8-21-19 Moran, WY & The Grand Tetons

The Fireside Buffalo Valley RV Park is southeast, just a bit, from the Grand Teton National Forest.  This is our third day here and we’ve been on the road for 10 weeks, tomorrow.  Yesterday was the first day I’ve worn shoes, socks and blue jeans.  It has been sunny and hot, by and large, so far (except for a few yellow and red cells that have missed us by a gnat’s ass), and shorts and sandals have been the name of the game.  Until August in Wyoming.  It was 42F this morning;  10 degrees shy of a snowfall.  So which is favorable?  Intolerably hot with 100% humidity or coats and mittens?  We’ve run the gamut.  Call me Princess Me Wanna Go Home to Pahrump Teepee.

The view from Jackson Lake

The Tetons are magnificent.  Anywhere you go, coming around the next bend evokes a gasp, “Oh My God!”  Yes, this is God’s Wonderland.  He was working overtime when He created the Tetons.  Over the millennia, they and adjacent lakes, canyons and valleys were formed by shifting plates, glaciers, ice ages and the usual, global warming.  There are many spectacular peaks in this range, the South and Middle Teton, Teewinot, Owen, St. John, Moran, the Cathedral Group and the grand-daddy of them all, The Grand Teton which towers toward the stars 13,775 feet.

Cunningham cabin

Cunningham cabin, built in 1888

On the way to our first adventure, we came upon Cunningham Cabin.  It was built by J. Pierce Cunningham and his wife, Margaret, during the days of the Homestead Act in 1888.  The Homestead Act basically said that if you could go out there and survive for 5 years, the 160 acre piece of land was yours.  The Cunninghams did it on their land in their (once considered “modern”) cabin, raising hay and grasses for their livestock to carry them through the unforgiving winters and cultivating healthy range grasses in the moderate seasons.  When ranching reached an economic low point in 1925, Cunningham and other ranchers proposed selling their ranches to the feds to create a national recreational area.  It turns out that John D. Rockefeller, Jr. was the money guy who really was responsible for funding the project and creating a national park of the Teton Range and its valley.

Rob traveled with his family to Jackson Hole, WY when he was 13 years old, just a few years back.  I have never been there.  It was on my bucket list.  I thought it was a ski area but I was mistaken.  Jackson Hole is a valley that was scraped out by the glaciers and through which the Snake River snakes its way, all surrounded by beautiful peaks.  One of them is Rendezvous Mountain. 

This mountain has been “conquered” by humans:  a tram carries summer visitors and winter skiers to its summit at 10,450 ft. at Jackson Hole Resort in Teton Village.  Obviously, we had to ride the tram!  At the top, you can see God.  The Grand Teton towers grandly in the distance.  A thousand trails (un-skiable by me) take one back to the base.  Later, Rob began to feel tippy with the altitude so I rode the Teewinot chair by myself.  Bikers load their bikes on this chair lift, ride to the top and bike down to the base.  Yes, they do this.  Why?  We’ll just have a beer on the outdoor deck and watch.

Have a beer and watch, Roberto!

The Grand Teton to Lindy's left

To the left is Mt. Teewinot, in the center is
Grand Teton (it looks shorter because
it is further away) and to the right,
the one with the glaciers,
is Mt. Owen

Nez Perce Mountain,
aka "Howling Wolf."  Do
you see it?

There is a boat tour and guide around Jenny Lake, another one of those deep blue lakes formed millennia ago by shifting plates, glaciers and global warming.  Jenny Lake is 260 feet deep and the beautiful mountains drop directly down into the water.  Our boatman explained many things about the geology, wildlife and the Teton Fault that changes the configuration of the peaks, even now.  We kept our eyes peeled for moose, bears and eagles but alas, we came up empty.  And not a single alligator.  The guide did tell us that many hard-core outdoors-men scale the peak of the Grand Teton on a regular basis, some in one day and some in two days.  “Because it’s there.”  True story:  a climbing ranger from Rocky Mt. National Park holds the record for bagging the Grand Teton:  2 hours and 53 minutes up and back.  Our boatman spends his free time in the winter climbing up the mountains with his skis on his back and skiing down onto the frozen lake.  Sixteen feet of snow per season makes this possible, or impossible, depending on your point of view.

They say the bears are "harmless and
afraid of humans,"
however, you can obtain your
bear spray at the General Store.

Stop sign ala Wyoming

At last, livestock!
A couple of white pelicans.