It has been many weeks since my last post and for that I apologize. I took a side trip away from Jackson Hole and enjoyed two weeks in France with Sarasota friends. When I returned to Jackson Hole on September 30th I found perfect weather. The sun was shinning with beautiful blue skies and amazing fall colors in every direction that I looked. With just over two weeks left to my 2012 Jackson Hole Adventure, I crossed my fingers that the beautiful fall weather would stay around until my departure on October 16th. The good news is that the great weather has hung around. The bad news for me was that my body adjusted to "sea level elevation" while in France. It was very shortly after arriving back in Jackson from France when my former Army Ranger friend, Craig, organized a hike to the summit of Table Mountain.
I knew that the hike would be an intense physical adventure. I also knew that I was heading home to Florida soon and would not have the opportunity to enjoy the beautiful mountains again until June 2013. Against my better judgement, I bundled up and headed out to meet the hiking group at 8:00am.
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| At the start of the hike and 26 degrees.....thus all the layers! |
With a clear blue sky and a temperature of 26 degrees, we started our hike of Table Mountain. Table Mountain is in Idaho and stands at an elevation of 11,106 feet. Our fearless leader continued to assure me that the hike to the summit was very steep and I would warm up quickly. I never doubted him and off we went. Immediately my heart rate climbed to the 150's and 160's and I was toasty warm in all my layers. When I remembered to stop, breathe and look around, I found beautiful morning views in every direction.
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| Morning Views |
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| Morning Views |
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| Morning Views |
The trail on the way to the summit was very steep and the group would stop from time to time to peel clothing layers off and drink water. As the Floridian in the group, I do not have ski clothes and proper cold weather gear. I was lucky enough to have Craig and Carol loan me a few important items that were greatly needed. I am so glad that the provided a stocking cap and gloves for me. At our second rest stop, taken just before I thought my heart was going to burst, i actually had ice on the tips of my hair. I was extremely warm but sweating a lot due to the physical intensity of the hike up. I knew one thing for sure at that moment and it was that I was no longer in Paris cruising the Seine!
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| Bob enjoying a rest stop |
After many steps and a few hours of hiking up, our final destination finally came into view. It is easy to see how the mountain received its' name of Table Mountain.
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| Table Mountain |
After a few hours of intense hiking, Table Mountain finally became visible. The trouble is that when you finally see your destination, it always looks closer than it really is. With my heart rate in the 160's, I just kept telling myself to put one foot in front of the other. I also made sure to look around and enjoy the beautiful environment around me. As I got closer and closer to Table mountain, the trail became even more steep and required a bit of scrambling over rocks.
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| Looking behind me as I got closer to Table Mountain |
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| Eric and Craig close to the summit of Table Mountain. Since I am behind them, you can tell I have a many more steep steps until I reach the summit. |
The final push to the summit really did take my breath away. At times I thought I might not make it all the way to the top but as I got closer Carol was there to give me just the nudge to push me forward. She had already made it to the summit and took the time to yell down the encouraging words I needed to hear. Carol assured me "the view is worth it so keep climbing." With Carol's words in my head, I kept climbing, made it to the summit and was blown away by the views in all directions.
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| The group at the summit of Table Mountain. |
The best part of any hike is the time spent with friends. When you add the views to that time spent with friends, it makes for an amazing day. I am not gonna lie.....I always enjoy time at the summit of any mountain because at that point of my day I know the toughest part of the hike has been achieved. After the intensity of hiking to the summit, it is a great feeling to relax, enjoy the views and eat a bit of lunch to refuel for the hike down. The hike to the summit of Table Mountain was approximately 5 miles up covering an elevation gain of 4151 feet. It took me about 3 hours and 30 minutes to reach the summit and I burned 1623 calories. I was ready to enjoy a protein filled lunch while enjoying the views that surrounded me.
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| Jennifer and Carol enjoying a well deserved lunch |
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| Lunch View |
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| Lunch View |
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| Our view of the Grand Teton from the summit of Table Mountain in Idaho |
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| Lunch view |
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| Lunch view |
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| That is me waving from the top. Picture taken by my friend Eric who had already headed down. |
After a brief rest and some lunch, it was time to head back down from the summit and face a seven mile hike back to the trail head. The best part about heading down is exactly that......it is down! We hiked down a different trail then we had hiked up. I always enjoy taking a different route down because of the different views to see. It was such beautiful day and the views continued to be outstanding.
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| Jennifer and Craig heading down off of the summit |
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| Loved running into these guys on the trail down |
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| You can see Table Mountain in the distance. On the hike down we had to walk along this beautiful ridge. |
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| Hiking down through pretty fall colors |
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| Loved the colors at this point of the hike down |
It was near this spot on the hike down when we came across a Forest Ranger who was working on the trail. It was a very good thing we ran into the ranger, because he let us know that there was a bull moose and a female moose very near the trail. With this information, we continued down the trail and kept our eyes wide open for the moose. It is mating season for the moose of the area and one thing we did not want to do was disturb a bull moose when he was trying to get a piece of a female moose! We were very lucky because when we saw the moose he was very calm and did not seem to mind that we were near him. Shortly after seeing the bull moose, we encountered the female moose and she also was calm and smoking a cigarette!
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| Mr. Moose |
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| Mrs. Moose |
With the weather getting very cold at night, creeks along the trail had various amounts of ice. I can now add another first to my life! I have now seen a waterfall with areas of ice and I have hiked across a semi frozen creek. Not bad for a southern girl!
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| Joan at the icy waterfall |
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| The group enjoying a break at the waterfall |
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| Crossing an ice covered creek. A definite first for the southern girl. |
After hiking down seven miles that took 3 hours and 26 minutes, we were all more than ready to change our shoes and head to Victor, Idaho. The best part of hiking in Idaho and burning 2700 calories on a 12 mile hike is the HUCKLEBERRY SHAKE that awaits in Victor! It was my last huckleberry shake of the season and I loved every sip of it. I will miss Victor, Idaho and their huckleberry shakes while in Sarasota.
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| Huckleberry shakes in Victor, Idaho. The best reward ever for a great day of hiking! |
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