 9am tomorrow. We were at the lodge using the Wi-Fi for a couple of hours. When we came back to camp I fixed a big lunch, so we have a complete leftover meal of that for another day. We relaxed and read in the afternoon and late afternoon we took the Signal Mountain drive. It was a beautiful but short drive. We went really slow and searched for wildlife but only a few birds in sight. We joked that we needed our guide Ruan from our African Safari to find the animals. The Jackson Lake lookout was a great stop with a little path and a trail that we took as well. I was surprised at the clouds of mosquitoes up there. One would think they would be closer to the lake. We proceeded to the top of the mountain, what a fabulous lookout spot for the valley below. Nice drive but no wildlife to be seen.

No more snow patch in our campground

Signal Mountain Lodge Wi-Fi (my spot is in the corner!)

Lunch Veggies, went with Chicken Alfredo

View from Jackson Lake Lookout on Signal Mountain

Beautiful Valley View from Signal Mountain Summit

June 1-Signal Mountain Campground

We had a full day of exploring. We took several dirt roads along with paved roads and saw some wildlife and a lot of wildflowers as well. We stopped at String Lake and Jenny Lake, both are so beautiful, serene, calm, quite, peaceful. String Lake especially. If I was going to kayak it would be on that lake, it was like glass. Watching a moose feed for a long time meandering thorough the water made my day. The Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center was amazing. After the film we watched the curtains parted and the screen receded and we were left with an awesome view of the Tetons. After the sightseeing we went into Jackson and got the necessary groceries. It was a wonderful day.

String Lake, like glass

Elk and baby, that brown spot low behind her is the calf

Jenny Lake

Pronged Horned Antelope

Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center

Moose

Lupine Meadows

May 30 & 31-Signal Mountain Campground

30th: It was chilly last night so we did use our heater this morning for about five minutes before we got out of bed. It was 60 in the trailer, but it seemed colder. My phone says the low last night was 38* and the high today will be 73* at any rate we are quite comfortable. Today we explored just a little bit of the campground and rested the remainder of the time. My neck is still a little sore and the dull headache continues so resting seemed prudent. 

31st: It was a little bit warmer last night and we didn’t use the heater this morning. After breakfast and coffee we walked down to and along the shore of the lake, what majestic views! We hoped to see some sort of wildlife but that was not the case. The shore is pebbles or “river rock” but there is sand too. Tony had a lot of fun getting his legs and belly wet. After walking back John brushed him down while I cooked lunch. We started up the generator so I could use that to fix the little Turkey Meatloaf from Trader Joe’s I had in the freezer. That with spinach and red peppers was our lunch. We finished the rest of the bottle of wine we bought a couple days ago. After relaxing we headed to Colter Village to look around. It’s just 15-20 minutes north of where we are staying now. There a lot there: A Visitor’s Center, a pretty nice (though expensive) grocery store, Laundromat, showers that cost a flat rate of $4.50 each. We heard some thunder in the distance when we arrived. The Visitor’s Center is not huge but they do have several movies going all day long. We watched the one on Yellowstone on Fire. This was a huge fire in 1988 that burned all summer long and really wasn’t out until the rain and snow came. Very tragic for people for for the environment in the park it boosted the eco system and even benefits the animals. After watching the movie and walking through the center we headed out. By now it had just begun to rain, wait not rain but now hail!!! We made it to the van before the worst of it came down. We sat and watched as cherry sized hail hit the ground and bounced! The storm didn’t last long and we drove the short distance back to take a look at the store and the shower facilities, then headed back toward camp. I am disappointed we are not seeing wildlife. There are constant warnings about bears and areas are even closed off due to bear activity, but we have seen nothing but various birds and squirrels. Those are great to see of course but hoped to see a moose or elk by now. Our campsite was totally dry so just a few miles away makes the difference in a hail storm like that! Playing cards rounded out our day, then a slight sprinkle after dark when we were in bed.

Walking by Jackson Lake

Colter Bay Visitor Center Views

Colter Bay Hail Storm

~~Bears~~

 

May 29-Signal Mountain Campground Grand Teton

Today we moved from Gros Ventre to Signal Mountain Campground. It wasn’t a very long drive, maybe 25+ miles. It certainly is a scenic drive and we saw several places we will drive back to from our campsite to explore. I am sore today and still have a slight headache so the plan is just to move and then relax the rest of the day. We didn’t end up getting any groceries last night and it is likely we will head back into Jackson one day to do that before heading on to Yellowstone. We really like this campground. It is by Jackson Lake and has a variety of beautiful pine and fir trees. You can still find a few patches of snow on the ground though it was over 70 degrees today. I guess these places in the shade have just not warmed up enough to melt. There are different areas in this campground with many options. You can rent the one and only full hookup site for $55. per night. There are several campsites that offer electricity only for $45. per night. The rest are standard campsites at $22. per night. Some are tent only campsites and there is an area where no generators are allowed. Holding a valid Senior Access Card (formerly Golden Age Passport) any campsite is half price. We have a standard campsite as we have a generator to replenish our power and we are fully contained. After setting up camp we went to the Signal Mountain Lodge for lunch. I had fish and chips, John had a burger, which we each split so we could enjoy both. Actually John had order envy when he saw my fish and chips! Both were delicious and we splurged for a bottle of wine to go with it. We could take our unused portion with us so we will have that with dinner tomorrow. What a lovely lunch gazing out over the beautiful, calm lake with the snow patched Tetons in the background. We relaxed the rest of the day, I even fell asleep, which is unusual for me but I am a bit under the weather from the fall. (found Wi-Fi for posting blog at the Signal Mountain Lodge)

Lunch at Signal Mountain Lodge

Our Lunchtime View, Jackson Lake & Tetons

May 28-Gros Ventre Campground, Grand Teton, WY

Today we decided to spend the day in the city of Jackson, about 10 miles back on the road we came in on. After doing what was necessary around camp we headed out. Our first stop was the National Wildlife Art Museum. We didn’t go inside but walked on the sculpture trail. Next stop was the Jackson Visitor’s Center where they have some nice displays and a variety of maps and information for free. Part of the city is more modern and although we checked that out, we were more interested in the part that was older. There is a City Square that has a nice little park and at each corner there are arches fashioned from elk antlers. The boy scout collect these every year and sell them at auction. Elk shed their horns every year in case you were wondering. There are lovely hanging baskets of flowers, mostly petunias. We walked all over the town window shopping and I went in a few stores. Every store I went into had at least one stuffed bear or moose, some had several! We had an iced coffee at a sidewalk café and really enjoyed that. We decided maybe we would ride the little stagecoach they have so we went back to the City Center. There was a sign posted that they would be back so we looked for a shady place to stand. Then the unexpected happened when I leaned back on a log railing, it fell and consequently I did too. I landed flat on my back and my head instantly followed slamming into the ground. It happened so fast John and Tony were both looking down at me in amazement. I stayed right where I was for a minute to see if anything hurt but I felt okay other than a “shaken brain.” A man and woman came to see if I was okay and helped me up. I was okay but then we opted to sit on the benches to wait for the stagecoach. No more leaning on railings for me!!! As we sat there a little boy all alone came wandering along almost in tears. Yes, he was lost. I had him come and sit with me and John went to a nearby shop and asked them to call the police. He was just a little wisp of a boy with blonde hair fluttering in the breeze. He lost his babysitter in a store. After the police arrived we trusted he would be taken care of and decided just to head toward our dinner engagement and skip the stagecoach. Tonight we had a nice dinner and show at the Bar J Chuckwagon as recommended by friend Jeff Whitehead. Thanks Jeff! They have some sculptures on the grounds, even an authentic replica of a Shoshone Teepee so it was interesting to walk around after arrival and before the dinner. The food was authentic and the show was really great. People apparently come from miles around to eat here and watch the show, I can see why.

Antler Arches

 

Jackson Stagecoach 

Bar J Chuckwagon

Bar J Bunch

 

May 27-Gros Ventre Campground, Grand Teton, WY

Not long after leaving Wells, NV we saw a small herd of deer by the side of the road. At least I think they were deer, they were lighter in color than the deer we normally see in CA so I’m not sure. They were almost blonde, maybe 12-14 of them. No photo as there was no place to pull over and snap a shot. We made good time today and decided to drive all the way to Jackson, WY (Jackson Hole). We will spend two nights here. Tomorrow we will peruse the town of Jackson and then attend a dinner and show at the Bar J Chuckwagon. Our day did end up being uneventful though we had a little scare when our brakes started smoking coming down a pretty steep 10% grade over the Teton Pass. We did fine going up and would have been fine going down the other side but we got behind a large truck going about 10 MPH and low gear would not hold us back enough so I had to really ride the brakes. We decided to pull over and let them cool off and we were fine when we started out again, no further smoking. It wasn’t too far past Jackson that we found our camping spot. Not every loop here is open but most are and there are many, many open sites. Where we are camped it is very close to the Gros Ventre River and the terrain is mostly sagebrush and other low lying plants with lots of Cottonwood trees for shade. On the way here we saw 4 adult bison, which was a nice surprise. They say there are many bear right now and that moose have also been seen in the campground. It is surprising that we have no “bear safe” food locker but we keep all our food in the trailer anyway so it doesn’t matter to us. So today we started out in Nevada, spent most of the day driving through Idaho, and we are sleeping in Wyoming! We traveled on Hwy 93 almost to Twin Falls, then Hwy 84, to Hwy 86, to Hwy 15 to Idaho Falls, then a few turns here and there and we were on Hwy 26, Hwy 31, Hwy 33 that turned into Hwy  22 in Wyoming and over Teton Pass. Scenic views and a short cut I guess!

Teton Pass

Bison

Setting up camp under the Cottonwoods, Gros Ventre Campground

Tony is tired tonight, all that driving.  LOL