After our Christmas rendezvous in West Yellowstone, Joe and I continued on to Jackson, WY to spend a couple more days with his family. Joe’s brother Mike lived in Jackson many years ago, and so he knew of all the favorite local places to snowmobile. Mike suggested to Joe and I that we make a day trip to a hot springs. We jumped at his invitation. I was especially excited because my nieces Ida and Ana were coming along, too 🙂 Joe and I rode our own snow machine, and Mike took Ana and Ida on another. The girls looked so cute all bundled up. Ana even fell asleep on the ride in!
I clenched Joe’s waist as we sped along. The scenery was stunning – trees were dusted in snow, distant mountain vistas scratched the clouds, and the trail followed an ice dammed river that cut through the valley. It was a cold and fun 10 mile ride. Before I knew it we arrived at Granite Hot Springs. We parked our snowmobiles and took a quick look around. The pool had a wooden deck, and an attendant stood in a little hut as he took our 5 bucks admission. We were the only people there so it was a little weird to hand a man in a hut a few dollars at the end of the trail.
Although it was freezing outside, we changed into our swimsuits in cold, dark changing rooms. Then we quickly made our way across the chilly wet deck and jumped in. It felt so good to splash into the 105 degree water after our twenty minute ride in frigid temps! Ida and I had a blast taking pictures under water and jumping into the pool. Ana loved to swim around in her pink floatie swimsuit. She had a big smile on her face the entire time. Mike took great joy in giving his two daughters such a wonderful experience. We swam until it started getting dark and our hair began to freeze. Joe and I got a chance to steal a kiss in the corner of the pool. As we were traveling back under a beautiful moonlit snow sky I realized just how loved I am.
