Grand Teton, Snake River

We took the decision to leave Grand Teton a day early today as the weather forecast was for heavy rain and Rob and Becky’s sensible alternative was to drive back to Denver and spend our final day in those hillls in good weather.

But first we drove from Moose Junction to Schwabacher Landing to walk the short trail in search of the beaver dams on Snake River as seen on the BBC Yellowstone documentaries. Fortunately we had the only good light of the day for our mini hike and it wasn’t long before we came across evidence of beaver activity and then there was the dam and, on an island behind it, the Lodge. It wasn’t the right time of day to see the beavers themselves, but it was enough to stand and admire their engineering skills and how they have transformed this section of the turbulent Snake River in to a tranquil haven of crystal clear , slow moving water and grass fringed pools for a variety of wildlife. It was here that we heard the calls of several different birds: a tiny bright yellow one, another one with a vivid flash of gold and red on its wings; and swallows seeking out insects above the river; a pair of grebe like ducks and a distant bird of prey , the first I have seen on this trip.

From Schwabacher Landing we continued north, pulling over at the Snake River Overlook for the classic view of the Teton Range, the higher peaks still obscured by the low cloud. We did not tarry long because we could see the weather closing in from the south and Rob spotted a fork of lightning. Even the car system posted a warning of an approaching wintry storm!

Back on the road we turned east at Moran Junction on to the Dubois road. Leaving the Tetons behind, we climbed high through the Shoshone Forest in to a winter wonderland with the forest blanketed in thick snow at 10 000’ and mist hanging over the trees. Dropping down in to Wind River Reservation, we stopped in Dubois for lunch at the friendly Perch Cafe where we ate the best breakfast sandwiches of sausage, egg and cheese in hot crispy rolls, yum, thank you Tommy!

Then it was back on the long drive of several hours to Denver, following the Wind River through mini Badlands of red rock and grey green sagebrush, the trees now tinged with brilliant lime green which was missing on our journey out here. We could glimpse the bad weather on the mountain tops and it felt like something of a race to stay ahead of it, it was a good decision to leave when we did.

After a couple of hours we were back in cattle and horse country, passing through great place names: Crowheart; Willow Creek (cue the Eagles!), Fort Washakis; Streetwater Station; Muddy Gap. Then we were back on those endless empty plains with occasional rocky outcrops reminiscent of alien worlds on early Star Treks!

A couple of hours out from Denver the weather changed dramatically. First we were in thick mist, scary for driving for Becky. When she handed over to Rob we hit very heavy rain and then dreadful hailstones and had to take cover under a road bridge! Once in the hotel in Broomfield, we were glad we had done the journey today if that was the weather we had escaped.

After a ‘British’ meal at a local British pub we are now comfortably relaxing with just one day left of our holiday in the West.