After three weeks of travelling with Grant and then my cousins, a new chapter in my adventure was about to begin, I was about to start travelling on my own.
On the positive side, I hadn’t given this any thought. This meant that it didn’t worry me and that I was enjoying each day as it comes. What more could I ask for.
On the negative side, it was difficult saying goodbye to my cousins. I had such a wonderful week with them that I didn’t want it to end. I’m so happy that I will see them again when I get down to Arizona. Jaco, Liza, Nico, Chris and Izaan – thank you so much for making last week one of the best weeks of my life. I will never forget it!
After leaving my cousins on Saturday (happy birthday again Izaan) I headed into Yellowstone National Park. My intention was to see the bits of the park I hadn’t but once I reached the park I was drawn back to the Grand Canyon. I’m so glad I followed my instincts. I spent about three hours exploring ever public accessible part of the Canyon and found two amazing waterfalls. The waterfall at the brink of the lower falls, which is on the north rim of the Canyon, is the second most beautiful thing so have ever seen. The photos below were taken at the falls, although sadly they do the falls an injustice. It is something you simply have to see in person.
From there I headed to Jackson’s Hole, via Grand Teton National Park. The town of Jackson is fantastic! A definitely must see if you are ever travelling around Wyoming.
Grand Teton is the 6th National Park that I have visited in the last 3 weeks and my 3rd in the U.S. What I find remarkable is just how different each park is. This park is certainly a great park to cycle in.
It will be difficult for me to do justice to Grand Teton NP as I wanted a relaxed day and therefore spent the majority of yesterday at Jenny Lake. The lake is beautiful, as you can see from the photo below, but I am sure it has much more to offer than the small part of it I explored.
I took the boat ferry to the other side of Jenny Lake as I wanted to see the Hidden Waterfall and then hike back to the car park.
The Hidden Waterfall was pretty but relatively small, thus another hike was required to fulfil my need for ‘the find of the day’. Each day needs at least one of those in my view.
I saw a board for Inspiration Point and decided that this would be where I was heading. The hike ended up being far more challenging than I had expected but it turned out to be well worth the effort. When I reached Inspiration Point I saw a black bear and her two cubs 20-30 metres below me. How wonderful to see them so nearby and in their natural environment. This was definitely my find for the day.
I had the pleasure of walking the 2.8 miles back to the car park with an English teacher from Michigan called Chris. He is on his own 4,000 mile adventure in a RV and we had a wonderful time talking about all sorts of things on our hike along Jenny Lake. Chris advised me to go and see Wizard Island when I get to Crater Lake. He said its one of the most amazing places he’s been to in the U.S. so I can’t wait to see it. I’ve always had a thing for volcanos.
Another lovely person that I met in Teton Village, where I was staying,
is a young woman called Shannon. She’s originally from upstate New York but she’s been travelling around the western U.S. over weekends while she’s looking for an internship. Shannon advised that I spend more time in Park City rather than Salt Lake City when I get there, so I’m curious to see what it’s like. All I can say is, Utah here I come!
Mel & Trinity 