Road Trip: Jackson Hole & Grand Teton

July 8, 2015

We decided to spend the morning in Jackson Hole.  It's not bad considering it's basically one large tourist trap.  They do it well, for that kind of place.  There actually are some nice shops and places to eat, and of course there's the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar.  Wouldn't want to miss a bar with saddles instead of stools, would we?

Uinta Ground Squirrel -- Grand Teton National Park, WY

Red Squirrel

Before I go on, I should mention the little critters that inhabited our campground.  I'm sure they're still there.  Two red squirrels include our campsite in what they call home.  They are a loud, rowdy couple.  They like to chase each other through the trees and chirp loudly at every opportunity.  They were fun to watch the few nights we were there.  I'm sure if I was having trouble sleeping I wouldn't have been a big fan, but sleep was never a problem for me on this trip.  I was worn out enough every night that when my head hit the pillow I was gone.

Jim was visited a couple of times by a mouse trying to eat its way into his tent.  It wasn't too interested in my tent.  I had dirty socks lying around, that's probably why.  Natural rodent deterrent.

Grand Teton National Park, WY

One of the nice things about an early morning drive to Jackson Hole is that the road runs right along the Teton Mountain Range.  The beauties are lit best in the morning, providing an opportunity for some early morning, blurry-eyed photos.

Grand Teton National Park, WY

Grand Teton National Park, WY

We ate breakfast at The Bunnery.  If you're in Jackson Hole, this is the place for breakfast.  I would take this restaurant up against any breakfast spot in the country.  The baked goods are amazing and they make a mean hot breakfast as well.  Did I mention they have decent coffee?  I take good coffee for granted, but get off the left coast and it becomes a precious commodity.  The Bunnery uses Starbucks, which would get poo-pooed anywhere between San Diego and Seattle, but it smelled of ambrosia on this particular morning in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

Jackson Hole, WY

After breakfast we did a little shopping.  We went to an outdoors store where Jim picked up a camel pack and some warm clothes.  We'd seen a bit of rain already in Grand Teton and we were expecting more, so he bought a rain poncho as well.  We went to a photography store where I picked up a polarizing filter for my new big lens and Jim bought an extra battery for the SX50 I loaned him.  Then we went to Eddie Bauer where I found a nice rain coat on sale.  That raincoat and Jim's poncho would get a workout sooner than either of us expected.

At that point we'd killed enough time and we went to the Cowboy Bar for a pre-lunch beer.

Jackson Hole, WY

It doesn't get any cheesier than the Cowboy Bar.  I wasn't joking about having saddles instead of bar stools.  That is quite literally the case.  I have photos, but they're too compromising to share publicly.

We weren't quite done after downing our High Lifes.  Jim bought a new hat at the local haberdashery and we both picked up some smokes at the tobacco shop.  It was good to get back to civilization even for just a couple of hours.  We felt refreshed entering the last few days of our journey.

Our first stop back in Grand Teton National Park was at the visitor center where Jim insisted I take a picture of him fondling a bronze moose.  I'm not sure what that was all about.  We even had to wait for a group of kids to buzz off to take the photo.  Was it worth it?  Judge for yourself.

Grand Teton National Park, WY

We hatched a plan to take a short hike around Colter Bay We'd stop for pictures along the way.

Grand Teton National Park, WY

Grand Teton National Park, WY

Grand Teton National Park, WY

Heron Pond

It was raining pretty hard by the time we got to Colter Bay.  We tried to wait out the rain, but once the hard stuff stopped we decided we might be waiting all afternoon for it to stop completely so we headed out into it.  That meant I'd be leaving my big camera behind and using the little SD770.  Photo quality suffered accordingly, but it did make for an easier hike.

Beaver Lodge -- Heron Pond, Grand Teton National Park, WY

Heron Pond, Grand Teton National Park, WY

Swan Lake

The hike was a three mile loop that took us out by Heron Pond and in by Swan Lake.  If lily pads were dollar bills this place would have looked like Scrooge McDuck's private swimming vault.  We saw a few beaver lodges and dams, and at one point we heard a beaver slap, but we never actually saw a beaver.  No moose, either.  Argh.

Colter Bay, Grand Teton National Park, WY

Mule Deer

We drove to the top of Signal Mountain as our last destination for the day.  We went up there on our last visit as well.  There's nothing very exciting to see.  I imagine the view is probably better in the morning when the sun isn't behind the mountains.

Grand Teton National Park, WY

Grand Teton National Park, WY

We had a visitor when we got back to camp.  He was waiting for us in the campsite one over from ours.  Unfortunately, I wasn't fast enough with my camera and only got a few shots of his backside.  The good news is those bear-proof food storage bins actually work.

Black Bear -- Grand Teton National Park, WY

Black Bear -- Grand Teton National Park, WY

Grand Teton National Park, WY

Year in Review: The Animals

Top Five Animal Sightings of 2013

Doing it countdown style.  I took pictures of 203 different animal species this year.  I didn't always get good pictures of these animals, but these are the five sightings I was most excited about.

5.  Bobcat

Bobcat -- Pinnacles National Park, CA

I saw two bobcats this year, both in or near Pinnacles National Park.  The first one got away before I could get my camera ready.  The second was at least a hundred yards away in the shade under a tree.  I couldn't get any good pictures from where I was at and I wasn't about to try to get closer, especially with Pongo on a leash right beside me.  The cat didn't seem to have a care in the world.  A bobcat's life is pretty sweet in a place like Pinnacles, I guess.

Bobcat -- Pinnacles National Park, CA

4.  Coyote

Coyote -- Yosemite National Park, CA

Granted, they're not that unusual to spot, but there's something exciting about seeing coyotes for me.  Part of it, I guess, is that I like dogs.  They seem like scrappers, these coyotes, survivors.  I saw a woman feeding a coyote alongside the road at Yosemite and that got my dander up a bit.  It seems so disrespectful to the animals.  They don't need our handouts, especially in a place as bountiful as Yosemite.

Coyote -- Death Valley National Park, CA

3.  Bighorn Sheep

Bighorn Sheep -- Zion National Park, UT

I totally lucked out with the bighorn sheep.  I was driving through Zion National Park on my way to Death Valley after spending a few nights at Bryce Canyon and Capitol Reef National Parks.  As I came around a corner there was an entire herd of sheep on the side of a hill just off the road.  I was definitely not expecting that.  Obviously, I pulled over and got some killer photos.  Killer for me, anyway.

Bighorn Sheep -- Zion National Park, UT

2.  Bottlenose Dolphin

Bottlenose Dolphin -- Pacific Grove, CA

At first I thought it was a shark's dorsal fin that I'd seen in the water.  Turns out it wasn't a shark it was a dolphin and there were two of them in the water just off the shore of of Lover's Point in Pacific Grove.  My friend Marko is a surfer and he said he'd seen a lot of them recently (this was in September).  I didn't get very good pictures, but fuck it, I saw bottlenose dolphins in the wild!

Bottlenose Dolphin -- Pacific Grove, CA

1.  Black Bear

Black Bear -- Sequoia National Park, CA

I saw two (or more likely three) black bears this year on consecutive weekends.  The first encounter was at Sequoia National Park.  Holy Schnikeys.  He wasn't very far away from me and seemed to be sizing me up when we ran into each other.  I have never seen forearms so big.  We stared at each other for a couple of minutes, and then he (or she) sauntered non-chalantly off.  I think there was another bear there as well.  The one that I got a good look at was brown, but in a few of the final pictures the bear is black.

Black Bear -- Sequoia National Park, CA

I saw the other bear the next weekend at Yosemite National Park.  The bear was a lot farther away this time and didn't seem to notice us, so it was a lot less drama-filled.

Black Bear -- Yosemite National Park, CA

That's it, pretty much.  Check out my photobucket page for a full view of all the animals I was able to photograph this year.  Here's hoping for as much success next year.

Yosemite National Park: Indian Ridge and Olmstead Point

Bear Whispering
June 2, 2013

Soundtrack

• Blackalicious -- Blazing Arrow
• Vampire Weekend -- Modern Vampires of the City
• Nas & Damain Marley -- Distant Relatives
• The National -- Trouble Will Find Me

I saw another bear this weekend.  Two bears in two weeks after four-plus decades of no bears.  Crazy, huh?

Porcupine Creek Trail Head

This weekend's trip was to Yosemite National Park.  The plan was to hike to North Dome from the Porcupine Creek trail head.  It's a four and a half mile out and back hike with an elevation change of 600 feet down from Tioga Road to the top of the dome.  Nine miles total, which is a long hike for me, but certainly within my range.  I was joined on this adventure by my good friend Jim.

Elegance in Motion

The hike begins on an old paved road.  It looks like the road was probably built in the 1930s and has been since neglected.  the road descends 350 feet and ends at the first of several small creeks that have to be crossed.  None of the creeks were very deep, but the thought of hiking a handful of miles in soggy socks wasn't too appealing, so we crossed carefully.

Aaayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

Pick me out a winner, Bobby.

The next stretch of the trail was pretty flat.  It wound through a pine forest full of fallen trees.  It was looking like it was going to be a pretty easy hike.  We were feeling pretty good, perhaps even a little manly.  You know, rugged and outdoorsy, real Jedediah Smith types.

See, you know there's a 'but' coming, right?  I think I've done a pretty good job setting that up.

I haven't mentioned my sweet blue hat.  It was a beaut.  I forgot my Death Valley hat, so I had to pick something up on the way to Yosemite.  The place we stopped had quite a selection to choose from, especially if you're into camouflage and/or glitter.  I found me a sure-fire chick magnet.

Half Dome

Anyway, after about a mile and a half of easy hiking we had to climb up to the top of Indian Ridge.  I was pretty sure it was a 700 or 800 foot climb.  It kicked my butt.  I had to stop at the top to catch my breath.  We were at 8100 feet above sea level, so I don't feel too badly about it, but when I got home I checked the elevation and we'd only climbed 350 feet, basically back to the same elevation we'd started at on Tioga Road.  That's kind of pathetic even considering the elevation.  I definitely have to start hitting the bicycle machine.  Not tonight, of course.  Tomorrow.

Top of North Dome from Indian Ridge

We hiked down a bit to some spectacular views of Yosemite Valley from Indian Ridge.  North Dome was directly in front of us at the bottom of a steep hill.  Neither Jim nor I had any desire to go any farther.  We stayed where we were, ate some lunch and congratulated ourselves on not committing what would have surely been martyrdom without a cause on the side of Indian Ridge.

While we ate we looked for hikers on the top of Half Dome.  I thought I saw one at one point but wasn't sure.  I snapped a few pictures with the zoom and at least half a dozen people can be seen along the rim in every shot.  They were there, we just couldn't see anyone with our old man eyes.  Also, while we ate a young couple passed us and went on down to North Dome without so much as pausing to catch their breaths.  Our only consolation was that their car was still parked in the parking lot when we drove by on our way out of the park.  Clearly, they lacked the wisdom their elders were showing by not hiking beyond their natural abilities.  A man has got to know his limitations.

Hikers on Half Dome

On our way back, a dude passed us jogging up Indian Ridge.  Show off.  He passed us coming back, too, beating us to our cars by a quarter of a mile or so.  Jim thought we should have sprinted up to our cars, blocking off the trail so he couldn't pass us in the process.  It was a great plan, unfortunately the will to execute was beaten out by survival instinct.  We just watched in awe as he rode off on his motorcycle to his his next manly adventure.

Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel

We only saw a few other people on the trail all day.  I've read that 90% of the visitors to Yosemite only see Yosemite Valley, which I can certainly understand considering how magical that place is.  However, as I get to know other areas of the park it makes me a little sad to think about what people are missing.  This park has so much to offer.

Olmstead Point

After the hike, we drove a little farther East on Tioga Road to Olmstead Point.  Talk about amazing views. From the Point you can see the high end of Yosemite Valley. On the opposite side of the point is Tenaya Lake, which I suspect might be the location for my next Yosemite adventure.

There are a lot of glacial erratic boulders on and around Olmstead Point.  I'm surprised there are any still there.  They look like they're just waiting for somebody to come along and roll them off the hill.  I know I was tempted, I don't see how any could have survived the decades of tourists who felt the same temptation.

Black Bear at Crane Flat

We saw the bear on our way out of the park.  She was in a meadow near Crane Flat.  She was a lot farther away than the bear I saw last week.  This was more like seeing a bear in a zoo rather than seeing a bear in the wild.  Still, it was exciting.  Seeing a bear is seeing a bear.  I think I'm learning their language.