GRAND TETONS NATIONAL PARK, WYOMING
Today is the last hike of my "Shana Takes a Hike" adventure, so it was a particularly bittersweet day. Ideally, I'd have gone out with a bang of a hike, but I've clocked a lot of miles this last week -- after today's trek, I'll have hiked 76 miles in the last 7 days! So this is a relatively easy out and back (9 miles total) with no climb.
Today had a particularly cold start with the temperature clocking in at just 26 degrees at 8:00 am. Brrrr!
The Cascade Canyon Trail starts at Jenny Lake, skirts around the water and then up to a ledge overlooking the lake. In the summer, you can apparently take a ferry from the parking lot to the trailhead, but the ferry doesn't start until late morning and I think it was closed for the season anyway, so I got there early to walk the 1+ mile from the parking lot to the trailhead.
Here's a view of Jenny Lake at the start of the trail:
Here's another view of Jenny Lake from an overlook:
From there the trail follows a deep canyon full of fall foliage. I loved watching the light change as the sun rose. Check out this photo of the canyon, still in shadow, and of the mountain peak in the distance glowing in the sun's spotlight.
A couple miles in, I met two guys on the trail who said there were some moose on the trail, about a half mile ahead of me. "They're pretty aggressive," they said.
I heard that before on the Florence Falls trail and never got to see a moose at all! So I proceeded, not at all worried, but still on alert because, after all, this was my last hike and I wasn't about to let Murphy's Law make me into a news headline.
At 4.5 miles in, I stopped to savor the last new hiking view I'd have on my trip.
The problem with canyons is they are so incredibly beautiful. You are following a trail, completely enveloped by mountains or cliffs on all sides of you. But it is impossible to take a picture that captures the beauty or the feeling. I say this because I look at these pictures and they are beautiful, but they don't do the view justice.
I turned to head back. About a mile back, a guy on the trail ahead of me was stopped and photographing something to his right. I turned my video on and ...
I finally got to see a moose up close! Well, not super close, but at a distance that was close enough to get a good view but not quite close enough to make me regret hiking that day. It was a great capstone to my Wild West Adventure.
On the way back to the car, the trail was PACKED, especially the last mile between the Jenny Lake Lookout and the parking lot. There was a constant parade of people walking toward me. I was soooo glad I braved the cold for an early start.
Total miles = 8.98
Total elevation gain = 1,188'
Peak elevation = 7,569'