Being based in the middle of the Pacific, the reason we as a family unit have been visiting foreign countries more than than we have the states is because of what I think of as the cost to destination ratio. The more interesting and unique the place, the culture and the physical environment are, the better the value. After all, what do we want in a trip besides a complete mental get away from normal life for just while? The opportunity to see and experience first hand whatever culture there is to soak in.
Japan or Las Vegas? Cirque du Soleil is an awesome performance but I’d rather have a dose of fatty tuna with fugu fin sake in a six-seater sushi restaurant. Even then, after seeing big city upon big city, the idea of getting to experience nature had more and more value. Especially now that the boys are doing scouting, nature is starting to have a greater appeal. National park? Let’s do it. Let’s breathe in some tree-air and go feel some dirt. Wait, how cold will it be?
Choosing a destination. What do I know about national parks? Not much. I’ve been to a friend’s wedding at Shenandoah (which was awesome but we mostly went for the wedding) and I’ve been to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on the Big Island, and the two were very different. So what should I expect? I had no idea but was about to find out. Honestly, this is how many of our trips start out. We chose Yellowstone for its name recognition and its famous sites. Old Faithful, it’s about time we meet.
Erm, so what do we do there, camp for a week?
As June planned it out, no, we decided to stay as close by the parks as possible in a hotel/motel/inn and drive into and out of the park(s) daily. Less packing but more driving, So no camping for us this time around. We opted for sleep in a level bed with AC at night. After seeing it, this made sense that there are towns at the outskirts to the parks that have sprung up and are fueled by nature driven tourists. I’ll bet that if you stayed even further out from the parks and were willing to drive longer each day you could save some moolah on room and board.
This trip we stayed at two places and planned on visiting two parks-Jackson Hole (The Grand Tetons) and Yellowstone (west Yellowstone). Both parks are right next to each other, and because of this we figured we might as well check out both. Although I would consider neither place a bargain, due to its popularity with the wealthy, Jackson Hole was noticeably more expensive than I thought it should be for a “nature” trip.
Here’s something I found. Don’t know how true it is though.
Playgrounds of the rich and famous are getting richer. Jackson Hole, Manhattan and Aspen boast the highest personal incomes in the U.S., according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Per-capita income in Teton County, Wyoming — home to Jackson Hole — is about $252,000 on average. New York City is not far behind with $194,000 and Pitkin County, Colorado, which includes Aspen, is at $150,000. Bloomberg reports that 2018 saw the largest number of counties with a per-capita income increase since 1981. Total personal income increased in 3,019 U.S. counties, or 97% of the total.
https://www.linkedin.com/news/story/richest-us-counties-getting-richer-4484259/
Well that explains it. It sounds like Jackson Hole has become a place for CEOs and hedge fund execs to migrate to and “feel normal.” I guess the grass is always greener…
The reason I stumbled upon that is because I wanted to find out what time I could buy beer until here since each state and county might have different rules. And then I came across this…
Pretty Basic Gear
I found out that you can visit these parks as lightly or as hardcore as you want. You can watch the Grand Tetons from afar or you can blaze a trail and climb into them. We opted for “lightly.” Although I envisioned a minivan, due to high cost and low availability we rented a modest sedan and went with tennis shoes and stuffed our backpacks with the basics — warmth, water, grub, and spotting scopes. Bear spray was available at almost every gas station and convenience store and although it seemes every other person on the trail was sporting spray I never got around top buying a canister. After seeing how busy the main attractions were and realizing that we weren’t about to go trail blazing alone into the wilderness our first visit here, we passed on the spray. Please know that I am not an expert and don’t necessarily recommend this to anyone.
So what’s the plan guys?
We did have an experimental “shift every day’s itinerary later by a few hours” schedule we were going try. We heard the parks were especially busy with itchy-footed travelers so we were hoping to see all the sites but at off-times instead. Our general plan for the next ten days was to wake up late and return to our room later than normal. We figured that if we scooched our day back, we’d in essence stay on Hawaii time and avoid the crowds plus we aren’t morning people so it seemed like a decent travel tactic. The sun sets around 9 pm or so in Wyoming at this time of year so what the heck.
Although I’m the type of person who doesn’t typically like to purchase phone apps, an important thing to note is that there is generally zero internet while in the parks, and I’m so thankful June downloaded the GyPSy Guide app. It cost $14.99 for both the Tetons and Yellowstone guides, but it was super worth it. The app works offline, and it takes note of your location and the direction you’re headed and the narrator will start talking automatically to let you know what to look at and when. It was like having a travel guide with us telling us what to look at all the appropriate times, and during the in between drive, we learned about the science and history of the area. All with no internet!
Before I forget, I should say thanks to our fearless leader and planner June for executing this (and all of our other adventures)!
Trip info
- Our trip dates: August 3-12 2021-(3 days at the Grand Tetons and 6 in Yellowstone)
- Approximate temp range: 55-79 degrees Fahrenheit (pretty reasonable for a slipper wearer)
- Total air time from HNL to SFO and to Jackson Hole: 7 hours not including layover (roughly 3 in-flight movies back to back)
- Trip soundtrack: Olivia Rodrigo (Paxton’s pick) and Pinball Wizard (Hudson’s choice)
1) Fly in. 2) Settle in. Our first day didn’t consist of much as we arrived late in the evening. Hello Jackson Hole!
This I Did Not Know…
The Jackson Hole Airport is the only commercial airport in the United States located entirely inside a National Park.
If you’ll notice, the entryway from the tarmac is framed with the shed antlers of elk. All 4 corners of the town square outdoor park are also decorated similarly. (Pics elsewhere in blog.)
I’ll say the Jackson airport feels like a hunting lodge slash airport. It’s full of warm colors, lots of wood hues and animal-based art. Its also pretty cmall and cozy. Its the kind of airport you might see in Maui or Hilo. When you deplane you have to walk across the tarmac with your carry on luggage and your rental car is within walking distance. No need shuttle, brah.
So when we rolled into town it was late. We were tired from the plane ride and didn’t have our bearings yet. Are stores open? What’s where around here? No idea. According to our GPS, we were near our hotel. Brand recognition plus time of day plus unfamiliarity = Wendy’s. Was there something better to eat next door? We wouldn’t be finding out tonight.
Although I embrace the idea of eating and drinking my way through a place, tonight, late night and ready to unpack and settle in, I realized this might be last chance for food for tonight before having to resort to last-minute survival gas station options.
By the way, this pass was awesome: 5th graders enter the national parks free! The “Every Kid Outdoors” program from the National Park Service got extended this year from 4th graders to include 5th graders due to Covid, so we were able to go in and out of the parks as many times as we liked at no charge.
So we settled in with pass in hand and waited for tomorrow to begin.
The WOO family page 