Yellowstone: Thermal features and a stay at Old Faithful Inn

Our last morning in Grand Teton National Park was met with low lying clouds and a light drizzle, meaning extra sleep (no sunrise photos) before heading to breakfast and leaving the lodge.

Before heading north to Yellowstone, we made a quick stop at Oxbow Bend to get some pictures of the cloudy peaks.  No more than 2 minutes after arriving and setting up the tripod, someone pointed out a commotion up the road.  A mother moose and young calf were crossing the road and heading towards the river.  It was an amazing scene with the mountains framed in the background and the two moose crossing the still river in the foreground.

We tracked the mother and calf across the river, where they got out, shook off the cold water, and then ran along the shore before turning into the thick willow brush.

Overall, we had unbelievable wildlife viewing luck while in the Tetons - as if seeing three bull moose wasn't enough, we ended with a mama and calf swimming right in front of us. What a great last experience in the Tetons before leaving for it's better known neighbor to the north, Yellowstone.  

Grand Tetons: Mountains and Bear Jams

Since we "slept in" the previous morning, we woke up around 4:00 a.m. today in order to reach the barns at Mormon Row in time for sunrise. This gave us plenty of time to set up our tripods and find the perfect angle. Warning: the small makeshift foot bridge across the mini-creek is unstable - see Ashley's wet right shoe as an example. Surprisingly, we were the first photographers at this iconic site this morning, but were soon joined by many fellow sunrise shooters.

Grand Tetons: Jackson and Moose (or is it Meese)

After  a year of planning and preparation, we finally embarked on our journey through Grand Teton, Yellowstone, and Glacier National Parks. We flew to Jackson Hole via Chicago. Our flight from Florida to Chicago got moved up to 6 a.m., which meant waking up around 3:30 in the morning. Between that and the time change, we were in for a long day.

We had heard that the descent and landing in Jackson was pretty special and it didn't disappoint.  The airport is located in Grand Teton National park so we had a spectacular first view of the mountains and river as we approached the runway. Well, Nate had a spectacular view as Ashley nervously gripped the armrest and occasionally glanced out. It was particularly comforting for her to hear Nate excitedly exclaim, “Oh wow, we’re headed straight into the mountains!” Once you deboard the plane, it is really tempting to stop in the middle of the runway to snap photos of the Tetons. However, as a warning, security will quickly usher you on your way - not that we know from experience.