Day 6: Yellowstone and Grand Teton
We spent the night in the Grant Village Lodge and woke up fairly early. We wanted to make sure we had time to pack up and carry luggage to the truck and have our first hot breakfast of the trip before a kayak trip that we had reserved on Yellowstone Lake from Grant Marina.
We walked over to the Grant Village Restaurant and found it far less crowded than the prior night. We got seated near the window overlooking the lake and had buffet breakfast. It was good. Much better than what we felt we got the prior night for dinner.
We didn’t have long to enjoy our breakfast before we left for the marina. We got our sunscreen, sandals, and waterproof camera and met the guides at the lake shore.
Kayaking to West Thumb Geyser Basin
I reserved a 3 hour morning kayaking trip to the West Thumb Geyser Basin on a whim a month before our trip. I found it on Viator, and since we would be camping at Grant Campground, I thought it would be a fun morning activity.
Even though we were no longer camping, we had spent the night at Grant Lodge, so we were right there to still go on the kayak tour. Shelley had to bow out of this activity too due to a medical issue, but because we were going to West Thumb Geyser Basin she could travel there and see us from the shore.
The kayak tour was run by Prismatic Tours and I highly recommend it. The guides were knowledgable and friendly, and we talked to them throughout the paddle all the way to West Thumb Geyser Basin about Yellowstone and the thermal features.
The weather conditions the day of our kayaking trip could not have been better. Hardly any wind. A warm morning that steadily rose toward 80F as we proceeded on the water. It was perfect.
As we were alongside the geyser basin we saw water tumbling over the cliff face and into the cold, 40F degree waters of Yellowstone Lake. We put our hands into the water and felt the difference in temperature between the warm layer on top and the colder water below.
In the past we probably wouldn’t have thught of doing a kayaking trip in Yellowstone, but I was so glad I gave this a shot. It was a great experience and a lot of fun.
After returning the the marina we made a last stop at the gift shop in Grant Village, knowing that we were now leaving the park for Grand Teton National Park. We drove south and departed Yellowstone through the south entrance. Til next time, Yellowstone.
Headwaters Resort
After exiting the park we entered the John D. Rockefeller Jr Memorial Parkway, which sits between the parks. It’s great that JD Rockefeller Jr bought and donated this land and other lands nearby, otherwise it would have been developed into an tacky, ugly area full of tourist traps like you see outside of many national parks.
What does exist in the parkway is The Headwaters Resort which is similar to the lodges in Grand Teton National Park. We wanted a good lunch and stopped at Sheffields Restaurant in the resort.
The interior was uncrowded and chill, the staff was friendly and talkative, and the food and beer was good too.
Looking at the name badges of the staff which listed their home state or country, I thought of my college student son who was doing a summer session back home. Later, when I talked to him on the phone, I suggested he might leave next summer open and consider working at a national park. It sure seems like it would be a fun and memorable way to enjoy a summer break while a college student.
After lunch, we got some fuel and more air in my tire that had the aforementioned slow leak in the prior blog, then continued south into Grand Teton National Park.
Grand Teton National Park
It’s hard to believe possible that two of the top fie national parks in the country are only 24 miles apart. But that is the case. I would never not visit both parks when heading to this area, unless my time was very, very limited.
We have a favorite place to stay when we go to Grand Teton and in my opinion, because it’s a little tucked away from much of the rest of the park and the visitor traffic, it is like a park within a park. And that is Colter Bay.
Colter Bay
We drove into Colter Bay, a place we had camped at in 2017 and 2019. This time we were staying in the historic log cabins which are, like the lodging in the rest of Grand Teton and Yellowstone, a tad pricey, but worth it for their location in the park.
I made a video of our cabin. If you have a large family, unfortunately, it might be kind of hard since our cabin only had beds for three people (one double and one twin). As with all lodging in Yellowstone and Grand Teton, it helps to book as early as possible.
After unloading our luggage. We stepped outside to see a friendly mule deer.
From our prior visits, we’ve come to expect to see mule deer and squirrels around Colter Bay. In 2017 and 2019 we saw bald eagles along the shores of Jackson Lake from a rented motor boat. This time we were told about a young grizzly that was hanging around the area, but we weren’t lucky enough to see it.
In the afternoon we a walked around the area and stopped by the visitor center. I had a long hike planned for the next day, which left Shelley and Evan with an open morning to plan. They decided to do a ranger led hike that would circle along the lake shore the next morning.
After passing alongside the marina, we returned briefly to the cabin, then made our way to the Cafe Court Pizzaria in Colter Bay. It was good, and just what we wanted for a meal to end the day.
I had what I expected to be a long and hard hike planned for the next morning and we went to bed not long after sunset. I got my backpack, poles, water bottles, and snacks ready to save time in the morning. With everything ready and our plans made, we went to sleep.
My back was already a bit fatigued from the runs back and forth multiple times to Lonestar Geyser, the kayaking trip, and hefting our fully loaded 60 quart cooler up and down from the truck.
I needed my backpack to be loaded with only the things I needed and nothing more. Lake Solitude was my goal for tomorrow and I was not going to be stopped by too much or too little gear in my backpack.