The Grand Tetons

Day 1:

 

It was a short, pleasant drive to Grand Teton National Park. The two parks are connected by the John D. Rockefeller Jr. Memorial Highway. The 24,000 acres along this stretch was transferred to the National Park Service in 1972 as a memorial of John D’s work in helping to establish the park.

 

I arrived at Flag Ranch Campground around 130 PM and checked in. Once the camper was set up I headed over across the road for some lunch at the lodge; you can’t beat a good bison burger on an onion roll. The waitress at the lodge was very helpful, bringing a map to the table and pointing out the highlights of the park.

 

Then I stopped at the visitor’s center to pick up some information only to find it closed for the season. But there were maps and the Teton News available in outside racks. Then it was off to the general store for some groceries. It was getting late so I decided to call it a day and get an earlier start in the morning after planning out my next day’s activities.

 

Tonight’s movie is Public Enemy (1931) with James Cagney and Jean Harlow.

 

Day 2:

 

Grand Teton National Park is 310,000 acres with one main road about 50 miles long that parallels the Teton Range. And it seems small after roaming the 2.2 million acres and 350 miles of road in Yellowstone. But the mountains are almost overwhelming. The highest peak in Yellowstone is Eagle Peak at 11,358 feet. The Teton Range has 6 mountains that top 12,000 feet with Grand Teton Mountain at 13.770. But unlike Glacier National Park, where one can literally drive on the sides of mountains, the Teton Range is accessible only by hiking in the park. Still, the views are awe inspiring and it’s difficult not to take repeated photos of them.

 

The day broke clear and cold, with pre-dawn temps in the upper 20’s. How do I know this? Because my propane tank emptied sometime during the night and the temp in the camper was down to 58 when I woke at 5:20 AM; no propane means no furnace and no furnace means no heat. Had to slip on something warm and switch tanks, glancing at the outside thermometer as I did. I got back in the sack and slept till 7:20 AM.

 

After looking over the map I decided to split the park in half. I would cover the south half today and the north half tomorrow. The weather warmed nicely into the 70’s and the sky was blue with puffy white clouds.

 

A bit south of the park’s southern entrance is a place originally called Grovont by the US Postal Service but now known as Mormon Row.  Settled in the 1890’s, this was once a thriving Mormon community consisting of 33 homesteads surrounded by a church and school, but only 6 structures remain. The others went into decay until the park service stepped in during the 1990‘s and are now helping to preserve them.

 

Then it was lunch at Dornan’s, just outside the south entrance of the park. A great place with a great view of the Teton Range whether you’re seated inside or out. The food is good with reasonable prices and the grocery store there is stocked extremely well. A nice selection of fresh fruits and vegetables, can goods and even a fresh meat counter.  

 

The waitress at the Flag Ranch Lodge had pointed out a place along the Snake River east of Gros Ventre Junction where I might spy a moose. So I took the drive and parked for a bit but no luck. The afternoon was getting on so I headed back for the park.

 

Right after you enter the south entrance there is a turnoff that leads to the Chapel of the Transfiguration. This log church was built in 1925 and still holds services on summer Sundays. They tell me there is a large picture window behind the alter with a view of the Teton Range (must be distracting to the congregation). But there was a wedding being held there today and I didn’t want to go in and disturb the services.

 

It was going to take me over an hour to drive back to the campground so I headed back, stopping along the way at Coulter Bay to pick myself up a souvenir. I have to say the mountain views along the way were most distracting, in a good way!

 

Tonight’s movie is Angles with Dirty Faces (1938) with James Cagney, Pat O’Brien, Humphrey Bogart and The Dead End Kids.

 

 

 

Day 3:

 

A touch of rain last night but the cloud cover kept the temps in the 50’s.

 

Since this was my last day at Grand Teton Park I decided to hit a few of the scenic overlooks and turnouts and try some HDR landscape photos. I just haven’t had the fortitude to get up early and stay out late to photograph wildlife. Perhaps I did too much of that at Yellowstone?

 

I started out the cloudy day at Jenny Lake Overlook and ended at Oxbow Turnout. Luckily the weather improved as the day went on and I did manage a few decent shots.

 

 

 

Hung around Oxbow for a few extra hours hoping to see a moose as it’s about the only animal, along with wolves, that I haven’t photographed on this trip. But the clock was ticking and I couldn’t stay until the dusky witching hour. I had to get back to camp a bit early and start getting ready for my morning departure back to the flatlands.

 

And so ends my adventure of Glacier NP, Yellowstone NP and Grand Tetons NP. It’s been a wonderful 3 weeks in the mountains; one I’ll remember for a long time. But will also be good to get back to the Midwest to visit with friends and family.

 

Tonight’s movie is All Quiet on the Western Front (1979) with Richard Thomas.