First Hike of 2011

                                                            Happy New Year!

Our very first hike of the new year was also our first repeat for the blog! Last Saturday (the 8th of January) we went up to Emma Matilda Lake. As some of you may recall Emma Matilda Lake is easily reached by entering Grand Teton National Park through the Moran entrance. Follow the main road for a few miles then on the right you will see a sign for Pacific Creek Road. Take this right and head up to the lakes (Emma Matilda and Two Ocean).  The first time we made this hike we parked at the first pull out, however this time that pull-out wasn't plowed so we drove about a mile up the road to the second pull-out. We parked and then headed out there were two paths made by cross country skiers that had previously been used by hikers so we followed along these trails.

The trail started out going uphill and then led into a clearing, soon enough we were on a trail that wound through a forest of pine trees. It was a bit chilly but only a few degrees below freezing, much better than the below zero temps we had been having. Emma and Lulu as usual were running a head of Jack, Kevin and I, and every five minutes or so we had to holler at them to wait for us to catch up. Jack though a bit slow, didn't complain or ask for a ride, he just needed more time for his shorter legs to go the same distance as his taller sisters. The kids and their tiny little selves had no trouble running a-top the packed snow, however for us larger adults it wasn't so easy, nor too difficult. About every fourth or fifth step we would sink to our knees in the powdery trail. All in all though it was a pleasant hike.

We hiked in for about an hour and half, maybe making it 2 miles in. Then we stopped and had a fire and lunch. We chose a convenient spot near a standing-dead pine that promised an unlimited amount of fuel for a nice warm fire. Kevin even got to use his new Gerber survival knife to chop and trim the wood for the fire. For lunch we had hot dogs with bbq sauce, and of course water. Then for dessert we had some double chocolate chip cookies ( view link). We hung out by the fire for about 30 minutes and then headed back to the truck.