Road Lessons/Day 9

I can't believe we have been on the road now for 9 days, but still have so much more ahead of us!

This morning we were treated to Paul's fabulous home made waffles: his own secret recipe, and some of the syrup we shipped out to them.  ( I sent some packages along to places we are staying with some things we couldn't fit on the bike, including some syrup).  We had great conversation over breakfast about the world of conservation which Paul has been a leader in, on a national level for many years.  It is so interesting to hear about the machinations and politics of the environmental movement from an insiders point of view.  Amazing that anything gets accomplished, but dedicated people like Paul, keep trying.

After breakfast David and I drove up to Grand Teton National Park for a day of hiking, and lucky for us it was a NO FEE weekend, and so we got into the park free!  Everyone recommended that we take the hike around Jenny Lake and so we stopped there and set out. It was a fantastic hike, with gorgeous views of the lake, incredibly fragrant air,  clear skies and perfect temperature.  We were told at the visitor center that a grizzly had been sited in the area, making it's

way towards the lake, but we didn't see any sign of him.
The trail takes you up a river for while to the next trail head, and then back down the other side and back to the lake shore again.  We stopped for a little break to eat an energy bar and have some water and took off our shoes and sat on a rock and put our feet in the cold water for a bit.  There is a shuttle boat that takes people back and forth across the lake and so at about  3/4 distance around we came to the embarkation  point and decided it would be fun to take the boat back and get the view from the water.  The water is so incredibly clear and turquoise!
Of course the second we got on the boat, the battery in my camera died
and so I didn't get the great pictures from the water that I had hoped, but it was still fun and refreshing with the spray splattering us in the face!

We got back on the bike and drove up to the Jackson Lake Lodge for some lunch at the grill where the Huckleberry milkshake was highly recommended.
The views from there were pretty spectacular. The enormous lodge atrium area was pretty impressive with it's huge windows that perfectly frame the rugged peaks of the Tetons.  By 4:00 we were on our way back into town, back to Paul and Kay's, where we just relaxed, I caught up on yesterday's blog and David napped.

Jackson Lake Lodge

Paul made us a delicious dinner of elk steak, greens from their garden and couscous. Beforehand, Kay treated us to some fabulous specialty olive oils and balsamic vinegars, from a local gourmet shop, to dip our bread into as an appetizer.  We were joined by Jeremias, a young friend of our hosts, who is from Argentina, and is here for the season working for a white water rafting company and staying in their extra room.  We ate out on their deck, completely bug free! It is just perfect here, except for the 10 feet of snow in the winter we could live here in a minute...David didn't like the sound of the 50' of snow scenario, even if it compacts to 10'.  It is so great to fall so easily back into a friendship even if eons of time have gone by.  We are thinking of staying an extra day to play with Kay, since she has had obligations at the gallery.  Kay is a wonderful painter, and we want to see more of her work and also visit the gallery that represents her.  We are sleeping in her studio, which is the kind of space I dream of...Windows! and Skylights! with tons of light and a gorgeous view to boot,  and did I mention LIGHT!  Time for bed now, more adventure with Dave and Laurie tomorrow!

Jackson Lake Lodge view

BTW, there was a frost here last night...but it didn't damage the garden, to Paul's relief.  Frost...in August! (Paul has planted rows of beautiful salad greens and has a sign for the neighbors encouraging them to help themselves.  There's a scissors and baggies for their convenience).

Lesson #22:  There are pros and cons to everything...even paradise has it's downside...just depends on what's more important to you...spectacular views, no bugs or snakes, clear blue skies and then there's that 10' of snow.

David asked me today what my favorite part of the trip so far was, and I couldn't say...right now seems to always be the answer.