Greetings from the Tetons,
I am on my last day here in Grand Teton Park. It has been a nice but relatively sleepless trip. At the moment I am sitting in the Jackson Lake Lodge where the signal on my Verizon broadband is strong. When I worked at Colter Bay we had a pretty strong signal there, not now.
The trip up through Colorado last week was a good one. I got to some places I'd never been and revisited some that it had been years since my last stop there. In the latter category were Durango, Silverton and Ouray. The campgrond outside of Durango where I resided for night was right next to the tracks of the Durango/Silverton Narrow Gauge Railway. Last time I was in this area was many years ago with daughter Natasha on one of our annual summer adventures.
As for new places, the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park was a longtime desired destination and it was not a disappointment. I love these "big holes" in the ground. There were so many great views to take in there. That night I camped a couple of miles outside of the town of Gunnison. After establishing my camp I headed up to another first, the town of Crested Butte, which is a lovely little Mountain ski resort that use to be an old mining town. I had dinner there at The Last Steep, a bar and grill. The wake-up at the Gunnison camp was pretty cool, about 40 degrees. I got up and rapidly took down the tent and went to town for a breakfast burrito and coffee.
I am on my last day here in Grand Teton Park. It has been a nice but relatively sleepless trip. At the moment I am sitting in the Jackson Lake Lodge where the signal on my Verizon broadband is strong. When I worked at Colter Bay we had a pretty strong signal there, not now.
The trip up through Colorado last week was a good one. I got to some places I'd never been and revisited some that it had been years since my last stop there. In the latter category were Durango, Silverton and Ouray. The campgrond outside of Durango where I resided for night was right next to the tracks of the Durango/Silverton Narrow Gauge Railway. Last time I was in this area was many years ago with daughter Natasha on one of our annual summer adventures.
As for new places, the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park was a longtime desired destination and it was not a disappointment. I love these "big holes" in the ground. There were so many great views to take in there. That night I camped a couple of miles outside of the town of Gunnison. After establishing my camp I headed up to another first, the town of Crested Butte, which is a lovely little Mountain ski resort that use to be an old mining town. I had dinner there at The Last Steep, a bar and grill. The wake-up at the Gunnison camp was pretty cool, about 40 degrees. I got up and rapidly took down the tent and went to town for a breakfast burrito and coffee.
Littleton, CO to visit my niece was my next sojourn. That drive from Gunnison was beautiful, especially going over Monarch Pass at over 11,ooo feet. My sister Norma flew in the night I got their and her daughter Kimby and I drove out to the Denver Airport to get her. The airport is so far out it felt like it was in Kansas. At any rate the visit with Norma, Kimby, her husband Dennis and my great niece and nephew, Melissa and Kyle was a lot of fun. Even sitting through Melissa's dance recital which had about 64 dance pieces 8 of which she was a participant was an interesting experience. Littleton was another new destination for me. 
Kyle, Kimby, Melissa and Me
This posting is getting pretty long, and boring but I shall continue. From Colorado I headed up to Lander, WY to see my friends Ron and Brooke. The drive from Littleton to Lander was in continuous rain all the way. The most "white knucle" portion of it was on Interstate 80 between Rawlins and Laramie. Those big semi-trucks give off so much spray from their wheels that they are a hazzard to cars and there are hundreds of them on that major east/west corridor. I was so glad to get off the Interstate at Laramie. The rest of the drive was relatively uneventful except for a little snow before dropping down into Lander.
The visit with Ron was a good one except that it rained continously in Lander until the day I left. We did not get to do our annual hike up Sinks Canyon because of rain and flooding of the Popo Agie River. However we did drive to Termopolis, WY and sit in the natural hot springs there. This was another first for me. Brooke made two excellent dinners while I was there.
I left Lander on Monday and arrived midmorning at Colter Bay in the Tetons. When my friend Ranger Bob (the elder) got off work we headed up to Yellowstone to spend the night at one of my favorite places, Roosevelt Lodge. We got to sit in the rocking chairs on the porch of the lodge in the evening and the morning. After breakfast in the lodge we headed out pretty early for Cody, WY and the Buffalo Bill Historical Center. We spent about 3 hours going through 3 of the 5 museums. We got back to the Tetons in time to go to dinner and Margaritas at Signal Mt. Lodge with Bob's son Ben who is a ranger here, his daughter Katy, who is also a ranger here, and her husband Jamie and their kids.
Ranger Bob and Me, Yellowstone
Bob and I headed back up to Yellowstone the next morning to the"Old Faithful" area. The first thing we did upon arrival was to "pig-out" at the breakfast buffet in the Old Faithful Inn. We walked off our rather large meal around the Geyser Basin and looked at the outside of the new visitor center (due to open in August). In addition, we were able to visit with Tom and Linda who are rangers there. They worked several years with us in the Tetons. It was good to see them and the new VC.
New "Old Faithful" Visitor Center Opens August 25th
Tonight, my last here, we are going to Leeks Marina Restaurant for Pizza. This is another tradition from when I was working here as a ranger. It was usually a bi-weekly treat, most often after payday. Bob and I will meet Darlene and Mike, more friends who are back working here seasonally. That will wrap up this visit. Tomorrow it will be a motel somewhere in Utah and then on to Flagstaff on "Father's Day."
It has been a very good trip. Because of weather I did not get the hiking in that I would have liked, but getting to see everyone and have them genuinely glad to see me was gratifying. However, I have no movies to report!
Catch you all from Flagstaff next time.
Kyle, Kimby, Melissa and MeThis posting is getting pretty long, and boring but I shall continue. From Colorado I headed up to Lander, WY to see my friends Ron and Brooke. The drive from Littleton to Lander was in continuous rain all the way. The most "white knucle" portion of it was on Interstate 80 between Rawlins and Laramie. Those big semi-trucks give off so much spray from their wheels that they are a hazzard to cars and there are hundreds of them on that major east/west corridor. I was so glad to get off the Interstate at Laramie. The rest of the drive was relatively uneventful except for a little snow before dropping down into Lander.
The visit with Ron was a good one except that it rained continously in Lander until the day I left. We did not get to do our annual hike up Sinks Canyon because of rain and flooding of the Popo Agie River. However we did drive to Termopolis, WY and sit in the natural hot springs there. This was another first for me. Brooke made two excellent dinners while I was there.
I left Lander on Monday and arrived midmorning at Colter Bay in the Tetons. When my friend Ranger Bob (the elder) got off work we headed up to Yellowstone to spend the night at one of my favorite places, Roosevelt Lodge. We got to sit in the rocking chairs on the porch of the lodge in the evening and the morning. After breakfast in the lodge we headed out pretty early for Cody, WY and the Buffalo Bill Historical Center. We spent about 3 hours going through 3 of the 5 museums. We got back to the Tetons in time to go to dinner and Margaritas at Signal Mt. Lodge with Bob's son Ben who is a ranger here, his daughter Katy, who is also a ranger here, and her husband Jamie and their kids.
Ranger Bob and Me, YellowstoneBob and I headed back up to Yellowstone the next morning to the"Old Faithful" area. The first thing we did upon arrival was to "pig-out" at the breakfast buffet in the Old Faithful Inn. We walked off our rather large meal around the Geyser Basin and looked at the outside of the new visitor center (due to open in August). In addition, we were able to visit with Tom and Linda who are rangers there. They worked several years with us in the Tetons. It was good to see them and the new VC.
New "Old Faithful" Visitor Center Opens August 25thTonight, my last here, we are going to Leeks Marina Restaurant for Pizza. This is another tradition from when I was working here as a ranger. It was usually a bi-weekly treat, most often after payday. Bob and I will meet Darlene and Mike, more friends who are back working here seasonally. That will wrap up this visit. Tomorrow it will be a motel somewhere in Utah and then on to Flagstaff on "Father's Day."
It has been a very good trip. Because of weather I did not get the hiking in that I would have liked, but getting to see everyone and have them genuinely glad to see me was gratifying. However, I have no movies to report!
Catch you all from Flagstaff next time.
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