The last week of July Greg and I had the privilege, thanks to Jeff and Cindy
Warburton, of celebrating our 38
th anniversary participating in the
Teton Wagon Train and Horse Adventure originating in Jackson Hole. Jeff and Cindy own this business along with his brother Chris and his wife. They also own the
BarT5 and the Elk Refuge Sleigh Rides. We ran into Jeff while while enjoying the Elk Sleigh Ride and got acquainted. He invited us to come on the wagon train as their guests this summer! Could you say no to that? I don't think so! Jeff grew up in Grouse Creek, Utah, just over the mountain from Park Valley. Jeff and Greg's grandfathers were good friends as were both of their dads.
We have been eagerly anticipating this trip but I must say that it was much, much better than I ever expected. In the first place, it was great to be with my husband for four straight days! We had the most wonderful time just being together enjoying the beauties of the Tetons. We both love these mountains so much! They are breath-taking! One amazing part of the trip was the opportunity to completely circle the
Teton Range in the course of those 4 days...by bus and by
Conestoga wagon and horses. You can't imagine how beautiful the vegetation was after a spring and summer of rain, rain, and more rain! I think we lucked out and went on the best possible week of the summer because the wild flowers were still gorgeous and we did not get rained on a bit! The temperatures were in the 70's and low 80's. Just perfect!
We met the bus at the Painted Buffalo Inn in Jackson on Monday morning, July 27th, and they loaded all 32 of us and our gear. Greg was able to take his saddle so he rode in comfort all week. We started the bus trip going west over Teton Pass eventually heading into the Targhee National Forest east of Ashton where we met the wagon train and crew, had an orientation session, and enjoyed a great lunch. We were very impressed that Jeff made a point of the safety record they have enjoyed and gave credit for that to prayer at the beginning of the day and before every meal calling upon "a higher power" to protect the party in their travels. Anyone of any religion is invited to volunteer to say those prayers, and anyone not wanting to participate is certainly excused from doing so. He told of an atheist woman on one of their trips who refused to MISS the prayer times because she loved the way she felt. Interesting, I thought. We then headed to our first camp. Bergman Reservoir. Jeff invited Greg and me to ride with him in the front of the gear wagon where we visited and enjoyed learning about the beautiful teams of work horses and how Jeff and Cindy got involved in this business 12 years ago. We arrived at our first camp site at about 3:00pm, set up tents, got our sleeping bags, pads, pillows, and sheets and were settled by about 4:00 and ready to participate in any of the many available activities including horseshoes, roping, knife and ax throwing, canoeing, and trail riding, or just visiting with our camping companions. That evening after a wonderful meal of beef and gravy, salads, homemade bread and fresh fruit we sat around the campfire and Jeff told us the history of cowboys. It was so interesting. The man is a walking history book and has obviously spent years studying the lore and history of the area. He has such a humorous and fascinating way of talking that the time just flies by! Then he pulled out the guitar and we sang around the campfire. He made it perfectly clear that we could go to bed whenever we wanted and no offense would be taken, telling us a funny incident from when he first took over the business. Jeff has to be the last one in bed at night and one gentleman just stayed around the campfire until 2:00 in the morning. Jeff, not wanting to force him to head to bed just kept playing and talking with him . Finally, the guy said he was tired and went to bed. The next morning Jeff heard someone talking to the fellow and saying "Did you hear Jeff playing and singing 'til 2:00 am?" The guy said, "Yes, I felt like I had to keep him company and I thought he'd never quit and go to bed!" Well, no trouble getting us old foggies to bed! We slept pretty well and were up in good time Tuesday morning. There is nothing like the smell of bacon cooking and hot chocolate to warm you up when you're camping...especially when you don't have to do any of the cooking or cleaning up! Oh, so nice! We always had plenty of time to be leisurely, never feeling rushed and I very much enjoyed that aspect of the trip. We were always packed up and out of camp by 10:00 am, however, and ready to head to the next camp spot. If you wanted to hike all or part way to the next camp spot, they let you leave ahead of everyone else with a crew member. If you wanted to trail ride there, you left a little later with a crew member. If you rode in the wagons, you waited a little longer. And amazingly, we all arrived at the camp site pretty close to the same time no matter how we decided to do it! These people have this whole process down to a "fine science". It is so organized and really adds to the enjoyment because with organization comes safety and security that all will go well.
The trip to our second camp site, Loon Lake, was about 8 miles, so we stopped for lunch in a beautiful place called Gibson Meadow. I rode the wagon to this spot and then walked part way to camp. Greg rode with the trail riders on that leg. In fact, I know it is hard to believe, but Greg rode every time a horse was available! He always made sure everyone else who wanted to ride got the first opportunity, but usually Angel was left and the crew would saddle him up! Trail riding is not the reason Greg owns a horse, but I think he really enjoyed doing it on this trip. The Loon Lake camp site was so nice...we had good flat ground to put up our tepee style tent and the lake itself was beautiful. We canoed in a zig-zag pattern across the lake because I am terrible at rowing...but we had a great time anyway! We had fabulous dutch-oven chicken and baked beans, salad and watermelon for dinner...so good I can taste it now! Our evening around the campfire was spent learning about the Indians of the area. Jeff also did a great job of giving an encapsulated history of the California, Oregon and Mormon trails. He did a superb job of recounting our Mormon history from the time of Joseph Smith until the Saints crossed the plains and helped settle the west and he accomplished it without being offensive to those not of our faith. I'm not sure anyone would even have known he was a member. It was obvious to us, however, how much the Church means to him and his family. I know everyone on our trip was impressed with his kids and the rest of the crew who worked tirelessly from early morning until late at night to make this a memorable vacation for all of us. I think all but one of the crew were members of the church, some having served missions and others preparing to go. Many of them come from Utah State University and work at the BarT5 the first year to gain experience before going "up on the hill" as they call it. Anyway, very exemplary of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. As some of our group learned we were Mormons they were not surprised that Jeff and his family were as well. I believe they left the trip with a favorable impression and a good "taste in their mouths" for who we are and the joy we find in everyday living. Anyway, to close the evening, we enjoyed roasting marshmallows for s'mores and heard some more great stories from past camp groups over the years. Can I begin to tell you how much we laughed on this trip?
The next morning after boiled eggs, french toast, bacon, juice, and fruit, we headed to our last camp site called Boone Creek . This is where we took the beautiful trail ride up to the waterfall which everyone enjoyed so much. I think nearly every one in our party rode at least once during the week and the 10 or 12 kids rode over and over again! We had cowboy potatoes, ham, salads, fruit and dutch oven cherry chocolate cake. Though Greg couldn't eat the desserts, there was always plenty of food that he could eat which was a blessing. The cooks were the best and took good care of him! That evening we learned about mountain men with a little surprise twist. We laughed a lot that night! Jeff and the crew are so full of funny experiences and Jeff himself has written some pretty good cowboy poetry. The kids on the trip enjoyed sitting around the campfire as much as the adults did.
Thursday morning after breakfast we packed up again, and then gathered around the campfire to be formally inducted into the Teton Wagon Train family. Jeff and the help must have stayed up awfully late that night preparing certificates with our own special camp "names" on them. You could tell they had put a great deal of thought into them. Jeff got pretty emotional saying good-bye to everyone and it made me wonder if he really gets that attached to every party they take on this trip! And the answer is probably "yes" because of the close associations you gain being together for four straight days. Greg's certificate bore the name "Get on Again Greg" because of his tireless love of riding! Mine was "Wonderful Wendy" due to the lack of any other word that starts with a W, I am sure! The 80 year old woman we had with us rode a horse the first day and was named, "I'll Try Anything Once Ivy"! She was such a trooper! Afterward, we had a little history about the Pony Express and then a surprise visit from a rider with mail for everyone! We then had a lunch consisting of all the sandwich makings you can imagine, chips, cookies, etc. and after taking final pictures, loaded in the wagons to head out to meet the buses. I was not in any hurry to leave even after only sponge baths for four days! Greg helped me wash my hair that morning so I was revitalized! But all good things must come to an end and a shower was sounding pretty nice!
The Wagon Train experience in Targhee National Forest is nestled between Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park...an area not too many get to see. Absolutely pristine! It is the Yellowstone Grizzly Bear Recovery Zone. Needless to say, we had many lessons on how NOT to attract grizzlies! It is also the home of wolves, moose, elk, loons, ducks, eagles, hawks, owls, etc. many of which we were able to see or hear. This was really an unforgettable experience...you have to be a participant to appreciate it. We met the buses on the North East end of the Tetons, traveled to Flag Ranch where we took a little break and then headed south on the east side of the Tetons back to Jackson. I love to see the different perspective each side of the Tetons provides.
This post is very long...just too many important memories to record. All 32 of us were strangers when we met and we left as dear friends. We met and became close to people from Germany, Massachusetts, Indiana, Tennessee, Florida, North Carolina to name a few. Some were grandparents there in the beauty of the Tetons becoming heroes to their grandkids for bringing them on a better vacation than Disneyland! Our doctor friend, Marisa, has taken her kids on a different and exciting vacation every year since their dad died. They want to come back and do this again. Our friend, Joseph, from Germany is divorced and his kids live in Portland with their mom. He gets them a couple of times a year for two weeks and tries to do something really fun with them each time. His children were charming! It was hard to get Iona off a horse! Some were there like Greg and me just to spend some time together as a couple. One couple didn't have a great relationship and commented many times on how they admired ours. We hope theirs is better after this trip. Thanks again to Jeff and Cindy and family for a wonderful 38th anniversary vacation!
Gifts from Julie and Stanton's garden upon return from Yellowstone vacation!
2 1/2 laundry baskets full of fresh picked corn yields:
28 Quarts of Corn
Green peppers and zucchini from garden yields chopped and frozen peppers and
This foam project mess (and it got MUCH worse) yielded :
these darling pictures!
A cute face and sweet disposition yields MANY hugs and kisses from Grandma!
A look at Jackson from the 
The beautiful team of horses that pulled our 
One of the crew, Sheena, an expert horse team driver, visiting with Joseph from Germany.
Jeff looking down into the water hole beneath
Heading back to our horses after enjoying the waterfall
The Pony Express arrived with mail the last morning.
