Day 18 (25th) and 19 (26th): The Grand Tetons, Whitewater Rafting on the Snake River, Jenny Lake and Horseback Riding

Hello Everyone,

We awoke in our cabin at Flagg Ranch on the morning of the 25th with great anticipation for our whitewater rafting trip we were going to take in the afternoon. We had booked the trip with Barker-Ewing, a family owned and operated rafting company in Jackson. They came highly recommended for families as a very safe rafting company, so we decided to go with them.

First, we enjoyed a breakfast of turkey bacon and eggs that I cooked in the room on our new skillet (great idea to get one, Jill), and hot chocolate that we made on my new Brunton Raptor cook stove. Take a look at the spread as I cooked it in our bedroom:



Josh had found the wood rockers on the front porch and made himself at home while I cooked:



We needed to be to Jackson, Wyoming by 12:30 pm where we were going to be picked up by a Barker-Ewing bus and carted down to the drop off point aout 30 minutes away. After our 8 mile float down the river, the driver of the bus would pick us up where we got out, and drive us back to Jackson. It was going to be perfect.

Driving through Grand Teton National Park at any time of day is wonderful, but there is something special about doing so in the morning. The light bathes the mountains perfectly and they seem to greet you as if you are the only people in the world. The beauty and splendor of the Tetons is something to be experienced first hand, a national treasure that cannot be adequately described in words or in pictures. I am so thankful that our country had the wisdom to set aside this beautiful place for all of us to enjoy (history of the establishment of Grand Teton National Park).

We arrived on time at the Barker-Ewing office in Jackson and loaded onto the bus for the ride to the river. The Lillies sat in the back of the bus and we had a blast riding to the location, Josh already wearing his life vest and all of us just happy to be together. We arrived at the river around 1 pm and received our safety briefing from our river guide, put on life vests, and loaded onto the boat.

We ended up with 15 people on our boat, including a nice big family from Utah (all football players) and one guy from Georgia who was dating the daughter in the Utah family. It was funny because the Georgia boy was mercilessly teased by the Utah brothers about his accent and southern colloquialisms, including "Do what?" and "For real?" I called him "Sunshine" because he reminded me of the quarterback Ronnie "Sunshine" Bass on "Remember the Titans." Anyway, this teasing turned into full on tackling and wrestling to get one another out of the boat (which was fun to watch) and a splash war started by yours truly. In the calm part of the float even our kids jumped out of the boat to swim around. It was a blast.

THEN we hit the rapids -- the famous Lunch Counter rapids. They were pretty big and a little bit imposing, and people have been known to actually surf them on a surfboard! Check out this link to a video on YouTube of a guy surfing the Lunch Counter rapids.

WELL, as we were approaching the rapids, the boat in front of us hit the rapids and completely pitched everybody but one person out of their boat! Nine people were in the water floating fast down the river and the one guy who stayed in the boat was trying to get to people to pull them in without much luck. And now it was our turn...Gulp!

Jonathon, our guide from Texas, was excellent. He was both professional and funny. He had told us that we needed to paddle hard through the rapids and keep paddling as the best way to get through Lunch Counter. We listened to him and we powered through the rapids without flipping over -- it was awesome! Below are a couple of links to the photo companies that took pictures of us going through Lunch Counter:

Floatographs
Snake River Photos

See if you can find all six of us on the raft (hint: I was a lead paddler on the front right hand side). See if you can see Nick screaming (actually everyone). We haven't purchased any of these pictures (yet) but wanted you to see them firsthand.

After Lunch Counter it was pretty much easy going with only a few Class 2 rapids left and then out. We had SOOO much fun on this adventure, I highly recommend it for all of you to try! In fact we had so much fun, I think we are going to try and go whitewater rafting somewhere in California before the summer ends!

After the float trip we went to Jackson and had a delicious Mexican dinner at Pica's and then went for an evening drive through the park, taking pictures and reading all of the roadside exhibits. It was a BRILLIANT day!

The next day we awoke with anticipation, ready to go hiking at the famous Jenny Lake (some say one of the most beautiful lakes in America) and then horseback riding in Buffalo Valley, just outside of Moran Junction on the east side of the park. After packing the car (a HUGE process for six people), we headed to Jenny Lake. It was a bit crazy as a few other people had heard of it (slight sarcasm), but after we parked and walked to the boat dock we understood why it was so popular...it was stunning! We caught a boat across the lake, enjoying the scenery and the banter with the boat driver, and docked at the ramp at the base of the Cascade Canyon trail. The kids hit the trail with vigor and we headed up to Hidden Falls. Unfortunately, we only had a short time before our horse back ride and we needed to turn around at Hidden Falls. We headed back to the boat dock, jumped in Jenny Lake to cool off (some people thought we were Natalie didn't mind...she was ready to ride!!

After our hike and boat ride back we headed to the Buffalo Valley Ranch near Moran Junction. It is a beautiful valley with commanding views of the Tetons. This was going to be the first time we all rode as a family, as Jill is still healing from her jaw surgery and Josh was too young at most of the places. And what a beautiful ride to do together! We started from the ranch and headed up into the valley, climbing the hills lining the valley so we were on top of the valley wall and walked back down to the ranch in a big loop. It was spectacular! The two young lady wranglers, Caroline (Georgia) and Alicia (Michigan), were terrific with the kids and talked to us about the area, wrangling, and even the flowers. Below are a couple of pictures of them:


Caroline


Alicia

I think Natalie would like to come back as a wrangler when she is old enough. In fact, Natalie has really discovered her passion on this trip -- horses -- and would like to spend more time with them, eventually owning some of her own. It has been beautiful to watch her work with different horses, from Kansas to Wyoming, and her confidence around them has grown with each ride. I am sure when we get back home she will be more involved with horses in some way.

After our beautiful ride we were all ready to go to Jackson Lake for a swim before leaving for Yellowstone. Sufficiently cooled off and bellies full, we headed off for an evening drive into Yellowstone National Park.

Goodbye Grand Tetons, we will miss you...but we will be back. Promise.

Peace,

Brian
***
The Magnificent Tetons...









Boat Ride on Jenny Lake



Hiking by Jenny Lake (Hidden Falls trail)





















Horseback Riding in Buffalo Valley Ranch, Wyoming (just 2 miles or so east of Moran Junction)



Some of the beautiful scenery on our Buffalo Valley Horseback ride...

Day 17 (24th): Driving Across the Great State of Wyoming

Hello Everyone,

Well, after several days enjoying the sights and sounds in the Black Hills of South Dakota, it was time for another long driving day across the great state of Wyoming. We had a *brilliant* time in South Dakota, and strongly recommend you go check it out for yourselves. The wide open prairies, the spectacular Badlands, the Black Hills, Mount Rushmore, Custer State Park...we could have spent even more time there. Fun time.

As we had to make it to Moran Junction, Wyoming by nightfall, we did not have nearly as much time as we would have liked to explore the sights in Wyoming. We would have liked to see Devil's Tower National monument, spent some time exploring nature in the Wind River canyon, and observed a Native American Pow Wow in Riverton. However, as we were headed back west I kept telling myself, "The Grand Tetons are waiting to greet you," and that helped keep me going. Jill and I shared the driving and after 10+ hours on the road we reached our destination: Flagg Ranch, Moran Junction, Wyoming!

Peace,

Brian

***

First few pictures of Wyoming....

Then the terrain started to change as we got near the thriving metropolis of Thermopolis andof course, the Wind River Canyon...

Day 16 (23rd): Wild Bill Hickock and Deadwood

Hello All,

Here I am in Jackson, Wyoming at Pica's Mexican Restaurant trying to catch up while Jill and the kids do some quick grocery shopping. Before I go on, the food at Pica's is excellent -- try the Hanger Steak with chillaquiles...absolutely delicious!Well our last day in South Dakota was very fun, as we played at the ranch in the morning and went to the real wild west town of Deadwood in the afternoon. The history in this town is amazing, as it said this is the town that coined the term "the wild, wild west." It was the home and is the final resting place of Wild Bill Hickock and Calamity Jane, and was the subject of an HBO special titled "Deadwood."

During our afternoon in this historical town, we participated in the reenactment of the assassination of Wild Bill Hickock in the #10 Saloon. In fact, I was selected from the crowd to play the bartender, and got to see the plot unfold in front of my eyes. Jill and the kids sat at a card table and ate dinner while Wild Bill gave a soliloquy on his history, how he got his name, how he served as a spy in the Union Army, how he shot buffaloes with "Buffalo Bill" Cody and then travelled back east to Buffalo, New York, to teach the easterners about the wild west, how he married Agnes Thatcher and eventually went to Deadwood. Unfortunately, Wild Bill was killed in Deadwood, shot in the back of the head by the cowardly Jack McCall.
After the reenactment, we went up the street to watch a live robbery and shooting in the middle of the street in front of the Franklin Hotel. That was fun but too short, and not so full of history as the Wild Bill show in Saloon #10. Still, the kids enjoyed the show and got a taste for the wild west.

We ended our day in Deadwood up on Mount Moriah Cemetery aka "boot hill" to see the graves of Wild Bill, Calamity Jane, Preacher Smith and other prominent historical Deadwood citizens. It was amazing to see these grave sites, and the kids were touched by the small graves of the children who died at ages of 5, 3, even 1 year old. Josh commented when he saw the grave of a 5 year old boy: "That boy was only my age...he shouldn't have died yet." Jake said in return: "That's okay, he's in Heaven with his mommy and daddy now." I sure love my kids.
After boot hill we headed "back to the ranch" (seriously) for one last night with the horses and the Black Hills. It was a sweet night, as we watched the stars come out and listened to the sounds of the night. We all drifted off to sleep dreaming about our nextstop...the Grand Tetons!

Peace,

Brian

***

In the #10 Saloon with Wild Bill and the Lillies

Bank Robbery, Shoot out and capture on Main Street, Deadwood, South Dakota

Day 15 (22nd): Horses, Mount Rushmore and Custer State Park

Hello Everyone!

We had an awesome first day at the High Country Ranch in Hill City, South Dakota, including a morning horseback ride, a late afternoon visit to Mount Rushmore, a drive through Custer State Park's wildlife loop, and back to Mount Rushmore for the evening history lesson and lighting ceremony. It was a SPECTACULAR DAY in the Black Hills of South Dakota!

Pictures will come later at our next WIFI spot, probably somewhere in Wyoming...

...and here they are, posted thanks to Pica's Mexican Restaurant's WIFI network in Jackson, Wyoming!!!

Next stop, Flagg Ranch, Moran, Wyoming!!

Peace,

Brian