Everything up until this point had been truly beautiful and one could only imagine how it could become even better. Well it did! Our journey took us to the south entrance of Yellowstone and on into Grand Teton National Park. Our last few nights were going to be spent in Jackson, WY.

At first the snow capped mountains appeared through the front windshield of the car. We were in a trance continuing to strive forward to get closer and closer. If we had stopped every time we wanted to take in the beauty of the mountains and the scenery it would have taken us days to make the trip from Yellowstone to Jackson.

 As we moved further south, the Tetons truly took shape and became the majestic snow capped vista to our west and drew our attention to it with almost every passing mile through the passenger window.

The fields of wildflowers, yellow and lavender, on the side of the road began to bring color to the green of the forest, dark blue of the lake and the black and white of the distant mountains. Let’s stop and take a picture here! It seemed as if everyone had succumbed to the beauty of the view because there were constant cars parked on the side of the road. Cameras were clicking and movies were being made. If I could have a penny for each picture that was taken I would be a wealthy man.

There were not many animals to be seen. I was told and was hoping on seeing that moose in the field or crossing the road or standing in a pond or lake. As much as we tried over the next few days, we did not come across any.

As we crossed out of the south gate of Yellowstone, the entry line must have been a mile long. Probably 30-60 minute wait to get into the park. We commented, you should have gotten up earlier, but even this wait will be worth the pleasure of Yellowstone.

As we made our way into Jackson, we were pleasantly surprised at the activity. The shops were jumping with people as were the restaurants and cafes. Our hotel, The Ranch Inn, was about one block from the center of town and we immediately took off on foot to explore this quaint little village.

Jackson has a central square, Jackson Town Square, with 4 corner entrances that have these antler arches. Large arches to walk under that have thousands of deer and elk antlers linked together. Truly spectacular. This is where the gunfight takes place and the crowd fills the sidewalks and terraces to watch. It’s really nice if you can time having your coffee or cocktail on a second floor outdoor terrace overlooking the event.

We had a terrific time using Jackson as our base for travelling into and out of Grand Teton National Park.