Day: May 30, 2019

So we found San Francisco less unpleasant and overwhelming on our return. We went over twice on the ferry from Sausalito. A bit of sun helps, but also the energy we got from the young people we met up with. The brother of our daughter -in-law lives there, with his American partner and we spent an evening with them. We hadn’t met either of them before but of course felt like we knew Ben, whom we have heard so much about.

Anyway , he has lived in the States for ten years and they have been in San Francisco for two, so we got a bit of a different perspective. And in our own travels we saw another part of the city . We were at the City Hall during a rally for better mental health care, and just along the road from that there was a portable shower set up for the homeless, which had a really positive energy to it.

I know the social issues here are immense, and it may be that San Francisco is an accepting kind of town to provide so many on the street services for the mentally ill, and they should be applauded for that effort.

We also found our way into a local cafe/diner on a long walk through town. There was a woman with Parkinson’s disease, a guy with Downs Syndrome, lots of very old people having lunch, and two servers with tattoos and nose rings. Outside, a guy with one leg sat in his electric wheelchair watching the world go by and another bizarrely dressed street person went through the bins. It probably doesn’t sound that attractive, but was somehow just fine, and fun and friendly, and part of the rich tapestry of that city. Our male server, who had a big booming voice, told me that every hour in the Bell Tower (the name of the establishment) is happy hour, and the warmth and camaraderie seemed to indicate that.

Down at Fisherman’s wharf the buskers were out and some were very talented. And the vendors spruik and create drama. Further along, the sea lions are having their own dramas on the floats, where they clearly have a very large colony . As a new sea lion leaves the water to find its spot (always with the others, never on one of the empty pontoons ) they all honk and carry on, creating a great tourist attraction, while being out of every one else’s way.

We really enjoyed going back to a place we knew, namely the Hotel Sausalito and enjoyed our walks there and watching the ferry come and go. We found a great pizza restaurant on the water that has a bocce pitch. It really is a lovely place and I was even getting to recognise the dogs. It has a small town feel in spite of being densely populated.

And now here we are at last in San Francisco airport waiting to start the long trek home. Maybe I can gather some thoughts and conclusions on it all, but right now I have to board! See you on the other side.

We left our little cabin to head into Jackson, Wyoming, not too far away , just outside the border of the park.

Is it the Jackson of the song, “We’ve been going to Jackson ever since the fire went out”? We don’t think so because that refers to a city and this Jackson is just a small town of about nine thousand.

However, it is a resort town, skiing in winter, fishing, Grand Teton all year round, so its a busy, bustling place. Those tourist dollars must make a difference as it is extraordinarily well kept . Every building looks like it was painted yesterday and every building seems to be of a particular style that fits beautifully into the land and streetscape. Looks like they have some strict planning laws and a plan!!

There is not a blade of grass out of place, every intersection has a crossing light or a cross walk and there are some delightful bike paths. The thin mountain air and ski run at the end of the Main Street let you know that your are somewhere different and there is a festive feel. It reminded us of Banff in Canada.

There is a plethora of bars and restaurants as well as plenty of outfitters. Outfitters is a common term here in the US and according to Wikipedia;

“An outfitter is a shop or person that sells specialized clothes (an outfit is a set of clothing). More specifically, it is a company or individual who provides or deals in equipment and supplies for the pursuit of certain activities.^[1] The term is most closely associated with outdoor activities such as hunting, fishing, canoeing, hiking, rafting and trail riding using pack stations.”

Gives you an idea of the place, but I must say some of those outfitters seemed to sell just everyday clothes.

Jackson is well known for the elk antler arches that grace the four corners of the town square, a patch of green right in the middle of town. Don’t forget that elks grow and lose their antlers every year, so the antlers are not sourced from hunting, which makes the whole thing more palatable. People have clearly put their minds to wondering what you can do with all those antlers and many places use them decoratively in things like light fittings. Looks better than it sounds, trust me, and it makes sense in Jackson as they have the national elk refuge right on the edge of town. This is a place on the plain (or in the hole of Jackson Hole) where the elk naturally gather to spend winter and it is protected now as a refuge. It has a fence along the road side of it and has plenty of lookouts, but the elk have left it for summer pastures. There is also a river running through it and a small lake, where we saw more beaver and lots of birds.

Over the road from the refuge is a large stone building housing the Museum of Wildlife Art. We thoroughly enjoyed this and it was a great way to end our wildlife odyssey. It features lots of sculptures outdoors, collections of the most well known and significant wildlife painters of the US and also of course has temporary exhibitions. The current one is a National Geographic day to night photography exhibition which was pretty stunning and features the works of Stephen Wilkes.

We really liked Jackson and were very impressed with the shops and amenities. Of course given its such a resort town it is not surprising that it is so well catered for. It’s also beautiful in its clean , bright, high altitude way. We did feel the altitude, not by feeling unwell, but having reduced energy and finding things like climbing stairs made us short of breath.

We were there over Memorial Day weekend, which is a big holiday weekend. Memorial Day honours and remembers all those who have lost their lives in active military service.

In Jackson it was marked by a number of things starting with a street parade. It featured a lot of horses and people in hats and cowboy/girl type outfits. The snow plough got a big hand, but biggest of all was for the LGBTIQ group, who were in the parade for the first time!! That was nice.

I was surprised by the reverence for the national anthem, which was played very well by the community band. I guess I should not have been surprised,but at the first note people put hand to heart and the drinkers on the verandahs of the bars all stood immediately. I know that we don’t like fervent patriotism but I don’t know, there was something nice about it……………………………there are a lot of things about this country that make me feel conflicted!

The flight out of Jackson is frequently very bumpy due the mountains but ours was just fine and we had a smooth run back to San Francisco, with a really good look at the salt lake in Salt Lake City as we flew in and out of there. And so to Sausalito again and home.

Real moose, Jackson