Finally, Yellowstone and the Tetons

This week is probably the highlight of the entire TAT as we pass through Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons in quick succession. Those massive snow covered peaks that have been hovering on the horizon are now up close and personal. Not only are these two parks some of the most beautiful in the country, Peggy and Rachel join us for this section which makes it even better. We did have to wait two days for Yellowstone to open and we spent an extra day there to see the sights so we are a little behind schedule but confident we can make that up in the flatlands of Kansas.

Day 32 - 66 miles to Bridge Bay Campground

Today is a great day. We finally get into Yellowstone and we get to see Peggy and Rachel who drove up to meet us. Yellowstone opened the West Gate at 8 AM and the line to get in was almost a mile long. Felt good to peddle psst all those cars and jump to the front of the line. Also, since the park had been closed there was little traffic. Add a sunny morning and the beauty of Yellowstone and you have the makings of a wonderful day. We peddled past pine forests and then the Madison River Valley opened up with beautiful meadows and impressive cliffs. Yosemite remains my favorite place but Yellowstone is now a close second. After peddling for a few hours and checking out some park features like the Painted Fountain hydrothermal area, we made our way to Old Faithful to meet Peggy and Rachel. After seeing the geyser erupt and having some lunch, Erik and I started our way toward camp and a few big climbs (crossing the Continental Divide two more times and climb as high as 8,400 feet). We got to camp right as Peggy and Rachel were finishing their day at Yellowstone (again perfect) and settled into camp. Peggy brought Brats from our local butcher for a delicious dinner. Everything about today was awesome, even the nig climbs weren't that bad. In fact, the only downside was the campground I found room in ended up being 18 miles off of our course. Worth the extra miles to have the rest of the family join us here.

Todays milestones - we entered Yellowstone, we entered Wyoming and we climbed to a new high of 8,369 feet

The first thing we pass is the Madison River - very full

The Continental Divide looms in the background. We will see it up close and personal by the end of the day

As we get deeper into the park we pass this awesome meadow by the river - a little cabin here would be perfect

After the meadows come the mountains

A little further into the park beauty turns to curiosity as we see hydrothermal features at Fountain Paint Pot

There are over 10,000 hydrothermal features in Yellowstone

Saw this cool feature a bit later down the road

No trip to Yellowstone is complete without a visit to Old Faithful

After the show at Old Faithful it was back on the bikes to climb over the Continental Divide and get to camp on Yellowstone Lake

Not once, but twice first 8,262 feet and then again at 8,391 feet.

Coming down the backside we get a glimpse of the lake

As we approach the lake we find thermal activity right on the shoreline

and snow capped mountains waiting on the opposite shore

As we settle into camp, a couple of bison graze by - only at Yellowstone

Day 33 - 0 miles enjoying Yellowstone and the family

After sleeping in a little we enjoyed an oatmeal breakfast with fresh raspberries and set off to explore the Eastern side of the park. Yellowstone is like a big theme park, you cannot explore it all in two days so we focus on some highlights. We have already seen a ton of wildlife including bison, moose, elk, fox, sandhill cranes, bighorn sheep, ravens and a bald eagle. We also visited the upper and lower falls on the Yellowstone River (which were booming after all the rain), Yellowstone's Grand Canyon and several additional hydrothermal features. We finished the day taking a boat out on Lake Yellowstone and fishing for cut throat trout (we caught 6 of them). Another wonderful day in Yellowstone. Will be sorry to leave tomorrow, but the Tetons are calling and we have to get back on schedule.

We awoke to a fox running through camp. Yellowstone had more diverse wildlife than any other park we have visited

We passed this bull elk on the way to the the falls

And more Bison by the roadside

The Yellowstone River has two major falls on the East side of the park. We got this view of the upper falls as we hiked down to the lower falls. Flood waters get the waterfalls flowing

I thought the upper falls was impressive until we reached the lower falls going into Yellowstone's Grand Canyon

The amount of water flowing over the lower falls was unbelievable and the view down the canyon was amazing

A hike downstream and we see the lower falls from below rather than above

Another view of Yellowstone's Grand Canyon

This thermal feature is called Dragons Cave which was quite fitting

And more Bison

We end the day taking a fishing boat onto Yellowstone Lake

We caught (and released) six beautiful cut throat trout

Day 34 - 58 miles to Colter Bay Village

We were sad to leave Yellowstone today as we peddled over the Continental Divide for a third time and made our way toward the south gate. Our sadness was short lived however, as after ten short miles we entered Grand Teton National Park. Only a few miles later we saw the massive and majestic Tetons looming over the tree tops. We made our way to camp at Colter Bay and met with Peggy and Rachel. We spent the afternoon seeing the highlights of Teton including Jenny Lake and Mormon Row. All in all a wonderful day with awesome scenery. Looking up at the Tetons across Jenny Lake brings a reverence and awe.

Today's milestones - we have now completed more than 1/3 of the total TAT and we entered the Grand Tetons.

The day starts climbing and crossing the Continental Divide again

And we find a new wildflower by the edge of the road

Not as impressive as yesterday, but still a nice little waterfall

The road leading out of Yellowstone has steep cliffs of broken rock

Like many days on the TAT, we have a river flowing on one side and cliffs or woods on the other

Just 12 miles out of Yellowstone we get our first glimpse of the Tetons

A few miles further and we are riding around Jackson Lake and the Tetons are there

Also passed this meadow with a huge patch of purple wildflowers

The Teons were awe inspiring

Impressive from any angle - the best views of the Tetons were from across Jenny Lake. Definitely one of the top five places I have ever been/seen.

Mount Moran

Grand Teton across Jenny Lake

Grand Teton

Today's old barn comes from an early LDS pioneer settlement in the Teton Valley

We end the day looking for black bears around Oxbow bend

Day 35 - 64 Miles to Dubois, Wyoming

Today is a sad day as Peggy and Rachel head home and we leave the Tetons. Before leaving Peggy drove me to Jackson to repair both my front tires. When I got up yesterday morning they were both flat. We pulled them up but they both lost pressure by end of day. So, two new tubes (they found a glass shard hard punctured one of them). Was frustrating to get two flats in one day but a blessing it happened when Peggy was here to drive me to a bike shop. With the repairs done we waved good bye to Peggy and Rachel and started peddling toward Moran. We got more awesome views of the Tetons as we left (maybe better than Yosemite - what?). After leaving the park we started the longest and highest climb to date as we head up the 9,658 foot Togwotee Pass (second highest point on the entire TAT). Though the climb was tough and we started the day late, we still got to our planned camp site before 6 PM. Erik and I decided to push another 23 miles to Dubois since it was mostly downhill. After about 5 miles, a steady headwind started blowing so we didn't get into Dubois until after 8 PM. The area we are in is called wind river so we will likely face headwinds for the next 200 miles :(.

Today's milestone - climbed to almost 10,000 feet - a new high.

Today we say goodbye to the Tetons

But not without a few parting shots

This is from the top of the climb coming out of the Tetons. Nearly 10,000 feet and worth it for this view

You can see the road heading up to the Togwotee Pass

This was the other side of the same pass

We cross the Continental Divide for the fourth time in three days, this time at over 9,600 feet (second highest point on the TAT)

Impossible to match the Tetons but still some impressive sights on this side of the pass

The hills as we head into Dubois could be from Southern Utah

Day 36 - 77 miles to Lander, Wyoming

To avoid the wind we got an early start to what ended up being a near perfect riding day. There was some lift today but it was a lot of smaller hills, no monster climb. The overall grade was down a few thousand feet so that was nice. In addition, the winds were light and the temperatures in the 70s. And, the state of Wyoming added a new bike shoulder so the asphalt was SMOOTH and no stress from traffic most of the day. The only real downside is that we are peddling through the bad lands and there is not much too see. It could be my expectations are too high after Yellowstone and the Tetons. We took a lunch break and sun nap at a wonderful rest stop about 42 miles in and then pressed on to Lander. With light winds we wanted to get as many miles in as possible. The next stretch of 123 miles to Rawlins has very little in the way of services so we hope to knock it out in two days.

Today's milestone - peddled 77 miles, our longest day so far

As we head out we pass the Painted Hills of the Wind River Valley

The new smooth asphalt shoulder was like a super highway today. So much better than rumble strips

Not alot to see as we pass through the badlands. Lots of range and Ranch again with the occasional set of rocks.

Crowheart Butte, a landmark the Indians used to meet and trade

Looking into the Wind River Valley as we climb out on our way to Lander

Day 37 - 60 miles (or 86 miles see below) to Jeffrey City

We restocked at the Safeway and then were off. Another day with sunshine and loght winds which is a blessing (though it will be in the high 80s today so maybe a little too much sunshine. About ten miles outside of town we encountered road construction where they were replacing the highway. It was a bit precarious as it was one lane traffic but we got through it and started our climb. What a climb, steeper then expected. Do you know why? We were on the wrong climb. We climbed 13 miles up route 28 when we were supposed to be on route 287. While the view of the valley was nice, it wasn't worth a 26 mile round trip :(. It turns out in the middle of the construction was a turn we missed. We backtracked and made the turn and then pushed on. We passed the Sweetwater River where the Willie and Martin handcart companies made their crossing. We stopped at the visitors center and were immediately attacked by a million mosquitoes (yes I counted). There was a campsite there but with that many mosquitoes around it was not a viable option. So we quickly peddled 19 more miles to a hostel in Jeffery City. Still a lot of mosquitoes, but they are outside and we are inside. The hostile is an old church.

Today's milestone - longest day at 86 miles if you count the oops

This is the view we went 26 miles out of our way to go see. Was it worth it? Didn't feel like it at the time.

Once we got reoriented we passed red rock similar to Southern Utah

Mesas like Southern Utah as well

This is the valley opening up below the actual big climb of the day (which became an exhausting second big climb)

Day 38 - 68 miles to Rawlins, Wyoming

I wasn't sure what to expect getting up this morning after a brutal day yesterday. The body has an amazing ability to recover overnight though and I felt ok this morning. Also, the climbs were gentle today and the winds pretty light. It was HOT (89 degrees) and there wasn't much to see or do. There was one gas station at mile 21 where we purchased $20 of Gatorade and drank all 6 bottles while we sat in the shade. After that it was ranch land, a few horses, cows and pronghorn and that was about it until Rawlins. Once we arrived in town we got a hot shower, did laundry and had a big dinner at Buck's (highly recommend the Walleye Fingers if you are ever there).

All in, we totalled 295 miles in the past four days. Do not expect to keep up that pace but should complete 60+ miles most days which is much better than the 50 miles/day I was hoping for when we started. At the new pace we should hit Yorktown, Virginia sometime in mid August. We will see if we can hold the new pace through Colorado. We will get there on Thursday.

Today's milestone - we passed the 40% complete mark

We officially logged into the Jeffrey City biker hostel by signing the wall in the kitchen

Today we biked through the Rattlesnake Range. The split rock formation is a famous landmark from the Indians and Oregon Trail

This guy is about 2 inches long. We think it is a locust? Can you imagine a million of these coming after your crops?

You can see Erik and our next climb unwinding in front of me

We passed the Continental Divide again. The TAT route planners were kind of sadistic