The Day after Yesterday

As you can tell by my title the actual number of days we have been at the Teton Science School has become as irrelevant as the days of the week.  The total value of this week is not measured in sunsets and sunrises, number of days, or days of the week but, instead, the experiences that occur during those times.  And by far, our experiences outweigh anything calendar related.

Today began not with a rain drop, but a cloak of fog.

The Tetons became invisible as it rolled through our cozy school ground, and the sun was right behind it, letting us know we were in for another spectacular day.

Before we got started I really thought this picture of Dan captured how we might all have felt after a fairly intense schedule, but after a delicious French Toast, Eggs, and Bacon breakfast...we were ready to face the day.

Today we were heading out to apply the knowledge we had gained previously from the tracking session.  It's funny how everything we do the night before plays big role in the next day's activities.  For example, when we landed in Jackson Hole, we had dinner in Subway.  We watched the fine sandwich chef's assemble our delicious meals and the very next morning we were applying the very same skills as we assembled our lunches!  Amazing!

Before we started we attended to some blisters and went over what we would be focusing on today.  Scat, claw marks, tracks, bedding, and any movement we might detect.  Within a few meters of our descent into the trail we crossed a bridge that had more than its fair share of life flowing beneath it.

And next to it.....

...don't worry they're harmless!

As we continued to move into the trail we came across some SCAT.  SCAT is just one of the ways we can tell the Bears are locally present.

Kelley quizzed the kiddoes as to what kind of SCAT we had and it was indeed bear.  Though we never saw the bear, it was cool to know that one lives in the area.

We moved onto Emma Matilda Lake.  One the way we saw a Moose and saw workers maintaining trails.

Can you tell what kind of forest this is?  We can!

Then things got really interesting (before we got to the lake).  We saw some serious signs of bear.

As we continued to make our way we needed to blaze our own way down to the lake.

One final steep descent........And then the big payoff!  The Lake!

Here, at Two Oceans, we were going to look for good deep tracks and try to cast them in plaster.  Lots of tracks were found, but none good enough to cast.

That's a Wolf Print

So, we decided to take advantage of such a picturesque spot.  We ate lunch and skipped rocks and took in some of the most beautiful scenery we have scene yet.

Great skipping water!

Dan's feeling great now!

Time to move on.....unfortunately, what came down has to go up.

On our way back we saw some wonderful signs of a porcupine.

As we left the trail and headed out away from Emma Matilda for more tracking, we felt a little good and a little bummed.  While we had seen some great tracks, bear scat, and had fun at the lake, we had no casts.  But our luck was about to change.  Our guide spotted this spot on our way out in the morning and manged to find a way to get in on the way back.  By the way...this is the famous Snake River. Here, we saw great tracks and learned to make casts.  It was hot, but a great cloud moved in and we made some casts that would make Mr. Leone proud.

What makes this really great is that animals can come down from the mountains at night to grab an easy drink and maybe some grub.  What made it great for us was that there were many tracks!

Ashlyn prepares the track with Pam Non-Stick as to leave it intact when she's done casting

Dave and Mike mix their plaster

Gray and Josh mix it up and get the right consistency

Seth waits for his cast to dry and set

Taylor shows off his cast

  And then we left.  As we headed back to the Science School everyone had made a wonderful cast but had also replenished energy with some rest.  It was a long day and mostly in the sun but something no one had done before.A little pizza for din-din and then a trip to Jackson Hole Downtown for some browsing and ice cream.  A wonderful ending to another wonderful day.

Here's the gang at the Elk Arches.  Wait, is Jeff sleeping again?

We spent the day following tracks and looking for evidence of local animals.  Hopefully we didn't leave a human trace...BUT...we are definitely leaving a mark in Jackson and in the trails of our own memories. Day 3 Photo album.