Jackson Hole on the Fourth of July

Please see Picture Gallery that follows this post. (Link here)

Campground reservations in Jackson Hole are hard to come by anytime, especially on the Fourth of July. Helen and I had three days on the schedule for Jackson and were determined to make the most of it. It helped that, once again, we had camping reservations at the Kudar Motel, one block off the downtown square.

We arrived on the afternoon of July 3^rd and backed Dora into the wrong campsite, thinking we had the same site as last year. Thankfully, Michael, the owner, corrected us before we got too settled and led us to our site at the rear of the motel.  After settling in, we immediately drove to the lovely house that Carolyn, my son’s mother-in-law, rented for the summer and where Collin and his family were spending the month. We needed a granddaughter fix in the worst way.

Carolyn and her husband Johnny prepared a lovely dinner for us, and the girls brought us up to date on all they had seen and done since arriving at the base of the Grand Tetons. It was great seeing everyone. Although Helen and I were a bit road-weary, we stayed long into the evening and planned our next day, including the Fourth of July Parade.

Bob and Mary Alice, friends from our time in Berlin over forty years earlier, met us for coffee on the morning of the parade.  We had not seen each other since those days and had reconnected recently on social media. They have a lovely home in Jackson and divide their time between Wyoming and their home in Virginia. It was great catching up with them, and we agreed we had to do it again soon.

The parade was a fun-filled event! Crowds lined the street early along the parade route, and we worked to reach the meeting point for our family.  The girls arrived before us and looked eager for things to begin.  Our youngest planned to fill a grocery bag with the candy and souvenirs tossed out by parade participants. Once the parade began, we couldn’t look away for fear of missing something unique or unusual.  Parade organizers treated us to antique cars, several groups of cowboys and cowgirls, political groups, first responders, school children, and ordinary citizens looking to wave to the crowd.  On top of it all, a bluebird day made the experience even more pleasant. A grand time was had by all!

For our final full day, we planned to take a float trip on the Snake River. Collin rented a float boat and agreed to paddle it for us. The float trip would begin at the launch at Pacific Creek and end at Dead Man’s Bar.  When Collin lived in Jackson after graduating from college, we fished this stretch of water often and I was looking forward to a return trip.

The Grand Teton mountains are in view for most of the float and I find it difficult to avoid capturing them on camera, they are so majestic. I have several pictures of them from the float trip and from Carolyn’s house.  It is almost impossible to put their beauty into words.

The weather conditions changed dramatically on this day.  A storm came up quickly and pelted us with sleet for a few moments, and lightning strikes came close a couple of times.  We pulled over to the riverbank and waited it out. Few people win an encounter with lightning. Fortunately, the storm left us almost as quickly as it came and did little to dampen our spirits. We resumed our float.

That evening, we all shared a pizza in Dora and invited the girls to spend the night with us—a treat we get so rarely.  They agreed and it was good to be with them. After a weather-beaten day on the water, they slept well. 

Regretfully, Helen and I had to move on the next morning. Carolyn’s house was on our route to West Yellowstone, so we dropped them off with a couple of bear hugs from Big Daddy.  Our time together was short, but we remain grateful for every experience.  Thanks so much to Carolyn and Johnny for sharing her house and her time with the family.  They’re great hosts, and we enjoyed every minute, but it’s time to be Easin’ Along.

See you in West Yellowstone.