As many of you may already know, we had our Jackson camp over the weekend of the fourth, and there was also the trail race that a few of us raced in this last Saturday. In planning for the two events, Pat and I realized that we could take the week between the ski camp and the trail race to embark on some epic adventures, needless to say it was not a very difficult decision to make. First I will cover the events of the ski camp, after which I will tell you about Pat and I's adventures in Pinedale, and to wrap up I will tell you a bit about my last few experiences in Jackson during the trail race before returning back to Laradise.
JACKSON CAMP:
Jackson camp in a nutshell was unforgettable. Pat, Kyle, and I stayed with the Thomas family throughout the duration of the camp, our gratitude for this cannot be put into words. Getting to know the Yara and her family more was one of the best parts of the camp. Unfortunately this did separate us from the rest of the team, but we were still able to spend good quality time with all of the team.
The first day of the camp, the 4th of July, we went on an epic trail run. The trail run was accompanied with sights overlooking Jackson from thousands of feet above the valley, secluded single-track through dense forest's, cascading streams under little pine bridges, birds harmoniously singing, and companionship from teammates.The run, though tiring, stated the camp off on the right.
From there we all prepped to go floating the snake river. Like a herd of turtles in a snow storm, we were off. Floating the river was quite the experience on many different levels. Between the vast crowds of people lining beaches and other groups of people occupying entire islands, the tremendous quantity of people created a spectacular atmosphere that is second to none. our group of a dozen (more or less) was only a spec of sand in the group that populated the waterway. Our group had a few minor snafu's that could have easily brought agitation to any number of people but we were having far too much fun to let being capsized, rolled, and submerged by numerous rapids get us down. After all the laughs and all the fun, the rest of the day was spent recovering from an exciting and long day. In the evening, the Wiswell's hosted our team and many others' 4th of July dinner. Between the brats, grilled chicken, hamburgers and countless other sides and desserts we were all stuffed to the brim. Happy and full, we all dispersed for what was surely going to be a good-night's sleep.
The next day we were able to rollerski the bike pathway that runs from the park entrance across to the jenny lake turnout. Rollerskiing directly below the Grant Tetons will never get old. In the evening we were guided by both Sam and Yara (our Jackson local experts) to a lake where we swam, jumped off rocks, and had an all-round great time. After our mountain lake adventure, we headed back down to Yara's where her family hosted the team for yet another spectacular meal enjoyed by all.
On Sunday, Pat and I decided to go to mass instead of going for the morning hike, which we heard was also a "grand" time. By a little after noon, we had said our goodbyes and everyone on the team had left while Pat, Yara and I were off the flat creek for yet another float with some of Pat's old work buddies from the area.
PINEDALE:
Monday rolled around and it was time to head off to Pinedale to meet up with Pat's cousin Blane. As we arrived, we met Blane up at the Nordic/Alpine area to check out the next day's venue for mountain biking. After checking out the area, Pat and I headed to what would be our camping spot for that night which is nestled in the foothills of the wind river mountain range right off the edges of a small lake. After a bite to eat, we decided to take the kayaks out to do some fishing until the sun went down. As we paddled across the lake, we noticed the fish were slowing begining to rise, which can only mean good things to a fishermen. after catching a few rainbows and watching the sun dip behind the silhouette of the surrounding pines, we headed back to camp. (On a side-note, sleeping in a tent will never get old)
The next day we packed up our temporary home and headed to meet up with Blaine, his Fiance, and her parents for a mountain bike ride. After a bit of climbing, the view of the mountain range was better than I had anticipated, but not too long of a break to enjoy the scenery and we began the rest if the ride which was filled with jumps, single track, open meadows, tight turns between trees and a few bumps and bruises. After the thrill of catching air and countless mouth-fulls of dust and dirt, we headed back to Blaine's for what would be yet another wonderful meal (aside from getting eaten alive by mosquitoes).
The next day, Wednesday, was our "big adventure" day. Pat and I woke up early to get a good start on the day and have as much time as possible to get as much packed in the day as we could. We started the day off with a few hours of kayaking on and around the green river lakes about an hour outside of Pinedale. I could have paddled that lake all day, between the mountains shooting straight up on the other side of the lake and the pristine water untouched by wind or wave, I was never going to be ready to get off of the water. My stomach however, was ready for lunch and so was pats. Once we had loaded up the boats, we headed downstream to a nice little sport next to a small tributary where we ate freeze-dried mac-and-cheese provided by my very thoughtful sister. At the point of realizing that he fishing was not optimal at that time of day, we decided to take a little siesta. Rough life, I know. Once we woke up it was time to hit the water once again, but this time in a different fashion; with our fishing rods. I can honestly say I have never seen a river quite this unique. Green river is fed by the lake that we had paddles earlier that day. It also loses several vertical feet very rapidly in multiple sections. In the short runs there are boulders the size of small trucks and treacherous white water. In between these sections of chaos, there are flat, slow moving section perfect for fishing with dry flies that sit on top of the water. Pat and I fished for a solid 6 hours if I am recalling correctly. Fighting of mosquitoes from hell, sandal-eating marshes, willows and other various obstacles, the fishing seemed like we were in a movie. Now I will note, the fishing was amazing as I just mentioned, but the catching however, was not so great, not for a lack of trying of course. Pat and I often times can be sometimes a little poor at picking out the correct flies and patterns to match what the fish are eating, however we tried everything. Eventually we caught a few but only right before it had gotten dark. After watching the fish rise time and time again only for us to be frustrated trying new things to figure out what they were biting, in our frustration, we decided to come back the next day to redeem ourselves.
After a night of sleeping, it was time to tie what we predicted the fish would be biting. We spent a good majority of the day getting our fly boxes stuffed full of said flies. Later that evening we were no more successful than the previous night. Unfortunately we were unable to catch more than a few, but we still had one hell of an experience.
On Friday we re-packed our things and headed back to Jackson where we met with Yara to hang out and enjoy resting before Saturday's trail race.
JACKSON TRAIL RACE:
Now I'm not much of a runner, never have been. Growing up I hated running with a burning passion. I ran cross-country in high school for one season, getting my 5K time under 20 minutes only once. Over the past few years I have grown to like running, in fact, I truly do enjoy it now. But aside from racing triathlons, I hadn't raced a running event since Junior year in high school so preparing for this trail race was a little intimidating. I knew I could finish the race but cramping has always been an issue in my racing experiences in the past and I had a feeling this might be pushing my limits. Fortunately I am good about not worrying too much about something for too long if I don't want to. So going into the race I decided to not worry about cramping, fitness, or other potential problems. Instead of worrying about what might happen, I instead focused on the awesome people around me (Sam, Yara, Pat, and Sawyer). Laughing and making jokes at the start of the race was the best start to a race. After setting into a pace I watched Pat, Sam, and Sawyer take off in the first few of the lead packs. Wishing I could keep up with them, I held back and worked on pacing myself. Having a few other pass me and passing a handful of people my pace was set and I really started to enjoy the race. Having the cache creek running fast next to the trail was a good distraction from the pain in path quads as we climbed more and more. Coming to the final hill-climb, I surged over the top and felt a rush of adrenalin and speed. Catching and passing a group of people I felt rejuvenated heading into the last few sections of open fields of willows, more winding single-track, and down into the finish where the guys were cheering me on. enjoying the feeling of accomplishment, I talked with a few racing that I had gotten passed by and re-passed to congratulate them on their races. Heading back to the start I found the rest of the group and talked with them inquiring about how their races had gone. The only thing that could have made the rest of the day any better would have been food and a Nap, which is exactly what we did.
All in all it was the best week of summer that I've had yet. Being able to share my experiences with so many wonderful people is something that I do not take for granted. I know this is only just the start of many more good experiences with many more good people. Until next time, stay active, stay positive, and as always, stay classy ;)
(Here are a few pictures from the above stories, I hope you enjoy!)
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