On day three we are up early as we crank up the bikes to continue our ride through the mountains of eastern Idaho.  After a short ride, we cross into Wyoming and descend the mountain pass into Jackson.  Here we get our first glimpse of “Grand Teton National Park”.  This is a spectacular landscape rich with majestic mountains, pristine lakes and extraordinary wildlife.  The abrupt vertical rise of the jagged Teton Range contrasts with the horizontal sage-covered valley and glacial lakes at their base, creating a world-renowned scene that attracts nearly four million visitors per year.

Grand Teton National Park protects this stunning mountain scenery and a diverse array of wildlife.  The Teton Range is the focal point of the park and is the youngest range in the Rocky Mountains.  An active normal fault, the Teton Fault, lies on the 40-mile long mountain front.  Rock jets into the sky some 7,000 feet from the flat plains, with the highest peak at 13,770 feet, the Grand Teton.

The snowcapped, rigid-toothed peaks of Grand Teton National Park are the quintessential mountain range in America.  The Teton Range has more than twelve peaks at elevations greater than 12,000 feet, with its highest peak reaching 13,770 feet.  Seven moraine lakes run along the base of the range, more than 100 alpine lakes can be found in the backcountry, and over 200 miles of trails traverse through the mountainous terrain.

Mountain glaciers of the last major ice age shaped the Teton's more than any other erosion force.  At upper elevations, where most of the snow accumulated, the heads of huge, slow-moving glaciers scooped out depressions.  As frost is wedged into the rocks cracks, it increases their quarrying activity, braking away pieces to fall below.  Sheer cirque walls, rugged ridges, and jagged peaks reflect the dynamic carving of these great masses of moving ice.  Rocks of all sizes, falling onto and picked up by these glaciers, furthered their grinding power.

After marveling at the stunning beauty of the Grand Teton's, we find ourselves arriving at the entrance to “Yellowstone National Park”.  Among national parks, Yellowstone is first in many ways.  It is the first national park in the world.  It is the largest park in the lower 48 states, larger than the states of Delaware and Rhode Island combined.  It has some of the most famous park features, such as Old Faithful, the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, and freely roaming herds of buffalo.  It also includes the nation's largest wildlife preserves, an enormous lake, the Continental Divide, some 10,000 hydrothermal features, and over 1,000 miles of trails.  And its diversity of attractions is a match for any location on the planet.