Come Along On Our Camper Adventures!

Days 16 and 17 were spent in Grand Teton, boondocking at a site inside the park. For any non-camping folks, that means no hookups (electric, water or sewer). Don’t worry, I just learned that term a month ago myself! The site we were at did have potable water so we could fill our water tank coming in and using portable containers when needed. There was also a dump station on site so when needed, Joe used the portable dump cart to drain our tanks. The only thing we were really without was electric and running completely on battery. The battery on our camper runs the refrigerator, lights, water pump, USB ports, circulation fans, smoke and CO2 detectors. Joe thought the battery should last us 2 lays with limited use (literally the only thing on and plugged in was the fridge most of the time). It was not holding its charge, so we had to keep plugging into the truck and charging it. Not horrible, but I was stressed that it would empty while we were out and we would loose all the food in the fridge and freezer. We kept the fans off and the camper cooled down pretty quickly once the sun went down and temps were in the 40s at night so perfect sleeping weather!!! Last night, the battery died completely, so the smoke and CO2 detectors were going off in the middle of the night 🤦🏻‍♀️ So our first boondocking experience was ok, but not great, and we definitely have some things that we need to check out with the dealership when we get home. But this was our view for 2 days, so how awesome is that!?!?!?

Day 16 was Monday 7/5 and we arrived from Idaho. We did stop back at the Prasmatic Spring on the way out of Yellowstone. Took a short hike up to the viewing overlook, but the weather wasn’t great again, so not the view we were hoping for.

It was a short drive to Grand Teton and we were parked and hooked up by lunch. We spent the afternoon exploring, but the weather was rainy/stormy for most of the day. We stuck mostly to the truck, driving and pulling into overlooks. We saw some great, albeit cloudy views of the Tetons, felt the cold water from the melting glaciers feeding into the lakes, saw a log cabin Catholic chapel in the middle of the park, stopped at Jackson Dam, and Joe took the truck offroad which had the entire crew in complete giggles. Check out our day below. It’s amazing how early everyone wants to go to bed when there is no power in the camper and we are moving around by flashlight 😂💤

Day 17 was yesterday, 7/6. We were up and out early for an 8am float tour down the Snake River. It was awesome! The views were amazing and we saw some moose and bald eagles up close.

After our float tour, we hiked Jenny Lake. What I thought would be a leisurely hike around a lake, was not. It was a strenuous back county hike that we weren’t prepared for. We took a shuttle across Jenny Lake to cut off some of it. The 2 littles and I hiked about 3.75 miles (it felt like 10) and the the teenager and Joe continued on to get the truck and pick us us. They did a little over 5 miles. It was hot, little shade and we had limited water and no snacks, like I said… not prepared. Not the best decision… but an experience and we saw some great views.

All the kids after the hike 💤

I finally got to see a bull moose!

Yellowstone/Teton is one of the few certified dark sky areas in the country. Joe woke everyone up at 2am to take a short drive to look at stars. We were only out for 1/2 hour and I’m not sure the pictures do it justice, but WOW!

Off to Utah and The Great Salt Lake!