the pre-adventure: Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks (days 1 and 2)

As a celebration of my graduation and having jobs and in recognition that soon we'll have to actually count vacation days, we decided to take a vacation this summer to Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks. We just got back from it a couple days ago. We're still going through all the pictures to pick out the best ones.

Overall--what an incredible trip. We had so much fun. It was really great to not check my e-mail or Facebook for two weeks. I brought my iPad but resolved to not touch either of those things for the time we were on the trip. Over the course of the summer I've been slowly disconnecting from both e-mail and Facebook to try to have a healthier balance--more of a check once or twice a day rhythm than a check every time you're bored or have a spare minute habit. To my delight, even after letting both go for two weeks, I look back and can say that I didn't miss much at all! Sure, there were e-mails to be answered but probably only 20 out of the 100 or so I got were actually important. And the important things that people shared on Facebook were things that people actually told me about through some other media (phone, text, news article, etc.). So my new resolution is to not waste so much time looking at things that just don't matter.

We left on the 23rd, flying from Charlotte to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. We were really tired when we got in. We spent some time walking around Jackson and saw their nightly "gunfight" in the town square, then got some rest.

The next day, we went to Grand Teton National Park. We bought bear spray (which, thankfully, we didn't have to use). Then we started enjoying the scenery around us.

The Tetons were formed exactly like they look like they were (at least to me). The earth's crust just got pushed up above another section of the earth's crust. Then they were shaped by glaciers and weather. For scale, that brown dot in the middle of the frame below is me standing out in the middle of the plain leading up to the Tetons.

 Then we set off on our first hike, a round trip to Taggart and Bradley Lakes. We saw a mama and baby moose along the way.

 

The hike was pleasant. Along the way to Taggart Lake, we met a family who are missionaries in Istanbul through Cru, so that was kind of cool. The hike went through a lot of different kinds of terrain with views of the Tetons the whole time.

Taggart Lake was pretty and it felt good to stick our feet in the cold water after the hike.

We continued on to Bradley Lake, which wasn't worth the trip by itself, but there was a pretty good elevation gain so you could see down on Taggart Lake. 

 After that hike I don't think I've ever been so dirty in my entire life. We were covered in sunscreen, bug spray, and so much dust that it looked like our legs were three shades darker than normal.

We drove up to the top edge of the park, stopping several places along the way. Signal Mountain offered a near 360 degree view around the park.

About dusk, we went to Oxbow Bend (on the Snake River) to look for wildlife. The most wildlife we saw was mosquitos! I think they actually thrive on the DEET there. We did see an eagle from a distance, and a beaver swimming. The river was so still that you could see the reflection of the Tetons in it.

We drove back to Jackson and packed up--we would stay in West Yellowstone the next night. We were hoping to go out and see the stars. There was also potential of seeing the northern lights but it ended up clouding so much in the evening that we thought the likelihood of that was low. Plus we were tired from hiking, so overall I think the good night's sleep was the best decision.

Well that's it for the first two days! I'm trying to keep it bite-sized so I don't have to spend a half-day writing about anything. More updates later as I have time.