Tetons: A First Visit

We've finally made it to Grand Teton National Park, and there's still snow on them thar hills and temps in the forties--our cold-weather streak continues. Even Patchouli was reluctant to leave bed in the morning.

Ken has come here every year for the past 40 or so, and knows his way around really well. We had hoped to take many hikes in the mountains, but our 16-day stay brought 14 days of rain, fog, and cold, and snow blocked many of the upper trails. (We finally got so disgusted with the weather that we swung back into sunnier Utah to wait out the snow.)

This and the next two blog entries give some photo highlights of the days we actually got out and about in the area. Amazing and charming wildlife all over the place--most of these critters showed up on our first day here, when Ken gave me a driving tour of the area. Talk about a grand display for my first visit to the Tetons!

Rugged and snowy skyline, even at the end of May. We saw the entire topline of the mountains only once in two weeks.

The Tetons as seen from the Gros Ventre campground. What a view to enjoy on my morning run.

The typical greeting committee on the way in and out of Gros Ventre campground. They were particularly thick on the afternoon of our arrival; one big boy wisely decided to wander off the road as Ken's motorhome inched by.

Bison were always here or on the other side of the hill, where the main road runs through the park between Jackson (at the south) and Yellowstone (to the north). A few bright brown calves cavorted with the herd.

Half of Gros Ventre campground was still closed for the winter, and this old girl took advantage of the empty loops for a nibble. Ken told me we'd probably have moose closer to our rigs, as well. Notice that there's no leafing out of the cottonwoods yet, and it's already nearly June.

APB All Cars Block the Road--a bear has been sighted! Ken says he's never seen a bear this far south in the Tetons. This fellow was just beyond the visitor's center in Moose Junction; we spotted him another time later in the week, so he must hang around this area. He's a black bear, despite his honey color.

Chipmunks galore in the forests and campground. Always so darned cute bouncing around like superballs, but boy are they hard to catch in a photograph!

Coyote on the afternoon prowl along the road into Gros Ventre.

An area between campsite loops in Gros Ventre was cordoned off with yellow tape to keep people away from a cluster of hollowed out cottonwoods. The reason? These baby great horned owls. Every day, two to ten parka-clad birders would hang out here with coffee mugs and cameras, their spotting scopes trained on this hole in the tree, in hopes of seeing the babies pop out. This was the second or third year the great horned pair had nested here. I was lucky to get this shot near the end of our stay (the trees are finally leafing out).

One of the great horned parents was always hanging out in a nearby tree, watching all the action below, which included me saying good morning during my run.

Pronghorn antelope make their home alongside the bison in the grasslands between Gros Ventre and the main road. They were often too far away to get a good shot of a whole herd. Two babies sprang around after each other in a mock battle, which was fun to watch.

The ubiquitous Uinta ground squirrel. These rodents were all over the region and gave Patchouli something to drool over from his cage cabana at the campground. He nearly caught one on a walk before it dived into a hole under a shrub.

Several Mountain bluebirds made their homes at Gros Ventre, and were just about the only flash of color in this winter-drab area, aside from some yellow and neon orange tents.

Now that's a different kind of RV.

One Saturday, the SnowKing lift was running for free as a "customer appreciation day" gift. This is a small ski resort south of town. Freezing cold winds at the top, but a marvelous view of all of Jackson Hole, the Tetons (once again under clouds), and the Elk Wildlife Refuge (that big expanse of grassland to the right). Most of the elk had moved north into Yellowstone by this time of year, so we didn't see many. We were glad to have brought a lap blanket with us for the lift.