Jackson, WY & Grand Tetons: Meadows to Mountains, Whitewater to Waffles

The journey continues.  From Zion in Utah, we proceed to the Grand Tetons in Wyoming.  “Grand Teton” apparently means “large teat” in French (and really, who doesn’t love a great boob pun?) but Philip swears that it means “we didn’t pack warm enough clothes” in English.  Dorothy, we’re not in Arizona anymore! Clouds — rain — driving hail — YES PLEASE!!!

On the road

One of our favorite locations was Jenny Lake, where we hiked with the doggies and enjoyed the gorgeous scenery of the National Park.  You can take a boat across the lake and then hike up a glacier, but us Phoenicians were not adequately outfitted for such cold-weather activities — but we’re figuring it out quickly!

Downtown Jackson was delightful in every way, with a town square and iconic elk antlers arches at each of the four corners.  I tried very hard not to think about the furry friends that used to be attached to these antlers.  Everything about Jackson just screams “old west,” but not in a corny way — just good clean Western fun!

Philip bought me some new cowgirl lingerie!  Kidding.

But our favorite find was a local bar called the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar, which was the first bar in the state of Wyoming to receive its liquor license after the end of prohibition in 1937.  Check out the great artwork over the bar, and the saddle barstools.  Yee-haw!!!  Totally fun and the place to be on a Friday or Saturday night in Jackson.

When planning this trip, I asked Philip what he really wanted to do while in Jackson.  “Why, I think we should go up 10,000 feet and see if we can find any waffles up there!” he answered.  So, never wanting to disappoint my man, we took the tram to the top of Jackson Hole Ski Resort, to indulge in the Brown Sugar Butter Waffles for which the restaurant (shack) “Corbets Cabin” at the top is world-famous.  The tram rises 4,139 vertical feet, with temps dropping from the mid-60’s to low-30’s, in 12 short minutes.  The 360-degree views from up above are spectacular, but the waffles were even more amazing!

Another “must-do” on our list was a rafting trip down the Snake River, which twists and turns for over 1,000 miles from Yellowstone through Grand Teton and ultimately to the Pacific Ocean.  See it there?

We rafted eight miles down the Snake in water that was cold, cold, cold.  Even with wetsuits, it was cold! …. Philip:  “I haven’t been this small since I was ten years old.”  LOL!  Besides unbelievable beauty, we encountered eight different rapids, the biggest of which were Class 3 and in which we got VERY wet.  On the last rapid, we spun in circles (intentionally) (I think) by the left 3 paddling forward and the right 3 paddling backwards all through the rapid.  Again … yeeeee – hawwwww!

Because our home in Phoenix is in a beloved community called “Spur Circle,” I have made it a passion to collect spur-related photographs!  Check out the additions to my collection during the first week of this vacation!

Next, we sally forth to Yellowstone National Park, approximately 100 miles north of Jackson, where we will meet up with Phoenix friends who are also RV’ing it.  Before we pull out of this delightful little town, let it be noted that the fine citizens of Jackson have a terrific sense of humor!

JAZZ HANDS!!!

NOW THAT’S A BIG WAFFLE!!!

UMMMM ……. YAH!!!!!!!!!!!