From Stanley To Grand Teton

I've seen the Grand Teton twice already. in 2017, we drove through the Route 191 from Yellowstone visiting vista points along the way. Then in 2019, we drove from West Yellowstone to Idaho looking at the backside of the Grand Teton on the way back from Banff. This time, I'm going there to climb the mountains.

The way out of Stanley to Grand Teton followed Salmon River to the south. I entered Stanley from east and now I was exiting to west. Up north on ID-75 was the route that I wanted to follow in 2019 but failed because of charging situation -- there was no Tesla charging station after Missoula. The situation was not much better this time around, but I could go up for a while to explore and then turn back. I had enough range left to get me to Sun Valley where I could plug in to slow chargers while having lunch.

I could've missed Lower Stanley if I went directly to Sun Valley. An absolute stunner of Salmon River with Sawtooth Mountains in the background, this is the town that are often pictured for Stanley.  I pulled over, positioned my car as the model and took pictures. Then I drove a few miles up Hwy 75 and turned around when I figured that it would be the continuation of the sameness, not unlike the route along Boise River.

Shortly after the turn-off to Tin Cup Trailhead was Sawtooth City. I pulled into Sawtooth Cafe on the roadside and had my lunch there. It was another beautiful town along 75 with full view of Sawtooth Mountains. 

I think I first went to Sun Valley Lodge when I got to Sun Valley. The chargers were either broken or too slow, I forget which, so I went on to Ore Museum which had free J1772 charger. I plugged in and climbed into the back of my car and planned for the next move. Twin Falls that I started at 10 days ago was just 80 miles to the south. But I wasn't going there. I was going to Idaho Falls on my way to Grand Teton where I had a date with the Grand Teton Loop. After planning, I went to Akins Market and bought some grocery. I was then on my way to Idaho Falls.

We've been to Idaho Falls, in 2019, when we made a grand loop through Banff and Glacier NP. I remember walking along the river taking pictures. I still wasn't able to walk well then -- we walked to the Broadway bridge and then turned around. I first went back to where we were and walked around for a while. Then I checked into Econo Lodge. Rodeway Inn by the river that we stayed in the last time was more expensive, thanks to lodging inflation of 2022. Econo Lodge, further away from the river, was cheaper.  In the morning on my way out of Idaho Falls, I stopped at Idaho Mountain Trading. The Sawyer filter was $50 there, $20 more than I paid for the one that I lost in Sawtooth Mountains. And they didn't have Be Free that I was looking for. I figured I'd get one at REI in Jackson. I then crossed the river to get to Walmart for groceries, and then exited Idaho Falls through downtown.

I'm not sure if I had lunch at Sundae Eats and Treats in Swan Valley just before the road climbed over the mountains to Jackson. It was lunch time, and I might have. Then again, I might have just had ice cream. It was a big one, I remember.

The Tesla station in Jackson was in the parking lot of Whole Foods. I'm sure we were here in 2017 when we passed through Grand Teton: tt's 180 miles to Logan from here and there was no charging station in between. I plugged in the car and climbed into the back of my car to rest. I'd come back here twice more while in Grand Teton, to charge the car and have lunch at Chinatown Restaurant. The restaurant had water faucet on the outside wall too, so I could fill up my water tank too.

After the fill-up, I went to REI and bought Be Free water filter. It was also $50, again about $20 more than I could've bought on sale. Ce la vie. Stop at the visitor center on the way for information on Teton Loop, and then I was on my way to Grand Teton.