Grand Teton - Evening

Don’t know why it surprised me but there is a lot of driving in the national parks. They’re large. A state highway goes through Yellowstone and continues through Grand Teton. Did you know there is less than 10 miles between Yellowstone and Grand Teton?

The highway through Grand Teton does not have a kiosk or require a national parks pass or entrance fee. There are kiosks on all the other roads/entrances, just not the main state highway. Why? It is a major road for commerce with trucks using it. It is also the route to the Jackson Hole airport, the only national airport located within a national park. 

Papa and I met our tour group in Jackson, located on the southern end of Grand Teton. That meant we drove the entire length of this road through the park. The iconic view of the Tetons is visible all along this highway!

A bit of trivia. The town is Jackson. The whole area including Grand Teton is referred to as Jackson Hole. For example, it is the Jackson Hole airport. The “hole” is the large circular valley surrounded by five different and distinctive mountain ranges, with the Grand Tetons being the most famous. 

We arrived in Jackson early. We parked in the tour meeting lot and walked the bustling downtown. We had a bison burger for lunch. Visited the antler arches located on the corners of the downtown square park. To pass the time, we played Gin Rummy on a little bistro table at the edge of the park. Children’s squeals and musicians sharing their craft kept us entertained. 

The four-hour guided tour of Grand Teton was in a large open air safari vehicle. Eight of us bounced around as our guide took us on back gravel roads in search of wildlife. The pronghorn were the biggest herds we found. The males (top right) with big horns, not antlers. The females grouped in separate herds with their young. 

We also spotted moose. Young moose are red and gradually turn a molted brown/black as they mature. It is thought they are red at birth because wolves are their main threat. Wolves are color blind so a young moose would have some natural protection. 

Unlike the moose, bison, and pronghorns, the squirrels are very, very friendly. They would come up to people and steal food from their hands. We also saw beaver, deer and spotted a couple black bears wrestling in the woods. 

The tour ended at sunset. We saw the sunset reflect on the Snake River and dip behind the Grand Tetons. It backlit the famous barn on Mormon Row. And the colorful sky was a stark contrast to the deep green grasses in the meadow. 

Tomorrow we will return to visit a few more iconic spots before starting our journey homeward.