Heading West Again

2018-09-07
Grand Tetons National Park, WY

Today was mainly a travel day. I had to get all the way across Wyoming, and they don't have a turnpike so it was maybe seven hours of driving. Last night was pretty rough for me. I had trouble falling asleep, possibly due to iced tea, or Sudafed, the noisy AC on the unit next door, or the guy / girl with a sinus problem in another tent. I also woke up early due to my cold.

This brings up campground populations. I can say that I'm at the bottom end of the age range for the most part; if you want to feel young go to the urologist or campgrounds in September. There are generally three styles of campers. First there are the guys with the 30-40 foot campers or trailers. We all laugh at them when we see bridge height or tunnel width signs or we take a turn at 65 MPH. There are also a lot of campgrounds with size limitations that won't allow the big boys. Of course we are totally jealous of them once they are parked for the night with their full kitchens with robot chefs, crystal chandeliers, whirlpool baths, and zero-gravity sleeping chambers. Maybe you can tell I've never been in one but I'm sure they're just like that. There are also the midrange people who have conversion vans or pop-top trailers. Mostly I feel like the midrange folks are either tent people that were camping so much that they wanted everything set up permanently, or people that are just don't want to drive the big campers, or possibly just indecisive folks. And then at the top of the heap are the tent guys who spend time each night setting up their nest.but are closest to the outdoors. Obviously everyone wants to be us, at least according to me. If you head out on a trip like this you'll have to decide what's right for you.

This morning I packed up my nest by 7:00 AM and started across Wyoming. The speed limit is generally 75 or 80, and it's all two lane roads with lots of passing zones. I realized when I pull out to pass a 30 foot RV that I'm then hurtling towards an oncoming car at around 160 mph or so. I like physics, but sometimes knowledge can be scary.

I arrived at the Tetons in the afternoon, and I stopped at a few pullouts because the blue sky and puffy clouds generally make great pictures. However, all of the mountains came out hazy. I think there's a fair amount of smoke in the air. I'll have to try a different tactic for pictures.

I continued to Jenny Lake Visitor Center, which is currently a field of portapots and a double-wide with something that appears to be much nicer behind a chain link fence. The ranger helpfully set me up with a couple hikes, one for the afternoon and one for tomorrow. The first hike involved catching a boat across the lake and then walking back around. The latter part was important because the last boat was in about 10 minutes. I quickly changed into hiking shoes, threw some water in my pack, and headed at a near run to the boat dock. I got there just in time and caught the boat over, and then hiked to Hidden Falls, Inspiration Point, and back to my car.

I figured coming back around the lake would be pretty easy because lakes are notoriously flat. However the Tetons rise from relatively flat ground; that is what gives them their distinct feel. So the return trip was more of a hike along the side of the mountain, which was arguably more fun.

I did have the good fortune to see a few critters as I went around the lake.

Hiking distance: 4 miles plus a boat run