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Henna walking toward Moulton’s Barn in Grand Teton National Park which was part of a Mormon settlement that existed into the mid 20th Century.

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Chilling after a long day driving from Missoula, MT to Gros Ventre Campground (Grand Teton National Park). We spent one night here then six more at Signal Mountain Campround

 

After almost 7,800 miles, 48 nights (and 29 spent in a tent), 8 national parks, 3 nifty sand dunes, 3 bear encounters, 1 chipmunk encounter (the sucker ran up the mesh of the tent a few inches from my face), 1 poorly scripted fake gun fight (Dodge City, KS), 6 nights spent on the California/Oregon coast, 1 attack by falling rocks (between Silverton and Ouray, CO), and 1 prophet (outside of Kansas City, he warned of rain on the 4th of July) we are finally home. And by home I mean a place where every short walk results in several long conversations. Our home home. We do though have more stories to tell of our unscripted 2017 Great Summer Trip. Like the former Japanese American Internment Camp in Southeastern Colorado we visited. Or the funky opera house in tiny Eureka, Nevada. And of course more talking politics with strangers. But for now we leave you with a few more photos to look at while we unpack.

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The long gravel road leading to the Granite Hot Springs outside of Jackson, WY

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In the background is Mount Rainier and in the foreground is the White River which flows down from the glaciers

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Sunset at Gros Ventre Campground (Grand Teton National Park)

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Moose Falls near the south entrance at Yellowstone National Park

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Curious mammals looking out at Hayden Valley (Yellowstone National Park)

Cool Stop #29: Yellowstone at Night

Who says you can’t ever go back? About a month ago we left our comfy home in the Tetons headed to Mount Rainier. The route took us through Yellowstone but Corey was not feeling well so we barely left the car. Henna and I were able to check out a few geysers, but the whole thing left us kind of frustrated. So here we are, a week or so from home, and it has been kind of hard to adjust to Crazy Tourist Place U.S.A. Want to camp, better get to the park before ten (even on a Sunday). And if you ask a ranger a question, you better be prepared to listen to an extended lecture on bear safety. Me: Have you had much bear activity in this area? Ranger: Let me give you a five minute lecture about bears and what to do if you come across one.

On the Rescue Creek Trail

There is a reason why this place is so darn popular. It’s beautiful for one. It’s also pretty wild once you get off the pavement. Today we took a short trail while waiting to go on white water rafting trip and ended up in a sunny ranch landscape of buttes and grass. We also came across some possible Native American ruins and antelope skulls. Pretty cool considering that we were rarely out of sight from the main road.

Antelope Skull

But my favorite thing here so far has to be the nights. There is a meteor shower going on and last night we counted about ten shooting stars in maybe thirty minutes. Here the Milky Way looks like milk spilled across a starry night and you will feel like you went to bed too soon regardless of the hour. That is how I feel about the trip too. Noel 8/5/13