Boy are we overdue for some blog posts! Thanks so much for your patience. Let’s start with a quick return trip through Grand Teton National Park (gallery) early last summer. This time we were lucky enough to secure an in-park campsite in the Signal Mountain Campground. Aside from being at the front of the loop, maximizing traffic around us, it was a really great spot and the entire campground was heavily wooded, offering significant privacy for each campsite. There were also short hiking trails leading to and along the shoreline of Jackson Lake, great for a morning outing to watch the sun’s first light hit the Grand Tetons.
When securing individual RV campsite reservations, 30 feet is often an incremental “cut-off” length which means we’re occasionally right under the wire for allowed length. Most of the time there really isn’t much issue as we’re reasonably proficient backing into tight spaces despite our technically longer length at 30′ 9”, but when the space itself is on the short side of that 30 feet, it gets tricky.
Remember when we said our campsite was at the very beginning of the loop? Also, many loops are one-way traffic only (with road widths to match). So on travel days when we’re hooking up Carl with Ellie or detaching for a stay, spots like the one at GT make it hard because then we’re also blocking traffic by sticking out into the road. It’s made a bit tougher because we have, instead of a traditional ball hitch, an anti-sway ProPride weight distribution hitch, which is a bit more complicated and takes more time to set up.
It’s usually not all that much though, and from backing up the truck to fully-connected and chocks & levelers pulled, we can be ready to go in 15 minutes (not counting all the stowing required inside!). That’s still a bit long to wait if you’re returning with bacon from the general store for that morning’s breakfast and just want to get back to your own campsite 100 yards away, so we sympathize.
(Although the morning of our departure a small gang of bull elk strolled authoritatively around the access road with nary a worry in the world, so everyone got a chance to cool their jets and sit and watch for a while.)
While we camped, we visited spots in the park we’d not yet seen, including the Bar BC Dude Ranch ruins (4×4, high-clearance vehicle necessary to get there). An historical society group is trying to secure funding for its much-needed stabilization and then restoration, so if you go be careful where you walk. We found it a fascinating place full of untold stories from its heyday. It was pretty easy to imagine some of the raucous parties they’d have thrown back then.
The more accessible T. A. Moulton barn and homestead, right by the main entrance, has a lot more detail available about the building’s origins and the homestead’s general history, including an innovative ferry used to cross the Snake River to get down to Jackson for supplies.
While we didn’t get to hike as much as we’d have liked on this trip, we’ll definitely be back if for no other reason than a stay at the Jackson Lake Lodge at the northern tip of the lake. We sat at the bar overlooking the water one afternoon with cocktails and apps and were mesmerized by the breeze-caressed water and gorgeous surroundings.
Worth returning for, as is the rest of this amazing park.
