Day 17--All day in the Tetons!

Update: Smoky's photos are posted!

Jenny Lake view from trail

Steelhead, a tiny spring wildflower in the Tetons

Let me tell you a little about today. We started out this morning at Oxbow Bend, a looping meander of the Snake River, enjoying the early morning light. This is a great place for birding, and today was no exception. We saw grebes, white pelicans, a great blue heron, an osprey, some Canada geese (including one pair who seemed to be courting), cormorants (that surprised me!), four trumpeter swans (very entertaining as they land and take off), and lots of ducks. Some of the ducks were a little too far away to identify easily, and one whole flock of ducks were doing what looked to us like "synchronized diving" to find food. We studied Smoky's photos tonight and figured out that these were Common Mergansers! We drove to Jenny Lake, and the views from the trail around the lake were incredible!

The morning photography of the mountains was great, according to Smoky. As the weather shifted around lunchtime, clouds started rolling in, which meant that scenic photographs weren't nearly as much fun! This is great lighting for wildflowers, however, and we were finding quite a few. We stopped at the visitor's center, where we were asking about some flowers we weren't familiar with, and followed that with a short walk to find one very small and not usually seen flower called a "steerhead" on the advice of a very helpful park ranger. After a good bit of looking, we finally spotted it--the flower is smaller than a quarter and is shaped like an outline of a steer's head.  

Later in the afternoon we drove to the Episcopal Chapel of the Transfiguration, which sits just inside the southern entrance to the park. This small, rustic log chapel was built in 1925 and still operates today. The inside is striking, and the view of the Tetons through a large picture window behind the altar is magnificent!

Episcopal Chapel of the Transfiguration

Episcopal Chapel of the Transfiguration,
view from picture window

Inside view of chapel

Great Gray Owl, Tetons

We had intended to look for moose in an area where the ranger said moose liked to hang out late in the day, but before we got to this location, we stopped at a pulloff where a bunch of people had gathered. They were watching a Great Grey Owl. Neither Smoky nor I had ever seen one of these owls, so we were quite excited to get this opportunity. You can read more about the Great Grey Owl on Wikipedia.

We concluded this very busy day with sunset photos at Oxbox Bend, coming full circle! What a day!! 

Sunset, Oxbow Bend, Tetons

Sunset, Willow Flats, Tetons

--Shann