So, I've been stalling on blogging my last couple of trips...I feel like my Wyoming/Idaho road trip was super personal and emotional and I don't really want to divulge the details on the world wide web, so I guess I'll just outline my itinerary and load some pictures and keep it at that.
I found a 4 day stretch in July that hadn't been snagged up and decided that I was long overdue for a trip back home and to the Tetons. I'd grown up going to Jackson Hole and the Tetons several times a year, every year, and really missed it. Tickets on Allegiant from Mesa were $119 round trip into Idaho Falls, so I did my usual - rented a small SUV and winged it.
My rental was a Subaru Forester and had a few cons...namely that it was short and had low ceilings. I couldn't sit upright in the back which was a bummer, and I couldn't stretch my legs out...which ended up sucking more than I could ever convey. The plusses - Awesome gas mileage and a panoramic sunroof. I loaded up and headed west towards Jackson Hole. I couldn't get enough of the fields along the way...It was the most beautiful day and I just spent hours frolicking in them. I remember doing the same thing in the same fields as a teenager. It made me want to buy a bunch of land and farm it. I found this area just as therapeutic as the mountains and without the danger of predators eating me, so I loved it.
A short drive later, I was up and over the Teton Pass. To say that the wildflowers were epic is a bit of an understatement. That's the main reason I chose to go to the mountains as much as possible in the summer time - wildflowers. I'm obsessed with them.
The next morning, I made my way into Teton National Park and to Jenny Lake and String Lake for some hiking. There was some volcanic activity in Yellowstone while I was there, so many of the trails were closed, but I still was able to get in a couple of pretty significant hikes and managed to not get eaten by a Grizzly.
I even saw a mamma moose with twin babies, but they were chowing down under a tree in the shade. I was content with them being content and admiring from afar, but of course, some trashy family had to barrel across the creek to scare them out of the shadows. I continued on before somebody got killed.
^I would move right in an put my little Adirondack chairs right in this spot here:)^
This is where my rental really bit me in the butt. I had to sleep on my side because I couldn't stretch out, and I don't usually pack a sleeping pad, so between my hip and shoulder digging into the floorboards and my knees and hips being bent in the same position all night long, I woke up stiff and in horrible pain every morning. It limited my hiking ability, which sounds ridiculous, but I seriously felt about 85 years old the entire trip because my legs and hips were so stiff and creaky. No amount of stretching or ibuprofen helped out, and after hiking all day long, I'd try and get comfy and would lock up in that position all night. It was awful. That night, I made my way back to Jackson for an early dinner and then back to Idaho Falls for the night. I spent the evening under windmills and watched the sun go down. Fun fact: This very road is where my dad taught me to drive a manual transmission many, many years ago <3
From there, the plan was to drive up the Salmon River...another spot I grew up exploring every year when I was a kid. However, in a moment of low blood sugar and desperation, I missed my turn and ended up somewhere else. Don't ask me where because I have no clue. I stumbled upon a really cool old gold mine right across the river from a really depressing, devastating new gold mine. I explored the old homesteads and the cemetery (of course). The following day, I drove to Sun Valley for more hiking. I continued on along the Sawtooth Mountains and eventually found myself in Stanley. I spent the entire next day exploring the mountains, swimming in pristine green lakes, and watching antelope prancing around on the prairie.
^I happened upon kind of creepy shelter with a sealed envelope inside...bizarre^
