On the way to Yellowstone

I had to write a note to remind myself. I kept forgetting because I didn’t have a picture of it. While we were on the Salmon, a young black bear(!) trotted along a ledge above the river bank for a minute or two, giving everybody a good look (but alas, too short for me to get my camera).

After leaving the river, we drove across Idaho the next day, staying in a town on the eastern side, so we could get an early start towards Yellowstone. We first wanted to see Mesa Falls, which had both upper and lower sections.

You could only see those Lower Mesa Falls from a lookout quite a distance away, but the Upper Falls, you could see right at the edge.

The Upper Falls are 114 ft. high and 200 ft across. It was gorgeous and thundering to stand right near the top.

Seeing the river below the falls brought back happy memories of our time spent on the Salmon.

Any time there was a shock of color in otherwise grey/brown landscape, I tried to get a picture:

We then dipped back south a bit, to take a scenic byway to the Tetons. For a lot of this trip (except across SD, NE and MO), I found scenic byways to travel along. We continually said “wow!” and “gorgeous!”. What a huge and beautiful country we’re blessed to live in!!

our first view of Jackson Hole, WY

At a waterway just outside of Jackson, there were trumpeter swans. I’ve always thought these were beautiful birds in the books, but never thought I’d get to see them up close. This parent and cygnet made a photogenic pair:

The Tetons are absolutely breathtaking. Even in fall with little snow, they were so majestic. Capped with white, I’m sure they’re stunning.

The naming of the mountains is attributed to early 19th-century French-speaking trappers—les trois tétons (the three breasts) was later anglicized and shortened to Tetons. (thanks, Wiki!)

Driving north through Grand Teton National Park was a neat entryway to Yellowstone, and offered stupendous scenic views.

Next post will be the first of three on Yellowstone. Bye!