Grand Tetons: In Which the Author Views the Tetons

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Tuesday August 11, 2009 In Which the Author Views the Tetons:

Well, it’s 8:44 p.m. on Tuesday—the sun has just set on the Grand Tetons National Park, as well as the foothills in the Teton National Forest in which Sophie and I are currently blogging. The mosquitoes are a freely buzzing, making it difficult to type…

We left Grassy Lake in the Tangree (I don't have access to the actual name now without great movement!) National Forest this morning; we camped at a great spot near the Grassy Lake dam. I saw a hawk late last evening and a bald eagle this morning. I went swimming in the lake, slowly drying off au natural, as there was only one other camper, also a solo male with a dog, and he was gone by the time Sophie and I woke up. It was my original intention to reach Belcher/Cave Wind area, which is located in SW Yellowstone, on the border of the park, but alas, the all-too-common elevation, combined with true “National Forest dirt road,” which took over an hour to go 15 miles, allowed to select a spot butting up against some kind of old rock quarry, as it was obvious that someone had dug out the back hills. It was interesting, once dark, to hear rocks of various sizes dribbling down the edges, taking on larger rocks and producing more sound as they fell.

I ate broccoli and cheese flavored rice and slept like a rock.

The road to Teton National Forest is experiencing a huge road project, with traffic stopped for up to 30 minutes (I read up on the Tetons and National Forest options); the pavement is torn up for 20-30 miles. No worries though, as Sophie and I adhere to the Simoneit maxim of pulling off and enjoying a leisurely drive. Grand Teton National Park, located in the southern shadow of Yellowstone, is a long, “vertical” line of at least 15 peaks, the largest of which is the “Grand Teton,” at 13,770 ft. I’m snapping a photo of it right now. Also, an owl is passing me, lit by the setting sun to the west.

It’s unfortunate that the Tetons are somewhat of a “drive by park,” often for the folks rich enough to fly into Jackson, home of the exclusive winter ski resort. The mountains are so vertically, and thus, unapproachable, that passing through Jenny Lake’s campground (60+ spaces, all tent), I was resigned to drive up to the neighboring Teton National Forest. My only stops were to eat lunch and refill the 2.5 gallon water containers. A right turn took me off the main north/south road through the Tetons, and 1.5 hours later up a touchy gravel/dirt road gave me the expansive, 360 degree, campsite for free..

After reorganizing the bins, phoning Jennifer (there’s cell phone, and obviously, internet service where I’m at—it still blows my mind), cooking some dinner (the rest of the Trader Joes ravioli, along with a can of corn), Sophie and I headed further up the road for a 2 hour hike. The photos are attached. I wanted to return to camp before sunset, in order to capture the sun setting behind the Tetons. I was relaxing, with the Jennifer’s birding scope and binocs out, looking at the map to decide about tomorrow’s journey, when a SUV pulled into the area about 50 yards north of me—so much for my private vista. It was fine, and to her credit, the female of the male-female couple came over and apologized for the camping. I had secretly been fuming, but then quickly decided that that it’s their land as much of mine and that they were “welcome.” They’re from Dallas, Tx., and have currently driven back down the hills for a shower, as they’ve spent a couple of days hiking the Cascade Pass here in Teton. When they return, if I’m still awake, I’ll get their story over a couple of PBRs.

The Tetons are sleeping now, and I’m thinking that I need to upload and view the pictures from today’s excellent hike (Sophie has so enjoyed the freedom to be off leash, and curious at her leisure…There’s also supposed to be a meteor shower tonight, if I, by chance, wake up between 3 and 5 a.m.
Thanks for reading!

Postscript: It’s 1:30 and I’m in the Jackson Public Library; as with many upper-scale mountain towns, the tax base from tourists must support a nice and modern library such as this. Sophie and I are heading south, probably about an hour out of town to camp in the valley of the National Forests, probably along the Snake River.
I bid farewell to the Tetons, and couldn’t say goodbye to my “amateur” neighbors, as they had, yet again, driven the hour back to the Teton valley in search of showers. Their 10 person cavernous tent stood empty, as the Perseids Meteor shower revealed about 10-15 brilliant meteors, some traveling incredibly slowly, in the night sky. Upon return from the nighttime shower expedition, the two lit their tent with the large SUV, and then proceeded to light their campsite with a high-powered lantern for at least a half hour. Then, this morning, the dude told me that something had gotten into their tent and had “rolled” their area with their bathroom tissue.
Sophie and I almost spent the night without the rainfly, but just before drifting off, I threw it over the top of the tent, making the interior the perfect temperature.

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Photos

Slide Lake mountan erosions
Note the evil man face

Sophie and tent
Teton National Forest 10 miles up a Forest road