"Be the kind of woman that when your feet hit the floor each morning, the devil says...."Oh crap! She's up!" Unknown

Sunday, September 16, 2018

Being Awed By Beautiful Sights

For the last couple of weeks
my husband, Doodlebug, middle brother, his wife and I
took our mom on a trip to a part of the country none of us
had ever visited.
Seeing this part of the country had been on her bucket list
for years and she was thrilled to finally see it.
What a trip it was!

We started in Salt Lake City, Utah
and visited the Great Salt Lake.
It was somewhere my mom had wanted to see,
so we headed to Antelope Island State Park.

It did not disappoint!




The water level recedes in the summer months
and as the snow melts and rains fall,
it fills back up. You can see how much the lake has receded here.

 

The colors were so different from what we see on the East Coast.

So were the animals!

 


This antelope ran along side the car for a bit.

 


We saw a lot of bison on the island.
This was a large herd on the dry lake bed.

The next day we drove from Salt Lake City, UT
to Jackson, Wy.
We took a 13 hour tour of Yellowstone
and could not get over the beauty in this park.

 



 Mt. Moran in the Teton Mountains just after sunrise.
The reflections in the water were just gorgeous.
It's hazy from all of the wildfires in the north west,
but the colors were still beautiful.

 


This canyon is what gave Yellowstone it's name.
The fur trappers came up the canyon and saw the 
yellow stone. These waterfalls, the Lower Yellowstone Falls,
are the tallest in the park.

 


The number of different geothermal and hydrothermal events in the park
were fascinating.  Here is a large pot of boiling mud.
It gurgled and bubbled and popped and stunk!

 


This is Clepsydra Geyser.
There were several areas spouting and spewing water...
very, very hot water... like 170 degrees!
 



This geothermal event is called Grand Prismatic Spring.
The different colors are from the different bacteria living in the spring.
Again, the water is very hot.




We were able to see Old Faithful, 
but arrived just after it started spewing.
It was impressive none the less.





The one disappointment was we didn't' see a lot of wildlife. 
This elk did not like us stopping and taking his picture at all.





Back to the Teton Mountains.
Those are glaciers at the top.

 


We were at Jenny Lake at the base of the Tetons at sunset and
it was gorgeous.
So quiet and peaceful.


 One day in Jackson,
We took a gondola up to the top of one of the ski mountains.
We were 10,450 feet up the mountain.
The ski runs were unbelievable. 
I'm not a skier,
but why anyone would want to go down a mountain like that
on skis is beyond me.  :)




It was very hazy, but this is the Snake River valley.

 

The tallest peak is the Grand Teton Peak.


We moved on from Jackson and headed east in Wyoming.
The tour will continue later.

I was able to visit a cute little quilt shop in Salt Lake City
and brought a couple of little treasures home with me.

To be continued....


Happy Day!

8 comments:

Sara said...

Beautiful pictures! Skiing in the Rockies was wonderful and the views were inspirational.

Libby in TN said...

Oh, you are in my absolute favorite part of the world! The Tetons are exquisite and you captured a beautiful view of them, sooty sky and all. I was last there one day before 9/11. Talk about a letdown!

Vicki in MN said...

I agree totally it is gorgeous in Yellowstone-we spent 11 days in there a couple years ago. We didn't get into the Tetons so I would love to go back. Thanks for sharing through your eyes;)
Enjoy the rest of your trip and can't wait to see what else you are doing!

Unknown said...

What wonderful pictures from your trip! How lucky to be able to go with your mom. Thanks for sharing. It is something I would like to see one day!

Needled Mom said...

I can imagine the stark difference from the East Coast. It sounds like a perfect thing to check off her bucket list and I am so glad that you were able to help her do it. Your photos are so pretty. It is a gorgeous area of our great country.

Debbie said...

Gorgeous photos! I've been to Salt Lake City but not Yellowstone or Jackson but I want to go to those places someday. Looks like a great trip.

straythreads said...

your photos are stunning especially the wildlife. I need to go on a road trip in the US I was 10 when I went to Yellowstone

Julie said...

Fabulous photos! I have not been to Yellowstone for 34 years! I have not been to any quilt shops in Salt Lake City itself, but several south of there where my daughter used to live. I'm so glad you got to experience my side of the country, even though you needed to go more northwest to see me! Thanks for sharing.