Good morning! We started our day bright and early as we begin our long drive back to Indiana. The past two weeks of exploring have been a blast, but we are both ready to be home!
The best part of this trip was getting to see so many friends during our travels. We were lucky enough to spend an entire weekend in Jackson, where our good friends Emily and Ryan live. Emily is my best friend from college and James and Ryan went to college together. It’s so fun when worlds collide! We were so busy having fun that I didn’t take many pictures.
James and I stayed at a great little cabin at the KOA Snake River. It had a small kitchenette, grill, fire pit and room to sleep up to five people. The cabin was super comfortable and clean and it seemed like a great place for families to post up. There’s a path leading down to the Snake River, where they offer rafting tours. The KOA was about 15 minutes from town, so you do have to drive a bit to get to Jackson or the Tetons.
Our first day in Jackson started with a few beers at Snake River Brewery before we popped into a couple of other restaurants for drinks. Jackson knows how to do happy hour, so take advantage of it while visiting! We eventually headed out to the cabin for more beers and catching up. There are few people who make us laugh harder than Ryan and Emily, which makes our reunions especially fun.
I promise we didn’t plan it this way, but we conveniently rolled into town for Old West Brew Fest, which is where we spent most of our second day in town. It was so much fun getting to sample beers that we can’t get back home. We became big fans of Melvin after Emily and Ryan brought us some during a visit, and we finally got to try their famous 2×4 double IPA. It did not disappoint! I also loved Roadhouse’s Aloha IPA. We got to meet our friends’ great co-workers and had so much fun getting to know them. After filling our bellies up with beer, we hung out at Ryan and Emily’s house for a few hours. They served us an awesome meal featuring sausage from Sweet Cheeks Meats, which you have to try if you’re doing any grilling.
Our last day in Jackson was my favorite, because we headed out to Grand Teton National Park to kayak and canoe on String Lake. Pictures don’t do the beauty of the park justice. Getting to see the mountains while making our way across the crystal waters was amazing. We lucked out with the perfect weather and had a blast paddling around. James and I have been talking about investing in our own kayaks for a couple of years and I think this trip convinced us to finally do so. There’s something so therapeutic about being on the water.
Emily and Ryan are always the best hosts and we had a blast getting to see the place they call home. Our reunions are usually much shorter, so it was amazing to have three days together. Saying goodbye is always hard, but we can’t wait to make a return trip!