Grand Tetons & Jackson

We have good news! We found a campground to accommodate us for the next 2 nights, so now we are covered through August 11. We are staying at the Gros Ventre Camp Ground in the Grand Teton National Park near Moran, Wy. Our camp sites have only power, so we filled up our fresh water tank on arrival, and will dump our holding tanks when we leave. The rate is $36.50 per night ( Golden Age Passport rate) which is a bargain here.
             We left Dubois about 10AM traveling on Highway 26 over some fairly steep mountains with 6% grade up and down for a number of miles. We made a pit stop on top of Togwotee Pass where it was a balmy 47 degrees!  Hard to believe this is August! Togwotee Pass has an elevation of about 9500 ft above sea level and is the Western Continental Divide. We had a safe and uneventful trip across the mountains.
            Jackson, Wy is the closest town of any size and is about 15 miles from our campground. Jackson is a quaint little town of about 9500 people and is pretty much a tourist destination but does have several interesting and unique attributes. It's well known as the National Elk Refuge where thousands of elk migrate in the fall and winter to the valley floor to lush green fields of pasture. The refuge is managed by the US Fish & Wildlife Service. Jackson is also home to the National Museum of Wildlife Art as well as a ski lodge and a host of winter activities. One interesting side note about the area. I always assumed Jackson Hole was a name of a town, but actually it's the valley making up the whole area of Jackson and the Grand Tetons.
          We will stay here until Wednesday, when we will migrate north to the Grizzly RV Park in West Yellowstone for 5 days to check out the beauty and glamor of Yellowstone National Park.

The majestic Grand Teton Mountains with the Snake River in the foreground.

The Grand Teton visitor center

The tallest of the mountains in this range  is The Grand Teton with an elevation of 13,770. There are other markers like this one at the visitor center pointing to each mountain peak and its' elevation.

MeeMee & Pop

Al & Pat

The beauty and splendor of these mountains is beyond words. 

We found a nice herd of Buffalo. They seemed oblivious to us, but we stayed in our vehicle just in case.

Rear View mirror shot.

Scenic shot of an old barn and the Tetons. Notice the small holes in the ground in the foreground. They belong to a village of prairie dogs.

Stage Coach offering rides around downtown Jackson. Notice the archway behind the stagecoach. It's made entirely of elk antlers. There's a square park in the middle of Jackson and all 4 corners of the park have an arch like this one. Each arch has approximately 1600 antlers in it.

Covered sidewalk in downtown Jackson with interesting shops.

Crickett and Pat with a new friend.

This was inside a mercantile store with all types of mounted wildlife. I particularly liked this one.

Al & Pat under the arch

Us too!

Close up of the arch.

In case you can't read the caption, it basically says each year, after the elk leave, all their shed antlers are collected by local Boy Scouts and are sold at the square in Jackson. Pretty cool, huh!

Lake Jenny