Day 53: DuBois to Jenny Lake (60 miles)

7/19

Israel Golden
Jul 24, 2017 · 4 min read

Even though this blogpost has a lot of words…there are just no words to describe the beauty of Grand Teton National Park!! It’s magnificent, to say the least.

I didn’t get a great sleep last night, but still woke up feeling good and ready to start the day. We had a 30 mile climb ahead of us to get up and over togwotee pass.

Izzy, Aaron and the other three cyclists were up and packed before me, so I told them I’d meet them at the breakfast place a little later. I packed up, talked with David (a former Warren Wilson College student and current Continental Divide thru hiker), and ate a cereal bar and a pop tart while finishing my coffee. It was nice to have a little time to myself that morning.

When I met up with the rest of the crew everyone was all set and ready to hit the road. Izzy and I started off first, followed by the other three cyclists we had met at the church (whom, were hilarious. I had a great time getting to know them/trading stories last night), and then Aaron.

Though we had some climbing, the ride was gorgeous. It kept getting more and more beautiful as we pedaled up the mountain.

Just about five miles before the peak of togwotee, Garret passed Izzy and I- he was flying up the mountain. I couldn’t catch him, but Izzy picked up speed until they were at the same pace.

At the top of the pass we rested at a picnic table overlooking a pretty lake. Some nice lady gave us baby carrots and snap peas (the first fresh vegetables we’ve eaten in…well, a while).

We saw Aaron zoom by the pass, he didn’t see us tucked behind the trees. We figured we’d catch up with him for lunch. The remaining two cyclists came through a bit after Aaron, and we all cycled on, excited for the downhill.

We came down the mountain into a blooming green and luscious valley, turned a corner and then BAM the Tetons were right in front of us.

It felt like their rocky, snow capped presence took up half of the sky.

Izzy and I took lunch at a scenic overlook, then biked down to a gas station where we came across some truly true cowboys. I’m talkin’ real. Like- came in on four horses, had chaps, pistols, spurs- the whole Clint Eastwood look. They even pulled out a warrant notice for some guy that had killed three women in the area (thanks for the angst, cowboys).

We didn’t get much further down the mountain before I noticed Izzy’s tire looked low on air. He stopped to find that not one, but two small rocks had wedged their way into his tire. At least he got a flat with a nice view of the Tetons.

We eventually met up with Aaron at Jenny lake, set up camp in a great hiker/biker site (these sites are amazing, places throughout the park that are usually booked up throughout the whole season have spots reserved just for hikers and bikers [cause we’re special]).

Jenny lake was incredibly beautiful.

We had a really nice fire.

And then we got a good nights rest.

Oh, and we saw this cute squirrel/prairie dog morph thingy they call a pika.

What a wonderful day. I love this park!!

Much love,

Lila

    Israel Golden

    Written by

    Bicycling, Music, Science

    Welcome to a place where words matter. On Medium, smart voices and original ideas take center stage - with no ads in sight. Watch
    Follow all the topics you care about, and we’ll deliver the best stories for you to your homepage and inbox. Explore
    Get unlimited access to the best stories on Medium — and support writers while you’re at it. Just $5/month. Upgrade