We woke up again this morning to another beautiful fall day here in the Yellowstone basin! But this morning unlike many of the ones over the past few weeks was really cold. As we pulled from our driveway this morning on our way to drop Brynn off at school the temp gauge was reading 28 degrees. By the time we got across the Snake River it was 25 degrees and even colder north of town.
The Snake River looked pretty cool as there was steam coming off of the water and for that to happen the air temp must be colder than the water. Trust me, the Snake River is not something to wade in this time of year as the water temperatures have dropped quite a bit. Anyway we dropped Brynn off and headed to the coffee shop and then north of town again.
Now forgive us as our camera was acting up this morning but I think you will enjoy our little adventure. We were alone this morning and the animals were right next to our truck at every turn. We took our time and sat and watched the three moose in the pics for quite some time. They were eating the sage next to the road and for the most part ignored us. Been then they decided to check us out and we rolled away as they headed to us. Very cool!
All in all we saw antelope, buffalo, moose, geese and most certainly some spectacular views of the valley. On this morning we passed through Kelly, Wyoming, past the entrance to the Gros Ventre canyon, over to Antelope flats and Mormon Row and then home again. Another great way to share a cup of java!
There simply are not words as to how fast this summer has gone. In the Rocky Mountain Region such as the Yellowstone Basin our summers are fairly short. Fall comes quickly and it is just about here. The leaves are starting to change and in just a week or two we will be in full blown Fall colors. A great time for pictures and I do not plan to miss this Fall like last. The picture above was one of my favorite from the Fall of 2012. This was taken at Black Tail Ponds and I am traveling up there every couple of days to make sure I get some good pics this year.
Just after Fall comes our long heavy winters and with winter comes some of the animals we see only for a few months each year. Below is a shot I took during the winter of 2012 – 2013. The big horn sheep are amazing to watch and this guy was one of my favorite. They will be arriving very soon and this winter I plan to take advantage of the opportunities to bring you some really cool shots. Enjoy…
Many of you know Teton Marketing because of the Native American Flutes they handcraft right here in Jackson Hole. Teton Marketing is growing and adding new products all the time. Recently they released their first hat that was primarily a hat to help spread the word about the company. Now they add a new hat that should appeal to everyone who lives or visits Jackson Hole.
High Altitude Designs from Teton Marketing is a new line of active wear clothing that people can use every day living here in Jackson Hole and beyond. Watch for the introduction of clothing, hats and more as they introduce them throughout the summer. Each clothing item will be branded with the Teton Marketing logo and appropriate taglines. All logos and taglines will be embroidered for a clean tasteful look. Teton Marketing hopes that you will enjoy each addition as they come available. The current Teton Marketing hats come from the Otto Collection and they are adjustable to fit any head. There are now offer three versions of the hats, all three versions feature variations of the Teton Marketing Logo, the website address, the Wyoming Bucking horse, the state name “Wyoming”, “Forever West” and of coarse “Jackson Hole”on the back of the cap. All of the current caps are jet black in color. These are very nice hats and all logos are embroidered, not silk screened. Each hat is $23.99 plus shipping. They are planning to add several more hat designs for those of you who love Jackson Hole Wyoming as much as they do. You can Get your Teton Marketing hat today at www.tetonmarketing.com.
About Their Logo
Inspired by the place they live. The Teton Range is truly one of the most inspiring mountain range in the world. Most people equate the Grand Tetons with Jackson Hole. Their Logo for Teton Marketing is their vision of what they see everyday. Like many of their flute fetishes that tend to be more whimsical, their logo falls comfortably in line with them. They tried to find a balance between a literal view of the range and their whimsical view. We think they accomplished this. Visit their website to see other products offered from Teton Marketing…
Jackson Hole Wyoming is truly an amazing place to visit, live and work. Most people when they think about visiting Jackson Hole will tell you that they think about the majesty of the Teton Mountain Range, Grand Teton National Park, Yellowstone Park, the wildlife plus all of the amazing thermal activity found just north of town. Whitewater rafting, hiking, tram rides, fishing and of course eating at one of the many fine eateries Jackson has to offer. Truthfully Jackson Hole Wyoming is a magical place for those who love the outdoors and appreciate the finest that God has to offer.
For those of you seeking a little taste of the old west while visiting Jackson Hole, set aside an evening and go to the Jackson Hole Rodeo. This is a truly an evening event worth spending time with your family. This is the real deal folks – for more than 100+ years the Jackson Hole Rodeo has been an integral part of Jackson Hole and the old west. For 2+ hours the Wilson family (5th generations Jackson Hole) will entertain you with brave young men who attempt to master the backs of bulls and broncs, while mostly the girls take to the backs of their quickest horse for a shot at being the fastest around the barrels.
If you have never been to a real rodeo you are in for a treat. A real piece of Americana that will not only make you proud to be an American but the Jackson Hole Rodeo will keep you on the edge of your seat for the entire evening. But the real story that I find at the rodeo is not the spectacle that takes place within the arena but what takes place behind the bucking chutes. Boys and men of all ages getting prepared to take their shot at making the 8 second ride into glory. And I mean all ages! There are boys as young as 4 years old getting their first rides all the way up to men in their late 40’s. And that alone is amazing to me as this is really a young mans sport.
Bravery comes in many forms but make no mistake, it takes a man with an incredible constitution to climb on the back of one of these very large and dangerous animals. Behind the chutes you will find these brave young men going through all kinds of rituals as they get ready for their rides. Some are jumping up and down trying to shake off their fears, others practice their ride by sitting on their bronc saddles while they lay on the floorboards of the chute area. Others walk around talking to themselves as if they are trying to convince one half of their other personality everything is ok while the other half is telling them NOT TO GO. These men, and I mean men, come from long distances and they pay a handsome fee to ride and compete for the best score. Most of them are clearly friends that come from the many ranches around the states of Idaho, Montana and of coarse, Wyoming.
As you mingle behind the chutes and fade into the background you can watch these men prepare themselves both physically and mentally for their next ride. You can see the grit and determination, the desire, hunger, fear, concerns, the focus they seek preparing themselves for their upcoming turn in the chutes. They pat each other on the back, high fives, words of encouragement, a nervous chuckle and for some just a simple stare into the eyes of one of their close friends looking for that simple smirk of encouragement and support. There is only constant support for those who are about to ride. No, behind these chutes is no place for a weak man.
Contrary to what many might think, these brave souls come in all shapes and sizes. young men with boyish faces, men with that expected cowboy look, men with scars, casts, slings, limps all giving testimony to earlier events. Many of them ride at least twice a week at this rodeo alone. When you are privileged to be part of this behind the chutes environment you gain a new respect for todays cowboys. They are a breath of fresh air in my opinion as they give testimony and carry on in the tradition of the old west and those men who came before them.
Yes I say – go to the rodeo and I promise you that you will enjoy an event that will leave you with a certain sense pride that only comes with being an American. The rodeo arena is an exciting place to watch all this unfold. A place where America’s truly most original sport was born and 8 seconds of sheer terror takes place right in front of your eyes. Watch with amazement as each young man climbs onto the back of their bull, their bronc, their ride that will surely come. For these men who ride, ride for both themselves as much as they ride for your entertainment. To do this comes only with a passion that is ingrained in the cowboy tradition that still lives on today right here in Jackson Hole Wyoming. These young men and women come to this event with the strong need to participate in this American sport. And yes courage and honor exist right here behind the bucking chutes of American Rodeo.
Wow, hard to believe it is February, 2013 already. I know I keep saying this but time is flying by as they say. After several days of winter weather the sky’s opened up this morning and gave us clear blue sky’s, well with a few clouds floating around. It was 9 degrees at the coffee shop but something makes you seem a lot warmer when you see good ol Mr. Sun.
One more stop at the DOG (Down On Glen) for one of Jackson’s premier breakfast burritos and off we go. Today’s destination was Oxbow Bend and Jackson Lake in Grand Teton National Park. The pictures above are a very typical morning here in the valley. You never know what will catch your eye when you cruise along. The truck in the pictures is our first brand new Ford F350 which we will be using this spring when we kick off our new Private Party Tours that we will be offering through our website http://www.tetonmarketing.com. If you are visiting Jackson this summer consider letting us take you out and see some of the things we are blessed to experience every day. More on this in future posts.
The temperatures this morning in Grand Teton National Park was hovering around a comfortable 10 degrees. I say comfortable because there was zero wind and the sun was beaming down bright upon us. Winter in the park can offer some really spectacular vistas and wildlife opportunities for your camera. We had the place to ourselves. We could stop on the road and pretty much do what ever we wanted. We saw several moose but they did not want to cooperate and pose for us. Nothing like a cup of hot coffee and some really spectacular scenery start your day out right. Enjoy…
Hard to believe that January, 2013 is in its last week already. The past three weeks here in the Yellowstone Basin and Jackson Hole have been cold. Some of the temperatures in the Moran Junction area were recorded as low as -38 degrees earlier this week. In Jackson the temperatures have been below zero almost every day. The high temps for the day if lucky have been just above zero.
That seems to be changing now as the cold temps are moving to the east. I laugh at the news reports when they say the low is going to be in the low 20’s. The good thing about these cold days is that they are created by a high pressure area and the sky’s are generally clear and blue. I have been out almost every morning looking for something special to shoot with my camera and it has been slim pickins as they say.
This morning I traveled north of town with Peyton after stopping for our morning cup of coffee and a blueberry scone. The sky was absolutely clear – devoid of morning haze and such. On mornings such as these the skyline that is behind the Teton Range to the west is usually a dark blue that helps perfectly highlight the shape of these magnificent peaks.
The pictures above are all taken this morning all within 10 minutes of each other. Each picture was taken from a different location on HWY 89 which is the road to Yellowstone. If you look closely you will see how the views of the Teton change. The first picture was taken from Antelope Flats area just north of Dornan’s. The second was above Schwabachers Landing, the third from Glacial Turnout and the fourth from the Ansel Adams turnout. Enjoy…
Wow Christmas has come and gone again! Hard to believe how fast the time seems to pass these days. As many of you know winter came late to the Yellowstone basin this year and for a while we were actually starting to wonder if we would ever see the snow fall. Needless to say it did and it is now cold like it should be with plenty of white stuff on the ground.
This morning as the sun was starting to creep its way over the Wind River Range I decided I was going to get up and grab one of my favorite cups of coffee and head north of town to see what I could find. I had an hour or two to kill so why not. It was a bit over cast and cold to boot. But once my truck warmed up and I had my cup in hand I was all about finding something fun and cool to watch. And as usual I did not disappoint myself.
This morning in short I saw quit a few characters from the neighborhood. I counted more than 25 moose, hundreds of buffalo, deer, elk, eagles, coyotes and more. This was not my first rodeo with taking pics of buffalo but this morning was bit unusual. The female in the slide-show did not want to get out of my way. She just stood fast and stared me down..So after taking a few pics of her I tried to nudge my truck past her and she did not like this. She let me know with a few twitches of her tail and growled at me loud enough to let me know I was getting too close.
Then to the right of me after plowing down a barbed wire fence I saw her boyfriend at a full run coming right at me. At first I was not sure what he was doing but I figured it out quickly. So I swung my camera around, snapped this shot and hit the gas and moved just past him as he passed within feet of my rear bumper. All I could see was this big guy plowing straight into the side of my truck – head first.
For the next hour or so I just marveled at the sheer beauty of this morning and although I was alone I was not… I was surrounded by the majesty of the morning, the mountains, the rising sun and the wildlife that accompanied me on my morning journey. And of coarse, some really solid classic vinyl (XM Radio). I will have to do this again…
Some of you may be wondering what happened to our weekly posts and the truth be told is we have been enjoying the most amazing Fall weather. I can’t remember when the last time we saw such a beautiful, warm, completely awesome Fall in Jackson Hole. Weekends at the lakes with our kids, people still riding their bikes around town and on the trails and more tourists seemed to hang around longer than in years past. Simply a very nice surprise for those of us living in the Yellowstone Basin.
But as we all know the winds of change come quickly when mother nature decides that it is time. One of most unusual things I noticed this fall was the complete lack of snow on the Tetons. It seems that there is always snow somewhere on these majestic peaks but this fall snow was almost devoid of this precious white commodity.
One of the side effects of this wonderful warm weather was the total lack of water that we saw this summer. Jackson narrowly escaped one of the worst fire seasons on record and because of the heroic efforts of so many firemen and state and federal assets Jackson narrowly escape what could have been a tragedy. So with our rivers and streams down and our open spaces brown with thirst this warm fall season left many of the true locals lacking the very basic things they need to survive the upcoming winter. We saw a return of the Bison to the area north of town and it was clear to me that this past spring and summer was good to these herds as their young were everywhere. But the lack of tall grass like we saw last year seems to be on the thin side and so we ponder how they will fair this winter.
One clear sign that pickings are thin were the numerous bears we saw this fall all looking for something to eat. On the Moose Wilson road the Hawthorne bushes that are usually packed with life giving berries simply did not seem to materialize. The lack of water this summer showed clearly how devastating this could be when it came time for these animals to find food in preparation for winter. We watched bears climbing trees and pulling empty berry branches to their mouths eating what ever they could get their paws on (literally).
Another event that fall brings is the beginning of the hunting season. People are pulling permits for Elk, Bear, Antelope, Wolves (new this year), Bison and even birds. Especially for the elk, fall brings the double hazard of foraging for food while hiding from hunters doing the same. Small groups which to me look like little families run for cover after coming out of hiding for a well deserved drink and then it is quickly up the hill side to the safety of the trees. Although I enjoy a good elk steak I enjoy even more seeing these beautiful animals in the wild. Yes Jackson Hole and the surround area is a magical place to live. And with each change in the seasons you definitely know what time of the year it is.
My worry this year is that because of the amazing summer and warm fall weather we have enjoyed, this winter may bring a true struggle for life for all that inhabit the great Yellowstone Basin. Especially for the young, this first winter for them will be the test of how strong they are. Food is scarce and they need these calories to make it through the winter.
As of now they look strong to me, and I am sure the Great Spirit will lift her hand to comfort them and bring them through what is about to come. I leave you with a Native American Flute Song that shares with you a message of peace and hope. Written and produced by Nakoa Heavyrunner, Assiniboine Native American Music Artist, The Honoring is presented first in song, then by Native American Flute, then English and finally one more time in Northern Cree. We too wish all of you peace and good life this winter.
Last winter we started posting several times per week to our blog what we called “Morning Coffee”. Simply put we drop our youngest daughter off at school and then head to the coffee shop for a cup and then we head out to see what we can find. We try to frequent our favorite coffee hangouts but we usually hit them all throughout the year. Summer has been absolutely spectacular here in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. But the summers here are too short and we try to make everyday count. But as quickly as summer rolls in – it rolls out and into Fall. Fall is actually one of my favorite times of the year. Cool crisp mornings and absolutely beautiful warm days.
Well school has started and we are back at it. This past weekend we purchased a new camera in Bozeman Montana. The new Nikon D3200 was our choice and so far we like it very much. This morning we headed north of town on the west bank side of the Snake River. Passing along the Moose Wilson Road we were met with a traffic jam as a Black Bear was foraging through the Hawthorne trees looking for berries. We decided to pass through the mayhem and onto Antelope Flats. There were almost no animals this morning with the exception of the bear but we did manage to find a small group of Pronghorn Antelope and shoot these shots. We are still trying to figure out how to use our new camera but I thought these pictures of a mother and her young were worth sharing.
The Pronghorn Antelope is a beautiful creature to see. They are the fastest animal in North American and can run at speeds that approach 60 miles per hour. They also migrate each year to and from the Yellowstone basin and their migration paths are some of the longest. This year the herds in our area have had a good year with offspring and they are growing in size. It won’t be long now before they start on their long journey south for the winter. When they do we will not see them again until next spring. The return of these awesome little guys marks the beginning of the coming summer which makes everyone around here happy. Stay tuned though as Fall and Winter approach we will be back at it again posting things we think are worth sharing about our home. We look forward to seeing some new and exciting events worthy of a post.
