MY 49TH STATE July 8th

We left Wyoming after our hike at Jenny Lake in the Tetons around 2 p.m.  We crossed over Teton Pass with some amazing views looking back at Jackson Hole.

I stopped to take a photo of the Welcome to Idaho sign with me holding a 49 sign. The only state left that I have never visited is North Dakota, which we’ll hit towards the end of our trip. I’ve got the 50 sign ready!!

Our raft driver on our float trip Matt said he lived in Victor, ID, and drove over that pass every day to work in Jackson. He said he thought the back side of the Tetons were even more beautiful! So we headed from Victor up into the Tetons to Grand Targhee ski area. It was 12 miles up into the hills and was a lovely resort when we arrived. Betty and I rode the quad ski lift up to 9,800 ft. while Rod lounged at the base in the sun reading his book and paper.

At the top was a rocky trail up to the summit where we took pictures on part of a snowbank still there. Got some great shot of Mt. Teton at 13,700 ft and Mt. Moran at 12,605 ft. Brigid, the charming naturalist guide up at the top, taking temporary setup in the ski hut for the summer, said there are hardly any lift lines, the lift day ticket is $60, as opposed to $100/day at JH, and has a wonderful separated Kids Fun Zone ski area for beginners, where the fastest skiers don’t cut through. Lots of nice gentle (green) trails from the top down.

Another retiree we met in the hut said flying to Salt Lake City and then busing or driving up to Jackson or Victor area was cheaper than flying into Jackson. I just loved this area and hopefully will get to ski it some time!

This resort, even though it was remote to get to, was busy with lots of bikers taking their bikes to the top of the mountain and barreling down. Looked like fun! She also said they have frequent music festivals that bring in 3000+ people on a weekend.

Brigid mentioned her two friends who own the Victor Emporium with great huckleberry milkshakes so on our way back down we stopped. I got a blue and a purple cuddly moose for J and S, plus Idaho dishtowels. And a scrumptious huckleberry (they grow in the area this time of year, like a tart blueberry) milkshake. They have to use extra wide straws to accommodate the berries sucked up!

We headed out to Idaho Falls and arrive at our Hotel by the Falls, with a great room for $68/night for the 3 of us including a great breakfast of bacon and eggs, etc. Betty and I took an hour long walk along the park by the falls this morning before leaving. I crossed a replica of the first bridge across the Snake River for the settlers who came up from Salt Lake City on the way to Montana. A wooden toll bridge, with maybe $1 for an adult, 15 cents for a dog, pig or small animal, varying prices for wagons, etc. to cross. In the late 19^th century a flood level of 3 ft. higher than the bridge destroyed it, but much of the timber was saved and the bridge rebuilt. It was redone as a replica in the 1980s by a community group. It had two sections with an island in the middle with a park. Very lovely!

Off we headed north to Wallace, ID and the gold and silver mines!