The tram to the top of the mountain is a two and a half mile, twelve minute ride. The views as you go up are breathtaking! You are hanging so high above the Ponderosa pine trees that it's almost scary. The base of the tram is about 6,000 feet above sea level, and the peak of the mountain is at 10,500 feet. As you ride the operator also serves as a tour guide pointing out the various points of interest and encouraging everyone to look for moose and black bears.
The ride up is so smooth and fun. Elijah was scared every time we went by a tower because the whole tram would swing. It did feel a little weird and unsafe, but apparrantly that's how the tram works. He was so scared by the time we got to the top that he begged us to let him hike back down. Even as much as we like hiking, that was a little much for us.
The terrain changes as you ride up until you are looking at the face of a cliff thinking that you are going to smack right into it! But, no, the tram goes up and over the top of that cliff to almost summit the mountain. To actually get to the real summit, you have to walk up about 200 yards, which we did. The weather up there was, of course, much cooler than 4,000 feet lower! We all had brought jackets and were glad that we did. It actually wasn't as cold as I thought it would be. There are quite a few trails at the top of this mountain. We took the one that was about a half a mile, not wanting to push our luck with the high altitude. It was a great little hike with some of the most amazing views I have ever seen. We could see snow on several of the mountains and the kids wanted to hike to it. We told them it looked a lot closer than it actually was!
There is also a snack shop at the top, and we sat there for awhile with the grandparents just enjoying the views. By the time we went down we could all feel the effects of the altitude. Elijah decided that he actually enjoyed the ride on the way down and would like to go again. Your tram ticket is good for all day, so we told him we would walk around a bit and take another ride.
Teton Village is a great place to walk around, see the sights, and do a little shopping. After we were finished I took Kade and Elijah for another tram ride while Dan stayed with Zack and Rylie as they still weren't feeling too great from the altitude. The boys enjoyed their second ride so much. We didn't even get out at the top this time, but just came straight back down. The boys giggled and had fun the whole way. We didn't spot any wildlife, but we did see the most extreme ski run in the U. S. At first I didn't believe it was actually a ski run because of how high up it starts and how steep it is. Turns out it is a double black diamond and only for very advanced skiiers. I guess I won't be skiing there any time soon.
We headed back to the cabin for a relaxing evening. There is a creek behind the house, and we took a little walk down there and did some exploring. When it was almost dark we lit a fire in the fire pit and roasted marshmallows. After that, we sat in the hot tub and looked at the stars. The milky way is so visible out here and the night sky is so bright.
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