Another full day!  We woke to light snow in the morning and it stayed snowing throughout the day and night.  While the mountains were socked in, the beauty and quiet of the snow were magical.  Highlights of the day were: animal sightings (weasel, ruffed grouse, bald eagle, moose, bison, mule deer, elk, coyote, fox), the Murie Center, and a night hike. At the Murie Center students learned about how famous conservationist Mardy Murie protected her place, the Tetons; FNH kids then reflected on a place that they hold dear in their thought and what they could do to preserve the people, place, and memories.

During the night hike students shared their Mountains (highlights), Valleys (low points), and Streams (things they’d like to bring back with them to St. Louis). Mountains ranged from skiing and inspired company to overcoming challenges; valleys included the cold, health and skiing;  streams were longing to find the same quiet back home, learning how to preserve our passions, and trying to get outside more. 

What a day to kick off our first full day in the Tetons!  We awoke to an incredible clear view of the Tetons.  We’ve decided it was the best breakfast view ever.  After breakfast we came back for Bible Lesson followed by art instruction, where students practiced painting landscapes on a monochromatic scale.  We then suited up and headed out to the field for a good 5 hours of cross country skiing, tracking and snow science.  Our students did an awesome job jumping into cross country skiing – it wasn’t easy!  They made incredible progress throughout the day perhaps most importantly, did a fantastic job of staying resilient and supporting their team members when frustration would try to kick in.  When we returned from the field, we were treated to an up-close view of a moose right by our rooms!  Despite being ready for bed, we spent the evening in the Murie museum learning about the conservation legacy of Olaus and Mardy Murie and practiced creating a species account.  What a full day!   

The view of the Tetons out our bedroom doors!

Our breakfast view

Arting! 

Checking out some tracks!     

an OK spot for lunch!

We arrived!  Saturday was a big travel day – meeting at 4:45am in the Girls Dorm, flying through SFO and arriving in Jackson by 4:00p.m.  Right away we were greeted with incredible views of the Tetons and a dynamite sunset. In front of the gorgeous mountains and vibrant sunset we saw a herd of bison running across the sage prairie and two mooses a munchin’.