On this trip, we knew to head directly into the Grand Teton National Park and skip Jackson, Wyoming. Jackson is a beautiful small town for certain, but we are not here in winter for skiing, though if you notice the snow, you might think it’s almost time for that. We are well into fall and have timed this trip towards the end of the main season for Yellowstone, just as we timed our trip earlier this year to fall on the opening days of the park. We did this trying to avoid the larger crowds of summer travelers; I think we succeeded. We are again at Signal Mountain Lodge due in large part to its more affordable prices of the available lodging here.

While the clouds will stay with us for the better part of the day, they make for dramatic skies and great reflections off the water. They break up just enough to allow patches of sunlight to fall on the earth below and show us details brought out of the shadows. With only one full day here in the Tetons, we do not have enough time to head into those mountains, and in any case, the threat of weather could mean snow up in there, so it’s probably better we stay somewhere where Jutta will be more comfortable.

Something we hadn’t considered before coming up this way from Arizona was that we could rent a canoe or kayak to ply some of the waterways here in the park. Put on the list of things to do should we get so lucky to come up for a third visit.

The golden colors of fall let us know quite vividly that we are here at a much different time of year than our earlier visit.

Jenny Lake has a nice and easy trail that circles the lake, and a spur turns left to a serious hike back into the mountains. Lake Solitude is the destination of that serious 16.5-mile round trip hike and is considered one of the most beautiful in the Teton range. Pencil this one onto the list as well.

Jutta and Caroline go slow and inspect nearly everything. If Jutta could catalog everything she sees, make notes of the names of people she meets, learn the mountains, and sing to the birds, I’m sure she could spend the rest of her life doing just that. Well, she’d also have to take a break from time to time to read her favorite weekly newspaper from Germany called Die Zeit.

At sea level on the beach in California, at Native American ruins in New Mexico, or on mountain trails in Wyoming, I think this woman who married me is just strikingly cute.

I try to let the wife know to pay attention to the rugged peaks, sheer cliffs, trees turning to fall colors, and the sound of the mountain range, letting us listen in on its silence, but she insists on taking my photo. What the heck, nobody ever gets to take my picture unless it’s me.

Do you know the bugle of the elk? I do, and I can nearly imitate it, but I’d embarrass myself doing so, though it has made Caroline laugh more than once. If you thought the sound was deep and masculine, you’d be wrong, it’s sharp and squeals in nearly annoying tones, but it does get your attention. Maybe the females go for the pitch and the bull’s ability to project its voice far and wide.

Our day in the Tetons is coming to a close. It’s been relaxed and non-taxing, just as it should be for a 65-year-old proper lady who is also my mother-in-law. We had dinner at the lodge and tried to get to sleep as early as we could so we could wake early and start our drive north into Yellowstone.