Continued from Trip report Week 3: here
The Winter is coming… oh, you say it’s already here?
Jackson, Wyoming and the surrounding area.
When we got into town we made our way through the Hoback Canyon and Derek fished there. We drove through Jackson, intending to stay at the Gros Ventre campground and of course they were full. We knew we were taking a risk coming in on the Thursday before Labor Day weekend.
The campground manager pointed us to the amphitheater lot for the night and said to get in line by 8 am the next morning to claim a spot. They had 44 camps opening the next day so we felt positive. We got into like a little bit before 6am and there were probably 20 cars ahead of us already!
We got in line and made coffee on the hood of the jeep with our jet boil. Ugg. We needed coffee. The day prior we had met a couple staying at Gros Ventre campground and leaving the next day. They told us they were leaving the next day (today) and to take their spot because of how nice it was. We took their advice and it was a great spot for sure. We were right along the edge of the cottonwoods with a beautiful sunset view of the Tetons and the Gros Ventre range.
Camping at the Ampatheater parking lot 
Making coffee while waiting in line at Gros Ventre Campground
at 6 am!
The line to wait for a campground. 
The line after us. 
Campsite 228
We set out and fished at two of our favorite places on the Snake River. Top Secret. lol. I had my best fishing day on the whole trip there. I looked behind me and Derek was sitting on the riverside watching me go.
Fishing on the Snake. 
A snake in Snake River. Isn’t that nice. 
Kristen’s best fishing day! 
A teeny, tiny bear encounter.
Derek wanted to fish near the Visitor Center at the Grand Teton National Park entrance – believe it or not. We parked and hiked in about 200 yards to the Snake river access. I was going to swim but decided not to at the last minute. It was getting colder too. I just sat on the riverside and watched Derek fish. So about 30 minutes in I hear a rustle in the bushes from the trail behind me. I stood up and saw the head of a grizzly bear on the path just 20 feet away. I had my bear spray out with the safety off, but it saw me and immediately turned around and went the other way on the path. It seemed annoyed it had to go the long way around and wasn’t intrested in me at all. Now that’s a good bear!
I whistled for Derek and made a growling face with claws next to my head as my sign of seeing a bear. He understood, got out and we left. Derek never saw the bear because it left as fast as we did. It definitely was a rush. Sorry, no photos of that!
We initially were planning to stay for just three nights but we were having so much fun and getting good fishing in we decided to stay three more days. On the fourth day was the calm before an actual storm. We received a note on our trailer handle that a huge snow and ice storm was coming with 70 mph winds. They said that we could stay, move out with a refund or move into a campground that was not directly facing the wind. We were planning to stay through the night but when that note showed up it said they were worried about trees possibly falling on us. So…
We went to Plan B.
Derek called a couple of hotels and we got a reservation at the last minute in Jackson for two nights. We were trying not to stay in any hotels during the trip but it was just too dangerous to stay in the trailer. We took out all our needed belongings and hurried to the grocery store to get dinner. Rotisserie chicken and salads seemed good. So we hunkered down for the storm to pass.
Before the snow hit. 
Smoke from forest fires covering The Tetons. 
Smoky sunset. 
These were amazing.
See recipe below.
Derek washed my hair
at camp.
Calm before the storm. 
Hotel room dinner during snow storm. 
Don’t miss my new Bigfoot video! 
Ooooh – The Greyhound Recipe
Then Winter showed up.
The next day we got breakfast at Jackson Hole Roasters and then drove out to the trailer to see if it was still there. (See photos below.) Like my mom always says, “Ugg-a-bugga meatballs!” We were so glad we didn’t stay in the trailer. We talked to a couple across from us that had a tent. They said they had to get into their car halfway through the night because the wind and cold were too much to take. They also said they never got a note about falling trees either. They seemed freaked out after why we told them we left. It was just too cold to stay inside the trailer. I’m glad Derek booked two nights at the hotel.
We drove around the campground and they had bulldozers out pushing downed trees to the side of the road. We saw a tent ripped in half. We didn’t see any trailers with large trees that had fallen on them. Just big branches were thrown everywhere, on everything, stuck in ice. This is August? Ok.
Trees down. 
We assessed our trailer for any damage (there was none, luckily) and decided we would leave the next day. So we decided to drive around the park to look at the all snow on the trees and see parts of the park we hadn’t seen before.
The park service shut down a visitor’s exit and its connected parking lot on the north side because, they said as we passed, a group of grizzlies was coming down from the mountains after the storm.
We spent most of the day making my latest Bigfoot video while looking behind us, at all times for bear and moose. Then we went to Dornan’s for a celebratory drink. It was about 42º outside and quite beautiful. The snow was half melted by then.
Next stop for us: Butch Cassidy’s hideout, Boysen State Park, The Badlands, and then going home.
