My favorite picture from the trip out west in 1988 is the one included here. Pictured are my Uncle Jim, my brother Brett (in acid washed jeans), and me with an ill fitting baseball hat. In the background are the magnificent Teton Mountains and a sign for Paintbrush Divide, elevation of 10,700 feet. This picture marks what had to be the most memorable experience of the entire trip.If I remember correctly, my dad had consulted with some guy at work who told him about this amazing hike that he took in the Teton Mountains. While my dad's work friend had completed this hike in two days including an overnight camp at Jenny Lake, he assured my dad that it could be done in one day if you got an early start and kept a good pace. Here's a description of the hike from Backpacker Magazine.
Set aside a weekend for this ultra-scenic, 21.7-mile loop in Grand Teton National Park. From the String Lake Trailhead, head southwest briefly to connect Jenny Lake and String Lake, then turn right at the Y-junction. The trail wraps around the base of Rockchuck Peak and enters Paintbrush Canyon. Keep your camera handy as you hike past alpine lakes and scree fields, with stunning views of the jagged Tetons. After 7.3 miles, the route crests the exposed and rocky Paintbrush Divide at 10,720 feet, then drops into Cascade Canyon. Finish off the first day with a tour of Lake Solitude before setting up camp in the North Fork Cascade camping area (you'll fall asleep to the sounds of Cascade Creek). The next day, turn around and retrace your route back to the trailhead.
We started the hike in the very early morning just as the sun was starting to rise. The early portion of the hike did not disappoint. The sunrise over the mountains was breathtaking. The mountains themselves were awe-inspiring. As we worked our way up the rocky trail we paused to view herds of elk and deer through our binoculars. We sipped from our water canteens and played word games to pass the time. We'd laugh and count how many times each of us would stumble over the rocky terrain (which we termed a "stub"). From time to time, we would pause to catch our breath and eat an oatmeal cream pie. Resting was pretty necessary because the altitude of the mountains made you surprisingly short of breath. My brother and I were in the peak of our physical health as we were both accustomed to running up and down a basketball court all day. My dad was in great shape himself as he had started running. My uncle was probably in the best shape of us all as he ran about 20 miles a week.
As we neared the peak of the mountain, we were tired, but energized to get to the top. My uncle and I hurried ahead and found a small patch of snow. As my brother and dad appeared on the trail below us, my uncle and I pelted them with snowballs. A snowball fight in July....awesome.
The four of us met at the top and stopped to take in the amazing view. I remember that clouds were floating by at the same level as us. I felt like we were on top of the world. My dad grabbed his camera and snapped this picture of three-fourths of us.
While everything was literally downhill from here, this was where the hike became considerably less fun. Figuring we had the hardest part of the hike behind us, we set down the path to the later portion of the hike. The steepness of the trail caused you put a lot of energy into slowing your legs down. It also caused a lot of stress on your joints, particularly your back. We could see a good sized lake down below us. While we could see it clearly and it looked close, it really wasn't. The mountain was steep so the hiking trail formed switchbacks that brought you down to the level of the lake very slowly after a lot of walking. The result of this was that you would walk and walk and walk and the lake would seem be close but never nearer. You felt like you were walking the wrong way down the up escalator.
When we did finally arrive at the lake, I was feeling tired, but I also felt a great sense of accomplishment. We had hiked up and down a mountain. We finished up our water and food as we rested on the grass around Jenny Lake. Many other hikers had gathered to rest or set up camp for the night in this beautiful spot.
It was late afternoon at this point, and we were under the impression that we had just a short hike left to get us back to the parking lot, so we set off to finish the hike. As we continued on, many hikers were heading toward the lake in the opposite direction. We'd ask them how much further it was to the parking lot, and they would energetically suggest that it was "just around the corner." Mile after mile we'd continue on, and each hiker would again tell us that it was not much further. All four of us were running on empty. I would walk about 30 steps and take a break. My brother and I bickered over who would have to hold the empty canteen that couldn't have weighed more than a few ounces. My dad's back was tightening and causing him pain. We were all dehydrated, and we had finished all of our water. Finally, one passing hiker told us that if we didn't hurry we would miss the 5:00 ferry, the last one of the day. If we missed it, we'd be forced to hike even further around the Jenny Lake to the parking lot. Exhausted, we became determined to make that ferry. In the last half hour of the hike we passed a nearby moose feeding in a stream and barely even turned our heads. Screw the moose, we need to make it to that ferry!
As we neared the peak of the mountain, we were tired, but energized to get to the top. My uncle and I hurried ahead and found a small patch of snow. As my brother and dad appeared on the trail below us, my uncle and I pelted them with snowballs. A snowball fight in July....awesome.
The four of us met at the top and stopped to take in the amazing view. I remember that clouds were floating by at the same level as us. I felt like we were on top of the world. My dad grabbed his camera and snapped this picture of three-fourths of us.
While everything was literally downhill from here, this was where the hike became considerably less fun. Figuring we had the hardest part of the hike behind us, we set down the path to the later portion of the hike. The steepness of the trail caused you put a lot of energy into slowing your legs down. It also caused a lot of stress on your joints, particularly your back. We could see a good sized lake down below us. While we could see it clearly and it looked close, it really wasn't. The mountain was steep so the hiking trail formed switchbacks that brought you down to the level of the lake very slowly after a lot of walking. The result of this was that you would walk and walk and walk and the lake would seem be close but never nearer. You felt like you were walking the wrong way down the up escalator.
When we did finally arrive at the lake, I was feeling tired, but I also felt a great sense of accomplishment. We had hiked up and down a mountain. We finished up our water and food as we rested on the grass around Jenny Lake. Many other hikers had gathered to rest or set up camp for the night in this beautiful spot.
It was late afternoon at this point, and we were under the impression that we had just a short hike left to get us back to the parking lot, so we set off to finish the hike. As we continued on, many hikers were heading toward the lake in the opposite direction. We'd ask them how much further it was to the parking lot, and they would energetically suggest that it was "just around the corner." Mile after mile we'd continue on, and each hiker would again tell us that it was not much further. All four of us were running on empty. I would walk about 30 steps and take a break. My brother and I bickered over who would have to hold the empty canteen that couldn't have weighed more than a few ounces. My dad's back was tightening and causing him pain. We were all dehydrated, and we had finished all of our water. Finally, one passing hiker told us that if we didn't hurry we would miss the 5:00 ferry, the last one of the day. If we missed it, we'd be forced to hike even further around the Jenny Lake to the parking lot. Exhausted, we became determined to make that ferry. In the last half hour of the hike we passed a nearby moose feeding in a stream and barely even turned our heads. Screw the moose, we need to make it to that ferry!
We did manage to make the 5:00 ferry, just as it was about to depart. We squeezed into the last open seats. In the 5 minute ride I managed to fall asleep leaning on some stranger. When we arrived at the other side, my dad paid for the toll. This part of the story works best with audio effects. Remember the scene of National Lampoon's Vacation where Chevy Chase wanders through the desert looking for help for his family. When reunited he is overjoyed seeing his family and asks them in a dehydrated voice, "Hey, kids, you thirsty?" Well, seeing a Pepsi machine on the other side of the turnstile, my dad asked the cashier, "Could I have four quarters, please? " in a Chevy-esque voice.
As we stepped off the ferry, we discovered to our horror that the parking lot was still another couple miles away. We all looked at each other, and my Uncle Jim said, "I'll get it." He grabbed my dad's keys and perkily jogged away. While we waited, my brother and I layed in the lawn of the ranger's office and again drifted into sleep. That night, we went out to dinner and gorged ourselves to replace the calories burned on the hike.
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