OK.....I will talk my way through this post, beginning on this Sunday past:
We pulled out of our rented site in the Star Valley Ranch RV Resort about 8:30, drove two short blocks, and then pulled into our own site-to-be......and the backing, cranking, moving, twisting, jacking up and back, moving again, re-positioning, backing, cranking, moving, twisting, jacking up and back, moving again, re-positioning, backing, cranking, moving twisting, jacking up and back....and moving again and again and again......for 2.5 hours!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! TRYING to decide just where we wanted to put TheHowserHouse on the site, so that we could mark where we wanted the sewage hookup to be moved to, where the patio and concrete needed to be marked off, where the wheels of THH needed to be, where the BEST views would be on the patio(s), etc., etc., etc.......and, needless to say, much disagreement and discussions!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
FINALLY, we think we did the best we could under the circumstances......all of the new neighbors-to-be came out to help, give ideas, etc., etc......and to watch this comedy(?) as we moved this damned dinosaur around over and over again. I was EXHAUSTED by the time we left the resort!!!!!!!!!
And so, up to Jackson we drove....stopping at a local grocery store to get some much needed items for the next four days.....and then on up into Grand Teton National Park, arriving about 1:30pm at the Colter Bay RV campground.......the one withOUT hookups of any kind, as with our pass to the NP's, it only cost $9.50 per night. As we came into the campground, I stopped to check in, and asked one of the people working if we could take a quick tour of the loops where there were sites available, discussing with her the disadvantages of having a HUGE big rig......and so, she agreed. Off we went in her park golf cart.....and quickly located a site that would work, albeit we had to enter the loop going the WRONG way on the one way street/loop!!!! But.......we were in......in the NP, in the campground, and in the site that would hold our side of a rig!!!! NOW......to get out will present another problem, or two, or three, or four or more!
We got set up.....and then before long, it began to drizzle.....and drizzle....and it continued all evening....not rain, just chilly drizzles. Soooo, off to bed we went earlier than we have been doing, as we are running on batteries. I DID turn on my generator.....until 8pm when they are required to be turned off for those who desire quiet in the NP....and I can understand that completely!!!!!
OK......MONDAY:.....................
A gorgeous day dawned.......and without having to really turn on the furnace during the night!!!! I did turn on the generator to bring up the batteries to a more complete charge..........it is noisy, but it does work well!!!
Soon, we were on our way down to Jackson Lake.....a short walk/drive from our site. We can't see it from the site, but the incredibly beautiful Teton Mts. are just visible over the tree tops. Well...................OMG, OMG, OMG.....I had forgotten just how amazing these mountains are when seen in the early morning sunlight coming from the east!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We just sat on some driftwood and stared....and stared.....and continued to stare at these mammoth mountains right in front of our eyes!!!! Honest to God........there is no picture that does justice to these mountains....the Grand Tetons!!!!!!!!! I cannot imagine what the early explorers/pioneers must have thought when they got their first glimpse and close-up look at these beautiful mountains, with the blue/blue lake beneath them!!!!
We could barely pull ourselves away from them, however.......we took to the truck and spent the remainder of the day, touring from Colter Bay south to the Park entrance where we had entered on Sunday afternoon. However.......we took the road along the lakes, and getting closer to the Tetons with every hour, every mile. Finally arriving during the mid-afternoon at Jenny Lake.....the jewel of the lakes here in the NP!!!!!!!! Do NOT.....DO NOT fail to take the one-way drive from the north to Jenny Lake, stopping at all of the scenic vistas along the way at ALL of the pull-outs!!!!!
We had a picnic lunch at one of these pull-outs, overlooking String Lake.......and then onward we went to the Jenny Lake Visitor Center and walked around there. Four years ago we took the boat across the lake to the actual mountains and hiked up into a canyon, which I highly........HIGHLY recommend that you do WHEN you arrive here at the GT National Park!!!!!!
We spent most of the the remainder of yesterday driving slowly, stopping at the southern entrance Visitor Center.....a brand new center which do not fail to stop and see the exhibits and the building, itself!!!!! WOW!!!!!!
From there, we headed back north....all of 25 miles....to the Colter Bay cg.......and stopping again, along the way, to take photos, view the mts......until finally, the rains began to catch up with us coming up from the south!!!! And so.....back to the cg we went....and back to TheHowserHouse for the evening, listening to the raindrops hitting the top of THH....and a cool evening was spent with some hot tea....and cookies.
TUESDAY........................
Last night the furnace came on......and I needed to check the batteries as without the gennie running, the batteries can go down quicker than I would like when the furnace is running, as well as the water pump, the few lights we use, etc., etc., etc........and so, I did turn off the furnace about 4am, putting on an extra blanket on top of the bed. This morning......a chilly morning with dreary clouds hanging low over the Tetons and the campground. One time.....ONE time, the sun emerged and cleared away the sky, but it wasn't long until it was once again cloudy with the drizzles pattering down on the roof of THH. Soooooo, we just hung out in THH, had some lunch and hot tea, and then I drove the 6 miles over here to the Jackson Lake Lodge to take advantage of their free Wifi in the lobby.
WELL.....there must be at least 25-30 people doing the same thing on this chilly day. The sofas and chairs are filled with people in their own little cyberspace world, typing away as they stare into their little monitors sitting on their laps......almost looking like some type of a Sci-Fi movie.....people soooo intent at this screen on their laps as their fingers move rapidly over the keyboard.....thoughts being pushed into their laptops, and then sent off into cyberspace to land in the pc's of their friend's, families, offices, etc., etc.........all happening as we sit here in front of the HUGE fireplaces lit with warming fires, and the view of the Tetons out the three story windows facing these mountains. I also have a cappuccino on the table next to me.....could not sit here with the smell of dark coffee being made in the specialty coffee bar here in the lobby!!!!!! There are also a couple of HUGE bears in glass cases standing tall, not having moved in years and years......the decor all very high western with lodgepole furnishings, stone walls,......gorgeous!!!! A great place to spend a rainy afternoon..............
And so, I will close this...and give my comfortable seat in front of the fireplace and the GREAT windows to someone else wishing to communicate with the world on their little lappie. Ahhhhh, how things have changed over the years that I have been visiting this National Park!!!!!! What we would do without our iPhones and other devices of worldly communication????? How could we get along??????? I continue to hear other iPhones' "chimes" as their owners receive emails, etc., etc.......sitting here thousands of miles from home in the center of one of the most beautiful places in America........
We return to Star Valley on Thursday afternoon......and will post again from there. And, you know.........sitting here in this incredible place with just unbelievable beauty just outside this huge windows.......how can it be other than................
LIFE IS SOOOOOOO INCREDIBLY GREAT!!!!!!!!......And, I hope it is for all of you, also!!!!!!!!!
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