Vacation

Travel: Jackson Hole – Part 1

| The Bee Life

Happy Tuesday and start to a short week after a longggg weekend.  I was lucky enough to have a super long weekend and was vacationing all last week in one of my favorite spots ever – Jackson Hole, Wyoming.  The last time I was out in JH was two-years ago, which was the first time B got to experience the magic and beauty of the Grant Tetons, he feel in love too.  To share the love of my trip, and in case any of you are planning a trip or looking for your next vacation spot, here is Part 1 of our trip, focusing on the hikes we took throughout the week!

Taggart Lake Trailhead
Level: Easy – Moderate | Distance: About 3-miles
You can access Taggart Lake once you enter Grand Teton National Park (GTNP) from the Moose Entrance Station it’s one of the first stops that is clearly marked as you head north.  It’s definitely a popular spot and you’ll run into fellow hikers and tourists, throughout this hike you’ll be stunned and amazed at the Grand Teton as you keep getting closer and closer.  Once you get to Taggart Lake you can definitely relax in serenity and soak in the views of the Grand. If you’re looking for more views and a little longer of a hike from Taggart Lake you can go a little further and reach Bradley Lake, if you’re looking for something more challenging you can also head to Ampitheater Lake from the Taggart Lake Trailhead.

Geraldine Lucas Cabin
Level: Easy | Distance: 2-miles
Geraldine Lucas was a pioneer for her time and the second woman to ever climb the Grand Teton (at 58-years-young).  She was mostly notable, unfortunately, for being a divorced single mother,  not only was she divorced and a single mother but she also attended college, in Ohio of all places. She retired out in Jackson Hole in 1913 – she acquired nearly 160 acres for her homestead.   The property was later owned by Harold Fabian, and the property is now commonly referred to as the Lucas-Fabian Homestead.  This trail is a bit tougher to find – well currently, but the park service is finally getting this on the map with marked trails and signs (as it’s currently a bit of an adventure to find).  Again off Teton Park Rd., you’ll want to look for The Climbers Ranch road and drive down the road past the first driveway, over a bridge and park to your right in a little pull off. The Cottonwood Creek Trail to the homestead starts there. You’ll again reach stunning views of the Tetons once you reach the 11-house homestead, Geraldine picked a killer spot.

Two Oceans & Emma Matilda Lakes 
Level: Moderate – Hard |  Distance: 4-11 miles
This hike was a random pick by me, mainly because of the name, Emma Matilda, a nickname my mom calls me.  You’ll get here by taking 191 and continuing onto 191 at Moran Junction, from there follow the signs to Two Oceans and Emma Matilda, after entering the park. The hike around Emma Matilda Lake is about 11-miles. The hike from Two Oceans to Emma Matilda is about 4-miles depending on how much you explore, Two Oceans is about a 6-mile hike, so you’ve got a lot of options with this spot. Although this is prime bear country so be sure to make noise while hiking (wearing a bell or clapping) and be sure to have bear spray! We did not see any grizzlies, unfortunately, but this is definitely one of the less traveled trails. The views however once you reach Emma Matilda from Two Oceans is unbelievable and definitely worth it. Our hike was cut short from some thunder and rain, but still totally worth it.

Although we only went on three hikes throughout the week, they were all different from when we were last out in JH. It was fun getting out and exploring and seeing as much of the beauty as we could up close and personal.  There are so many hidden spots and treasures in GTNP, and these are definitely a few of them!

Fitness Friday no. 14

| The Bee Life

Fitness Friday is back after a little vacay! Speaking of vacay, that’s the perfect segue into today’s Fitness Friday – workouts on the go.  With summer quickly here, especially now that Memorial Day has come and went, weekends are filling up with vacations, weddings, house work… you name it, and getting workouts in on the weekends, now becomes harder than workouts during the week! So I wanted to share some workouts that can be done pretty much anywhere, with little-to-no equipment needed.  Fitness Friday no 14 - the bee lifeRun – You can run anywhere if you have sneaks and the right clothing. Packing some extra clothes and your running shoes can help you get some key sweat sessions in when you have a moment in the morning or afternoon. When in doubt get your workout done earlier in the day,  waiting might close the window of getting one in!

The Bee’s On-The-Go Workout:

  1. Jumping Jacks/Jump Rope = 3 minutes
    • Again, no equipment needed, even for jumping rope, jumping in place and do the motion with your arms will tire you out not to mention will get your heart rate up
  2. Push-Ups = 5-sets of 10
  3. Squats = 5-sets of 25
    • You can do a variation of squats to jump squats, side squats, wide stance squats or normal squats.
  4. Side Leg Lifts = 3-sets of 15 each leg
  5. Donkey Kick = 5-sets of 25 each leg

You can do this set of exercises 5-times through or stagger them however you like. This will be enough to get your heart rate going, some muscles aching, and the feeling of accomplishment to enjoy your busy weekend of planned festivities!

Suggestion: If you’re on an extended stay or week long vacation and with friends/family, make working out a group activity so that everyone can get involved and help hold each other accountable.  If other’s are involved it’ll also help when planning activities, because everyone will be on the same page!

If you’re staying at a hotel, take advantage of the gym or even the pool and swim some laps before the crowds show up.  Swimming is a full body workout that can be accomplished in between long laying out sessions while you’re working on your tan!

What’re your go-to workouts when you’re on the go?

Weekend in the Woods

| The Bee Life

This past weekend B and I got out of town for a quick weekend getaway to the Cabin in the Woods.  I grew up in the country, but even this place is a little bit in the middle of nowhere for me.  I couldn’t even tell you where the closest gas station or grocery store would be, nor do you pass one on the way.


It’s always nice to get away to this little retreat, it’s so quiet and peaceful – but also extremely buggy. Plus it’s super close to one of our favorite breweries – Southern Tier, so of course we headed up there for the afternoon too.  Tasty beers, great food and an awesome atmosphere – we stay for hours.  We’ve made a yearly tradition out of it, but will definitely be going back before Summer’s end.

When we are back at the cabin we usually relax, and play board games (like Sorry!) and walk around the property with Moz.  She was super fascinated with the frogs while we walked around the pond, every time they jumped in and made a splash she would get scared and then become super curious! It was so cute. We also visited a homemade ice cream shop in the nearby ‘town’ – massive portions, huge selection and so cheap!

It was a fun – quick weekend away. I love creating memories, and traditions with B, even if they’re simple.

12 hours in the city

| The Bee Life

15.5 hours on a bus.
12 hours in the city.
19.1 miles walked.
33,768 steps.
Countless memories.

Yes. you read that correctly we did it again.

B got us tickets to New York City for my birthday back in March, and this past weekend was finally our trip! We took the megabus overnight from Rochester to the city, arriving mostly on-time at 7:30AM. First stop: Starbucks for some coffee, food and freshening up.

From there my detailed itinerary led the way for our adventures for the day. Next stop was Washington Square Park, the iconic spot from many movies but especially one of my favorites, When Harry Met Sally. To get there we were able to travel through Chelsea and Greenwich – and then finally to the arch.  It was massive! And the park was beautiful with a large fountain, it was so quiet and peaceful.

Next we ventured through SOHO – which was fabulous early in the morning, before everyone was awake.  We got to see a film crew filming TMNT – 2, but did not see anyone famous.  Is anyone famous even in that movie? We finally made our way to the 9/11 Memorial Fountains. It was breathtaking, I got a bit choked up reading some of the names and being at the memorial, it was beautiful and they are completely massive. The new building, One World Trade Center is quite the site to see as well, standing tall over the two memorials.  This was one of B’s favorite parts of the trip too.

We then walked the Hudson River Greenway down to Battery Park. Where we were able to get on the Statue Cruises ferry to visit Liberty Island and Ellis Island. This is the first time that B and I got to see the Statue of Liberty, and wow, seeing her close up is incredible, there is nothing like it. We had way to much fun taking selfie’s with her, and watching the million of tourists with their selfie sticks taking pictures with her too… so many selfie sticks.  Not to mention, the views of the city were remarkable, talk about a skyline.

We jumped back on the ferry to pop over to Ellis Island, where we did not stay too long.  It was a beautiful place, and the museum was massive – B and I don’t like crowds and the amount of people running around that place just sent us in a head spin. We got back on the Ferry and headed back to the mainland. Next stop: Wall Street and the famous bull.  Both were packed/surrounded by tourists – you literally couldn’t even get a clean photo with the bull because people where just swarming it, I wasn’t even interested after seeing that… We ventured over to the Seaport area and found a little Italian place to eat called Il Brigante Restaurant. The salad and pizza we shared were amazing.

Then my feet were killing me. So we just briefly checked out the Brooklyn Bridge – it was PACKED with people. It would’ve been so obnoxious to try and walk the whole thing, definitely an early morning activity for our next trip. We made our way back to SOHO and I found a Crocs store (not my first choice, but a last resort).  They surprisingly have super cute shoes! I got a cute pair for a steal of $20 and my feet where like brand new.  By this point in the day the rain had started to fall a little more steadily.  We Starbucks hopped and made our way over to where the megabus would be picking us up… only after getting completely soaked in the rain.

Our bus was 45-minutes late, causing us to get even more soaked standing outside waiting for it, we were a little miserable.  The 8-hour bus ride back was just as freezing sitting in wet clothes with air blowing on you. It was nice to get into my parents car around 3:30AM with warm sweatshirts, a blanket and Miss. Mozi!

Washington Square Park
9/11 Memorial Fountains: North Pool
South Pool
One World Trade Center
View from Battery Park Pier
Ellis Island
View from Ellis Island
Il Brigante Restaurant
Il Brigante Restaurant
Il Brigante Restaurant
Brooklyn Bridge Madness
Momofuku- Milkbar

Despite the cold miserable ending, B and I had a great trip… another adventure for us to look back on and remember.  I love going on adventures with B, exploring new places and seeing beautiful places.

We both agreed next time we visit NYC, we will be flying and staying in a hotel – no more megabus. Although we’ve loved the trips we have had, they’re definitely a whirlwind.

Daydream Friday

| The Bee Life

I woke up the other morning wanting to travel. I had a dream that I was in Paris going to see the Eiffel Tower, and now my imagination and hopes to travel are endless, I’m itching to go somewhere.

“Paris is always a good idea” – Audrey Hepburn

So of course, whenever I get on one of my “we need to travel” fits, I jump on Expedia and see how much a week long sabbatical would be.  I then proceed to text B and tell him “It’s only $3,500 to go to XXX place for a week!” to which he is probably thinking… “here we go again…” It’s a thing and every time it’s a new place.

My Top-5 Dream Vacation Spots*

Greece
Dublin, Ireland
Paris, France
Italy
Germany

*Subject to change at any moment. 

So on this beautiful Friday, I continue to daydream and plan out a million different vacations costing thousands and thousands of dollars that I don’t have… yet. I do know that I will see the world, slowly but surely and I can’t wait to do all of that with B.

Until then a girl can dream… Literally.

#emnbtoJH

| The Bee Life

Hello!

I was on a bit of a hiatus, I was vacationing all last week in fabulous Jackson Hole, Wyoming… I know not your typical vacation spot, but it’s mine!  As I was traveling out to JH, I realized it had been 5-years since I had last been, compared to going every summer during high school.  It felt like such a long time since I had been there, even though not much had changed. The Grand Tetons were still gorgeous as ever.

I was beyond thrilled to share this special place, that has been near and dear to my heart for almost a decade with B.  He is used to beach vacations, so this trip was completely different for him.  You can’t truly appreciate the experience or the beauty until you have been there, the pictures don’t give the mountainous scape justice. Here is a quick recap of our week!

Trip Highlights:

Horse back riding, hiking up Mt. Rendezvous, our happy hour night, and the various wildlife spotting: multiple moose, elk and buffalo.

Yellowstone National Park
Moose
The Grand Tetons
Horse back riding
Selfie!
In town
Happy Hour on the Deck
Mt. Rendevzous Hike
“Top of the World”
We did it!
Morning Coffee View
Million Dollar Cowboy Bar
Jenny Lake Lodge

The memories that I’ve made and the experiences I’ve had going to JH every summer are ones that I will never forget, and that is why I will always keep going back and also why I wanted to share it with Bentley.  It was a great trip, and I am glad B and I got a chance to take this vacation along with my parents!  It is the first of many trips for us, and I love exploring the world and all the different places. Time to start planning our next adventure!