Jackson+ Grand Teton + Yellowstone

May 11, 2017 Yellowstone National Park, United States


































Jackson is a town inside of Jackson Hole Valley in Teton County. However most people referred to the town itself as Jackson Hole. If you haven't been, I highly recommend making the effort to see this quaint /chaotic mountain town, depending on the time of the year. We had the pleasure of visiting during the off season (spring) where tourism is at a low and the wildlife is vibrant. So I considered it as a quaint town at this time because everyone walking the trails and the side walks of the town are locals. However if you plan on visiting during the peak season, I imagine that your experience would be filled with long lines and traffic. So in my opinion we were in the right place at the right time! 

During our stay in Jackson, we spent the morning hiking the Elk Refuge. The trailhead of this hike is located on the outskirts of town and contours right along the Grand Teton National Park. The reason we choose this trail was that it was unfortunately one of the only dog friendly trails in the area. But with the options being so limited we weren't upset because the scenery was open to the surrounding lakes and mountain ranges. Once the dogs had their exercise for the first half of the day, we buzzed 20 minutes north into Grand Teton National Park. The two lane road to get into the park consisted of herds of Elk that casually grazed on the freshly uncovered terrain. Upon our arrival at the visitor center, we were actually a little disappointed because the entire iconic mountain range was covered with fluffy white clouds. But we were optimistic about the rest of the day in hopes that the visibility would improve. 

Touring the 50+ miles of the national park was done with three different forms of transportation; 
1. RV (The majority of the park was covered with cruising in the RV and stopping at the pull offs in order to gander at the majestic mountains. )
2. Foot (On a couple of occasions we let the dogs out to play and stretch out our legs a little)
3. Long Boarding (I couldn't help myself, so I cruised around lake Jenny as Britney drove behind me to serve as a barrier)

As expected, the weather cleared up and a large percentage of the mountain range was visible. This made for some wonderful site seeing and excellent photo opportunities. After getting our fill of the scenic park we slowly made our way out. Although we were stopped by a pack of Bison that insisted on taking their sweet time crossing the road, no complaints. We marveled over their beauty and enjoyed coexisting within 25' of these beasts before getting situated back in Jackson.

Once we got back into town we cruised up and down main street in search for the right place to eat. Landing on a little local Mexican joint called Hatch. This place served up elk quesadillas and kurobuta pork tenderloin which paired nicely with with margaritas and tequila. Can't go wrong.  It was surely a place that did not disappoint. 

With our next point of interest being Yellowstone, we were only 55 miles away. However the connection road between Grand Teton and Yellowstone was still covered with snow. So we had to drive around the park which took almost four hours. Bummer. But it was a drive that was perfect for the windows to be down, the tunes to be way up and some serious rubber necking.

YELLOWSTONE

As of right now, sitting in a coffee shop in Banff, Canada, I would say that the best way to describe Yellowstone can be done through the photos that we captured. It was truly an experience that we will never forget and the best way to appreciate it would be to go and experience for yourself. 

Next stop, Glacier National Park. 

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