Grand Tetons National Park, Wyoming

We left the Elks Lodge parking lot in Idaho Falls, Idaho very early in order to get to a campground near Grand Teton National Park that has sold out every day this summer.  We left so early for our two hour drive that we were on the move before the sun came up.  

There was smoke in the air from the fires so we had a hazy sunrise.

 

 

We loved this campground so much that we stayed there three times on our 2008 vacation to Grand Teton and Yellowstone.  The campground is named Gros Ventre (pronounced "grow vont").    

 

We arrived at 9:30 AM and this was the line in front of us for people trying to get a campsite.

 

 

And the line behind us........

We were lucky and got a site!  The ranger put us in a site that holds a 32' travel trailer and we're 34' but we fit it in. 

I was so happy to get a spot!  (I didn't have a good backup plan if we didn't get in.)  It was $30 night with no hookups.  We decided to stay 4 nights and explore the area and to search out our next campsite since we didn't have any reservations.  My thinking was that would put our leave date after the weekend and hopefully less people to try and find our next site.  Plus, I don't know why but I love this campground! 

 

 

Smoke from the fires was hanging over the area.  It was so bad that we could barely make out the mountains but rain was in the forecast so we hoped that would clean up our views.     

Now that we were settled in to a campsite, it was time to do some hiking!  Our first hike was to Taggart and Bradley Lakes.  It was 3.9 miles with 500 ft gain. 

First we hiked to Taggert Lake and when we got to the lake, it had the "Wow" factor!

And then we hiked over to Bradley Lake.

Snack Stop (Al, where is your apple core?)

 That was an awesome hike!

Another day we stopped off at Lower Schwabacher Landing.  I saw my first wild beaver in this area on our last trip in 2008.  The fall colors just enhanced the beauty of our views.

 

 

I was looking for my beaver friend on this visit but he must have been hiding.  

 

 

There are many viewpoint stops along the north-south road that runs parallel to the Teton range.  

On the northern end of the mountain range is Mount Moran. 

There is also another road that runs north-south but closer to the mountain range.  That area contains Jenny Lake which is a very popular stop.  There were SO many cars parked that the parking lot spilled over to the road and then out to the main north-south road.  We got out and walked the area a little but it was too crowded to do any real hiking.  We hiked this area on our last trip so we saw it less crowded.  

Due to COVID-19, there was a line just to get into the visitor center gift shop since they limit the number of people inside.  As much as I love shopping (not!) I'm not going to wait in line to go shopping! 

On our last morning at the Gros Ventre campground we went out walking looking for the moose.  We saw moose in the campground the last time we visited and we were not disappointed this time either!  The moose just go walking through the campground in the morning.  We got to see a couple of big bull moose (from a safe distance)!

Happy Moose

What you looking at?

That was a thrill!  It was Monday and we got ready to leave Gros Ventre Campground and move to our next site.  

Gros Ventre only has one dump station and it gets very busy each morning as people are leaving so we packed up the trailer and went the night before to avoid the line.  Unfortunately when we were re-parking the trailer back in our campsite, we hit this sign with our truck on the front passenger side.  Ouch! 

Can you see some wrinkles on the truck.  Ouch!

We left the Gros Ventre Campground and drove north to just past the Triangle X Ranch.  There is a road on the right that leads to free campsites.  The free campsites are in Bridger-Teton National Forest which is not part of the national park. 

 

We took the bumpy forest road 30310 very slowly.  There were people parked in the lower section which I considered a quick overnight spot to park.  The camp host volunteers appeared to be parked in this area too.  We took the road further and went left at the fork and then further up the bumpy road until we came to an opening on the left.  

The time that we arrived must have been perfect because there was one section that was empty so we got set up so that our window side was facing the mountains.  

This was our view!

There were many RV's parked closer to the mountains but in our opinion it was a bit too busy in that area so we were very happy with our site.  We set up our screened in porch so no one parked in front of us so we could hook the trailer back up to the truck when it was time to leave.

Awesome, we got a great free camping spot with a beautiful view of the Tetons and since it was past Labor Day, there was no restriction on the number of nights we could stay!  Between Memorial Day and Labor Day there is a 5 night limit.

With that out of the way, it was time to do more exploring of the park.

Ansel Adams stood here in 1942 and took this photograph of the vast unspoiled beauty of the Snake River and jagged Teton Range.  The National Park Service hired Adams in 1941 to capture nature as exemplified by national parks.  At the time local ranchers were battling a proposal to include the Jackson Hole valley in Grand Teton National Park  Adam's photographs helped promote and protect western US landscapes. 

Not as good as Ansel Adams but not too bad of a photo of the Snake River and Grand Tetons.

One night after dinner we drove down to Antelope Flats Road to try and see some bison.  We were not disappointed as they were crossing the road right in front of us. 

Hey, you farted!

 

 

Male, Female, Baby

 

We stopped at Mormon Row to take some photos of the famous barn that is in so many photos of the park.

So every day our view of the Tetons changed with the cloud cover and the RV's that were parked in the front row.  People were always coming and going.  An RV would leave and not long after, a new one would take it's place. 

So we had a section that was "fenced" off so vehicles would not park on the sagebrush and destroy the area.  Not long after we parked, a guy in a car pulled up.  Jeremy was looking for a place to pitch his tent for a few nights.  We offered him to put his tent in "our" section.  He said he had some friends who were joining him so we said sure, you can all pitch your tents near us.  

Later that afternoon, a white van and car pull up.  Jeremy had met these people recently and they were all camping together for a few nights so we had the "kids" parked with us.  

One couple slept in their van, Brian slept in his car, and Jeremy slept in his tent. 

The kids were really friendly and we enjoyed talking with them for the nights they were parked near us. The couple have a plant based mac & cheese business in the LA and Portland, OR areas and it's called Avocadamama.  Brian was recently let go from his job so he decided to go see the country.  Jeremy was from Pennsylvania and recently graduated from a college in Chicago with a masters in music so he was out exploring too. 

Instagram: @avocadamama      Website:  https://avocadamama.com/

 

We watched as a 5th wheel arrived in the free camping area.  The couple were walking around trying to find a place to park.  We went out to talk with them and since they had an RV from the same manufacturer as us, Grand Design, and it was also a Reflection so we offered for them to park in "our" area with us.  Norm and Kim got set up and we had a happy little group.  

At night we would gather outside and exchange stories from our day and recommendations for things to see and do. 

Us on the left, Norm and Kim on the right and the "kids" behind.

Norm and Kim are from Utah and have a popular YouTube channel with over 10K subscribers:  Mountain Beaches, https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1jF9t80CB80fzsAkRltEAA

I didn't realize we were parked with famous YouTube stars!  😉

This was looking further away from the mountains in the free camping area.

Looking towards the Tetons

Many, many RV's parked for the night in the "front row"

The people we met in the free camping area were so friendly.  This guy was from Pennsylvania and was camping with his wife, small child, and these two Great Pyrenees mountain dogs in a small Airstream.  The dogs were so friendly and mellow.  Whenever Al saw the guy walking them, he would go out and get his dog fix. 

I want one or two......

Beautiful sunset behind the Tetons

There were more free campsites deeper into the forest from us so we went for a walk a few times to check them out.  One night we caught a nice sunset.

Fall colors, Grand Tetons, and sunset.  Winning combination!

Squeezing the sun

Back at our campsite there were more vehicles as the "kids" returned for the night and another friend joined the group.  One girl stopped by who was staying at a hostel and the kids all talked to her from a distance and with their masks on in case she had the virus.  These times! 

 

 

Another day we did the hike to Hermitage Point near the Coulter Bay Lodge and Visitor's center.  It was a 9.5 mile hike.  As we approached the trailhead, another lady was approaching at the same time.  We ended up hiking most of the trail with Naomi from San Francisco.  She recently lost her job in event planning so she decided to take a trip with the Tetons being one of the parks she was visiting.  

After the views of the Tetons, the loop trail continued and we passed this enormous lily pad  This is looking both directions.

 

 

That was a nice hike and we enjoyed talking with Naomi.

 

We decided to go back to Antelope Flats Road again to check on the bison.  Again we got lucky with great close up views of these giant animals.

The babies were so cute

Cute couple, I think they were on a date! 💕

 

 

A storm is coming!  

 

The morning after the storm, we took a tour on a Barker-Ewing Float Trip that took us 10 miles down the Snake River.  We boarded the rafts at the Deadman's Bar Road launch ramp and floated down to the Grand Teton National Park Headquarters area.  

Due to Covid-19, Al and I had one section of the raft to ourselves and there were three people on the other end of the raft.  Normally there would be 12 people plus the guide per raft. 

Lucky for us there was fresh snow on the mountains.

 

 

 

It was a bit cold that morning but we were prepared with warm clothes and coats.  We had a nice ride but unfortunately the only wildlife we saw were two bald eagles and some birds.

Ah, the beauty of fall

We couldn't get enough of this view with the ever changing RVs. 

Out for another walk from our campsite we captured this view.

With the mountains behind me taking this photo of our site

Another day we took a drive south to the Laurance S Rockefeller Preserve and hiked around Phelps lake.  The place was very busy with no parking spots for our truck so we had to park further down the road.  The Visitor's Center was closed but that didn't keep people from enjoying the preserve.  Once we got further away from the parking area, we didn't pass too many people on the trail.

Tight rope Al

Back to camp and another beautiful sunset behind the Tetons.

Back inside the trailer where it's nice and warm to watch the end of the sunset

Ah, a nice clear morning and what a view to wake up to!

The reflection on our Reflection

The kids and Norm & Kim moved on from our area so it was just us for a couple more nights.  We made plans to hook up with Norm & Kim again in about a week at our next major destination.

 

 

As if it was even possible, a more beautiful sunset.

Sadly it was time to leave this magical place and move on down the road.  We headed north towards Yellowstone National Park but as we drove along Jackson Lake we had to stop for more photos!

 

 

 

We were lucky to stay 4 nights at the Gros Ventre Campground and 8 nights in the free camping area.  

 

Goodbye to Grand Teton National Park.  Can't wait to visit again!

As we made our way to Cody, Wyoming the route took us through a bit of Yellowstone National Park.  We made a short stop at Old Faithful to watch it erupt.

We arrived at Old Faithful at just about the right time with just minutes to spare before it erupted. 

I was surprised how many people were at Old Faithful at the end of September and during a pandemic!

What pandemic????

My friend, Ly, told us about some local yummy ice cream so we went in to the cafeteria and got some Wilcoxson's Ice Cream. 

Thanks for the tip, Ly!  It was delicious!

After the quick stop off at Old Faithful, we were back on the road headed east to Cody, WY for a few nights.  

We had a great time at Grand Teton National Park where we did some great hikes, had views of beautiful scenery and animals, and met some really nice people.  Grand Teton is one of my favorite national parks.  Can you tell?

Oh, and if you didn't already guess, the photos with the yellow frames were taken by Al.

Next we're headed to a trout farm and alpaca ranch.