National Park Road Trip 2014: Grand Teton Highlights

Neither Mark or had a big memory of Grand Teton from our childhood trips, so the sudden pop of mountains as we drove north from Jackson took our breath away.

Our first stop was Jenny Lake, where Lincoln experienced his first boat ride across the lake to our Hidden Falls hike.

We loved the small Episcopal Chapel with amazing views--what a place to worship!

I would probably struggle with paying attention to sermons!

Our cute little cabin at Colter Bay was our base for exploring Jackson Lake.

Our beautiful hike on the Lakeshore Trail took us all around Jackson Lake--and all by our little family's self!

We toured some other views across Jenny Lake--stunning.

And in our afternoons and evenings, Lincoln was able to indulge in his favorite lake pastime--throwing rocks!  And I was able to knit and soak on the grandeur of these amazing mountains!

We loved Grand Teton, and can't wait to go back!

National Park Trip 2014: Junior Ranger

Now that he's 5, our small boy could work toward junior ranger badges--and it was one of the most fun parts of our trip! The first thing we got him on our trip was a junior ranger hat:

And he became an expert at spotting animals and making sure we put things in the trash.

Mr. Cool may have gotten a hat too!

In Yellowstone, the program was a lot more intense, but Lincoln worked hard to earn his geyser badge.

He worked on it at the junior ranger station before attending a ranger talk.

We heard a talk on how grizzly bears communicate while buffalo roamed by.

He worked on it at our campsite while I wrote postcards.

And he even accessorized his hat to help with his investigations:

It was so much fun to help him and encourage him to learn and write and color and explore!