We enjoyed the movie, the displays, the views from the deck...just all of it. The best part was the people, though. Yep, the people...the folks running this vc were some of the best. Super nice :). One sweet lady in particular made us smile...she recognized my southern accent and asked where we are from. When I told her, her whole face lit up...she's from the Florida Panhandle, too! She's been out west many many years, but she vividly remembered not only the big places, but also the little ones...Alligator Point, Apalachicola, Carabelle. We both enjoyed a little walk down memory lane :)...
When we left the vc, it was with a personalized map in hand outlining our day for us. We stopped to check out the Jackson Lake Dam...
 |
| there was a ton of water moving through there! |
...then continued on to the trailhead for the hike that we were recommended to take...
Leigh Lake...
...another breathtaking pool of water at the base of these majestic peaks...
We were loving it, it was the perfect day...not too hot, not too cold. Just right. Bright sunshine, gorgeous scenery...
...then, just as the trail headed off into the woods, we came to THIS:
EEK! For real? The trail goes right through this area, too. Back at the vc, when the trail was recommended to us, the guy had to check to see if it was open. He said that an elk carcass had been found in there and so the trail had been closed because guess what...bears eat elk. Uh huh. We weren't really keen on the idea of a stroll through Yogi's dining room, so we took a vote and decided to call it. We turned around and headed back the way we had come, which was also back towards the water...so it was all good :)...
Hiking plans aborted, we took a slow drive through the park. Stopping to get out and soak up the views when even a slow pass was too fast...
The road we were following eventually took us to the Craig Thomas Discovery & Visitor Center aka the Moose Visitor Center. It was here that the kids finished up their Jr. Ranger books and were awarded their badges for GTNP.
After a little gift shop browsing, we headed into Jackson to check out the town and grab some lunch...
Ya'll, after eating every meal outside for a while it actually felt strange to sit down in a restaurant to eat. Hahaha! So weird...
We didn't stay in town long, it was just too crowded for our liking. After lunch, we drove out towards Moran hoping to spot some moose. Obligatory stop at the park sign...
...a herd of antelope (or "cantelope" if you are a certain little kid I know)...
...then we were at the willowy speck on the map called Moran. It is here, among the willows that grow along the bottoms of the Snake River, that we have always seen at least one moose...
Always until this time, that is. We looked and looked...
...no moose. One time when we were going through, we saw a cow moose with her calf just nibbling trees near the Moran post office. Seriously, the post office. This day, nada. No moose. And yes, we even checked at the post office ;). Oh well, it's hard to be disappointed when the scenery looks like this...
We took the little Junction road back up into the park. Stopping alongside Jackson Lake, at the same spot as the day before...
Totally different! Amazing how just a tiny bit of wind could change the scene so much...
Before long, we were back in Yellowstone...
We slowly made our way back up to the lake...
