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Sunday October 24th was our last Fall hike. I was hoping the weather would hold till Halloween but alas living in Jackson, it was a miracle we got as far as we did. That being said it was a dreary wet hike. It rained non-stop and took a little more effort to get the kiddos moving. We began the day with plans to head to Taggart Lake, but as the weather seemed to become wetter and wetter the more North we drove we figured a hike where the destination was a consistent part of the hike would be a nice motivator. So we packed all the winter clothes we would need, extra water bottles and lunch (turkey sandwiches with peaches and pears and walnuts) and headed to Grand Teton National Park.
On the drive there the kids were a bit restless so we stopped at the "staircase" by Antelope Flats road. It is formally called Blacktail Butte and Kevin has been wanting to hike up to the top forever and never has. We figured a steep climb up a staircase would calm the kids a bit so we hopped out of the car and headed up. There are two trails, the one to the left (staircase) stops at about a hundred feet or so and is just a trail to the cliff face for rock climbers. The trail to the right is the hiking trail to the top of the butte. Its a steep trail that's very narrow and is littered in loose jagged rocks. I can be dangerous if you are not careful. It took us a little under 20 minutes to summit the butte and we climbed out towards the edge for a photo op. It was quite chilly and rainy so we didn't hang out long, the shelter of the trees made for much nicer hiking conditions. 
Somewhere along the way we changed plans and decided to go to String Lake and follow it to the Leigh Lake campgrounds. We parked at the String Lake trail head, a note here the String Lake trail is the trail to the left it crosses a bridge and then goes up behind the lake, it doesn' follow along the lake shore. However if you take the trail to the right it follows String Lake and meets up with the Leigh Lake trail about half a mile down. String Lake is a nice skinny lake with crystal clear blue green water. Punctuated by giant boulders that sit calmly out of place in the frigid lake. Hiking in the rain is a different and unique experience. Its silencing, yet noisy. The wind bends the Lodge Pole Pines, and they creak and groan as if they wish to succumb to the continuous onslaught of momentum. The serene and timid lake spurs to life with small angry waves, and the foggy clouds, sink lower and lower ominously.
The trail is an easy one, its nice and wide, paved in some places and has plenty of clear markers and a few educational boards. It crosses a few bridges that are wide but have no railings. Once you cross the Inlet/Outlet between the lakes the trail forks again. We decided to just continue on straight ahead and find a place to get out of the rain and have a fire to warm up. There are tons of boulders jutting out of the ground, kind of a natural playground if you let it be. We finally settled under a small Ponderosa Pine and Kevin made us a fire, no easy feat as everything was wet, but some how he got it going. We hung out until we were all thoroughly dried, warmed and fed. Then waited a few more minutes to give the kids a nice long rest. The hike back was long and a bit on the grouchy side, Lulu got a bit whiny, Jack was carried about half the way back and our trooper Emma trekked on without one complaint.
It was an educational hike to say the least. We learned that, though the kids can go 5 miles in sunny weather that distance is cut in half when its wet and cold (we barley made it 3). Second Lesson, regardless of how much you try, you can't keep kids from splashing in puddles. Always bring a cozy warm change of clothes, because kids are kids and when water is involved, they cannot stay dry. Marshmallows are an excellent motivator!
NEXT UP OUR FIRST SNOW HIKE!!!!
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