So, theChristyBel turned 22 for the 4th time...boy does time fly by! For the first time, spending my birthday so far away from home was different. Usually, I am spending my birthday at Home Grown (I miss their Gourmet Grilled Cheese!) with some of my bests and eating mom's red velvet cupcakes. Even though I was celebrating 26 so far away from home, the birthday still brought some feelings of being home.
One sad part about celebrating a birthday was getting a head cold. Waking up that morning with a lost voice and a somewhat stuffy nose was not fun at all. However, going to class with some wonderful friends who brought you WHISKEY-ICING CINNAMON ROLLS and an awesome birthday card totally made being sick much better.
That night, I also had a wonderful surprise fly in all the way from the east coast. So, literally 'home' came to me! One of my friends, Luke, from back east came to visit me for the whole week! So nice seeing a familiar face from home spend a birthday with you in a new place definitely made things so much better!
The next morning, I took Luke on a little hike around Phelps Lake. It's a great starting hike for 'sea-level' to get acquainted with the higher altitude...maybe! It was a great morning for a hike too! Not too cold or hot. Since the season had just started turning, the fall weather felt awesome for a morning-mid afternoon hike.
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| Mid-Moment Go-Pro Photo Snap Shot.. Obvi We Weren't Ready... Photo Credit to Luke Lindeman |
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| At Phelps Lake Overlook |
Luke and I did the full loop around the lake, ending up at the jumping rock for lunch where we were told that we could see a pair of moose over at the beach from the rock. So cool, Luke's first moose! We ended up watching the bull and cow wading in the lake water just hanging out. So awesome!
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| Enjoying the moose over yonder! |
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| Such a Beautiful Day for a Mid-Morning Hike! Photo Credit to Luke Lindeman |
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| Sitting on Phelps Rock Watching the Moose! Photo Credit to Luke Lindeman |
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| Moose Wading in Phelps Lake |
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| First Moose...and On Day One! |
Before you hit the hot springs, we passed Granite Falls. This was a really cool little series of waterfalls.
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| Granite Falls |
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| Morning, Ice Cold Shower, Anyone? |
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| Mandy and the Falls |
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| Happy Camper! |
The Birthday Weekend was pretty nice and relaxed with getting outside, hiking, and trying out the Hot Springs.
So while I was in class, Luke took Little Blue to adventure in the park. Something we both did not even think about was the weather. Sure we talked about it getting colder and to dress warm, but what was brought in by the middle of Luke's stay was not even though about.
Getting snow during the birthday week was definitely out of the ordinary...and a first for me! Wednesday, we woke up to not only snow on the Teton peaks but in the valley too! Not too mention, we were supposed to be conducting a Stream Team study that day. So being in the snow definitely added a cold challenge!
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| September 25 - First Snow of the Season...in the Valley! |
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| Beautiful View of the Snowy White Teton Peaks! |
The birthday weekend and week was pretty awesome and Luke's visit was such a great gift! I hope he enjoyed his visit out to the Grand Tetons! Seeing him experience his first moose and snow out west was really fun to watch! So glad he got to come visit! A visit from back home was something I needed!
Next blog - 'Observing Teton 5th Before I Start Teaching!' It's getting more and more real, people!
Xoxo,
theChristyBel
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| Luke and I at Granite Hot Springs |
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