Grand Tetons Adventure: Saddle Up

Grand Tetons Adventure – Day Six – 7/30/09 – Jackson Hole, WY – 0 Miles 

I slept the sleep of a canyon conqueror, with a tired back, aching feet, a full stomach, and a smile on my face in anticipation of the morning. My day off had been planned long before we left Charlotte, with the option of hiking with Jeff and Mike if I wanted to, but a day of eating and goofing off was the ticket for me. Soooo…the guys headed for some off-trail scrambling up Hanging Canyon to Lake of the Crags and I headed for my day in civilization.

First stop: the Visitor Center to return our bear canister. I wandered around the exhibits there, watched the film and bought a pretty picture book of the Tetons and a little flower ID book. Then I joined the stream of traffic flowing towards Jackson Hole. Second stop: the visitor center there, which I quickly departed because it was crawling with – oh my gosh – tourists. (But I did get my passport stamped for the National Elk Refuge.) Third stop: the Rec center for my second shower of the week. (Note to self: make a top 10 list of things that are great after a backpacking trip). I felt like a runway model when I stepped out of the Rec center, hair flowing in slow motion and heads turning my way…well, at least I was clean. I left the rental car parked at the Rec and took Jackson Hole by storm.

Lunch, window shopping, a coffee shop, a bookstore, more shopping, gawking at high prices, deciding against buying the pink-and-turquoise cowgirl boots, looking at menus for dinner – after about 3 hours Jackson Hole was making me yawn. I sat in the square (with the famous antler arches) for a while reading my book, but some guy was under the impression that we all wanted to hear his cell phone conversation, so I strolled back down to the Rec center. Jeff and Mike were due in around 5:00 or 6:00 p.m. so I settled down on the lawn with my book (A Walk For Sunshine by Jeff Alt – an AT thru-hike as a fundraiser – what a concept!)

The guys arrived, took showers, and we went in search of a good meal. But first, Mike had something on his agenda – a picture of me on a saddle bar stool at the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar. Well…if you insist…

 Then a sumptuous meal at the Silver Dollar as the guys described their hike (difficult, beautiful, technical, stunning) and a nighttime drive back to campground-sweet-campground – tomorrow is our last hike in the Grand Tetons.

 I still find each day too short for all the thoughts I want to think, all the walks I want to take, all the books I want to read and all the friends I want to see. ~John Burroughs