Off we go

 

Talking about going back to Montana seemed like a dream. But here we finally made it!! On June 18, we left Boston and flew to Salt Lake City.  Or rather, as my girls wanted to point out, we flew to Dallas Texas first.  They checked off Texas as a state to which they have now been, so that was super important.  Then as we flew into SLC, we watched the roiling landscape come up and dove into the bowl of mountains.  From the plane we got a great view of the Great Salt Lake.  It is huge and as impressive as I remember it.  Callie loved watching the mountains and clouds out the plane window and we really did get a good show that day.  

I was moved at coming back to the place I spent two important years.  It was definitely more smoggy and has grown up a bunch, but some memories came flooding back.  It was very special and moving to go back to the spot where I spent the afternoon of September 11, 2001.  Also I got to show my mom and daughters the neighborhood where I lived back then.  

A fun surprise we found was a Chalk art show in a new pedestrian area near our hotel.  It was by the plaza where the SLC Olympics fountain is, so I played in the fountain and then walked around in a really cool area, seeing some amazing artwork in sidewalk chalk!  

After a good night's sleep, we set off for the open road!  We drove north out of Salt Lake and decided to go explore Bear Lake in eastern Utah.  Apparently it is known as the "Caribbean of the Rockies."  As you drive through the brown hills and come around a corner, you suddenly get a beautiful view of this big lake and the name solidifies.  It is this aquamarine gem set in the mountains that takes your breath, truly a special place.  The drive winds around with amazing views of the lake.  We found a little rocky beach where we stopped for a picnic and a quick dip in the water.  It was not freezing, but it did the refreshing waters woke us up!  A lovely pit stop to break up the drive, however the beach was so rocky it wasn't comfortable to sit very long.  So after our picnic, we kept going.  

Our next stop was just south of Jackson.  We pulled off the road for a rest stop and found a pretty steep short trail down to a river.  Turns out it was the Snake River and after a climb down, we all put our feet in the water.  Now THAT was cold!!!  Mom was delighted, so that started our later search for more feet soaking spots.  Really good pit stop.  

By the time we got to Jackson Hole, we were weary.  The traveling and driving had gotten to us all.  However, there was a big sign in our hotel saying how the great weather created huge crowds in the area, so go to dinner early.  We did, and we saw the Silver Dollar Saloon.  IT had this cool bartop covered with old silver dollars from the days of the old west.  Very cool place, but you had to be 21 to eat there, so we ended up on the fancy dinner side.  Unfortunately, we did not listen to our exhaustion in time so we ended up being too tired to really explore Jackson Hole too much.  We did a little shopping, and saw the cool arches made of elk antlers that make the town square famous.  But this time, Jackson Hole ended up being a place to rest up.  We had our sights set on the ranch. 

The next morning, we drove north and finally saw the Tetons!  Wow.  I didn't understand until I saw them rise dramatically out of the valley, what so many people had warned me about.  They are striking.  It was difficult to drive and take it all in at the same time.  

Good thing I was paying attention, though, because as we drove across the valley, a deer crossed the road just in front of our car!  That first wildlife sighting got us excited.  We were high fiving and cooing in the car, and then just as fast, a whole herd of bison also crossed the road in front of us.  Well, we just went bananas over all the calves.  Really cool to see so up close.  

In that excitement, we continued on through the Teton National Forest and into Yellowstone.  That day, the park was not too crowded.  It was beautiful and I felt so grateful that our country has protected places that preserve nature the way it first came to be.  We did not see as much wildlife as we hoped, but we did get a glimpse of some elk grazing and bison.  Then we stopped and walked around West Thumb to view the geysers.  That otherworldly landscape really makes you remember how little we know about this planet and universe.  

Bear Lake, "The Caribbean of the Rockies"