This weekend, Greg went to his Optometry Convention in Jackson Hole Wyoming, right outside Grand Teton National Park.
On the way there we stopped along the Snake River at "Big Kahuna" to watch a couple of rafts go over the rapids. A couple of years ago we did the rapids. Watching them reminded us of how much fun that was!
We checked into our motel and Greg headed off to his classes. I took a nap, and I shopped a bit the first day.
The next day while he was in class, I drove to Teton National Park and went on a guided hike with a ranger. The trail, and mountains and flowers were very beautiful. The ranger told a story of when he saw a moose and calf grazing near the river. The adult moose began to cross the deep river. She had no trouble with her long powerful legs, but the calf began to flounder and float down the river. The calf just opened it's mouth, grabbed onto it's mother's tail, and the mother moose towed the baby across!
It was nice and cool during the hike because is was overcast and very lightly sprinkling. I learned a new plant: bear berry. Here is a picture.
After Greg got out of class, we went on a hike around String and Leigh Lakes. We took lots of pictures as you can see!
String Lake is a long thin lake (hence the name) and we very popular with canoers. People from all over the world come to Teton National Park and we heard several different languages there.
The trail went through wildflower meadows above the lake, through shady forests of lodgepole pine, and finally to the shores of Leigh Lake, a tranquil beauty formed by glaciers in the last ice age. It was a delightful hike.
When Greg was finished with his conference on Saturday, we drove to Driggs, then up to the trailhead for Table Rock.
The trail was so beautiful with the Tetons in the distance, covered with glaciers, and the shoulder-high wildflowers all around us!
There was a cooling waterfall almost right at the trailhead.
It was very lush from all the rain we got in June. In fact, the wildflowers were waist high, or even over our heads in some places. I saw lupine, mules ear, monkshood, geranium, lousewort, gentian, columbine, paintbrush, fireweed, bear berry, chokecherry, huckleberry, twinberry, yampa, cow parsnip, flax, and dozens more that I don't know the names for.
We hiked a couple of miles up to a very comfortable rock where we rested and ate a few trail snacks.
The clouds were building up into impressive thunderheads as we hiked down, and about the time we go into the car, the raindrops started. Great timing! It turned into a downpour on the way home. We wondered about the backpackers we saw starting up the trail just as we finished. I hope they had good rain gear!
It was fun trip. I definitely want to go back to both Grand Tetons, and also to the last trail we hiked and hike them again!
