Day 1 in Jackson Hole, WY
The tram at Jackson Hole, WY. It holds 100 people and takes 9 minutes to get to the top, where your husband says you can do it and you fear for your safety. PS, I made it.
We are in Jackson Hole Resort at Teton Village. We beat the storm. Yay us! We will wake up at an epic ski resort, slope-side, with major snow coming down! Room service! Fireplaces! Powder snow (I can't ski powder snow, but I can totally do fireplaces and room service). What a winter wonderland!
Except we wake up Friday and the snow has not yet started. The morning commute for the valley folk was supposed to be a mess. No mess. I feed Jack and take him out for his morning poopy walk. At home, I let him out and he goes in the woods. On this trip, I take him out, he goes, I scoop it up in a plastic bag, I yack, and then I find a trash receptacle. I love the morning walk but I hate the up-chuck.
As we were expecting a large storm, we (I) did not plan to ski. Bob would ski in any weather. I have turned into a fair weather skier as I age, for many reasons. Since the snow has not come down yet, we decide to go to town. But first, Jack needs some exercise. The lovely people at the front desk of our hotel inform us of a local park where you can walk along a river and unleash your dog. Bingo.
We head to the Edith Smith Nature Preserve where a levee borders a creek with amazing views of the Teton Mountains. Jack is in heaven and so are we. We unleash him once we are sure he is safe and he runs. And runs. Dog snot and saliva is frozen to his face. He is oblivious and in apparent joy. Which makes us ridiculously happy.
After Jack has received his well-deserved exercise -- 3 miles along the river for us, 6 miles along the river for him, more or less -- we head into the town of Jackson, about 10 miles from Teton Village where the ski hill is. We've been to Jackson before and I know more or less what there is to see, but I have never spent a good deal of time there. Today we do. My son Adam wants ski t-shirts and I am on a mission, but I don't really expect to find the best ones here. The best ones are at ski hills. Duh.
We park by the iconic antler arches which serve as entryways to the town square. Apparently there are shoot-outs Monday - Saturday at 6:00pm. Our timing is off. It is Friday at noontime. Oh well. Time to shop, which I hate. You should know this by now.
We did shop a bit (did I mention I hate shopping?), but we notice the ratio of shops to restaurants is bleak. Meaning not a lot of restaurants. And don't get me started on the parking spaces!! There are none. After going to a few cool shops, we stumble across "Local", a modern looking restaurant, and they will take us right away. Sweet! We tuck into a booth in the bar, Bob orders a local beer and I get a glass of wine. For food I choose a duck confit salad and Bob gets a chicken sandwich. Mine was awesome. REALLY good! Ann for the win.
Yes, it tasted as good as it looks! "Local" in downtown Jackson, WY. Go here.
After lunch we shop some more. The western theme reigns supreme. Animal trophies are a big thing here. Witness this.
After all this shopping and eating and walking in nature's beauty, we go back to our hotel. We are staying at the Four Seasons Jackson Hole. Don't hate on me for being swanky. We are celebrating an occasion. The Four Seasons also takes dogs, which almost no other hotel does. Jack likes the Four Seasons. But he dislikes elevators. They freak him out. We are working on it.
Before dinner we choose to stroll around the village. It is small but quaint. A few hotels, some shops, and an amazing snow playground for the children. And my dog. There is an ice skating rink too. Just charming.
Our dinner reservation is at the hotel. We go to the Westbank Grill. It is super-busy as it is the holidays. Dec. 29. We are seated in a lovely dining room decorated appropriately. The food is off the charts good. The highlight of the night, besides the Wyoming Waygu Beef (Bob's) and the local rack of lamb (mine), is the hazelnut souffle with a chocolate and Grand Marnier sauce and vanilla bean ice cream. Ridiculously great!
Great day, time for bed. The snowstorm is coming tomorrow, so they say. No worries. We are tucked in slope side. I am prepared to ski. The dog sitter comes at 9:00am - 2:00pm for the next three days. I will do the morning poop scoop, but will get some time to ski, and Jackie-poo will have someone to dote on him. PS, here is a picture of him on our bed at the hotel. This will become a recurring theme. This dog is having a great vacation.