Snake River | Jimbo's Journeys

It took three cars!

After hiking we decided to take a kayak float down the Snake River. Jane and Ron each had their own kayak and John and I were going in John’s kayak. We were all getting in a the Dam at Jackson Lake. The plan was for John and I to float down to Pacific Creek and get out there. Jane and Ron who are more experienced kayakers would then continue on down to Deadman’s and exit the river there.

That’s where the confusion starts. Jane and Ron drove their car with their kayaks down to the dam where they unloaded them. Ron stayed there to watch the kayaks. John and I both drove our cars to Dead Man’s. Then Jane drove from the dam to Dead Man’s where she left her car. She hopped in John’s car and I followed him to Pacific Creek where I left my car. Then off in John’s car to the dam where we started our float.

Here we are at the dam.

All these pics were taken by Jane as she has a waterproof camera. I didn’t want to take the chance of ruining mine. I guess a waterproof camera is on my wish list when I get to Amazon this winter.

You hardly have to paddle at all since the current carries you downstream. You don’t even realize how fast you are going until you look at the bank. Very cool!

Spotted a bald eagle!

We were really fortunate to spot a bald eagle. It caught a fish and took it back to it’s nest just next to the river. Then it proceeded to feed it’s young. We couldn’t see the babies but we could tell it was feeding them. That was really an amazing experience.

This is a pic of John and I watching the bald eagle in it’s nest.

Ron brought his fishing pole with him and did some fishing while floating downstream. He did catch a small fish but threw it back in.

We estimated we floated about 5 miles and then got out at Pacific Creek. What a great time we had. Jane and Ron floated further down to Dead Man’s which took another 2 hours. It was a perfect day to float down this beautiful river.

On the way back to the campground we took the inner road through Grand Teton NP. It had spectacular views of the mountains.

Chica’s Pawdicure

After leaving Riverside campground we headed to Idaho Falls, ID for a couple of things. I had to stop in Walmart to pick up a prescription and supplies and Chica needed a pawdicure. She last had her nails trimmed in Mesa, AZ shortly after we found each other.

They were getting too long so we headed to a Petsmart where you didn’t need an appointment. I also mentioned in my last post that she was going to get her teeth cleaned. That was wrong. She was only going to get a breath freshener. Here she is waiting to get her nails down.

Am I next Dad?

It took quite a while and two people to complete the job. I don’t think she was too happy at the time.

I thought this was a pawdicure not a two-on-one wrestling match

On to Gros Ventre

After the pawdicure and the stop at Walmart we made the drive to Gros Ventre campgrounds. It is northeast of Jackson, WY. I figured I may be able to fill up with propane there. No way Jose! Jackson was slammed with lots of traffic, both cars and campers. I decided to head on out to the campground as I had enough propane to last me a few days.

John and Linda had talked to the camp hosts and they were reserving a spot right next to them. The cost of camping here is $21 per night, but only $10.50 with the geezer card. This is a bit more then I have been paying, but they have the beautiful mountains and lots to do as well. It is really a great bargain.

The next day John and I drove into town to fill up my 5 gal. tank with propane. On the way we saw this herd of bison crossing the road. They had been down to the river and were no heading up to graze. Needless to say it stopped traffic.

Kayaking on the Snake River

The following day seven of us decided to go kayaking. It was a long drive to where we started and we had several cars. It was really great fun even though I started off facing the wrong way in my kayak. DUH!!

This is where we put into the water.

John and Linda with all the inflatable kayaks blown up and ready to go.

This is John and Linda on the water.

It was a great time and it gave me a chance to practice my kayaking skills. ???

Farmer’s Market in Jackson

The next day was spent checking out the fabulous farmer’s market in Jackson. John and Linda drove me around Jackson and we walked around the downtown area. The farmer’s market was held in a park downtown.

The entrance to the park was made entirely of antlers. How cool!

Let’s Party!!

On Friday everyone got together for a party with lots of great food and conversation. We invited the camp hosts in our campground as well as Shannon, who is another camp host at Jenny Lake. She and I worked together at Amazon last winter and saw each other at Apache Junction last spring while she was camped there. It was really good to see her again and we had a lot of catching up to do.

After dinner, we all sat around the campfire and Ally roasted marshmallows and made us all Samores. It was a great time. I also saw Tony who I had also worked with at Amazon.