Finding camping outside of the Grand Tetons was harder than originally anticipated. When we finished our awesome hike, we headed southeast of the park to search for camping at the Bridger Teton National Forest. We rolled up pretty early (in my opinion) in the evening to find that all the legit camp spots were taken. We drove around a bit, but realized we were out of luck. This just happened to be one forest that doesn’t allow dispersed camping. But, as we turned the truck around to leave in defeat, a man stops us and says he has plenty of room for our truck. What luck! We back into the spot next to him and start unloading gear. As we do, three kids ambush us. They are asking every question possible, like, where are you from? Do you live in your truck? Why is it so dirty? Do you like sushi? The questions were random and hilarious. The dad tries to shoo the kids away to give us space but it’s no use. Plus, these kids are actually pretty cool. I think they ranged in age like, 5, 10 and 13. Maybe. Don’t quote me on that. We settle down, get dinner cooked over a fire, and teach the kiddos how to play Farkle. As we play, the dad pulls out a trumpet and begins to serenade us with smooth jazz tunes. Not how I expected the night to end up, but definitely not disappointed! It was so awesome to see this dad taking his three kids on a road trip to see national parks. Being from the deep city of Sacramento, they relished the open spaces and lack of city noise. I know it’s rare to hear this coming from me, but I liked these kids. For the one night. Ok feeling gone.
In the morning, we wake up at 7AM (no surprise there) and head back into the Grand Tetons. We decide to go to a more secluded area of the park and do a hike in Death Canyon. Going to be honest here, we picked the hike based on the name alone. The same way I pick my beers. This hike ended up providing some sweet bird sightings and some alright views. My favorite was the broad-tailed hummingbirds that seem to be everywhere in the mountains here. We ended up not hiking that far, most of our energy was spent trying to call birds out for FiFi’s camera. And that was just fine with me.
We left Death Canyon very much alive and headed south to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Now, all I know about Jackson Hole is that it’s a place where rich pretentious people go. Apparently, lots of famous people have homes here and the cost of living is stupid high. I was reminded of this fact when FiFi and I were looking for a hotel room for the night. We both needed showers and it would be ideal for us to get decent sleep as FiFi has a crazy early flight the next morning. The Motel 6 was $200 a night. When is a Motel 6 ever that much money??? But, FiFi has hotel rewards because she travels so much, which brought our nightly fee down to a reasonable cost.
Funny story, we forgot if we booked the Motel 6 or Super 8… We rolled up at the Motel 8 and the staff there couldn’t find our room. FiFi was about to start throwing shade until she pulled up her email confirmation. Yup, we’re at the wrong business… We walk out laughing, and drive 0.2 miles to the Motel 6 around the corner…
Once checked in, we try and find some decent food in this rich city. All searches lead to Jackson Drug Company, an old school drug store opened in the early 1900s that was re-defined by the owner’s grandchildren. They kept the theme and bones of the place but made it into a popping diner. They kept the original milkshake bar and décor, so it was super cute. We got some amazing burgers and fries, which is just what we were craving.
After leaving fat and happy, we head back to the hotel room. I feel like a pig, and just want to chill on an actual bed and write some blogs. FiFi decides to go run 6 miles… She’s a god damn beast. Did I mention it’s like 100 degrees outside? Yeah. Beast.
After she gets backs and showers, we decide we need a huckleberry dessert. We have seen so much freaking propaganda for huckleberry in this part of the world we feel brainwashed. Must. Try. Huckleberry…. So we both search on the interwebs for the best Huckleberry shake, cake, ice cream, whatever is best. And what do our searches come up with? Jackson Drug Company. We have no shame, so we went back. But this time we sat at the bar to switch things up. I mean we were getting milkshakes, might as well sit at the milkshake bar. We both order a huckleberry shake as we suck at sharing. When it arrives, we get a full glass with whipped cream cap and cherry topping, plus a metal cup half full with the extra shake. Holy shit what did we just order? This is like 5 million calories, but we don’t give a shit. We both finish every drop of huckleberry goodness and roll out of Jackson Drug Company one last time. Worth it.
The next morning we wake up stupid early to take FiFi to the airport. She has to be there at like 5 or something stupid like that. To my surprise the airport is inside Grand Tetons NP. A public airport inside a park. This is a first for me. It’s small and adorable. FiFi of course gets through security way too early as only 10 people use this damn airport…. I go back to the room to finish planning some stuff for my next trip companion, then get on my way to head south. It’s weird being alone. I’ve been with someone constantly for the past month. This is a shitty adjustment period.
I do laundry in Jackson then drive to Fossil Butte National Monument which is only a few hours south. It’s hot as balls and Wyoming has nothing but rolling hills and farmland. The only exciting part of my drive was crossing into Idaho for about 10 seconds. When I get to Fossil Butte, I head into the visitor center to get my bearings. There are awesome fossils here on display, and a super friendly AmeriCorps chick working the desk. We chat about AmeriCorps and hiking recommendations before I head out into the park. She recommends a lonely hike atop a butte that promises good views and solitude. I’m in.
Ok maybe it was too much solitude, but it was a bit scary. Total mountain lion territory, and no one else apparently hikes this trail. It was poorly marked and overgrown. Some scat was all over the trail, but I can’t tell who it belongs to. About a mile in I hear a strange hissing/huffing noise. Almost like an elephant being punched in the gut. I look over to see a damn pronghorn yelling at me. Ah, this is the poop culprit. I’m totally on his stomping grounds and he’s pissed. But I don’t care. As long as it’s not a damn mountain lion I’m cool. I hike the 3 miles out, take few pics, then head back to the car. I found some neighboring BLM property that has some boondocking sites, so I head north of the park in search of a place to spend the night. I’m greeted with some open country and amazing views. The flies are shitty, but everything else is perfect. I put on a podcast, eat chips and salsa, and watch the sun fall below the arid landscape.
After an eerily quiet night, I decide to do some more hiking before heading into Salt Lake City. Leaving my camp site, I woke up about 25 pronghorns. They all yelled at me as I drove by. Sorry for the early wake up guys… But FiFi did this to me for like 10 days straight. I hit one nature trail, then another trail that goes up to an old fossil mine. I have to say, this fossil mine trail is one of my favorite hikes I’ve done. The educational info was on point, and the fossil mine had tons of fossils littered all over the ground. I loved it.
Once I was done at Fossil Butte, I headed to Salt Lake City. I’m staying with one of Cas’ longtime friends there for a night before picking up my next companion. I feel like I’m talking about companions like Dr. Who… Anyway, I’m excited for the possibility for a shower and real food.
