On the Way to Great Tetons
Lava Hot Springs, Idaho
Both Clara and I woke up this morning with a painful case of withdrawal. We've had the kids (both the big and little) for over three weeks and we've really gotten use to having them around. They are so much fun and make the adventures so much more fun. We really had a great journey. It's unbelievable that we did so many things in that short three weeks. Air Force Academy, Pikes Peak, Garden of the Gods, Snow Mountain Ranch, Rocky Mountain National Park, Arches National Park, the crazy jeep ride in the slickrocks, Colorado National Monument, Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, Silverton and the wild ride with Candace, train ride from Silverton to Durango, Durango, the Bar D Ranch show, rafting, Mesa Verde, Four Corners National Monument, Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Powell boat ride, Monument Valley, Grand Canyon National Park and the mule ride, Zion National Park and Salt Lake City - all in three weeks. Seems unbelievable now! But we did it all!!!
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| Week 1 |
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| Week 2 |
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| Week 3 |
After a couple of hours, we packed up and headed toward Grand Teton National Park - a two day drive at our rate of speed. After Clara took over the driving duties, I started looking for a route and place to spend the night.
I found an interestingly named little community in Idaho called Lava Hot Springs. After a little research we found that there is a little RV park called Mary's Place there, so we called and of course they had plenty of openings (schools back in session and only the weekends will be crowded from now on).
Boy, did we ever find the spot. This incredible little town of 400 has some of the best aquatic facilities I have ever seen.
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| Lava Hot Springs, Idaho |
A 1902 act granted the lands to the State of Idaho to be held by the State for public use. Later all rights to the operation, management, control, maintenance and improvement of the lands and property were vested in the Lava Hot Springs Foundation, an agency within the Idaho Dept. of Parks and Recreation.
Today, thanks to this treaty and ownership of the lands around the springs by the state, there is an incredible Olympic quality water facility and a beautifully developed hot springs bathing area.
http://www.lavahotsprings.com/
As soon as we got set up in this lovely wooded campground, I took off to inspect the swimming facilities. It's been over 3 weeks since I've been in a pool, probably a record for the past 10 years. And what a place I found.
Three huge pools, one outdoor and two indoor (all heated by water from the hot springs which maintain the pools around 85 degrees). Not only are there great pools, but Olympic quality diving facilities, climbing walls, several water slides (really long ones) - a kids paradise. And it was filled (on a Monday afternoon).
Thankfully, in one of the pools they had a lane set aside for lap swimmers.
After the swim, I came back and picked Clara up and we went to the hot springs bathing facility. This must be a popular spot because while we were there, two big tour buses stopped and people flooded into the water.
After we had thoroughly soaked ourselves in the cleansing waters, we went to dinner and crashed back at home.
We have often found the biggest surprises and most interesting places in small out-of-the-way places, and this will certainly go down as one of the best of those.
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| This beautiful river runs next to the RV park |
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| We actually have a tree from which Clara can hang her swing |
Tuesday, August 23
Boy, do we really miss the kids. As I was hooking up and unhooking the car today, I thought about how much help they had been getting ready to set up and leave camp.
But we are overcoming the loneliness with a new National Park today - The Grand Tetons.
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| An interesting entry into the little Wyoming town of Afton |
Unfortunately, there are two forest fires burning in two different locations within the park. One the our South (where we came through the strong, dense choking smoke, and one to our North a few miles, which has closed the road to the North which leads to Yellowstone National Park.
When we checked in, we were told that if we hear a horn blowing continuously during the night (or for that matter anytime), to pack up and get out. It means the forest fires are heading our way.
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| The fire to our North that has closed the road to Yellowstone NP |
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| The orange haze is the smoke from the forest fire to our South. The Tetons at sunset. |
As long as the winds cooperate, we're okay here in Coulter Bay. Where we're staying is right in the center of activities - just a few hundred feet and there are restaurant, marinas (where we can rent boats and kayaks), Visitor Center, shops and more. There's enough here to keep us busy for several days. And if we can't go to Yellowstone, we'll be perfectly happy right here.
Wednesday, August 24
Today was unusual. We didn't do much! That is primarily because of the fires. Last night the wind shifted and this morning we woke up to a strong fire odor. For a while, it was strong enough to cause us to cough and wheeze.
We decided that the further away we got from the fire, the better, so we got in the car and drove about 35 miles South to the town of Jackson. It was very comfortable there and we enjoyed a day of just checking out the place. It mostly consist of a town square (a little unusual - see the pictures), many gallaries featuring paintings and prints (which were beautiful and expensive), a few t-shirt shops and several restaurants.
As to the town square, it unusual because on each of the four corners are arches make of elk horns. These have been here since 1960. They are collected from the National Elk Refuge just North of town, where about 7,500 elk stay in the winter. Each year, the local boy scouts collect the horns in the Spring after the elk shed them. The elk grow a new set of antlers each year. That explains why we see them in so many places around here.
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| On the streets of Jackson |
We had a nice lunch and headed back, stopping to see the Grand Tetons for the first time. The smoke had cleared enough that they are visible today. They are magnificent and I can imagine that on a clear day they are astounding. They rise 6,000 feet above a level plateau, which make them very imposing. Unlike our mountains, there are no foothills leading up the them. They just pop out of the earth.
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| A smoke filled view of the Tetons. Hopefully before we leave, we'll have a better look at these magnificent mountains. |
Significantly, the temperature this morning was 41 degrees. Tomorrow morning it is forecast to be below freezing. We've been where it is so hot that we have to run all three air conditioners to keep cool and now, we're running all three heaters to keep warm.
Thursday, August 25
The fire continues North of us, however at least the wind shifted overnight and the smoke has pretty well cleared out of this area. Upon checking though, I found that the lingering haze obscured the Tetons and it was not going to be much of a picture taking day. After checking with the camp office, it doesn't seem that the road to Yellowstone will be open anytime soon. So we decided to point the front of the motor home East - finally.
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| Our last views of the Great Tetons |
We stopped in the little town of Lander, Wyoming. Again, we seem to have stumbled into a pretty neat place.
Our first stop after setting the motor home up was the Museum of the American West. It's a large museum (supported by the county, donations and membership) that contains a wide range of the history of this area and its people. We easily spent 2 hours looking at the various displays and reading about the fascinating history of the area.
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| The museum has collected and relocated almost 20 homes and structures of historical significance and relocated to the museums property. It's probably one of the best small museums I've seen. |
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| This is an Indian artists work with 11mm beads stitched on deer hide. The colors and detail of this work of art is incredible. Inside the museum there are great displays showing artifacts from the Indians that once occupied this land to the pioneers that traveled to and through the area up to recent memorabilia from soldiers from the area who served in WWI and WWII. |
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| An authentic covered wagon, the predecessor to the RV |
Established in 1998, the Museum of the American West (MAW) is a unique not-for-profit outdoor/indoor museum complex that educates the public by presenting and advancing the unmatched natural and cultural history of the Wind River and Sweetwater valleys and the South Pass region of the Rocky Mountains.
After this, I drove to the Sinks Canyon State Park a few miles out of town.
The park gets its name because the Popa Agie (pronounced Po-Po-Shuh) river that flows out of the Wind River Mountains and through the canyon. Halfway down the canyon, the river abruptly turns into a large limestone cavern, and the crashing mountain stream "sinks" into fissures and cracks at the back of the cave. The river is underground for 1/4 mile until it emerges down the canyon in a large calm pool, called "the rise". It then continues its course into the valley below. A fascinating phenomenon.
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| The water disappears into the cavern in the side of the mountain, which has never been explored because the water diffuses into numerous holes in the rock. |
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| And the river emerges from the ground 1/4 mile away in this calm pool. The pool supports hundreds of very large trout. |
While we were driving to the museum, Clara noticed what seemed to be preparations for an outdoor event on a side street. Upon inquiry, we found that a band was playing and there was a fund raiser tonight. After supper we drove down and listened to a rock band for a while. There were several hundred people enjoying a fun evening on the streets. But, it wasn't our kind of music, so after a while, we decided to come back to the motor home and watch a movie.
An interesting day that was totally unexpected.
Tomorrow, we'll continue our journey across Wyoming looking for other interesting places.
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